Lake Bluff residents opine on beach in droves

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Updated: March 24, 2012 8:43AM

Results of the resident survey on Lake Bluff’s beach were made public last week with few surprises on the comments overall -- but a big surprise on the number of people who responded.

There were 882 residents who submitted responses to the survey conducted last fall. The village has 5,722 residents and 2,178 households, according to the village’s website www.lakebluff.org.

“We got close to 20 percent response rate. That’s unheard of,” said Geoff Surkamer, chairman of the Sunrise Park and Beach Advisory Committee.

The participation level sends a clear message to the committee and the Park Board of Commissioners.

“The people have spoken,” Surkamer said. “They’re very passionate about the beach.”

The response rate “underscored the importance the beach and Sunrise Park have to the community overall and the park district of Lake Bluff,” said Park Board President Doug Nickels.

Generally, respondents said they like the beach and Sunrise Park as it is, but they would support some sprucing up.

In terms of what new amenities they would support in adding to the park and beach, the majority of respondents (63 percent) said they would be “very likely” or “likely” to support creating a more usable beach front and a central beach house facility with bathrooms and an activity room (51 percent).

Against shelter

On the flip side, most respondents said they were “unlikely” or “not supportive” of creating: a Sunrise Park shelter on the bluff overlooking the lake (57 percent); a boating pier or slip for drop-off only (54 percent); or a food and beverage concession area (51 percent).

When asked which existing amenities they would “very likely” or “likely” support improving, the majority of respondents said the restrooms (80 percent), communication regarding beach closures (75 percent) and bluff restoration (70 percent).

On what they would be “unlikely” to support or were “not supportive” of, the majority of respondents said improving the access road to the beach (59 percent); a tie between not improving the bluff’s viewing areas or existing boat facilities (41 percent); and a tie between not improving the staircase to the beach or the playground structures (40 percent).

Overall, almost 90 percent of the respondents “strongly agreed” or “agreed” that they would rate their overall impression of Sunrise Park and Beach as positive. On the question about overall beach maintenance, the overwhelming majority of respondents (92 percent) said they are “very satisfied,” “satisfied” or “somewhat satisfied” with the appearance of the beach and its amenities.

The beach amenities rated the worst —“below average” or “poor” — were the restrooms (46 percent); the playgrounds (20 percent) and the beach/sand quality (19 percent).

Enjoying the view

Just over 90 percent of the responding residents said they or someone in their household used Sunrise Park and Beach in the past year. The majority of respondents, almost 50 percent, live east of Sheridan Road and almost 30 percent live between Green Bay and Sheridan.

The three top reasons respondents used the beach were the view (64 percent), to walk (58 percent) and to swim (53 percent).

A third of the respondents said they used the beach for the shelters and the dog beach. Boating and using the playground ranked the lowest (12 percent).

The advisory group is in the process of creating subcommittees study the results and will get the word out to the public for volunteers to assist in that process, Surkamer said.

“We need to get (more) villagers involved,” to prioritize short- and long-term elements to include in a preliminary Sunrise Park and Beach Master Plan, Surkamer said.

The Advisory Committee is expected to present its findings to the Park District Board of Commissioners in May and hold community meetings throughout the summer months.

The beach advisory committee is one of three that will report back to the Board of Commissioners, Nickels said. The other two task forces are the pool task force and a long-term financial master plan group.

The complete results of the beach survey are available on the Park District website at www.lakebluffparks.org.