Public Act 098-0325
 
HB2232 EnrolledLRB098 08872 OMW 39003 b


  
    AN ACT concerning local government.
  
 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
 
represented in the General Assembly:
  



 
 
    Section 5. The Park District Code is amended  by changing 
Section 8-1 as follows:
 



    (70 ILCS 1205/8-1)  (from Ch. 105, par. 8-1)



    Sec. 8-1. General corporate powers.
Every park district 
shall, from the time of its
organization, be a body corporate 
and politic by such name as set forth
in the petition for its 
organization or such name as it may adopt under
Section 8-8 
hereof and shall have and exercise the following powers:

    (a) To adopt a corporate seal and alter the same at 
pleasure; to sue
and be sued; and to contract in furtherance of 
any of its corporate purposes.

    (b) (1) To acquire by gift, legacy, grant or purchase, or 
by
condemnation in the manner provided for the exercise of the 
power of eminent
domain under the Eminent Domain Act, any and 
all real estate, or
rights therein necessary for building, 
laying out, extending, adorning
and maintaining any such parks, 
boulevards and driveways, or for
effecting any of the powers or 
purposes granted under this Code as its
board may deem proper, 
whether such lands be located within or without such
district; 
but no park district, except as provided in paragraph (2) of 
this
subsection, shall have any power of condemnation in the 
manner provided for the
exercise of the power of eminent domain 
under the Eminent Domain Act or otherwise as to any real

estate, lands, riparian rights or estate, or other property 
situated outside of
such district, but shall only have power to 
acquire the same by gift, legacy,
grant or purchase, and such 
district shall have the same control of and power
over lands so 
acquired without the district as over parks, boulevards and

driveways within such district.

    (2) In addition to the powers granted in paragraph (1) of 
subsection (b),
a park district located in more than one 
county, the majority of its territory
located in a county over 
450,000 in population and none of its territory
located in a 
county over 1,000,000 in population, shall have condemnation

power in the manner provided for the exercise of the power of 
eminent domain
under the Eminent Domain Act

or as otherwise 
granted by law
as to any and all real estate situated up to one 
mile outside of such district
which is not within the 
boundaries of another park district.

    (c) To acquire by gift, legacy or purchase any personal 
property necessary
for its corporate purposes provided that all 
contracts for supplies, materials
or work involving an 
expenditure in excess of $20,000 shall be let to the
lowest 
responsible bidder after due advertisement. No district shall 
be required to accept a bid that does not meet the district's 
established specifications, terms of
delivery, quality, and 
serviceability requirements.   Contracts which, by their nature, 
are not adapted to award by competitive
bidding, such as 
contracts for the services of individuals
possessing a high 
degree of professional skill where the ability or
fitness of 
the individual plays an important part, contracts for the

printing of finance committee reports and departmental 
reports,
contracts for the printing or engraving of bonds, tax 
warrants and other
evidences of indebtedness, contracts for 
utility services such as water,
light, heat, telephone or 
telegraph, contracts for the use, purchase,
delivery, 
movement, or installation of data processing equipment, 
software, or
services and telecommunications and interconnect 
equipment, software, or
services, contracts for duplicating 
machines and supplies, contracts for goods
or services procured 
from another governmental agency, purchases of equipment

previously owned by some entity other than the district itself, 
and
contracts for the purchase of magazines, books, 
periodicals, pamphlets and
reports are not subject to 
competitive bidding.  Contracts for emergency expenditures are 
also exempt from competitive bidding when the

emergency 
expenditure is approved by 3/4 of the members of the board.

    All competitive bids for contracts involving an 
expenditure in excess of
$20,000 must be sealed by the bidder 
and must be opened by a member or employee
of the park board at 
a public bid opening at which the contents of the bids
must be 
announced.  Each bidder must receive at least 3 days notice of 
the
time and place of the bid opening.

    For purposes of this subsection, "due advertisement" 
includes, but is not
limited to, at least one public notice at 
least 10 days before the bid date in
a newspaper published in 
the district or, if no newspaper is published in the
district, 
in a newspaper of general circulation in the area of the 
district.

    (d) To pass all necessary ordinances, rules and regulations 
for the
proper management and conduct of the business of the 
board and district
and to establish by ordinance all needful 
rules and regulations for the
government and protection of 
parks, boulevards and driveways and other
property under its 
jurisdiction, and to effect the objects for which
such 
districts are formed.

    (e) To prescribe such fines and penalties for the violation 
of
ordinances as it shall deem proper not exceeding $1,000 for 
any
one
offense, which fines and penalties may be recovered by 
an action in the name
of such district in the circuit court for 
the county in which such
violation occurred. The park district 
may also seek in the action, in
addition to or instead of fines 
and penalties, an order that the offender
be required to make 
restitution for damage resulting from violations, and
the court 
shall grant such relief where appropriate.  The procedure in

such actions shall be the same as that provided by law for like 
actions for the
violation of ordinances in cities organized 
under the general laws of this
State, and offenders may be 
imprisoned for non-payment of fines and costs in
the same 
manner as in such cities. All fines when collected shall be 
paid into
the treasury of such district.

    (f) To manage and control all officers and property of such

districts and to provide for joint ownership with one or more 
cities,
villages or incorporated towns of real and personal 
property used for
park purposes by one or more park districts. 
In case of joint ownership,
the terms of the agreement shall be 
fair, just and equitable to all
parties and shall be set forth 
in a written agreement entered into by
the corporate 
authorities of each participating district, city, village
or 
incorporated town.

    (g) To secure grants and loans, or either, from the United 
States
Government, or any agency or agencies thereof, for 
financing the
acquisition or purchase of any and all real 
estate, or rights therein,
or for effecting any of the powers 
or purposes granted under this Code
as its Board may deem 
proper.

    (h) To establish fees for the use of facilities and 
recreational programs of
the districts and to derive revenue 
from non-resident fees from their
operations. Fees charged 
non-residents of such district need not be the same as
fees 
charged to residents of the district. Charging fees or deriving 
revenue
from the facilities and recreational programs shall not 
affect the right to
assert or utilize any defense or immunity, 
common law or statutory, available
to the districts or their 
employees.

    (i) To make contracts for a term exceeding one year, but 
not to exceed
3 years, notwithstanding any provision of this 
Code to the contrary,
relating to:  (1) the employment of a park 
director, superintendent,
administrator, engineer, health 
officer, land planner, finance director,
attorney, police 
chief, or other officer who requires technical training or

knowledge; (2) the employment of outside professional 
consultants such as
engineers, doctors, land planners, 
auditors, attorneys, or other
professional consultants who 
require technical training or knowledge; and (3)
the provision 
of data processing equipment and services; and (4) the purchase 
of energy from a utility or an alternative retail electric 
supplier.  With respect to
any contract made under this 
subsection (i), the corporate authorities
shall include in the 
annual appropriation ordinance for each fiscal year an

appropriation of a sum of money sufficient to pay the amount 
which, by the
terms of the contract, is to become due and 
payable during that fiscal year.

    (j) To enter into licensing or management agreements with 
not-for-profit
corporations organized under the laws of this 
State to operate park district
facilities if the corporation 
covenants to use the facilities to provide public
park or 
recreational programs for youth.

(Source: P.A. 94-1055, eff. 1-1-07; 95-67, eff. 1-1-08.)

 
 
    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon 
becoming law.