Front Page

CAULDRON BOIL, CAULDRON BUBBLE

Zone 1 of the Hillmoor property, the land that encompasses both sides and the body of running river water called the White River, is set to be developed and likely to be sold off as ‘surplus property the city owns, although the city administrator withdrew that motion at the last city council meeting.  The illustrated map provides a clear representation of the different zones into which the property has been divided. Three conceptual plans are in the works for zone 1 of the Hillmoor property.

This is all part of the plan for the master plan, but of course, it needs to be done one zone at a time. Zone one is located over by the elementary school, skate park, and dog park area. This is potentially going to be one of the main entrances of Hillmoor Park. With that in mind, its configuration and what goes on it are very important. Michael Krajovic is a big part of the planning process, as his expertise in this area has been contracted by the city. Also, Upland Design is working with him and the city. The commission must come up with three rough ideas for Upland to work with to come up with the three conceptual plans.

During the Hillmoor Commission, different amenities that could potentially be implemented were a splash pad, band shell, playground, amphitheater, and green space with trails. The dog park was also discussed, as it is right in front of zone one. The dog park could potentially be relocated to the north of the property. Parking is also a big part of how the layout is configured. Final design for zone one is expected to be completed by the beginning of March and presented to city council on March 9th. In January, Upland Design is planning on presenting the preliminary conceptual plans to the commission. February 5th and 7th are very important dates as these are the scheduled meetings (one a weeknight and one on the weekend) for the public to review and give feedback on the plans. One of the biggest problems with the Hillmoor property is money.

Where is the money supposed to come from to do anything at all with the land when only basic ‘peanut’ grants are available to apply for (and not necessarily get selected to receive), which makes for a lot of trouble when what the people want (parkland) is not self-sustaining to develop.

Hence, the entry of developers with real money, mostly from Chicago.  Those developers will put up development money, but they want many things in return from the community, and as this nation has watched happen in so many areas, when they put their money in and pull their profits out, many times the community is left with a developmental mess.  What’s to be done with this zone one development being considered, not for lease but for sale…which is also something that was promised to the people when everything was signed for the purchase, that would not happen.

The community is going to pay ‘gobs’ of money more to its appointed dignitaries, in other places known as employees.  They are going to pay a lot for the new big many-thousand-dollar police boat, its maintenance, and its lodging to be used only in pleasant weather periods.

The city is not considering putting its money into Hillmoor, park or no park, YMCA or no YMCA, or for any other reason discussed. That money was not borrowed or raised to secure a foundation of support for the land into the future is unfortunate, although that was discussed back when the sale was finalized with borrowed money. That idea was rejected, and the city is now paying, in other ways than cash, for that financial mistake.

Download the PDF  from the Hillmoor Commission,
September 2025