Arlington Heights Park District

Arlington Heights Park District serves the community in several different ways, including offering a variety of beautiful parks throughout the town. Each park has its own unique charm and offers a diverse list of amenities. Eriksson Engineering Associates, Ltd. (EEA) collaborated with the Arlington Heights Park District during renovations for Volz, Dryden, and Sunset Parks.

Volz Park was renovated to keep up with residents’ interests. Located in the south-central portion of Arlington Heights, residents can enjoy a playground, baseball field, basketball court, and open greenery for soccer practices. Due to the sport’s rising popularity, six pickleball courts were installed.

Representing one of the older parks in town, Dryden Park includes six pickleball courts and two tennis courts. Other highlights include a playground for children five-years old and under, as well as a main playground. Additionally, EEA renovated Sunset Ridge Park, which is located in the furthest northern section of the village and includes basketball courts, as well as a playground for children two- to twelve-years old.

The original intent of this project was to remove and replace the existing asphalt surface course and replace with a new asphalt surface (partial reconstruction). The majority of the courts that were previously utilized for tennis were converted for pickleball, with exception of Sunset Ridge. This court remained an outdoor basketball court.

After receiving the geotechnical report, it was determined that all of the existing facilities had poor subgrade materials that either contained deleterious materials from prior construction activity, buried topsoil, or poor bearing soils. With the additional knowledge, the scope was revised to include a full-depth reconstruction for all the courts to increase the longevity of the improvements. Due to the poor bearing material and buried topsoil, the undercuts ranging from 1.0’ – 2.0’ feet were recommended by the Geotech.

To reduce the amount of undercut required, a Tensar GeoGrid was specified to bridge over areas with poor bearing strength. The use of this product provided a structural benefit for the new pavement section while simultaneously reducing unforeseen costs associated with undercuts. Underdrainage improvements were proposed at the courts located in separate sewer areas, as allowed by the MWRD. The underdrains assist in removing accumulated runoff from the aggregate base of the pavement section in hopes to extend the lifespan of the pavement section and provide protection from the freeze-thaw cycles of the region.