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McKinley Park Field House to Get Half-Million Dollar Facelift

By Casey Cora | October 1, 2014 5:23am
 The field house at McKinley Park will soon get a major upgrade, courtesy of a hefty state grant.
The field house at McKinley Park will soon get a major upgrade, courtesy of a hefty state grant.
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DNAinfo/Casey Cora

MCKINLEY PARK — The field house at McKinley Park will soon get a major upgrade, courtesy of a hefty state grant.

The Southwest Side park was named as one of the recipients of $2.4 million in state grant money aimed at fixing up the city's aging park facilities.

At McKinley Park, 2210 W. Pershing Road, the state's money — $543,750 — will be used to rehab the field house's exterior concrete, doors and windows as well as upgrade the interior, including the gymnasium. Together, the project is expected to cost about $725,000.

"It's an old building. Old infrastructure," park supervisor Vito Mastrandrea said.

Casey Cora explains a bit of the history of the field house:

Other parks receiving grant money include: Archer Park in Archer Heights, Dvorak Park in Pilsen, Sherman Park in Fuller Park and Englewood's Hamilton Park.

The grant was announced by Gov. Pat Quinn at a ceremony at McKinley Park on Saturday. The grants are part of $50 million in funding made available through the state's Parks and Recreational Facility Construction program.

Sierra Hinson, newly installed president of the McKinley Park Advisory Council, said the group is "very grateful" for the grant, which she said took the volunteer park stewards by surprise.

"It will allow us to do some of the most critical repairs to the building that need to be done and also helps the park district free up some funds for other improvements and services," she said.

Named after president William McKinley, the Southwest Side park originally opened in 1902 near a horse race track known as the Brighton Race Track. The dedication ceremony reportedly drew a crowd of 10,000 people.

The field house is believed to have opened sometime in the following decade.

Earlier this month, the park received brand new playground equipment and Hinson said there is a groundswell of support for a dog-friendly area within the 69-acre park. 

"It's good to see some positive movement in our community," said Hinson.

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