Winnetka Park Board votes to accept $3 million donation from lakefront property owner Ishbia

The Winnetka Park District Board narrowly voted Thursday night to accept a $3 million donation from billionaire Justin Ishbia, who has been involved in a long-running controversy that has seen him acquire and develop land along Lake Michigan adjacent to Park District land.

The board’s approval came despite concerns over stipulations required with the donation and the existence of a separate anonymous donation offer.

The 4-3 vote saw commissioners Colleen Root, Cynthia Rapp and James Hemmings vote against the donation while expressing hesitation about signing another agreement with Ishbia.

A representative for Ishbia made the offer from the recently created Ishbia Family Foundation at the Sept. 7 Park District Board meeting with the intention that the donation be used to shore up funding so the project could be completed all at once instead of in several phases and reopen the beaches ahead of schedule.

“My family and I are honored to help the Winnetka Park District bring to life its vision of stabilizing and enhancing the Elder and Centennial parks and beaches,” Ishbia said in a statement. “A considerable amount of time and effort has gone into creating the plans for a beautiful lakefront that people of all ages and abilities can access and bring their dogs to. We are pleased that the Winnetka Park District will be able to start the lakefront improvements in the foreseeable future so that it will soon be available for the community to enjoy.”

A land swap agreement between Ishbia and the Park District, which would see him trade the land he owns at 261 Sheridan Road with an equally sized parcel owned by the Park District at the southern edge of Centennial Park, has caused uproar in the village since it was signed in October 2020.

The swap would allow the Park District to complete a decadeslong dream of combining the two beaches into one contiguous beach. Ishbia also owns 3.7 acres immediately south of Centennial Park that he has since razed in anticipation of building a $43.7 million mansion for his family.

Despite being over three years since the deal was signed, deeds have yet to be exchanged. An ongoing lawsuit by Winnetka resident Robert Schriesheim has prevented the swap from going forward, among other issues, and the deal has been labeled as dormant by both Winnetka Park District Counsel Adam Simon and Ishbia’s lawyers.

The most recent version of the donation agreement would require the Park District to place a restrictive covenant on several aspects of the proposed Elder Lane and Centennial Beach project requiring those features remain in place for 50 years once built. This includes the proposed ADA accessible pathway, the stone breakwater at the southern end of Centennial Beach and the dog beach on Centennial along with its perimeter fencing and pedestrian bypass walkway.

Previous iterations of the donation agreement extended the restrictive covenant to 100 years.

Root took exception with the restrictive covenant saying she doesn’t believe any private citizen should be able to dictate what the Park District does with its land, even if only for specific design elements.

“I think to do this you are tying the hands of future generations. I don’t think you need the money to move forward with the project,” Root said. “This idea that you have to take this to do the project, I think, is a bit disingenuous to members of the public who came tonight who want to see the project (built).”

Board President Christina Codo said the restrictive covenant is only impacting those aspects of the project that serve both Ishbia and the Park District.

“That’s very important to me,” Codo said. “I do want to maintain public access. I do want to maintain the dog beach ad I do want to maintain ADA access.”

However, permits for the project are still being considered by the Village of Winnetka, the United States Army Corps of Engineers, the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency and the Illinois Department of Natural Resources. Rapp pointed out that any number of changes could be required by these agencies, thus altering the plans, and argued a decision on the donation should be withheld until all permits are granted.

Simon said if any agencies require substantive changes to the plan, it would dissolve the donation agreement and no funds would have to be returned since the first installment of the donation, a sum of $1 million, wouldn’t be given until after notice is provided that construction on the project will begin.

“We have off ramps as well if we decide not to build these elements,” Codo said. “It’s always good to remember we have choices.”

Simon backed up Codo, explaining the agreement doesn’t force the board to build the project elements, only keep them for 50 years once built.

The remaining $2 million balance will be given within 30 days of the projects completion and a review by an arbiter. Outgoing Winnetka Park District Executive Director John Peterson has been tasked with the unpaid arbiter role, a decision that has split commissioners into factions that believe it could work in the Park District’s favor and those who don’t like the optics.

Hemmings isn’t a fan of having an arbiter at all, saying if there is one, that their role should end once construction is complete. He also took umbrage with the inclusion of a liquidated damages provision requiring the Park District pay back the donation if the southern breakwater is removed or destroyed.

“I don’t think a liquidated damages provision is appropriate in a monetary donation. I understand why Mr. Ishbia wants it,” Hemmings said. “Frankly, his mistrust of the Park District, to me, is not justification for accepting and setting a precedent for having liquidated damages in these kind of agreements.”

Board Vice President Eric Lussen, who voted in favor of accepting the donation, claimed the liquidation provision is insignificant, saying the money gives the Park District the opportunity to enhance the project.

“It’s important to understand what this project means to us because, no offense to anybody in the room, it’s not about us,” Lussen said. “It’s more about your children, your grandchildren and your great-grandchildren.”

He also stated those residents who are opposed to the board accepting the Ishbia donation were more often than not also opposed to the project as a whole. Those residents have urged the board to instead accept a separate $3 million donation from an anonymous donor who had their representative pitch the idea at the Dec. 14 meeting.

In order for the board to accept the anonymous donation, the donor has stipulated the land swap deal be dropped and the Park District not enter any agreements with private individuals who would alter the use of the park. Simon told the board that if it were to accept the anonymous donation and end the land swap agreement, there is risk of litigation by Ishbia to enforce the land swap deal. If lost, the Park District would be required to return the anonymous donation and pay Ishbia’s court costs as well.

Hemmings has met with the anonymous donor’s lawyer Robert Romanoff and was told the donor is aware of the risk of litigation to the Park District and may be interested in assisting with those costs.

Not all Winnetka residents outright oppose the donation. Laura Glenn spoke at the meeting thanking the board and Peterson for the hard work.

“I know that living in this community, for some reason, people are extremely fearful of change,” Glenn said. “As I look at the changes I’ve seen in 26 years and I think about how resistant and how long change took ... I don’t think anybody’s looked back and thought ‘we shouldn’t have done those.’”

Resident Stephen Todd spoke in support of the Ishbia donation, saying the board has heard the concerns of residents and adjusted the agreement in a way that benefits the community.

Former Park District Commissioner Mary Garrison asked if it’s possible for the board to accept both donations and use the Ishbia donation toward reducing the cost of purchasing 261 Sheridan from Ishbia. Susie Schreiber, another former commissioner, asked that the board hold off on a vote until incoming Executive Director Shannon Nazzal comes on board next month.

Resident Katie Stevens called the vote a defining moment for the Park District.

“You guys have to do what’s right,” Stevens said. “This is the defining moment of your character of whether you’re going for a private individual or the public ... I do not want anyone to have the conveyance of our park for one day yet alone 50 years.”