Conservation Commission

Village of Brookfield Agenda Conservation Commission Meeting Tuesday, April 21, 2026 @ 6:00 PM Lower Level Conference Room, 8820 Brookfield Avenue Brookfield, IL 60513 I. Call to Order II. Roll Call III. Approval of Minutes 1. Conservation Commission Meeting Minutes - March 24, 2026 IV. Reports 1. Chair 2. Staff Update 3. Trustee Liaison V. Old Business 1. 2026 Sustainability and BCC Planning  BYOBucket Compost Event for International Compost Awareness Week 2. Planning for Board of Trustees Sustainability Update and Public Update 3. Letter to Hancock Engineering Regarding Concerns Over Water Main Construction Impacts to Trees VI. New Business 1. Potential IDOT Grants 2. Workday Planning 3. Plant Sale VII. Public Comment VIII. Adjournment Page 1 of 4  Village of Brookfield Minutes Conservation Commission Meeting Tuesday, March 24th, 2026 @ 6:00 P.M. Edward Barcal Hall 8820 Brookfield Avenue, Brookfield, IL 60513 I./II. ​ Call to Order at 6:01 P.M. and Roll Call. Conservation Commissioners Present: Bridget Jakubiak (Chair), Wyatt Widmer, Jennifer Nelson, Megha Patel, Kevin Leodinh, Logan St. John Conservation Commissioner(s) Absent: Iris Overstreet Strupp Conservation Trustee / Staff Liaison: Katie Kaluzny Staff Liaison: Robert Uphues Guest: Amy Hanson, Rebecca Fialla III. Approval of Minutes: Approved 2/24/26 2024 meeting minutes IV. Reports 1.​ Chair: Bridget reports that Meet the Creek has been confirmed for October 3rd. Go Green La Grange Area is going to come and help out. They also invited us to an Earth Day event at the La Grange Library The signs have been put up in the Kiwanis oak savanna. The final sign for notices has yet to be installed. New rails have been put up at the Canoe Launch Someone from the Monarch Pledge approached the village to see if we can apply. Also looking into qualifying for Bee City USA 2.​ Staff: Bob reports that he thinks our composting project can be advertised in next year's spring edition of the Brookfielder. Bob reports that public works is doing a tree planting ceremony on Arbor Day at Ehlert Park Also there is a proposal to raise ducks as livestock in Brookfield 3.​ Trustee Trustee Kaluzny reports that she's been advocating for the compost pile at public Liaison: meetings. The Planning and Zoning Commission is meeting again to discuss the zoning code update. There is still a chance to comment to the board. The village has RFP’d for the Grand Blvd revitalization with sustainable features as per the Sustainability Plan. V. Public Comment Amy Hanson came to comment on her support for composting. She also asked about the National Park Service funds for Creekside Woods. Bridget replied that our NPS project was completed in July and that a grant has been applied for a new bridge and a path leading through Creekside Woods to the bridge. They are meeting with public works next week regarding the project. Individuals with a disability requiring a reasonable accommodation in order to participate in any meeting should contact the Village of Brookfield at 708-485-7344 prior to the meeting. Wheelchair access may be gained through the police department (East) entrance of the Village Hall. Page 2 of 4  Megha emphasized the public safety element of preventing people from crossing the tracks illegally. Jen replied about the composting and that we are applying as a village to have food scraps included with yard waste. She also explained the proposal to bring finished compost into Brookfield for distribution. Amy Hanson also expressed that she's participating in the 50/50 tree program and was curious about planting in the parkway. Bridget replied that parkway planting is on the radar for discussion because of complications due to utility and road projects in town. Bob suggested that Amy send her comments regarding parkways to the Planning and Zoning Commission. Rebecca Fiala also commented that there are implements that can be installed to prevent aquatic birds from getting stuck in storm drains and catch basins. VI. Old Business Bob mentions that the electronic recycling event will have to be September 12th. Pumpkin Smash date is set for November 7th. Bob will arrange for it to be at Ehlert Park. Logan has set the date for the Stormwater Management presentation to May 7th. Katie and Rebecca Fiala had suggestions for what to share at the presentation including having a code enforcement person present. Bob will check if anyone is available for that. Megha met with a scout from Scout Troop 90 to perform either a bird survey at Creekside Woods or lead a bird walk at Kiwanis Oak Savanna. The date is TBD. Megha also reports that Troop 90 cannot participate in the Creek cleanup on the proposed date so they will try to reschedule it. Megha reports that she and Kevin put together a summary of the community comments on bike rack infrastructure. Jen designed a template for public comments regarding compost. The Commission as a whole will discuss when to bring our suggestions and reports to the village board. Jen reports that the compost meeting went well. Bob suggests we try to figure out when we want the compost to be available. He thinks it will be located in the commuter parking lot north of the Parks and Rec garage, at Kiwanis Park. Bob also suggests that Jen presents the compost idea to the village board during the Committee of the Whole. VII. New Business 1. Wyatt sets the next workday will be on April 11th. Jen will provide a connection to the ecology club at RBHS. Bridget will connect me to them. Project NICE will involve work at Creekside Woods. Wyatt says they will be working on moving deadwood off of the proposed trails and using it to line them. We might also plant at Creekside. Wyatt will evaluate if there are enough and the right kind of trees and shrubs from I Love Native Plants to supply for the workday. Wyatt will reach out again to Public Works to discuss plantings at the Canoe Launch. He will include Stevie, Bridget, and Bob on the email. Individuals with a disability requiring a reasonable accommodation in order to participate in any meeting should contact the Village of Brookfield at 708-485-7344 prior to the meeting. Wheelchair access may be gained through the police department (East) entrance of the Village Hall. Page 3 of 4  2. Bridget reports that she has completed a draft for a letter to Hancock Engineering regarding tree safety during construction projects. Bob said that they won't be doing any water main replacements in this year's work. Bridget suggests that she, Bob, and Wyatt meet with Hancock and public works to actually discuss our concerns. Katie suggests we draft some language to include enforcement of tree safety in bids that might affect parkway trees. Bridget suggests we also add language regarding how to replace trees. VIII. Adjournment @ 7:02 PM Next meeting on 04/21/26 Individuals with a disability requiring a reasonable accommodation in order to participate in any meeting should contact the Village of Brookfield at 708-485-7344 prior to the meeting. Wheelchair access may be gained through the police department (East) entrance of the Village Hall. Page 4 of 4