The People Behind the Parks: 99% Fewer Errors, 95% Online Registrations, and a Community Reimagined

A behind-the-scenes look into the human side of digital transformation and the platform that helped the team spend less time on screens and more time with their community.

Rolling Meadows is the kind of community where seniors walk on familiar trails year after year, and families spend weekends between soccer fields, playgrounds, and the ice rink. The parks are the heartbeat of the city, and behind those parks is a hardworking team that keeps the heartbeat steady.

Yet beyond those moments is a complex web of registrations, rentals, schedules, payments, and daily resident interactions. And for years, that system was running on outdated tools that caused more friction than flow.

Rolling Meadows needed a partner who could keep up with their pace, their passion, and their commitment to the community.

That partner became CivicPlus.

The Challenge: When Technology Gets in the Way of Serving the Community

Before CivicPlus Recreation Management, staff were doing the best they could with a patchwork of external tools.

The reality behind the scenes looked like this:

• High per-transaction fees adding up to $30,000 each year
• Confusing online navigation that frustrated residents
• Reporting data that didn’t match accounting records
• League scheduling that required external tools and extra steps
• A POS system at the ice arena that delayed check-ins
• Rentals managed through multiple calendars and paper processes
• Staff spending hours every week correcting avoidable errors

For a park district that prides itself on accessibility, community joy, and welcoming every resident with a smile, technology was becoming a barrier instead of a bridge. All of these daily obstacles pushed the team to step back and rethink whether their tools were truly supporting the work.

The Turning Point: Why Recreation Management Won Unanimously

When the Rolling Meadows team sat down to compare systems, the decision was surprisingly simple.

Recreation Management stood out because:

• Residents found the interface intuitive, clean, and frustration-free
• Staff could customize workflows to match real district needs
• The system felt flexible, modern, and easy to learn
• Peer recommendations from neighboring districts built immediate trust
• The platform aligned with their new website redesign for cohesive branding
• Document Management and AudioEye removed expensive third-party tools

The decision went beyond software and was more about investing in a partnership.

The Transition: Smooth, Supported, and Surprisingly Easy

Rolling Meadows trained 15 full-time staff and 20 part-time staff, and within about a week of regular use, nearly every staff member felt confident in the new system. Even the roughly 100 seniors who needed early support adapted quickly and soon navigated the platform on their own.

Residents rebuilt their accounts with ease, Recreation Management trainers walked staff through every step with patience and clarity, and the transition paired perfectly with the district’s new website design. Rolling Meadows was entering a new chapter.

A Day in the Life: How Recreation Management Powers the People Who Power the Parks

The best way to understand impact is to walk alongside the staff who use Recreation Management every day. Here’s how Recreation Management changed the workday across the district.

Morning: Conor’s Kickoff

Before Recreation Management, the Superintendent of Recreation, Conor Cahill’s mornings were a scramble. Reports didn’t always match accounting data, registration numbers weren’t reliable, and league updates came from multiple tools that never quite aligned. He spent too much time double-checking spreadsheets, tracking answers, and trying to make decisions with information he didn’t fully trust.

With Recreation Management, his day starts very differently. He opens clean, accurate reports for registrations, payment trends, and league updates all in one place. He aligns with his team, reviews the morning’s messages, and steps into the day with clarity he didn’t have before. Everything he needs is at his fingertips.

The Impact:

• Trustworthy data
• Faster, more confident decisions
• Less time behind a screen and more time leading

Guest Services Hub: Karen’s Transformation

Before Recreation Management, Karen Richardson, Guest Services and Adult Program Coordinator, was constantly putting out fires: Walk-ins, long calls, confused residents, and clunky processes that slowed everything down.

After Recreation Management, her world opened up. Instead of troubleshooting and backtracking, she now spends her time supporting residents and keeping programs running smoothly.

A glimpse into Karen’s new day:

• Logs into Recreation Management and Outlook
• Processes refunds in seconds
• Removes waitlist participants with a click
• Encourages residents to create accounts to save staff time
• Uses quick actions to handle late payments
• Sends roster reports without manual formatting

The Impact:

• 95% online registrations (up from 75%)
• 99% decrease in registration errors
• 15–20 fewer phone calls each week

Facilities Command Center: Yessica’s Workflow Upgrade

Rental management used to feel like a maze for Yessica Alonso, Recreation Supervisor, who oversees rentals and parties. She had emails to track down, paper forms to organize, spreadsheets to update, and manual steps that left too much room for error.

With Recreation Management, she can tag, filter, and manage reservations in just a few clicks. Tasks that once took hours now take minutes.

Security deposits are now processed directly in the system, ID verification is collected through secure, encrypted uploads using Document Management, and weekly revenue reports export automatically, clean and ready to send.

The Impact:

• Rentals managed cleanly and consistently
• Faster refunds and fewer disputes
• Clearer, more confident communication with renters

Ice Arena: Patti’s POS Revolution

At the Nelson Sports Complex Ice Arena, freestyle skating used to run on old punch cards and handwritten tallies. Patti Lowth and her team spent too much time tracking who had paid, who still had sessions left, and which cards were valid. It was chaotic, confusing, and prone to errors, especially on busy days.

With Recreation Management, everything finally runs the way it should. POS scanning is smooth, punch cards became easy-to-use scan cards, and fewer calls interrupt the rink staff. Check-ins now take seconds instead of minutes, even when the ice is packed. For both residents and staff, the difference is night and day.

The Impact:

• Smooth, reliable POS scanning
• Scan cards replaced old punch cards
• Fewer calls and interruptions for rink staff
• Faster check-ins, even during busy sessions

Marketing and Branding: Robben’s Creative Flow

As the district’s graphic designer, Robben Burdick used to spend hours cleaning up text files, fixing formatting, and rebuilding program information before he could even begin the creative work. The process slowed production and left little room for the thoughtful design touches he wanted residents to enjoy.

With Recreation Management, his workflow finally supports his creativity. Exports come out clean and ready to use, QR codes link directly to filtered searches, and production time is cut significantly. Now, Robben has the time to focus on the design details the community sees and feels.

The Impact:

• No more manual text file cleanup
• QR codes link directly to filtered searches
• Production time is cut significantly

Across residents, staff, and facilities, the impact added up fast.

The Measurable Impact: Numbers That Tell a Story

Cost Savings

• $30,000 saved annually by eliminating their previous software’s fees and third-party tools
• Implementation investment recovered in 4–5 months

Operational Efficiency

• 99% reduction in registration errors
• 15–20 fewer weekly calls/walk-ins
• Staff trained in one week

Resident Experience

• 95% online registrations
• Vast majority of seniors transitioned to the new system, with only a handful needing extra assistance
• Faster check-ins, smoother navigation, and fewer complaints

Staff Happiness

• More time outdoors
• More time supporting programs
• Less time being IT troubleshooters or spreadsheet firefighters

Rolling Meadows didn’t just upgrade software, they upgraded their quality of life.

Community Impact: Where the Change Really Matters

Recreation Management helped Rolling Meadows:

• Reduce barriers for tech-shy residents
• Increase participation from all ages and abilities
• Support inclusive programming with accessible, mobile-friendly tools
• Strengthen community trust through smoother interactions

When residents spend less time being confused by forms and more time playing, skating, and exploring; everybody wins.

Looking Ahead: A Partnership for the Future

Rolling Meadows now sees Recreation Management not just as a tool, but as a foundation they can grow on.

They envision:

• Adding new modules
• Deepening website integrations
• Expanding mobile scanning
• Automating more tasks
• Staying ahead of tech trends in parks and recreation

End Note: A Model for Other Park Districts

Rolling Meadows didn’t transform overnight. They transformed because they had a team that cared deeply, a community that trusted them, and a partner who understood the work behind the magic. Recreation Management didn’t replace human touch. It made space for it. In the end, it’s not a story about software, it’s about empowering people to reclaim their time and purpose.

As Conor puts it best, “Recreation Management lets us spend less time on screens and more time with our community. That’s what parks and recreation should be about.”