Details on Wilmette Park District’s new leader as commissioners approve 3-year contract

Wilmette park commissioners authorized the next step in officially ushering in the district’s next executive director.

The Wilmette Park Board during its Monday, July 14 meeting approved an employment agreement with Christopher Lindgren, the district’s soon-to-be top employee. Officials, as first reported by The Record, announced their intentions to hire Lindgren in late June of this year.

Lindgren’s role with the park district will officially begin next Monday, July 21, according to district documents. His salary will begin at $190,000 and will increase to $195,000 as of Jan. 1, 2026, per the approved contract — an increase of approximately 9.5% on the base salary of Lindgren’s full-time predecessor, Steve Wilson, whose base salary was $171,848 as listed in his 2022 contract.

Lindgren’s employment contract with the park district is for a term of three years, running through July 20, 2028. The contract stipulates that the district must notify Lindgren at least 90 days prior to the contract’s expiration if it does not intend to enter a new agreement with him.

During his first and second years of employment, Lindgren will have 15 paid vacation days, of 120 hours and 12 sick days, or 96 hours. His vacation day total will increase to 20 days, or 160 hours, in his third year, the contract shows.

The park district will also provide its new leader with a district vehicle for business and personal use, per the approved contract. All related costs, including license, registration, insurance, gasoline, regular maintenance and repairs will be paid for by the district, the contract also states.

Lindgren comes to Wilmette after most recently serving as the deputy director of properties and planning for the Park District of Oak Park. And his appointment came after what park district officials described as an “extensive recruitment process” that saw the board review applications from dozens of candidates.

A graduate of River Forest’s Concordia University, Lindgren has more than 25 years of experience, including 12 with the Park District of Oak Park.

In his role there, Lindgren oversaw major capital projects, the construction of two net-zero buildings, secured grant funding for the Park District of Oak Park to expand access and sustainability in public spaces and helped work to reduce electricity usage across district facilities, park officials previously said.

Lindgren will replace interim executive director Margaret Resnick, who took over the position in late January of this year following the resignation of Steve Wilson, the Wilmette Park District’s executive director from 2011-2025.

Wilson resigned from his position in January following an internal investigation in the fall of 2023. An investigation from The Record detailed accusations of misconduct and a Park Board review of his hiring and promotional practices.

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