Meetings scheduled for next week:
- Tuesday, September 26:
- Village Board Finance Committee, 6:30 p.m. in Council Chambers
- Board of Health, 6 p.m. in Room 102
- Community Development Citizens Advisory Committee, 6:30 p.m. in Room 101
- Wednesday, September 27:
- Community Design Commission, 7 p.m. in Council Chambers
- Thursday, September 28:
- Historic Preservation Commission Architectural Review Committee, 7:30 p.m. in Room 101
Oak Park residents are invited to safely dispose of sensitive documents and foam products with the No. 6 symbol at a free paper shredding and foam recycling event from 9 a.m. to noon this Saturday, Sept. 23 at the Public Works Center, 201 South Blvd. This marks the first Public Works event where residents can recycle foam products with the No. 6 symbol, which are not accepted as part of the Village's single-stream recycling program. Please collect foam products in a clear, translucent bag and rinse/wipe food service containers. For paper shredding, each household can bring two bags or small boxes of paper items with personal information such as canceled checks and documents containing credit card numbers, social security numbers and medical information. Find more details about the event on the Village website – click here to view.
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The Village’s series of Hispanic Heritage Month events kicks off with a visit from Prisca Dorcas Mojica Rodríguez, author of “For Brown Girls With Sharp Edges and Tender Hearts,” at 1 p.m. Sun., Sept. 24 in the Veteran’s Room at the Oak Park Public Library, 834 Lake St. A storyteller, public theologian, feminist and advocate, Mojica Rodríguez will provide a keynote address presented by the Village, Oak Park Public Library, Oak Park Township and Oak Park Latine planning committee. More information is on the Library website – click here to view. A community roundtable discussion centered around the themes of prosperity, progress and power will be held in the Veteran’s Room at the Oak Park Public Library at 6 p.m. on Thurs., Sept. 28. No registration is required for this event and complimentary refreshments will be served. For more information about all of the Village’s Hispanic Heritage Month, visit www.oak-park.us/HispanicHeritage.
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On Wed., Sept. 20, Village staff hosted a public meeting in conjunction with the Metropolitan Mayors Caucus to allow engaged stakeholders the opportunity to provide insight on Oak Park's key housing challenges and priorities. Nearly 50 residents attended the session at Village Hall to provide valuable input to the process. The housing survey, now available on Engage Oak Park, has received more than 420 responses since it was launched on Aug. 28. The survey remains remain open and available to those who have not responded and still wish to do so.
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Dr. Danielle Walker, the Village’s Chief Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Officer, is participating in the second cohort of the Learning and Operationalizing Racial Equity (LORE) pilot program. Conducted by the UIC Great Cities Institute in partnership with the Metropolitan Mayors Caucus and the Illinois City/County Management Association, the LORE pilot program provides support to municipalities interested in operationalizing diversity, equity and inclusion. The eight-month program is split evenly between two four-month sessions. The current fall session was specifically designed for top decision makers to understand and make the case for DEI-driven organizational projects to key internal and external stakeholders. Click here for more information about the program.
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Daily revenue is up 39% and customer counts are also up at all three Village-owned parking garages through the first eight months of the year as compared to the same time period last year. However, revenue and customer counts continue to lag when compared to pre-pandemic data collected in 2019. The Holley Court garage has seen the biggest jump in revenue compared to last year, with a 56% increase in revenue and more than 36,000 daily users through the first eight months of the year. Daily revenue is up 42% at the Avenue garage and up 14% at the Lake & Forest Garage compared to 2022. However, when compared to the first eight months of 2019, revenue is down 23% at the Avenue Garage and down 34% at the Lake & Forest Garage. The Holley Court Garage’s revenue is actually up 12% compared to the first eight months of 2019, but there have been 100,000 fewer daily customer counts. Click the links below for detailed comparisons from 2019 to present for the three garages:
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The Village has sold 17,878 vehicle licenses totaling more than $1.18 million in revenue since licenses went on sale in May. See the chart below for a comparison of vehicle license sales over the past few years. While the 2023 information in the chart is through Sept 15, the 2019-2022 data reflects licenses purchased for those entire years. Residents who have not yet purchased their license are urged to do so to avoid receiving a citation. Every resident is required to purchase a license for each owned or leased motor vehicle. Rates vary by type of vehicle, and a $20 late fee is now applied to purchases.
About a dozen architects, designers, contractors and interested residents attended the first of two Coffee & Codes chats hosted by the Development Customer Services Department’s Permit Processing Division. During the two-hour event Wednesday at Village Hall, Chief Building Official Steven Cutaia presented information about the 2021 edition of the International Building Codes adopted by the Village earlier this year and set to go in effect Jan. 1, 2024. Included in the presentation was a discussion of the Village’s all-electric new construction ordinance. A second Codes & Coffee event is planned for Dec. 13 at Village Hall as part of the Village’s ongoing public education efforts related to the new code adoptions. The Permit Processing Division is also hosting two full-day seminars focusing on the 2021 code change fundamentals for residential and commercial construction. Information about the Village’s electrification ordinance was included in the September/October edition of the OP/FYI newsletter and is available at www.engageoakpark.com/electrifcation.
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The Village has issued 114 short-term rental licenses since the licensing program began in 2022. In addition, 15 short-term rental applications have been submitted and are currently under consideration for approval. Fifteen applications have also been withdrawn by the property owners or at the request of the rental property owners. Short-term rentals, through companies such as Airbnb, pay the same 4% tax as the Village’s hotel and bed and breakfast businesses.
As part of National Suicide Prevention Month, Oak Park health officials are raising awareness of the significant public health impact of firearm suicide in the United States, where nearly six of every 10 firearm deaths are suicides. One life-saving intervention is to disrupt a person’s access to a gun when they are in crisis. Free gun locks are available from the Oak Park Public Health Department, and members of the public can pick them up at Village Hall, 123 Madison St. Community members can also pick up a free gun lock by visiting the Health Department’s partners at the Oak Park Township office at 105 S. Oak Park Ave. and the Community Mental Health Board office, located in the Community Recreation Center at 229 Madison St. Find more information about safe gun storage on the Village website at www.oak-park.us/safestorage. The 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline offers 24/7 support to anyone experiencing a mental health crisis or seeking other kinds of support related to suicide, mental health or substance by calling 988 – click here for more information.
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Community members are invited to join neighbors and friends for a healthy walk around the indoor path at the Park District of Oak Park’s Community Recreation Center from 10 a.m. to noon next Tues., Sept. 26. The Oak Park Public Health Department’s nurse Kitty Monty will be on hand to walk and talk with participants and offer free blood pressure checks, diabetic risk assessments and answer questions. Participants can also visit the community activity room in the CRC lobby to get information from local organizations and support groups before heading out for the day. Find more information and register for the free event on the Park District website - click here to view.
The Oak Park Department of Public Health hosted a free training Thursday evening on how to respond to and reverse an opioid overdose as part of its Opioid Overdose Prevention program. Clinical and health education staff provided a dozen community members with hands-on instruction about spotting signs of an opioid overdose and how to render aid, including how to administer Narcan nasal spray. The training also provided background on the harm reduction approach to the opioid epidemic and information on local partners working to address this issue in Oak Park. In addition to in-person trainings, the Public Health Department provides free opioid overdose prevention kits in seven locations throughout the community. Learn more about the program www.oak-park.us/naloxone. Trainings are ongoing, and any interested participants can reach out to the Public Health Department at 708.358.5480 or health@oak-park.us to be notified of the next training opportunity.
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The Oak Park Public Health Department teamed up with the Beye Elementary School PTO last week to pilot a new event, the Farmers’ Market Feast. About 50 members of the Beye School community gathered on Sept. 17 to taste and try fruits and vegetables fresh from the Oak Park Farmers’ Market. At the start of the event, students, parents and siblings picked up a Market passport to guide them through the feast where they could try familiar items like cantaloupe and cucumbers, as well as more adventurous dishes like rutabaga mash, beet hummus and kale chips. Representatives from the Public Health Department were on hand to answer questions and provide take-home recipes for families to try at home. The Oak Park Public Library’s book bike was also stationed at the event, with books about farming and food preparation.
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The Village Clerk’s Office celebrated National Voter Registration Day on Tues., Sept. 19 with an event in Village Hall and a visit to Brookdale Oak Park. Despite rainy weather, Clerk Christina M. Waters and Deputy Clerk Cindy Hansen assisted nearly a dozen residents in registering or updating their status. The Clerk’s Office will also be out at the Oak Park Farmers’ Market in the Pilgrim Church parking lot (460 Lake St.) on Sat., Sept. 23 from 10 a.m. until noon to register more voters.
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The Office of Sustainability and Resilience and Office of Communications and Engagement recently teamed up to produce a new video highlighting the link between monarch butterflies and Latine Heritage featuring Oak Park resident Virginia Martinez. Click here to view the video. Find information about how to protect butterflies with natural lawn care on the Village website at www.oak-park.us/naturallawncare.
The Office of Sustainability and Resiliency recently hosted three data jam workshops to provide hands-on help to local building owners related to energy benchmarking for their properties. The events were conducted in partnership with Illinois Green Alliance and Midwest Energy Efficiency Alliance. Buildings with more than 10,000 square feet are required to report energy and water data by Dec. 31. Learn more about benchmarking at www.oak-park.us/building-benchmarking.
Oak Park residents and businesses with an alarm registered with the Fire Department and/or Police Department are reminded that permits must be renewed annually by Sept. 30. Alarm systems such as burglar, fire, hold-up and medical require installation and operation permits, whether in residential or business locations. Permits can be applied for and renewed via the Village View portal. For more information about alarm registration, visit www.oak-park.us/fire or email finance@oak-park.us.
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Village President Vicki Scaman and Development Customer Services Department staff attended the Oak Park River Forest Chamber of Commerce’s annual meeting Thursday at the Lake Theatre. More than 100 members enjoyed a review of the Chamber’s 2023 successes and heard about exciting plans for 2024. The Village-funded program that offers free six-month chamber membership to new Oak Park businesses was highlighted during the event. Over the past several years the Village has regularly issued more than 100 new business licenses on an annual basis.
Downtown Oak Park’s annual Oaktoberfest is happening from 4 to 10 p.m. Friday and noon to 10 p.m. Saturday on Marion Street between Lake Street and North Boulevard. Revelers are invited to taste, toast, dance, play and live out loud during the event, which features live music, local food, craft beer and a kids’ root beer garden. Click here for a promotional video produced by Joe Kreml, the Village’s Media Production Manager. Find complete details about the event at www.oaktoberfest.net.
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Celebrate National Public Lands Day with a free salsa dance party from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. this Saturday, Sept. 23 at Thatcher Woods, 8030 Chicago Ave. in River Forest. Dance lessons and live salsa music will be provided by Latin Street Music and Dancing. Participants can also enjoy guided bilingual nature hikes, family activities and fun yard games. The event is free for all ages. Food will be available to purchase, or guests are invited to bring a picnic. Additionally, the Earth Lounge Environmental Book Discussion Series will hold its next meeting at 6 p.m. next Wed., Sept. 27 in the small meeting room at the Oak Park Public Library, 834 Lake St. The discussion will focus on “New Suns: Original Speculative Fiction by People of Color.”
Street resurfacing project – Work continued this week in preparation for street resurfacing at various locations across the Village, with saw cutting performed along Elmwood Avenue, Lexington Street and at the intersection of Chicago Avenue and Scoville Avenue. The contractor is now turning attention to curb and sidewalk removal beginning at the Augusta Street location followed by the Greenfield Street and Cuyler Avenue locations.
Water and sewer improvements – The contractor installed new sewer pipe at the intersection of Hayes Avenue and Augusta Street and prepped the intersection with a temporary lane closure to deter eastbound and westbound traffic while work is in session. The work at the intersection will continue into next week.
Forest and Ontario improvements – The area around the intersection of Forest Avenue and Ontario Street is closed to through traffic as crews continue to work on a number of upgrades. Brick and concrete removal work will close multiple sidewalk routes throughout the site. The electric contractor is finishing up trenching conduit and will begin foundation work shortly. Concrete replacement is tentatively planned to begin next week.
Pete’s Fresh Market update – The remaining ComEd work is in progress at the site of the new Pete’s Fresh Market on Madison Street. Crews are working on a small stretch of underground cable and service transfers. The final restoration work for Euclid Avenue is scheduled to occur the first week of October.
Sewer televising – Sewer cleaning and inspection will begin next week, with crews televising locations associated with upcoming 2024 Capital Improvement projects. Partial lane closures are anticipated while work is ongoing.
Sidewalk improvements – The contractor spent the week saw cutting sidewalks scheduled for removal. Sidewalk removals are starting at the southwest corner of the Village and will continue through next week. The focus for this year’s project is sidewalks on east-west streets in the south half of the Village.
Miscellaneous construction updates – The contractors for the Village’s alley lighting project has completed all installations and will now focus on wrapping up punchlist items. Elsewhere, the contractor overseeing the Division Street improvements anticipates thermoplastic pavement markings will be installed on the roadway next week, followed by sod placement in the parkways.
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