The Village has been awarded $299,000 through the Metropolitan Mayors Caucus’ SMASS III initiative. These funds will help cover stable housing costs for asylum seekers participating in Oak Park’s programs, and for unhoused residents who are also experiencing homelessness and accessing shelter through the emergency overnight shelter. By improving access to stable housing and comprehensive support services, this initiative enhances the Village’s capacity to meet critical humanitarian needs and provide long-term solutions for vulnerable individuals.

The Village, acting as the fiscal agent for Housing Forward, has been awarded a $2 million grant from the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity. These funds will be used to rehabilitate the property at 211 N. Oak Park Ave., a permanent shelter dedicated to providing stable, safe and adequate housing for individuals experiencing homelessness. This project will enhance Housing Forward's capacity to offer transitional housing and comprehensive support services, helping vulnerable individuals and families move toward long-term stability and self-sufficiency.

Oak Parkers 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 scheduled for 9 a.m. to noon this Sat., Sept. 21 at the Public Works Center, 201 South Blvd. Residents will again be able to drop off 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. 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. Click here for more information.

The Village is hosting a Town Hall meeting to discuss the development of its five-year Consolidated Plan from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. on Oct. 10 in Room 101 at Village Hall. A crucial aspect of this project involves collecting citizen input, opinions and suggestions, as community members play a significant role in shaping policies and strategies related to housing development. In addition to the Town Hall meeting, which serves as a public hearing on the matter, residents can also take an online survey to provide feedback that will help in the development of the plan at www.engageoakpark.com/consolidated-plan.

The Village Clerk’s Office celebrated National Voter Registration Day on Tuesday by hosting registration events and Village Hall and the Kinfolk CoLab. The Clerk’s Office plans to attend the Park District of Oak Park’s Fall Fest to register voters from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Sunday in Rehm Park. More information about voter registration is at www.oak-park.us/vr24.

The Oak Park Climate Action Network (OPCAN) recently compiled a six-month report on the climate coaching initiative it started earlier this year in partnership with the Village. Since launching this spring, OPCAN’s climate coach program received 45 coach requests. Information about available grants, rebates and tax credits, guidance for installing solar panels and information about switching from gas heating to electric heat pumps have been the most popular topics. Click here to read the report, which includes OPCAN’s recommendations for next steps.

The Fire Department celebrated the promotion of Joe Milosovic to the position of Lieutenant during a swearing-in ceremony that took place Monday at the main fire station. Meanwhile, Atefa Ghaznawi arrived as the new Urban Planner in the Development Services Department’s Planning and Urban Design Division. Atefa has a bachelor's degree in architecture and a master's in urban planning and policy. She is an AICP candidate, LEED Green Associate and Certified Passive House Consultant who has previously worked as an architect, urban planner and urban designer in the private and public sector.

The Village recently bid farewell to two longtime public servants. Lieutenant Steven Lingenfelter retired last week after 25 years with the Oak Park Fire Department. He was honored with a walkout ceremony on his last day. Meanwhile, Sergeant Robert Monty retired Friday after 28 years with the Oak Park Police Department. Monty filled many roles during his career, including Field Training Officer, serving as part of the Street Crimes Team and Special Response Team, Detective, Residential Beat Officer and Range Master, among others. He was named Sergeant in 2018 and served as Youth Services Sergeant and Community Policing Sergeant.

The Village’s Aging in Communities Commission is observing Ageism Awareness Day by hosting author Ashton Applewhite for a discussion at 6:30 p.m. on Oct. 9 at The Nineteenth Century Charitable Association, 178 Forest Ave. Author of "This Chair Rocks: A Manifesto Against Ageism," Applewhite was named one of the Healthy Aging 50 - a group of leaders "transforming the world to be a better place in which to grow older" - by the Decade of Healthy Aging, a collaboration between the United Nations and World Health Organization. Space is limited and registration is encouraged. Click here to reserve a spot.

There is still time for Oak Park residents to take advantage of a 50% discount on the sale of native trees through the Wild Ones West Cook Fall Tree and Shrub Sale, which has been extended through Sept. 27. Enter the discount code OPTREES at the time of purchase at wild-ones-west-cook.myshopify.com/. Most trees are available in a 5-gallon container. The discount applies toward the purchase of up to two trees per property. The Village’s participation in subsidizing half the cost of native trees is tied to the Climate Ready Oak Park goals around encouraging the planting of native plants and increasing the Village’s tree canopy cover.

Visit Oak Park has launched a new tourism program by hiring a concierge ambassador who is visiting 90+ Chicago hotels. Click here to view the full list of hotels. This program will allow Visit Oak Park to place promotional information/collateral at these Chicago hotels. The concierge ambassador will also speak with hotel concierges about how Visit Oak Park can assist in planning day trips for guests to see the sites, shops and restaurants in the Oak Park area. This week, Visit Oak Park Executive Director Annie Coakley and her team visited four Chicago hotels, including the Ritz Carleton and the Knickerbocker, to name a few.

The first Oak Park, Illinois Film Festival is in the books as the celebration of local movie-making talent took place last weekend. The opening night event Sept. 12 featured a screening at the Lake Theatre of a special edition of “The Abyss” starring Oak Park’s own Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio. The festival continued Sept. 14 at Madison Street Theater with multiple screenings of films with a connection to Oak Park through setting, cast, crew or filming location. Click here to recap of the festival posted on the Film Obsessive website.

Water & sewer improvements – Landscape restoration is underway on Linden Avenue and the final asphalt surface is being placed today, with street lighting repairs set to take place the next few weeks. Meanwhile, concrete removals are ongoing at the site of water & sewer improvements on South Boulevard. Water main installation under the Forest Avenue viaduct is tentatively scheduled to start Monday. The viaduct will be closed during this work, which is expected to take three to four weeks to complete. Traffic control is set up around the site to direct traffic in the area.

Madison Street Improvements – All underground work for the new street lighting and traffic signals along Madison Street is complete. Sidewalk replacement on the south side of Madison is ongoing. Next week, milling will begin on Madison between Oak Park Avenue and East Avenue.

Lot 10 construction – The contractor is working on installing light poles in Lot 10 this week. Some of the parking stalls in the lot will be closed to allow the contractor to perform the installations. The contractor will also occupy up to six parking stalls on North Boulevard while the work is in progress.

Resurfacing of various streets – The concrete work at all resurfacing project locations will be complete by the end of this week. Milling started on Iowa Street today and will take four days to complete. Patchwork and asphalt placement are scheduled to occur in the next few weeks, followed by landscape restoration. Visit www.oak-park.us/construction to view a map of 2024 capital improvement projects, which shows locations scheduled for street resurfacing this year.