This week the Cook County Department of Transportation and Highways (CCDoTH) awarded the Village of Oak Park $500,000 for Construction to support the 2027 Chicago Avenue Safety Improvement Project. Oak Park’s project, submitted by Public Works' Engineering division, was one of 88 applications received by CCDoTH seeking more than $33 million in grants. The project was chosen because it aligns with Connecting Cook County, the CCDoTH long-range transportation plan.

The Office of Economic Vitality and Triton College are at the halfway point of the Triton College Masterclass for frontline employees in Oak Park. The series spans four consecutive Tuesdays through August 4. Sessions are held at the Village of Oak Park’s Office of Economic Vitality, 1010 Lake St., Suite 100. So far, feedback has been positive with participants expressing gratitude for the value their employees derived from the program. The two masterclass sessions thus far were full as attendees learned about relationship building, sales and persuasion. For more information about the Office of Economic Vitality, please visit www.oak-park.us/vitality.

The Shape Oak Park project team has developed a set of recommendations for the Zoning Ordinance relative to missing middle housing opportunities. The recommendation report, scheduled to be discussed by members of the project team at the July 28 Village Board meeting, responds to the needs identified in the adopted Strategic Vision for Housing Plan by removing regulatory barriers to middle housing village-wide and along key commercial corridors. Find the reports and analyses in the recommendations section and submit your own questions at www.oak-park.us/shape.

Village of Oak Park Fire Chief JT Terry was recently appointed to a three-year term on the International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC) Emergency Management Committee. The IAFC's Emergency Management Committee, limited to 18 members, is responsible for addressing issues of mutual aid and providing state-to-state coordination and oversight to the IMAS project. The EMC was officially approved by the IAFC Board of Directors in May 2006 and is supported by DHS's National Integration Center (NIC). 

Members of the Oak Park Fire Department will be at Starbucks (711 Lake St.) on Monday, July 27 from 9-11 a.m. for Coffee with a Firefighter/Paramedic. OPFD will be on hand to answer questions about fire prevention and community safety issues.

Save the date for the Oak Park Public Health Department's open house from 5 to 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, July 30 at the Oak Park Public Library. Learn how Oak Park health officials serve people who grow up, live, work and age in Oak Park! The event offers a chance to meet staff, learn about the Public Health Department's divisions, enjoy free refreshments, giveaways and connections to resources. Be sure to ask about the community health plan (IPLAN) and give us your feedback on how to make a healthier Oak Park www.oak-park.us/healthopenhouse.

The Fire Department welcomed two new Firefighter/Paramedics as Vincent Berardino and Anthony Gigovski were sworn in during a ceremony Friday morning at Village Hall. They will begin their one-year probationary periods. Esdras Moncayo-Xavier is a new Water & Sewer Worker I in the Water & Sewer Division of the Public Works Department.

Oak Park is packed with iconic spots to eat and drink and two such locations were recently featured in The Scene in collaboration with Explore Oak Park and Beyond. Tre Sorelle Ristorante & Pizzeria has been serving the community since 1976. Tre Sorelle combines authentic Italian cuisine, homemade gelato, and a warm neighborhood atmosphere. Founded in 1919, Petersen’s has been delighting generations with hand-packed ice cream and freshly made waffle cones. The shop has earned nine blue ribbons for Best Ice Cream at the Illinois State Fair and still features much of its original charm, including marble counters and pressed-tin ceilings. Visit www.pickoakpark.com to learn more about Oak Park’s 1,200-plus businesses.

Renew the Avenue project – The electrical contractor will continue drilling, pouring and installing the new light pole and traffic signal foundations on Oak Park Ave. from Pleasant St. to South Blvd. through the end of next week. The roadway crew will continue framing and pouring roadway base course patches at various locations this week. The crew will also be preparing next week for the sidewalk excavation and ramp placement for pedestrian access between Pleasant and South Blvd. during the week of August 3rd. Access to all buildings and businesses on this block will be always maintained during this work period.

AT&T will be back onsite between North Blvd. and Lake St. installing a new communications manhole by the Hunters Court crossing. Union Pacific continues to complete concrete abutment repairs on the bridge overpass between South and North Boulevards on Oak Park Ave.

Don’t forget to check out the Village of Oak Park and Hemmingway District’s new Bike to the Biz promotion. For more details, click here.

Alley improvement project – Concrete and brick installations in the alley between the 200 blocks of S. Grove Ave. and S. Kenilworth Ave. are expected to be completed by the end of this week, with an anticipated opening by July 31.

Removals began in the alley between the 800 blocks of N. Harvey Ave. and Mapleton Ave. Removals are expected to be completed by July 27, with new concrete installations to follow. After the removals in this alley are completed, the roadway and alley patching work will begin throughout the project locations.

Rectangular Rapid Flashing Beacon (RRFB) installations – The contractor finished setting all the new RRFB’s this week. On Friday, they began adding the signage to the poles and activating them for use. This work will continue over the next several working days.

Water and sewer project – The contractor on Scoville continued installing the new sewer main on the 1100 S. block this week. Next, the contractor will begin replacing sewer services, which span from the new sewer main to the curb, for the next few weeks. Water main installation is expected to recommence after the sewer services on the block have been installed.

The contractor on Euclid installed the new sewer main on the 1100 N. block this week. They will continue sewer main installation next week, continuing north onto the 1200 N. block of Euclid Avenue.

Resurfacing project –The resurfacing contractor will be prioritizing the resurfacing locations near schools on the project first, which includes the Erie and Van Buren locations. Then, they plan to move through the Village from north to south completing the rest of the locations.

The work this week included starting to saw cutting pavement for removals and also lowering manholes at the Erie, Van Buren and Forest locations. Tree root pruning and concrete curb and sidewalk removals will begin next week at these locations.