GROWING COMMUNITY WEDNESDAY JOURNAL, INC.
ForestParkReview.com
Vol. 99, No. 31
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F O R E S T PA R K
REVIEW
Fall Educationn & Enrichmentt Guide 2016 Special pullout section
AUGUST 3, 2016
Bar owners speak out about video gaming Some say they can’t compete without it and fears are overblown By DAVID POLLARD
A
Contributing Reporter
fter three years in business as owner of Chalk, a bar in Forest Park, Matt Mathey is considering closing because other bars in neighboring towns have something he doesn’t. “If we get gaming, I’ll stay,” he said. “It’s been a struggle these past three years and then you see the other guys [with video gambling] doing well.” He, along with several other bar and bar/restaurant owners on Madison Street and the surrounding area, believe, despite a recent forum on the issue of video gambling that dispelled many negative misconceptions about the issue, it is still getting a bad rap. There is a group in the village working to put a referendum on the November ballot asking residents to vote on the issue of whether or not to allow video gambling in the village with the hope that voters opt to keep it banned. Meanwhile other businesses, especially bar owners in the village, are asking, “Why not?” Bar and bar/restaurant owners like Mathey, Ted Hosty and Martin Sorice believe that making video gambling available for their businesses would help both business and the village overall. They believe the push by some business owners and residents to keep video gambling out of the village is unwarranted, and they oppose the move to put the issue to a binding referendum when the village council, they believe, should have the final say. Sorice, who owns several bars, such as Doc Ryan’s on Madison Street and the Pioneer Tap on Desplaines AvSee BAR OWNERS on page 7
Visioning a hit
WILLIAM CAMARGO/Staff Photographer
Mike Crowley of Vision bats during the No Gloves National Tournament, which took place at The Park on Saturday. See more photos on page 5.
Proviso East unveils transformation plan Principal Patrick Hardy makes presentation to the D209 board By JACKIE GLOSNIAK Contributing Reporter
Addressing skepticism about the future of Proviso East and District 209,
IN Calendar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 THIS Classified . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 ISSUE Crime . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9 Opinion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 Obituaries. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
first-year Principal Patrick Hardy outlined a project called “Proviso East’s School Transformation Plan” in a presentation to the D209 Board of Education last month.
According to Hardy, the multi-layered project is a community plan geared toward meeting challenges at the school See PROVISO EAST PLAN on page 4
Village approves summer school at PMSA
Out-of-this-world sculptures
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