Wednesday Journal 021220

W E D N E S D A Y

February 12, 2020 Vol. 39, No. 28 ONE DOLLAR @oakpark @wednesdayjournal

JOURNAL of Oak Park and River Forest

YMCA C ‘‘upstream’’ of homelessness Page B13

Lake Street construction right around the corner Gearing up for a months-long rebuilding process

By STACEY SHERIDAN Staff Reporter

The expansive $15 million Lake Street reconstruction project could start as early as the end of February, weather permitting. Upon the expected November completion, a substantial section of Lake Street in Oak Park will have improved accessibility, a completely updated infrastructure and a more beautiful visage.

“It’s been something the village has been planning and designing for a little over a decade now, since about 2006, 2007,” said Oak Park Village Engineer Bill McKenna.

The project—from Harlem to Austin -- encompasses three major efforts that correspond with certain sections of Lake Street. The infrastructure portion, which tackles water and sewer main replacements, will be the first to begin construction in March, maybe end of February and finish in May. The infrastructure work will replace underground pipes that are a century old and start at Euclid Avenue, then move west to Grove Avenue. This project will cost roughly $2.1 million and be paid for with village funds.

Following the start of the sewer and water work, the streetscaping and resurfacing portion will begin April and is expected to last until Thanksgiving. From Harlem Avenue to Euclid Avenue, Lake Street will get resurfaced, See LAKE STREET on page 15

Photo provided

A BIG DEAL: St. Catherine-St. Lucy Principal Sharon Leamy, center, is surrounded by students and Father George Omwando during a ribbon-cutting for the school’s new playground in 2019. The playground was made possible, in part, by Big Shoulders Fund, which announced last month that the school would be among 30 in the Chicago area to receive a portion of a nearly $50 million investment in the form of both in-kind support and direct financial assistance.

Area Catholic schools to get nearly $50M boost St. Catherine-St. Lucy and St. Angela among 30 to receive Big Shoulders Fund support

By MICHAEL ROMAIN Staff Reporter

Two Catholic schools in Oak Park and Austin were listed among 30 in the Chicago area to receive a $47.5 million commitment over 10 years from the Big Shoulders Fund, an independent charitable organiF EBRUARY 2020 zation that supports inner-city Catholic schools. Officials with the organization

CampGuide

made the announcement in a statement released on Jan. 29.

The schools — St. Catherine-St. Lucy School, 27 Washington Blvd. in Oak Park, and St. Angela School, 1332 N. Massasoit Ave., in Austin — will receive “significantly increased” funding for operations, explained Big Shoulders Fund officials in their statement. The commitment represents a 51 percent financial stake in the 30 schools, according to Crain’s Chicago Business.

In addition, the organization will “take on an expanded leadership role with principals in these schools to help them manage their schools toward specific goals in key operating areas of academics, enrollment, development and finances,” the statement explains.

“We are honored to be able to provide this historic level of investment to See SCHOOLS on page 18

Don’t Miss the Spring 2020 Camp Guide, starting on page B1

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Wednesday Journal, February 12, 2020

OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM

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Gerrielle ‘20

Wednesday Journal, February 12, 2020

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I N S I D E

R E P O R T

Triennial assessments coming soon River Forest and Oak Park residents should soon be receiving their triennial property assessment notices, which were mailed on Friday, Feb. 7 by the Cook County Assessor’s Office. According to River Forest Township Assessor Pamela Kende, residents will have until March 18 to make an appeal if they wish to do so.

“We met with a team from the Cook County Assessor’s Office’s residential valuations staff, and they provided valuable insight into improvements they have made to make the process simpler and more equitable for all,” Kende said. “At the same time, they emphasized the importance of bringing information to their attention that could correct mistakes in the assessment process.”

On March 3, the River Forest township assessor is hosting an outreach seminar with the Cook County Assessor. Information on the appeals process for property assessment will be provided, and there will be an opportunity to ask questions

Rec center campaign gets two co-chairs

Two volunteers have stepped up to lead the charge in gathering donations for the Parks Foundation’s capital campaign to build a community recreation center for the Park District of Oak Park.

The “Place to Belong” campaign co-chairs are Dr. David A. Ansel, senior vice president for Community Health Equity at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago, and local philanthropist Mary Jo Schuler.

Schuler and her husband recently donated a large parcel of land on which to build the park district’s community center.

Stacey Sheridan

about the property assessment process.

The session begins at 6 p.m. at the River Forest Community Center, 8020 Madison St., Room 206.

To help residents, the Cook County Assessor’s Office has made significant website upgrades. A more user-friendly experience can be had at cookcountyassessor.com, where residents can communicate with the office, upload documentation and file appeals online.

River Forest taxpayers are encouraged to contact Kende with questions or concerns. The township assessor’s office can be reached at 708-366-2787. Leave your name and phone number twice, along with a brief description of your concerns. You can also get information from the website at riverforesttownship. org.

Oak Park residents can visit oakparktownship.org/assessor-services or call 708-383-8005 for information about property assessments.

Maria Maxham

Brownlee is coming to Unity Temple

Unity Temple will hold its biennial (every other year) Schubert+ Festival on Leap Day, Feb. 29, honoring Austrian composer Franz Schubert’s short but prolific life. A ticket gives you access to the UNESCO World Heritage site for seven hours that Saturday, culminating in an appearance by world-class tenor Lawrence Brownlee Schubert Festivals are a longstanding tradition for music lovers, on or around Schubert’s birthday.

The internationally acclaimed Brownlee has been called “one of the world’s leading bel canto stars.”

He was named “Male Singer of the Year” in 2017 at the International Opera Awards and has performed on some of the greatest world stages, including Lyric Opera’s current season, as Arturo in I Puritani.

The Schubert+ Festival at Unity Temple takes place on Saturday, Feb. 29 from 2:30 to 9:30 p.m., 875 Lake St. The festival consists of four programs in

SHANEL ROMAIN/Contributor

Getting row-tivated Members of RC Training & Fitness in Oak Park participated in the gym’s “Row Raiser” on Feb. 7 to raise money to support the Dancer Love Foundation and Opportunity Knocks, who serve intellectual and physical disabilities. The Row Raiser is a relay where gym members team up to row a half-marathon. Each team member rowed three reps of 1,000 meters, two reps of 500 meters and one rep of 216 meters. Above, James Young, of Oak Park, gives it his all while teammate Autumn Neuharth looks on. Each team member rowed 3 reps of 1000 meters, 2 reps of 500 meters and 1 rep of 216 meters. one day, including a song recital featuring Schubert lieder, chamber music by CSO and Lyric Opera Orchestra musicians, and a piano recital performing the four Schubert intermezzos plus the evening appearance by Brownlee.

Other featured artists include pianist Winston Choi and soprano Christine Steyer. A Viennese-themed dinner will be served between the afternoon and evening performances.

For more information or to purchase Festival and/or dinner tickets online via credit card, visit: schubertfestivalunitytemple.org.

Harmon gets Burnham Fellowship

Leadership Greater Chicago announced that Oak Park resident Teresa Harmon, managing partner at Sidley Austin LLP, is among 25 executives selected to participate in the second cohort

of its Daniel Burnham Fellowship.

Launched in February of 2019, the fellowship consists of five sessions. It is “designed to inspire these leaders to mobilize and exert their combined influence and intellect to positively impact Chicago, its future, and the continued economic progress of the region,” the press release reads.

An accomplished attorney, Harmon first started at Sidley Austin as a summer associate in 1993. Last April, she was named head of the firm’s Chicago office.

Harmon is married to Illinois Senate President Don Harmon.

Stacey Sheridan

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Wednesday Journal, February 12, 2020

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The ELCA’s AMMPARO Project

Church of Beethoven: Violinist Cara Schlecker

Sunday, Feb. 16, 2 p.m., Fair Oaks Presbyterian Church: Second in a series, Immigration: Responding in Faith, Accompanying Migrant Minors with Protection, Advocacy, Representation and Opportunities (AMMPARO) director Mary Campbell will tell stories of youth from El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala. Brought in partnership with Grace Lutheran Church. Free; all welcome. More: graceriverforest.org/resources/church-news/immigration-responding-in-faith. 744 Fair Oaks Ave., Oak Park.

Sunday, Feb. 16, 10:30 a.m. to noon, International Mansion: See the Oak Park native, along with pianist Paul Dykstra, perform arrangements

by John Williams, Fritz Kreisler, Robert Dauber and a rarely played arrangement of George Gershwin’s opera Porgy and Bess. $15; $10, children. Tickets/more: churchofbeethoven-oakpark.com, or at the door. Season tickets (10 Sunday morning concerts): $120; $80, children. Interested in volunteering or reading poetry: churchofbeethovenoakpark@gmail.com. 509 N. Oak Park Ave., Oak Park.

We Shall Overcome: A Celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Golden Age of Hollywood

Saturday, Feb. 15, 7:30 p.m., Lund Auditorium, Dominican University: See Damien Sneed and his band, along with Harmony, Hope & Healing choir, for music from across AfricanAmerican traditions, interwoven with spoken word from Dr. King’s recorded speeches. $20 - $40; $15 - $35, seniors/ children. Tickets: Events.dom.edu/we-shall-overcome.

7900 Division, River Forest.

Wednesdays, Feb. 12-Mar. 18, 1:30 to 4:30 p.m., Veterans Room, Main Library: Doug Deuchler presents six weeks of the top movie musicals from the 1940s and early ‘50s produced by MGM, starting with For Me & My Gal. More: oppl.org/calendar.

834 Lake St., Oak Park.

Free Readers Ensemble: “Wit” Sunday, Feb. 16, 3 p.m., 19th Century Club: When a renowned scholar and professor of English is diagnosed with terminal ovarian cancer, she comes to reassess her life and work with a profundity and humor that are transformative. Freewill donations accepted. 178 Forest Ave., Oak Park.

Feb. 12-19

BIG WEEK Women Can Change the Laws!

Women Can Change the World!

Sunday, Feb. 16, 2 p.m., Oak Park Arms:

See Those Thrilling Days of Yesteryear Old Time Radio Recreations Troop present two historical radio dramas telling about women battling for the right to vote: “Gallant American Women” and “Cavalcade of America.” Free. 408 S. Oak Park Ave., Oak Park.

See it before it’s gone - Proud Oak Parkers: OPALGA+ at 30 Wednesdays through Saturdays, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Oak Park River Forest Museum: Learn about the community organization that came together 30 years ago to support an open, active community of gay and lesbian residents and end discrimination in our villages based on sexual orientation. Through Feb. 29. $7; $5, Oak Park/River Forest residents; $3, students; free, members and children under 7. More: oprfmuseum.org, 129 Lake St., Oak Park.

Back Room Stories Sunday, Feb. 16, 7 to 8:30 p.m., Hamburger Mary’s: Enjoy top-tier tellers at this monthly event. Hear Oak Parker Jim Kelly tell about his experiences in the Peace Corps. Other featured tellers include Megan Wells, Mike Speller, Errol McLendon and Margaret Burk with host Peter LeGrand. $10. 155 S. Oak Park Ave., Oak Park.

Census 2020: What You Need to Know Sunday, Feb. 16, 2 to 3 p.m., River Forest Library:

By April 1, every home will receive the 2020 Census. Hear from a panel on the importance of being counted, learn about work opportunities and take part in an interactive workshop. 735 Lathrop Ave.

Love: Imagination and Memories

Support OPRF Special Olympics

Reception Thursday, Feb. 13, 6 to 8 p.m., Room 101, Oak Park Village Hall: See Antonia Ruppert’s vivid paintings, which reveal “the love of children to the love of a matriarch.” Hear the artist speak at the reception or view through Feb. 28, Mondays through Fridays, 8:30 to 5 p.m. 123 Madison St., Oak Park.

Friday, Feb. 21, 5:30 to 10 p.m., Lantern Haus: Save the date and RSVP by Feb. 18 to dcooper@op97.org. Hostedd

by Oak Park Teachers Association and Tim McDonald to raise as much money as possible for Special Olympics Polar Plunge. 74144 Madison St. #A, Forest Park.

Wednesday Journal, February 12, 2020

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ART BEAT

Photo by Brian McConkey

A love story with a cutting edge

By DOUG DEUCHLER Theater Critic

Berwyn’s 16th Street Theater has become known for its edgy, top-notch dramas, which often feature intense contemporary social issues. Their current production, a dark comedy,is no exception. Alabaster, byAlabama playwright Audrey Cefaly, is a tender yet often painful play about two women. Director Ann Filmer, who has assembled a solid cast, brings the conflicts between her characters to life with heartfelt intensity.

Several years earlier, June, played by Mandy Walsh, survived a horrific tornado in Alabaster, a rural locale in northern Alabama, but lost her family — both her parents and her sister. The family farm was pretty much destroyed by the storm and now badly-scarred June survives, functioning as a reclusive, undiscovered folk artist. She paints on the broken boards salvaged from her father’s barn, which was destroyed by the twister.

A somewhat younger woman arrives named Alice (Jessica Kadish), a well-known photographer. She has spent her adult years behind the camera. Alice is doing a series about women with scars and wants June to allow her to take pictures of her. June is covered with scars from her experience in the storm. She’s scarred on her face as well as her back and shoulders.

This fascinating story is not without its quirky aspects. Since the loss of her family members, June now lives alone with her two goats, Weezy and Bib. They are a mother and daughter. Weezy, portrayed by Wendy Clarendon, is a sassy, smart-aleck goat but she is also June’s best (and only) friend.

The goat continually makes the audience laugh, but she is wise in her way even when argumentative. She is a comfort animal with “attitude.”

Weezy takes care of her elderly, ailing mother (Patricia Donegan), though the senior goat does not speak understandably.

She simply speaks “goat,” bleating and

baahing, like an actual goat would. Neither character is dressed as a goat, by the way.

June and the visiting photographer run into almost immediate conflict. June is abrasive and combative but is not hesitant to be photographed. She wears her scars like armor.

Before too long we learn both women have endured lives of pain and loss. Although only one is physically marked, June and Alice are both scarred.

Director Filmer, who is also 16th Street’s artistic director, keeps us connected with her characters as well as keeping both of them connected with each other. They bicker and flirt; the tension between them is instant and intense. Both deal with their pain through their art. They also seem to understand what the other needs.

Alabaster is engaging and bittersweet.

But it ends, perhaps, a bit abruptly, leaving us wondering.

Sydney Lynne designed the set. Benjamin L. White created the lighting. Anthony Churchill designed the projections which are amazing, such as a huge full moon behind the ruined farmhouse. Barry Bennett created the original music as well as the sound. There is an intense storm that is really spectacular.

16th Street Theater is renowned for frequently presenting new works. This production is no exception, although it’s amazing to learn that Alabaster is part of the National New Play Network’s “rolling world premiere,” opening simultaneously in 11 cities from Ft. Myers, Florida, to Eugene, Oregon.

Playwright Cefaly visited this Berwyn production and conversed with audiences during the preview phase before the show technically opened this past weekend.

See “Alabaster” at 16th Street Theater, 6420 16th Street, Berwyn, Thursdays and Fridays, 7:30 p.m., Saturdays, 4 and 8 p.m. on, select Sundays, 3 p.m., $30, reserved; $22, general admission; $18, Berwyn residents, low income, military. Tickets/more: 16thstreettheater.org, 708-795-6704.

Temple Har Zion

has something for everyone! Join us!

Upcoming Programs FFRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 6:30 PM: Inspirational Musical Shabbat Service. Sing, dance, and rejoice with our gifted musicians once each month. Before February 17, Shabbat dinner $18 per person; $25 per person after.

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 6:00–7:30 PM: Young Family Event – Pajama Havdalah. Families with children aged 2–5 are invited to gather together as we say farewell to Shabbat. Free for Temple member families; $5 for preschool families; $18 for guest families. RSVP is required.

SUNDAYS, 9:00–9:30 AM: Rabbi Adir Glick’s Jewish Meditation Class. Free.

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 23, 10:30 AM–Noon: Jewniversity’s Repair the World. Learn about helping refugees and issues with the Illinois criminal system. Breakfast included. Free, but RSVP is required.

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 23, 2:00 PM: Lattes & Learning: What does Judaism think of marijuana use? Buzz Café, 905 S. Lombard, Oak Park. Free, but please RSVP. MONDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 7:00 PM: Cantor Stewart Figa’s World of Yiddish examines gems of Yiddish culture; this month we continue to take a closer look at Fiddler on the Roof in Yiddish. Free, but please RSVP.

All are welcome!

To RSVP and learn more about Temple Har Zion, visit www.harzion.org.

Please RSVP to all events.

Temple Har Zion 1040 North Harlem River Forest IL 60305 www.harzion.org 708.366.9000

A dynamic congregation committed to a profound spiritual life, Temple Har Zion is a welcoming, diverse, and caring community that is inclusive of interfaith families.

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OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM

Stop name-calling. Start talking about policing

ayor Anan Abu-Taleb is right.

Elected officials should not be hurling epithets at citizens from the board table. So last week when Trustee Arti WalkerPeddakotla charged that a white man nominated by Abu-Taleb to serve on the volunteer Citizen Police Oversight Committee was a “racist” and a “misogynist” she was fully out of line.

That the two may have had some sort of social media history exchanging views on Walker-Peddakotla’s concerns about policing in Oak Park does not offer her cover.

Her concerns, no doubt sincere, should have led her to call Abu-Taleb in advance to object to his appointment to this commission or to a cup of coffee with the nominee in question so they could have an actual conversation.

Nothing beats face-to-face.

All the shouting from the board table at Oak Park Village Hall has to stop. It is an embarrassment and it degrades our civic life. This country, this moment, that cannot be allowed. We have to do better.

More importantly, though, the namecalling is a distraction on an issue where

Walker-Peddakotla is completely on point, a critical matter and opportunity where she should be assertively, but civilly, leading us.

This committee, charged by the village board to “evaluate citizen complaints about police conduct and interpersonal/ community relations,” is slated to have seven members. After the appointment last week of Jack Powers, it now has six. Five of them are white. Five of them are men.

Our reality as a village, as a nation is that pressure points in police interactions with citizens most often rub raw with people of color, most often African Americans. Black Oak Parkers, young male black Oak Parkers, feel a burden of police presence most acutely.

It is not something that I, as an older white man, will ever fully grasp. Certainly I will not experience it. But I can understand that the tension is there, it is real and it is perceived. And stacking the villagesanctioned committee on police-citizen interactions with white men makes no sense.

It is wrong. It is insensitive. It will not move our policing forward. And it needs

DAN HALEY

to be actively addressed by both the mayor and the village board. Abu-Taleb has a blind spot here and he needs to face up to it. He needs to be made to face up to it.

Adding white men to this committee in this moment is wrong. This committee should be majority African American and a much stronger blend of women and men.

There is currently one open seat on the committee. The next move is obvious. We reported last week that Tim Thomas, a black man who ran a credible race for the village board last year, sought appointment to the commission but was instead diverted to a different commission. He’d make a sound addition to the Citizen Police Oversight Committee.

Here are other thoughts to consider.

While it is wrong to charge an individual as a racist without conclusive proof, it is increasingly rich to hear white people declare that another white person is not a racist. How do they know? I’d start here.

I’m a racist. I know it. I accept it. I work against it. But it is baked into me. And knowing that makes me better able to see my very real blind spots.

Spent time today reviewing a year’s agendas and minutes for this oversight committee as well as its village boardapproved “work plan” for the past three years. The committee meets about eight

times a year. In addition to briefings from the police chief on hiring and crime stats, each meeting includes a motion to adjourn into executive session “for the purpose of discussing the discipline and performance of specific employees of the village.” Those executive sessions this past year lasted anywhere from eight minutes to 69 minutes. There is no report or recap of what was discussed, which officers were involved, what the nature of the complaint was, if any discipline was approved.

In a community where critics berate Walker-Peddakotla for her charges of police profiling and her lack of evidence of same, would be useful to have clear data on citizen complaints against officers, the nature of the complaint, the resolution.

Here is an area where Oak Park, of all places, should be leading on transparency but is as much in the shadows as any community.

Immediate steps: Bring this committee to an African American majority.

Next steps: Unlock the details on citizen complaints and resolution.

Finally: With enthusiasm begin a healthy open discussion of policing in Oak Park. There’s much we do well. How can we do better?

ART BEAT

More than 2,000 miles along the way …

By DOUG DEUCHLER

O

Theater Critic

pen Door Theater has a fun musical revue playing right now called Route 66. It’s a nostalgic, pop-tuneinfused crowd-pleaser that is just the thing if you’re in need of escapism from the rigors of winter or the latest news cycle. The show is the creation of jukebox musical auteur Roger Bean. Frequent flyers at Open Door may remember Bean’s popular The Marvelous Wonderettes a few years back.

This current fast-paced, two-act production takes us on a trip along Route 66 via some great old tunes presented by a hard-working, engaging cast. Perhaps this show, featuring four truckers, does not always feature two women in the cast in most productions, but here it’s a good choice.

Route 66, nimbly directed by Mary Pat Sieck, features more than 90 minutes of fun and music. Isabella Andrews, Quinn Corrigan, Katie Iler and Tyler Sonkin are the energetic performers playing four singing truckers who take us along on their road trip by way of roughly 34 old tunes from the ’50s and ’60s. Of course, it’s important to note that with lyrics penned 60 or so years ago, some of the viewpoints in a couple of the songs now seem inappropriate in their attitudes toward women.

Regardless, they sing, they dance, they work the house comedically in a high-octane show. If you should bring kids along, they may never have heard mid-century hits like “I

Get Around,” “Dead Man’s Curve,” or “Little Old Lady from Pasadena,” but I’ll bet they’ll enjoy them. These folks really sell their songs.

There is no plot or even lines of dialogue to hold the show together beyond the basic concept of a musical road trip.

The numbers, range across a variety of styles, from Willie Nelson to the Beach Boys, and just keep on coming. And for every enduring classic like “King of the Road” and “On the Road Again,” there is an equal number of obscurities, like “Gallop to Gallup” and “Truck Stop Cutie.”

Several songs, unfamiliar to me, were hauntingly beautiful. Andrews, who has an especially lovely voice, sang an emotional solo, “Oklahoma Hills,” by Leon and Woody Guthrie.

Sonkin does especially well as a lonesome trucker on a long route, serenading the “Girl on the Billboard.” The words, however, are pretty questionable by today’s standards.

At the top of the stage, centered, is an illuminated panel in the style of an old car radio. Between the numbers, vintage commercials, deejays, and 1950s and ’60s advertising jingles fill the gaps. Some of this is funny, some of it grows monotonous.

This production works especially well in the intimate environs of Open Door Theater. Josh Prisching did the scenic and lighting design. There is a gas pump on one side of the stage. The back wall is covered with signs for various Route 66 locations. The busy cast makes frequent use of the aisles

Photo provided

From left to right, Katie Iler, Tyler Sonkin, Isabella Andrews and Quinn Corrigan perform in the musical revue Route 66 at Open Door Theater. for entrances and exits.

The choreography by Naja Yatkin is playful and fun. I especially enjoyed the occasional homage to the rigorous dance fads of the ’60s, like The Swim, The Jerk, The Twist, and others. Lier and Shannon Hochmann designed the costumes and props. Mostly the cast wears plaid shirts and jeans. But there is a lot of cap-switching, and Corrigan is hilarious in his giant 10-gallon hat, riding his hobby horse, in “Long Tall Texan.”

The concept of a trip across America’s most fabled highway is not as tight as found in the usual jukebox musical.

The songs do not build on established characters. But the show is an awful lot of fun. If you need to go out and relax, forget the winter and the current news cycle, this may be your perfect show.

“Route 66” is playing at Open Door Theater, 902 S. Ridgeland, Oak Park, Fridays and Saturdays, 8 p.m., and Sundays 3 p.m., through March 8. $27; $25, senior; $15, students.

Tickets/more: opendoortheater.net/theatre, 708-386-5510.

Wednesday Journal, February 12, 2020

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Mohr Concrete and Drechsler site under contract

OPEDC confirmed buyers have submitted offers on the two large properties

By STACEY SHERIDAN Staff Reporter

The Oak Park Economic Development Corporation (OPEDC) confirmed buyers have made offers on two prime parcels of Oak Park real estate. According to OPEDC Executive Director John Lynch, the site of former concrete company H.J. Mohr & Sons Co. and that of funeral home Drechsler Brown & Williams are under contract pending village approval of plans.

The “L”-shaped Mohr property, 3.29-acre plot of land represented by Realtor Peter Poulos, is located at the corner of Harlem Avenue and Garfield Street, taking up a whole block. It also includes a small area to the east of South Maple Avenue, which was once used to store concrete trucks.

Lynch said to expect the main site on Harlem Avenue to be used for retail. It is also possible that the secondary parcel could be proposed for residential use. Lynch hopes to see plans for the project this spring.

Poulos said the developer hasn’t shared

their end use for the property with him, just concepts.

“I can’t disclose the developer’s endgame, but it w ill obviously not be r unning a production facility,” Poulos said.

The property has been an industrial-use property since 1893.

“It’s going to be some kind o f commercial mixed use subject to the village of Oak Park’s approval,” Poulos said. “I guarantee you it’s g oing to be a multi-story development just because of the purchase price we have.”

The property was listed at almost $7 million dollars.

“To get their return on investment, they’d need to go multi-story,” Poulos said.

Neither Lynch nor Poulos gave the name of the company that made the offer. Poulos did say the company has six different renderings of what they’d l ike to put there so far.

The large p roperty is c lose to the Eisenhower Expressway and the Harlem Blue Line CTA stop, making i t a very exciting prospect for developers.

“I talked to developers interested i n car dealerships to a microbrewery to a hotel, condominium, retail development,” Poulos said. “A lot of people have been interested in this site.”

Poulos also said the property is interesting because of its association with Oak Park’s history.

“The Mohr family owned it since 1893 and they supplied a lot of the building materials that went into building Oak Park and the Chicago suburbs,” he said.

According to Poulos, the Mohr family plans to work with the village to maintain some of the property’s history. The developers agreed to incorporate the family’s name somewhere on the property.

“It’s kind of neat they want to leave their mark on stuff,” he said, The village can expect further housing in the downtown area of Oak Park with the potential sale of the Drechsler Brown & Williams property at 203 S. Marion St. According to OPEDC, the 34,000-squarefoot property is under contract, again pending village approval, for residential use with the possibility of a very small retail unit at the corner of Marion and Pleasant Streets, Again, Lynch would not divulge the name of the developer but did say that they are “known and respected” and have done other development projects in Oak Park.

Lynch also said that the height and density of the development would be appropriate to the location and lower than the Lincoln Property Company’s Eleven33 residential

File photo

WANT MOHR?: The Mohr property will likely become a multi-story development. building located at Harlem Avenue and South Boulevard.

CBRE agents Matthew Ishikawa, Tom Svoboda and Derrick Almassy are representing the property but have yet to return Wednesday Journal’s request for comment.

The property’s current owners, Charles and Lynne Williams, announced their plans last November to sell the land, close the funeral home and retire.

The funeral home had been serving the families of Oak Park for over 139 years.

Excellence. It’s a highly skilled provider with a compassionate touch.

Rush Oak Park Physicians Group welcomes new internist Wendy Foster, MD, to Rush Oak Park Hospital.

• • •

Accepting new patients Same-day appointments Convenient location at 1011 W. Lake St.

Dr. Foster treats every patient like a member of her own family. Her personalized, comprehensive approach to care — from routine exams to managing chronic conditions to reducing your risk of disease — can help you lead a healthier life.

Call (708) 660-4636 today to schedule your appointment with Dr. Foster.

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Wednesday Journal, February 12, 2020

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Oak Park inches closer to plastic-free restaurants

Village board approves motion to have staff draft ordinance

By STACEY SHERIDAN Staff Reporter

Single-use plastics and polystyrene foam containers could be banned in Oak Park restaurants under a plan approved by village trustees Monday night. The board directed village staff to draw up an ordinance codifying that action.

The ever-increasing threat of global warming and looming mountains of discarded plastics found in the deepest ocean crevices, prompting such documentaries as “A Plastic Ocean,” inspired many Oak Park citizens to speak out in support of the ban.

“All the plastic that’s ever been produced is still with us,” Diane Pickard Richardson told the board.

While all six trustees voted to move ahead toward an ordinance, several trustees and Mayor Anan Abu-Taleb, himself a restaurant owner, said the village needs to hear from local business owners to understand the financial impact this action might have on them. Abu-Taleb opposed a draft ordinance being requested.

Due to the necessity of some products, particularly straws for people with disabilities, the recommendation has a stipulation that restaurants can provide single-use plastics upon customer request. Customers would not have to pay a fee for them either.

The recommendation also includes incentives to encourage restaurant participation, such as a $200 rebate “available to eligible participants to cover initial implementation costs recognizing that compostable replacements for single use plastics may be more expensive.”

The commission would like to see the funds used for the rebate come out of the village’s sustainability fund.

Environment and Energy Commission Chair Laura Derks and Commissioner Steve Morales attended the Feb. 10 to give further information and answer questions.

The commission understands how important it is that the village get businesses on board with the ordinance, they said.

“What we realize is that all the businesses, and the board has recognized this, need education, education of their staff,” said Morales. “That is not an insignificant thing because those people also educate others.”

Derks, who lives in a zero-waste household, brought examples of compostable materials, including uncoated paper plates and wooden utensils.

“When I look at single-use plastics used in

eating establishments, I want to understand what that is – I don’t know how you’d quantify that – relative to single-use plastic bags in grocery stores,” asked Trustee Jim Taglia.

In 2017, Oak Park’s village board began requiring local grocery stores to charge a 10 cent per bag fee for plastic bags in an effort to persuade shoppers to carry reusable bags into the store. According to Taglia, over 100,000 single-use bags are purchased at Oak Park grocery stores per month.

“To me, that seems like maybe we should be thinking of that,” he said.

Taglia went on to say that banning singleuse plastics in restaurants is also important and he supports it “but it seems much smaller in scope and size.”

Derks told him to consider the amount of plastic refuse the Lake Theatre creates daily.

Morales referenced teen environmentalist Greta Thunberg, saying, “We can’t hit on one thing and hit it hard.”

He continued, “This supports businesses to go a step further. We want to really hit this from all angles.”

For Taglia, the ordinance seemed hard to enforce. He said he’d like to see something easily enforceable.

Upon passage of the ordinance, Derks recommended a 90-day compliance and education period with training for businesses.

She noted that the village cannot legally

refer businesses to vendors but mentioned that potentially the Oak Park-River Forest Chamber of Commerce could compile a list of sustainable suppliers.

“I find these to be inspired recommendations. I want to commend you guys for that,” said Trustee Deno Andrews.

Andrews said that many restaurants buy from restaurant supply company Sysco, which has a wide array of sustainable and compostable products.

“I’m totally on board with this and I like where we’re going,” said Trustee Arti Walker-Peddakotla.

Trustees Susan Buchanan and Simone Boutet gave their support for the recommendations but also felt the need to understand the financial impact the requirements may have on small businesses.

Boutet also agreed with Trustee Dan Moroney, who felt it important to have the restaurant community voice their concerns.

Mayor Anan Abu-Taleb, himself a restaurant owner, agreed, noting the importance of protecting the planet but also that “small businesses are really having a tough time.”

Abu-Taleb also said he wouldn’t support anything without getting businesses informed and on board and gave the singular vote against the motion to have staff draft an ordinance.

CONTACT: stacey@oakpark.com

The Arts AT CONCORDIA UNIVERSITY CHICAGO

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MUSIC CONCERTS

CUC Student Art Show March 1 – 29 | Reception: March 2 at 11:30 a.m.

Wind Symphony Home Concert March 20 at 8 p.m. | Chapel

Gallery hours: Mon.-Fri. 9 a.m.-7 p.m., Sat.-Sun. 10 a.m.-6 p.m.

Ferguson Gallery is located in Kretzmann Hall

Kapelle Home Concert March 21 at 7:30 p.m. | Chapel

Eternity, A Moment—Geer Tu’s Travel Record

By Geer Tu | Through February 22

Student Composers Recital February 28 at 7 p.m. | Chapel

THE COLLECTIVE THEATER

You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown (Revised) Book, music and lyrics by Clark Gesner Additional dialogue by Michael Mayer Additional music and lyrics by Andrew Lippa Directed by Tomica S. Jenkins February 21 – March 1 | Bergmann Theatre at CUC Tickets: CharlieBrownCUC.brownpapertickets.com

Music Department: 708-209-3060

Event details are subject to change. Unless noted, all events take place at Concordia University Chicago, 7400 Augusta St., River Forest.

Visit CUChicago.edu

Wednesday Journal, February 12, 2020

OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM

C R I M E

Three men rob couple, steal car in Oak Park

An Oak Park man and woman were the victims of an armed robbery by three young men at 4:33 p.m. on Feb. 8. The offenders approached the couple in the 200 block of North Kenilworth Avenue. One of the offenders held the male victim and then pushed him to the ground. Another offender allegedly pulled out a black handgun and demanded the woman’s purse, cell phone, keys and money.

The offenders then fled the scene in the victims’ silver 2016 Honda Civic, which was parked nearby. Chicago police recovered the car the next day at 10:16 p.m. in the 200 block of North Parkside Avenue.

The three men are described as being black and between 18 and 20 years old. One wore a black leather jacket with a number on the right sleeve.

of the incidents to which police responded.

Anyone named in these reports has only been charged with a crime and cases have not yet been adjudicated. We report the race of a suspect only when a serious crime has been committed, the suspect is still at large, and police have provided us with a detailed physical description of the suspect as they seek the public’s help in making an arrest.

Compiled by Stacey Sheridan

River Forest

FOOT CLINIC

Attempted armed robbery Two teenage boys reportedly tried to rob a woman of her purse at 6:15 p.m. on Feb. 4 in the 300 block of South Taylor Avenue.

During the robbery attempt, one of the boys reportedly struck the victim with a weapon police described as a “rod.”

Burglary Someone cut the screen to the rear window of a residence in the 600 block of South East Avenue, unlocked the sliding door of a back porch, broke the window on the kitchen door and then entered the home and ransacked multiple rooms between 4 p.m. Feb. 5 and 2 p.m. Loss is unknown.

Attempted burglary ■ Three male offenders wearing black clothing broke the glass door to a residence but failed to get inside the building at 10:04 p.m. on Feb. 6 in the 800 block of Clinton Avenue. They were last seen heading southbound in an older silver or gold sedan vehicle.

■ The door to a residence was damaged after someone attempted to break into the home in the 1100 block of South Cuyler Avenue between 11:55 a.m. Feb. 4 and 7:15 a.m. on Feb. 5. Estimated damage was $300.

Criminal damage to property ■ Someone shattered the driver’s side rear window of a vehicle parked in the 800 block of South Austin Boulevard between 9 a.m. and 10 a.m. on Feb. 4. Estimated damage is $400.

These items, obtained from the Oak Park Police Department, came from reports Feb. 3 to Feb. 10, 2020 and represent a portion

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Mayor apologizes for trustee’s name-calling

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Oak Park Mayor Anan Abu-Taleb has apologized to a man named by a 4-3 vote to the Citizen Police Oversight Committee (CPOC) after Trustee Arti Walker-Peddakotla called Jack Powers “a racist” and “misogynist” during a discussion of his appointment at the Feb. 3 meeting of the village board.

Abu-Taleb apologized to Powers at the meeting, after Walker-Peddakotla would not, and subsequently also wrote a public letter of apology (see Viewpoints).

“Jack, I am sorry. I am embarrassed and ashamed that you were attacked by a village board member,” the apology letter states.

“Arti’s views and comments do not represent the views of a majority of this village board.”

In an email to Wednesday Journal, Walker-Peddakotla wrote, “Proper civilian oversight of police protects the civil rights of those residents who come into contact with the police and ensures greater accountability to the community. With this CPOC appointment, our village leadership continues to demonstrate resistance to progress and transparency as part of the larger narrative around community safety.”

She also stated that in her time as a trustee, she has heard of many painful and traumatic experiences with police had by black and brown people living in Oak Park.

“I am dismayed that this qualitative data continues to be disregarded in our ongoing pursuit of community safety,” she wrote.

“I’m hopeful that Oak Park can join other progressive communities in acknowledging racial bias in our policing and working to pursue true racial equity. We are, sadly, behind the curve on this important issue.”

CPOC comprises a group of seven members who volunteer their time to evaluate complaints regarding the police department and interpersonal, as well as community relations.

Powers’ application “expressed concern for crime in Oak Park, prioritizes public safety, and has a desire to assist the Oak Park Police Department.” It also stated that Powers thought the police department vital to Oak Park.

At the Feb. 3 meeting, Walker-Peddakotla stated that Tim Thomas, with whom she campaigned for village trustee, had wanted to join CPOC, but was appointed to a different commission instead. She supported Thomas, who is black, for the CPOC position. Powers is white.

“There is only one person of color on the [Citizen Police Oversight] Commission right now, Kevin Barnhart, and in a town where 40 percent of the people pulled over by police are people of color, predominantly black and Latinx people,” she said, “the fact that we’re not appointing a black man, Tim Thomas, to this commission is ridiculous.”

Walker-Peddakotla referenced what she called a “racist, misogynistic” email Powers sent to the village board Sept. 25, 2019, saying, “Jack Powers, in his email said to me, quote, ‘Public safety is a fundamental func-

tion of the board. If you do not understand this, you do not belong on the board.’ Telling me, the only woman of color, that I don’t belong on this board.”

The email was sent following comments Walker-Peddakotla made at a meeting last September regarding her view that Oak Park police emphasized racial profiling over public safety. She posted the email with Powers’ last name blacked out on Facebook on Sept. 27.

Walker-Peddakotla continued, “He goes on to say, quote, ‘We have our share of homegrown crime and are adjacent to one of the most crime-ridden and violent neighborhoods in the Midwest.’ That is racist.”

She called on the board to “do what’s right by black folks” and to appoint people who cared that police predominantly stop black people.

“But we’ve decided to appoint a racist, misogynist to the Police Oversight Commission,” Walker-Peddakotla said.

Trustee Dan Moroney said Powers has the ability to be both impartial and objective while serving on CPOC. “So does Tim Thomas,” Walker-Peddakotla interjected.

Moroney replied, “This isn’t about Tim Thomas.”

“He was in line to get appointed. Why didn’t you say any of that about him?” she asked.

Moroney replied, “This is the first I’ve heard of it.”

“That’s absolute crap and you know it,” Walker-Peddakotla said. “That is absolute crap.”

The mayor attempted to defuse the situation but was shouted down in the process.

“Your willingness to slander somebody is frankly despicable,” Moroney told WalkerPeddakotla.

Trustees Deno Andrews and Jim Taglia, as well as Mayor Abu-Taleb, joined Moroney in voting to appoint Powers. Trustees Susan Buchanan and Simone Boutet joined WalkerPeddakotla in voting against the appointment.

Powers, who was not present at the Feb. 3 meeting but watched online, said he did not believe Walker-Peddakotla was qualified to assess his character, nor did he agree with her description of him.

“I’ve never spoken to her, so she’s in no position to know anything about my nature, my temperament or my disposition.”

In regard to his Sept. 25, 2019 email, Powers said he sent it after reading the comments Walker-Peddakotla made about public safety and racial profiling in the Wednesday Journal.

“All I did was very factually state the obvious,” he said. “I didn’t refer to any person or group, I didn’t impugn anybody and that was that.”

He didn’t believe his email was racist or misogynistic.

“I was being neither of those two things and that’s not how I am in life either,” he said.

Powers said he wasn’t upset that Walker-

Peddakotla attributed the email to him at the Feb. 3 meeting, but he took issue with it being posted on social media.

“Putting that email on Facebook was questionable at best,” Powers said. “She never reached out to me and replied to that email. Not by phone, not by email.”

Should Walker-Peddakotla reach out to him now, Powers said he would probably be open to speaking with her.

In the aftermath of the meeting, Abu-Taleb said it was inappropriate for elected officials to verbally attack citizens at the board table.

“We get elected to serve and not to attack the people that we serve,” he told Wednesday Journal. “I don’t think the board table should be used to do that. The majority of the board feel the same way.”

Abu-Taleb stated he took no issue with trustees opposing the people he appoints to commissions, but the method in which Walker-Peddakotla expressed her opposition to Powers bothered him.

“It’s in the manner that she used the board table to label a citizen as racist and misogynistic and to continue those labels online,” he said. “This is not the Oak Park I know.

This is not the Oak Park we should have.”

Prior to appointing Powers, Abu-Taleb met with him to discuss the committee but did not speak with him directly about policing. Abu-Taleb said he believes Powers to be very qualified for CPOC. “Here’s a guy that wants to serve the community, volunteer his time,” he said.

Beyond that, Abu-Taleb didn’t know what else motivated Powers to go after a spot on the committee.

“I don’t know what his motivations are any more than I know what anyone else’s motivations are,” Abu-Taleb said. “But I do know that if he has grandchildren and they hear that about him, they start wondering, ‘Is my grandpa a racist?’ We’re a small community. I don’t think we need to be doing that to each other.”

Abu-Taleb said Walker-Peddakotla didn’t contact him to discuss the appointment when she saw Powers’ name on the meeting agenda.

“She has never picked up the phone to call me and say to me, ‘Hey Anan, I have a problem with this guy.’ Not once,” he said.

Abu-Taleb felt like his own motivations were also under fire, as he made the appointment, when Walker-Peddakotla spoke against Powers at the meeting.

“She was basically questioning my motivation on why I’m appointing a racist, in her mind, to a commission for the village,” he said. “You’re questioning my motivation.

Don’t ever do that. You can question my judgment, absolutely.”

“I’m your colleague. Call me. You can say, ‘I don’t like this guy because his views don’t align with mine and I feel we could have someone of color,’” he said. “But when you start labeling people, calling them racists – how does she know? How does she know what’s in people’s hearts?”

Wednesday Journal, February 12, 2020

OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM

11

Though legal, marijuana not a free-for-all

Laws still apply to public use and possession

Vehicle restrictions

By MARIA MAXHAM Staff Reporter

Although adult-use marijuana was legalized in Illinois on Jan. 1, it is still possible to run afoul of the law when it comes to public use and improper possession in regard to amount and how the weed is packaged.

Local citations are still being written, as careful readers of our Police Blotters have seen. Forest Park Police Chief Tom Aftanas and River Forest Police Chief Jim O’Shea offered feedback on the law and what residents need to remember.

Possession limits Possessing pot is legal if you’re an adult in the state of Illinois. But there are restrictions on how much weed you can have at one time.

O’Shea provided the Review with possession limits for marijuana, and they are as follows for Illinois residents aged 21 and over: ■ 30 grams or less of cannabis flower ■ Five grams or less of cannabis concentrate ■ No more than 500 milligrams of THC contained in a cannabis-infused product For non-Illinois residents, the amounts that can be possessed legally are halved.

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In a motor vehicle, there are stiff regulations concerning use and possession.

■ Drivers and passengers are not permitted to smoke cannabis while in a motor vehicle on a public road.

■ Any cannabis within a motor vehicle must be istant conin a sealed, odor-proof, child-resistant sion of tainer, whether it is in the possession the driver or a passenger.

Use in public places vs. private property A “public place” is defined officially as “any place where a person could reasonably be expected to be observed by others.” Public places include buildings owned in whole or in y part or leased by the state or any unit of local government.

Also included in the definition are “all areas in a park, recreation area, wned in wildlife area, or playground owned naged by the whole or in part, leased, or managed state or a unit of local government.”

It is legal to smoke pot in a private residence if you are 21 or older, except for private residences that operate as licensed childcare, foster care, or similar businesses.

Additionally, within a private residence there is still a restriction related to using marijuana “knowingly in close

proximity to anyone under 21 years of age” but the definition of “proximity” isn’t clear, according to the WBEZ Pocket Guide to Marijuana, interactive.wbez.org/2019/ weed-guide/.

When asked about smoking outdoors on private property, such as on a front porch or in a backyard, Aftanas brought up the definition of “public place” as defined by law: w “any place where a person could reasonably be expected to be observed by others.” A back yard, behind a fence, would be a better idea than on a front porch in view of peo people walking past, said Aftanas, th though he added that it would be up t the officer’s discretion as to ento f forcement.

The city of Chicago has taken an official stance on the issue of outd door smoking on private residences.

A According to the Chicago Tribune, C Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot and int interim police Superintendent Charlie Beck announced that Chicago residents 21 or over smoking marijuana in backan balconies would not be ticketed. yards and th state law prohibits cannabis con“While the ‘ sumption in a ‘public space,’ which is defined as anywhere you can be observed by others in public, the Chicago Police Department recognizes that an individual using cannabis in their own backyard or balcony poses no direct threat to public safety, and no resident should be arrested or ticketed solely for such a scenario,” said Lightfoot and Beck in a joint statement.

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Wednesday Journal, February 12, 2020

OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM

Oak Park approves Madison St. senior housing complex Oak Park village board voted 6-1 in favor of project

By STACEY SHERIDAN Staff Reporter

Despite some concerns from the public about the building’s mass and its potential impact on traffic, Oak Park’s village board approved construction of the proposed seven-story senior housing development that will span 711 to 725 Madison St. during a Feb. 3 meeting.

“The planned development in effect usurps anything in the zoning ordinance,” said Chris Donovan in public comment.

Donovan quoted a section of the planned development ordinance, “The proposed use or combination of uses will not substantially diminish the use or enjoyment of other properties in the vicinity of those uses or combination of uses permitted by the zoning ordinance of the village.”

Donovan implored the board to consider the impact the development would have on the people who live in the adjacent neighborhoods.

“I would ask you to ask the neighbors how they feel about an 84-foot edifice at the end of their block or right next door to them,” he said. “Of course, it’s not in your back yard, so

from the development per year. what would you care?”

“We’re going to put a senior building here.

Sandy Pedersen, whose home will be in very close proximity to the complex, voiced This is going to have increased calls for ambuher appreciation for the developer’s consider- lance and fire. It’s going to have traffic,” Anation of the concerns from previous plan com- drews said. “I don’t see, even 20 years down, telling taxpayers, ‘Now, you’re on the hook for mission meetings.

However, Pedersen thought the complex’s their profitability.’ That doesn’t fly well with me.” new scaled down design wasn’t Trustee Jim Taglia agreed, but enough. didn’t want to pass up on this op“This building is still too tall, portunity. too dense, too close to a residential “I think we should be mindful neighborhood and just too massive of the amount of tax revenue colfor the site,” she said. “I’m very concerned about the structural lected but it’s not the only thing to integrity of my home, and neighthink about when creating housbors’ as well, during this extensive ing for seniors,” said Trustee Simtwo-year process.” one Boutet.

Dr. David Ubogy of Loyola UniTrustee Arti Walker-Peddakotla versity Medical Center expressed wanted to know whether affordconcern that putting a cul de sac on ability of units was considered.

Euclid Avenue, as planned, would “Isn’t this developer a developer impede the response time of emerthat does affordable units for segency vehicles. niors?” she asked.

ARTI WALKER Trustee Deno Andrews had con“When the village board passed PEDDAKOTLA the inclusionary housing ordicerns regarding a portion of the Trustee nance,” Grossman started. redevelopment agreement that “I’m aware that Madison Street prohibits the developer, American is not on there,” Walker-PeddakotHouse/REDICO, from seeking tax la said. exemptions for a period of 20 years.

“It was excluded. This particular develAccording to Tammie Grossman, village development customer service director, the vil- oper does not build affordable housing delage expects to get $489,00 in real estate taxes velopments,” Grossman said. “They have

“We don’t have enough affordable housing for seniors if we want them to stay in place in Oak Park.”

purchased affordable housing developments in other states and so they do have some affordable senior housing developments in their portfolio, but that’s not what they primarily do as developers.”

American House/REDICO representative Samantha Eckhout clarified that the affordable senior housing developments WalkerPeddakotla referred to were financed through the federal low-income tax program.

“My whole problem with this is that affordability is not just a problem for millennials and young people. It’s also a problem for people with fixed incomes and seniors,” WalkerPeddakotla said.

“We don’t have enough affordable housing for seniors if we want them to stay in place in Oak Park,” she said, “and the fact that we’ve excluded this entire development on Madison Street from the [inclusionary zoning ordinance] and we haven’t even asked if this is even a possibility to be included in this tax credit is absolutely ridiculous in my opinion.”

Walker-Peddakotla held true to her opinion and voted accordingly, casting a negative vote.

Trustees Susan Buchanan, Dan Moroney, Andrews, Taglia, Boutet and Mayor Anan AbuTaleb voted in favor.

Walker-Peddakotla also voted against the portion of the project calling for the vacation of Euclid Avenue for the construction of a cul de sac.

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Wednesday Journal, February 12, 2020

OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM

Bridging the boulevard, one bite at a time

Forty Acres founder wants Oak Park, River Forest to help bring grocery to Austin

By MICHAEL ROMAIN Staff Reporter

A businesswoman looking to start a brick-and-mortar grocery store in the Austin neighborhood has a plan to address the famous imbalance of commercial activity between the West Side community and Oak Park, its neighbor to the west.

Liz Abunaw, 39, is the founder of Forty Acres Fresh Market — a for-profit provider of affordable, fresh produce that has received around $335,000 in grants within the last year in order to expand its operations, which include regular pop-up markets in Austin, a brick-and-mortar store that Abunaw hopes to build on Chicago Avenue sometime in the foreseeable future, and an online service that facilitates daily drop-offs of fruits and vegetables on the West Side and in the western suburbs.

Oak Park, Abunaw said, is Forty Acres’ biggest market for delivery outside of Austin. She said she hopes the funding will allow her to grow her footprint in Oak Park as well as River Forest, even as she plans a permanent presence on the West Side.

“Our delivery site is still a little cumbersome, but it works and we get them,” Abunaw said in a recent interview. “We’re working on finding a developer to upgrade our order site. We want a good, clean customer experience.”

Abunaw said part of the recent funding will go to upgrade Forty Acres’ website.

Last year, the market received $185,000 from the Healthy Food Financing Initiative and $150,000 from the American Heart Associa-

Photo provided

IMBALANCE OF TRADE: Liz Abunaw, right (shown with a customer), says that you can help adjust the imbalance of trade between Austin and Oak Park when you purchase produce from Forty Acres Fresh Market. tion.

In Austin, Abunaw is working with the Westside Health Authority, a long-established social service organization in the city, as well as Austin Village Chicago - Special

Service Area 72 (also known as SSA 72) to help her get her business off the ground.

A Special Service Area is a way for city communities to leverage tax revenue in order to boost local economic growth. In each

SSA, property owners pay additional taxes to help fund things like streetscape improvements, among other enhancements and resources. Westside Health Authority is the service provider for SSA 72 — the only Special Service Area in Austin.

“For several decades, Austin residents have expressed an interest in a local option for fresh fruits and vegetables,” Morris Reed, CEO of Westside Health Authority, said last year when Forty Acres received the Healthy Food Financing grant. “This project not only addresses the community desire to have healthy choices, but also provides investment into a growing retail environment along the Austin cultural corridor, stretching west of Chicago on Chicago Avenue.”

Forty Acres’ delivery service introduces an interesting dynamic in the relationship between residents on both sides of Austin Boulevard. The more suburban residents west of that invisible divide buy produce from Forty Acres, the more money the company will have to put toward building its brick-and-mortar store in Austin, Abunaw said.

The dynamic works to reverse what has for years been a notoriously one-sided exchange, with Austin residents spending their dollars in Oak Park due to a lack of commercial options in their neighborhood while Oak Parkers rarely, if ever, shop in Austin.

“So much money gets spent from Austin in Oak Park,” Abunaw said. “It’s important to have a better balance of trade between the two neighborhoods. There’s no reason why Austin Boulevard should be an invisible barrier. Money comes in one way and out the other.”

To learn more about Forty Acres Fresh Market, visit: fortyacresfreshmarket.com/.

CONTACT: michael@oakpark.com

D200 hires new special education director

Shalema Francois-Blue to replace Gwen Walker-Qualls on July 1

By MICHAEL ROMAIN Staff Reporter

District 200 has a new executive director of special education. The D200 school board recently voted to approve the hiring of Shalema Francois-Blue to replace Gwen Walker-Qualls, who is retiring after 14 years working in the district. The district announced Francois-Blue’s hiring, which is effective July 1, in a statement released Feb. 7.

“Mrs. Francois-Blue has served diverse learners in public education for more

Skokie School District 65. than 20 years, dedicating her “Shalema’s passion for career to empowering and special education really stood supporting educators, families, out,” said D200 Supt. Joylynn and communities to bring out the Pruitt-Adams explained in the true gifts of every student,” the statement. “She is absolutely statement explains. committed to not just her Before coming to Oak Park and students but also her staff River Forest High School, Francoisbeing heard and treated fairly.

Blue was a director of special We have some great things education in Lake County, where 16 percent of the district’s 3,500 pre-K SHALEMA FRANCOIS- happening in special education, and I really look forward to through 12th grade students receive BLUE seeing her build on those.” some form of special education A former resident of services. That percentage is similar to the 17 percent of students receiving Oak Park, Francois-Blue has a bachelor’s degree in sociology from the University of special education services at OPRF. Francois-Blue started her education career in Minnesota and a master’s degree in special Minneapolis Public Schools. She’s also served education from Minnesota State University. as special services supervisor at Evanston/ CONTACT: michael@oakpark.com

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Gwen Walker-Qualls

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Wednesday Journal, February 12, 2020

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Boulevard Arcade to become shared workspace

By STACEY SHERIDAN

CrossFunction at the Boulevard Arcade boasts designer ceiling sound baffles, 25 office spaces of various sizes, 17 parking An exciting new shared workspace is set to spots, three work lounges, two conference launch later this year in the landmark Bou- rooms, a café and up to four small multi-use levard Arcade building, 1033 South Blvd., in private “huddle” rooms, “where you could Oak Park. While similar, CrossFunction plans go take a phone call.”

“If you were a nursing mother, you could to offer greater charm and sense of community than other co-working office space com- nurse. Maybe if you were really tired or had a bad headache, you could take a nap,” said Stoner. panies, such as WeWork and Convene.

The huddle rooms could also be used for When looking for spaces out of which to launch CrossFunction, founder Trent Ston- conducting job interviews and private oneer found the perfect place in the beautiful on-one conversations.

“It’s totally comfortable for two people to Boulevard Arcade.

“What we were wanting to do was first be in these small huddle rooms.”

The building will also have high speed infind a place with a unique design and a rich ternet, privacy lockers, a coffee bar and beer history,” said Stoner.

Built in 1906, Boulevard Arcade is already taps, as well as a business center with printalmost perfectly laid out for a shared office ing and copying.

“All spread out over two stories, it’s the enspace. With the addition of a second floor in 1922, it operated as a multi-tenant women’s tire building, which you’re not going to find in many office share, co-working establishshopping mall.

The building has its original exquisite ments,” Stoner said. “We’re really excited to tin ceilings and staircases and many of its be able to share that with our members.”

CrossFunction will rooms have the furnish the offices for original hardwood tenants, but tenants floors and doors. may also bring in their Boulevard Arcade own furniture, should even has a spectacthey wish to personalular working metal ize the space. vault door. During For those whose the building’s days needs do not require as a mall, the resithe use of a private dent furrier would office, CrossFunction use the door to safewill offer memberly secure furs.

ALEX ROGALS/Staff Photographer ships that allow peoBoulevard Arple to work out of the cade received Built in 1906, the historic Boulevard Arlounges. Those renters landmark status in cade building has a new purpose. will still have access to 2008. conference rooms.

“There is no Fees and rents have yet to be determined but space like this in Oak Park,” said David King, president of Oak Park-based David the website, which will launch within the next King & Associates, the firm that brokered few weeks, will have some preliminary pricing.

In addition to Boulevard Arcade’s historic the lease.

“There’s also hardly anything like this in appeal, the building is in close proximity to the shared office co-working space,” said Ston- the Green Line and the Metra– a quality that er. “Most of the places occupy an entire floor, was very important to Stoner.

“We didn’t want to be in the city, but we sometimes two floors, of a high rise in downtown areas. You might have some smaller wanted to be completely connected to the operations in the suburbs that maybe were a city,” Stoner said.

Clients of tenants can hop on the train, storefront, maybe a few thousand square feet.”

CrossFunction Stoner calls a “boutique making travel from Chicago to CrossFuncshared office space,” not dissimilar to the tion easy.

Stoner was also looking for an area that trendy boutique hotel concept.

“Here we have 11,300 square feet, spread was a “robust, cool, bustling village or over two stories in a classic building with a downtown area.”

“Here in Oak Park, the train stops right in very rich history, which is exactly what we the middle of this great downtown that’s gowere looking for,” he said.

History is important to Stoner who in- ing through its own economic boom,” he said.

Boulevard Arcade and Oak Park in gentends to preserve the building’s history and character. The next few months will be eral satisfied everything Stoner was looking for to start CrossFunction. spent renovating.

“There was truly a fit here,” said King. “Cross“It’s Boulevard Arcade and it will remain that,” he said. “We’ll be CrossFunction at Function will be a great addition to the greater downtown Oak Park area and community.” the Boulevard Arcade.”

Staff Reporter

Wednesday Journal, February 12, 2020

OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM

LAKE STREET

You can learn more

Construction till November

For more information about the impending construction, potential road closures and project timeline, Better Lake Street group is hosting a community open house Thursday, Feb. 13 from 6-8 p.m. at the Nineteenth Century Club, 178 Forest Ave., Oak Park. Questions are welcome.

Keep informed through the course of the project by following @BetterLakeSt on Twitter and signing up for email updates at www.betterlakestreet.com.

from page 1 sidewalks replaced from buildings on the north side to buildings on the south side of Lake, and new lighting and traffic signals implemented. This stretch of Lake Street will also get new trees, landscaping and furniture. This portion marks the project’s biggest expense, costing about $10.6 million.

The village received $3 million in federal funding for streetscaping and village funds will cover the remaining $7.6 million.

While north-south streets in downtown will largely remain open to auto traffic throughout construction, much of Lake Street itself will be fully closed to cars during construction. There will always be sidewalk access to businesses and parking garages will remain accessible.

The resurfacing of Lake Street from Euclid Avenue to Austin Boulevard makes up the third leg of the project. The cost of resurfacing is around $2 million, which local funds will cover. Due to the proximity of many schools, this portion will begin in June and wrap up in September.

“We also have a small contract where we’re purchasing traffic signals, equipment and stuff like that for about $300,000,” said McKenna.

The village of Oak Park has hired Brian Racine of TranSystems, who will act as project manager. Racine will act as a point person for Lake Street businesses to contact.

The village government also hired the Prescott Group to develop the “Better Lake Street” campaign to support businesses within the three affected districts – Downtown Oak Park, the Pleasant District and

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Rendering courtesy Better Lake Street program

DETOUR: The plan calls for various full and semi lane closures at points during construction. the Hemingway District. The campaign includes business coordination and customer outreach.

“We would meet monthly last year to kind of get everything started,” said Downtown Oak Park Executive Director Shanon Williams. “It’s nice that the village initiated all this because it is stuff that the three districts had gotten together to talk about.

These are things we need.”

The village has partnered with shops and restaurants in the three districts to create to create a generous shopper rewards program.

“Kind of mimicking the one we do here during the holidays,” said Williams.

The program is intended to encourage shoppers to brave road closures, noise and other construction obstacles.

May 1 through Oct. 15, by spending $20 or more at five participating businesses with a total of $200 or more, shoppers will receive $25 in gift certificates upon turning in their receipts.

“For the rebate program, we were asking for $120,000 from the village,” said Williams.

She met with Village Manager Cara Pavlicek, Development Customer Services Director Tammie Grossman and Mayor Anan Abu-Taleb.

“The village was extremely supportive of this program and they figured a way to get it

into their budget,” Williams said.

While the rewards program will help, shops and restaurants in the three districts are still worried about the impact the Lake Street project will have on their ability to conduct business.

“Absolutely the businesses are nervous,” Williams said. “It’s scary. Even the merchants on Marion Street will be affected because of the dust, the dirt, the noise. But we have been preparing them for well over a year.”

According to Anne Pezalla, co-owner of Lively boutique and president of the Hemingway District Business Association, the project will be “especially brutal” to businesses in the Hemingway District.

“We’re going to have construction here twice,” she said. “It’s going to be really hard and we’re all very nervous about it.” Current plans are for major infrastructure work on Oak Park Avenue in 2022.

Pezalla and Williams hope that customer loyalty, combined with the shopper rewards program, will keep businesses from being hit too badly.

10 added Lake Street surprises The massive remaking of Lake Street from Harlem to Austin Boulevard could be underway before the close of February. It will wrap up before the end of 2020.

Here are some small surprises we heard Friday when we sat down with Bill McKenna, village engineer; Brian Racine, an on-site engineer for the project hired from Chicago’s TranSystems; Jim Prescott, a communications specialist running the Better Lake Street Project and Eric Jacobsen of the village’s communications staff.

■ All Pedestrian Phase, now there’s a term, will be implemented on an experimental basis on Lake at Marion, Forest, and Oak Park Avenue once the project is complete and all new traffic signals are installed.

Here’s how it works: In every cycle of traffic, lights will go red for cars in every direction so that pedestrians can cross through the intersection in any direction they

choose. They can cross diagonally, though that is discouraged.

Studies elsewhere report a very slight slowing of auto traffic — one second — but improvements in flow of pedestrians.

If it doesn’t work, McKenna said the lights can be readily reset.

■ No bike lanes on Lake Street but a lot of bike parking. McKenna said there is currently a bike lane on North Boulevard and that one will eventually be added on South Boulevard with the goal of getting bikes toward the downtown area but not on Lake itself.

■ No heated sidewalks under the bluestone sidewalks which will be installed in the downtown Oak Park and Hemingway District portion of the project. While the new Lake Street project is modeled on the remake of the 100 block of North Marion Street, the installation and operating costs of the heated sidewalks didn’t make the cut

in a tighter budget imposed by the village board.

■ Sidewalks adjacent to historic Unity Temple, though, will be get added attention owing to a bright idea from village engineers. The concrete poured there for sidewalks will be colored a bit darker and old-fashioned pea gravel will be mixed in to approximate the look of sidewalks from a century back.

■ With positive signs of commercial growth on Lake Street near Austin — One Lake Brewing specifically — modest additional streetscape elements are being added there.

■ A speed table — a raised platform designed to slow traffic and ease pedestrian crossing — will be added in front of the Lake Theatre.

■ Prescott said engineers expect to find remnants of track from the old Lake Street trolley system during construction. Conver-

sations are underway with the Oak Park River Forest Museum on how to preserve sections of track for a future exhibit.

■ In an odd, maybe not completely off the cuff remark, McKenna said design elements will be scaled back a bit at the southeast corner of Lake and Harlem — that would be the Gap/Shops of Downtown Oak Park — because “it may change in the future.” Think taller?

■ Finally, it is going to be a long year on Lake Street. But that doesn’t keep aging infrastructure from aging even more. McKenna said village engineers are already working on the planning and design work for the 2021 repaving of Oak Park Avenue from North Avenue to Ontario and from Pleasant Street to Roosevelt Road.

■ That leaves Oak Park Avenue from Pleasant to Ontario scheduled for major water, sewer and streetscaping work in 2022.

Dan Haley

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Wednesday Journal, February 12, 2020

Growing Community.

OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM

Rush Oak Park garage hearing gets delayed again

The Oak Park Plan Commission votes to extend the hearing to Feb. 20 to give hospital more time

By STACEY SHERIDAN Staff Reporter

Deliberation of Rush Oak Park Hospital’s proposal to build a new 712-spot parking garage has gotten a further hearing continuance of its plan commission hearing. The proposal will return to the plan commission Feb. 20.

According to Oak Park Village Planner Craig Failor, Rush Oak Park Hospital received a second extension to give the hospital “more time to complete their revisions.”

The plan commission first heard the proposal to build the garage on the site of a hospital-owned surface level parking lot at Wenonah Avenue and Monroe Street on Nov. 7, where it was decided to continue the hearing until Feb. 6.

The village has yet to receive revisions from Rush Oak Park Hospital, but Failor hopes to receive them in the next week.

Upon receipt, the public will have access to the revisions.

“It will be posted on the village’s plan commission web page toward the end of the week,” said Failor.

The proposal was met with major opposition from neighbors about the parking structure’s impact on traffic in residential areas and concerns the garage’s lights would shine into people’s homes.

While not an application requirement, Rush Oak Park Hospital had not met with any neighbors prior to submitting the proposal. That also caused neighbors considerable consternation.

Failor did not give any specifics regarding the revisions, saying, “We will have final confirmation on all revisions once the application is in.”

Wednesday Journal, February 12, 2020

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Wednesday Journal, February 12, 2020

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SCHOOLS

Big Shoulders grant from page 1 help strengthen communities throughout the greater-Chicago area,” said James J. O’Connor, the founding chairman and current co-chairman of the Big Shoulders Fund.

“Our own research has shown that alumni Photo courtesy St. Angeles School of our schools go on to vote, study, work, and TURNING AROUND: St. Angela School in volunteer at rates higher than their peers, Austin, one of 30 Catholic schools across becoming the citizens and neighbors that make our communities and Chicago a better Chicago that will receive a share of nearly $50 million in support from Big Shoulders place for all of us,” O’Connor said.

Josh Hale, president and CEO of Big Fund.

Shoulders Fund, said the $50 million commitment is a “natural next step” for the or- translate into the Austin school — one of ganization and builds on 15 years of provid- the few in the archdiocese that exists withing operational and academic assistance for out the support of a parish — having “a bit 75 Catholic schools in the Chicago area and longer runway for us to get turned around” and stabilized.

Northwest Indiana.

“The agreement doesn’t necessarily mean “We have grown from investing $12 million in 2011 to more than $26 million this that there will be a huge cash infusion impast year, with 45 percent of that focused on mediately,” she said. “That’s not necessarily what’s going to happen, but we our operational and academic will continue to have the investsupport to schools,” Hale said. ment we need from Big ShoulThe 30 Chicago area schools ders in order to continue to are all part of the Archdiocese turn ourselves around.” of Chicago, which will continue Leamy said she anticipates to provide them with financial that the Big Shoulders investsupport. While Big Shoulders ment will translate into “a Fund will donate $47.5 million, team of people with a focus the Archdiocese will provide on finance, marketing, educa$44.9 million to the schools, action and curriculum coming in cording to Crain’s. and sitting down with us reguThe Big Shoulders Fund anlarly and reviewing, as a team, nouncement comes a month afwhat’s going on in the school, ter the Archdiocese announced where we can make improvethe closing of five more Cathoments and what we’re already lic schools in the Chicago area LYNN FREDERICK doing well.”

— the latest crest in a wave of St. Angela’s director As with St. Angela, St. Cathschool closures that has hit the of advancement erine-St. Lucy is already an archdiocese in the last 10 years.

“It does not matter if our children are Catholic or not.

We teach because we’re Catholic and that’s also the ministry of Big Shoulders.”

Most of the closures have happened due to low enrollment and financial troubles.

According to the Chicago Tribune, total enrollment in the archdiocesan schools has dipped to roughly 71,000 in 2020, down from more than 95,000 eight years ago.

Crain’s reported that the 30 schools selected to receive the nearly $50 million investment were “chosen because of their deficits, location, and the number of students living in poverty.”

St. Catherine-St. Lucy is one of just two suburban schools listed among the 30 Catholic schools targeted for the investment. The other is Most Blessed Trinity Academy in Waukegan.

“It’s wonderful all the way around,” St. Catherine-St. Lucy Principal Sharon Leamy said of the investment. “We’re very excited about the partnership, because it’s a winwin for everybody. It’s an investment that allows us to serve the mission of our school and the archdiocese.”

Lynn Frederick, St. Angela’s director of advancement, said that last month’s announcement had been in the works for some time. The added support, she said, will

established partner with Big Shoulders Fund.

Last year, St. Catherine-St. Lucy held a ribbon-cutting for a small park, built with a $25,000 donation from Enchanted Backpack — a Bensenville-based charitable organization that provides resources to schools in need. Leamy said the school established a connection to Enchanted Backpack through Big Shoulders.

Around 80 to 85 percent of St. CatherineSt. Lucy’s student population lives in Austin, Leamy said.

St. Angela, which has been without a parish since 2005 and is the only Catholic school in Austin, is heavily dependent on resources from the archdiocese, Big Shoulders and donations from alumni — all of whom “have become enamored of our mission over the years,” Frederick said.

“Big Shoulders is supported by incredibly generous supporters who believe in keeping children underserved in their neighborhoods in Catholic schools,” she said. “It does not matter if our children are Catholic or not. We teach because we’re Catholic and that’s also the ministry of Big Shoulders.”

CONTACT: michael@oakpark.com

DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSIONS IS FRIDAY 5 P.M. Email Viewpoints editor Ken Trainor, ktrainor@wjinc.com

Wednesday Journal, February 12, 2020

VIEWPOINTS

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A new motto for Oak Park? p. 22

Living, knowing we’ll die Everybody dies. We are all mortal, beings limited in space and time. Unlike animals, we are the only species that knows we and everyone we love, will die.

This absurd and disturbing reality would be crippling but for our ability to occupy our lives and minds with a cornucopia of distractions. The distractions are limitless — jobs, spouses, friends, children, books, movies, cellphones, TV, restaurants, sports — to name a few. We are able to keep death at bay.

But then on a recent Sunday afternoon, NBA icon Kobe Bryant and his 13-year-old daughter die in a helicopter crash. It felt like a hard punch to the stomach.

The death of a young charismatic celebrity reminds of just how omnipresent death is.

Now I didn’t know Kobe Bryant or his daughter or any of the other people who died in the crash. But I do know and love my son, Nick, who will turn 41 in May — the same age as Kobe. Nick, like Kobe, has a wife and young children.

I do know and love my son, Chris, who is married and has three children. Chris, like Kobe, is the basketball coach of his two oldest daughters. Lily is the oldest. She is 11. They go to the games by car instead of helicopter. He and Lily, like Kobe and his daughter, discuss strategy on the way to their game, and then evaluate performance on the way home.

I’m 70 years old, but I remember being 41. In the almost 30 years I have lived since being 41, my life has been wonderful. I’ve seen my three boys marry great girls, experienced the birth and lives of seven grandchildren, and spent 30 years married to the love of my life. I’ve had so many wonderful experiences. Kobe and all the other passengers on the helicopter will experience nothing anymore. They will never have those 30 years. Ever.

What is especially disturbing about these deaths is not the celebrity, but the age of the deceased and the suddenness. Kirk Douglas died recently too. He was 103. My dad was 91. I was relieved. All death is sad, but the death of the young has special poignance.

So while I mourn the tragic death of Kobe Bryant, his death’s significance to me is the gut-wringing fear from the reminder that life is not permanent and can end at any time. I suppose such a death is a clarion call to make the most of whatever time we have. For sure.

But. Everybody dies.

JOHN

HUBBUCH

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Photo courtesy Village of Oak Park

RESPECT: The village board chamber is not the place for personal attacks.

SETTING THE BAR HIGHER We are in this together Labeling says more about the labeler

Trustee Arti would not apologize, but I will.

On Monday night, I nominated Jack Powers to serve on the Citizen Police Oversight Commission along with other candidates for various commissions.

Trustee Arti Walker-Peddakotla and two other trustees spoke against Jack’s appointment. But Arti elevated her attack against Jack to unprecedented levels.

She attacked him personally and publicly, labeling him racist and misogynistic. I am deeply shocked by the demeaning and derogatory nature of her attack.

Arti’s comments against Jack are the kind of comments that people lose their jobs over. In some towns, board members who engage in such behavior have been publicly censured.

And since Arti refused to apologize for her attacks and her accusations, I will.

Jack, I am sorry. I am embarrassed and ashamed that you were attacked by a village board member. Arti’s views and comments do not represent the views of a majority of this village board. We reject Arti’s attacks and her labeling of any

village resident. Such labeling and name-calling mimics the same behavior from the White House that many of us vehemently reject. We must do better.

I believe we get elected to serve our residents, not to attack them. As public servants, we must always strive to bring people together, not divide them.

And we must never make false accusations against our board colleagues, staff, or residents for any reason. It is wrong to bully resident volunteers from the board table or anywhere else in the village.

Our desire is to leave the village in a better place than we found it. We are expected to be civil and respectful as we serve our community.

We can’t effect change alone — we are in this together. How we treat one another matters.

What we say matters.

And what we do matters even more.

Respectfully,

Anan Abu-Taleb Mayor

Very well done, Stacey Sheridan, on your thorough and balanced reporting in the wake of the unfortunate episode at the Feb. 3 Oak Park Village Board meeting [Mayor apologizes for trustee’s name calling - Elected official calls appointee ‘racist’ and ‘misogynist’ at board meeting].

As with any institution, the Oak Park Police Department has room for improvement.

The Citizen Police Oversight Committee would benefit from more racial diversity.

Getting there won’t happen through petulant, irresponsible character assassination, but by respectful discourse and effective interpersonal communication.

I am grateful that we have a mayor who models the civil, reasoned leadership that any functional home, let alone community, should aspire to achieve. Over the course of my life, I have found that name-calling (or, as in this case, much worse) reveals far more about the individual flinging the labels than the person who is being labeled.

This is especially true when it is not supported by facts.

Matt Baron Oak Park

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Wednesday Journal, February 12, 2020

O U R

I

V I E W S

Shop local during construction

t is going to be a long spring, summer and fall on Lake Street in Oak Park. A massive public works project could be underway even before February closes. Ground zero will be on Lake near Oak Park Avenue where crews will get down to the dirt as water, sewer and utility work will come before the full repaving and streetscape project is layered on top.

But every linear foot from Harlem to Austin Boulevard will be at least scraped and repaved. In Downtown Oak Park and the Hemingway District, a major streetscape project will follow the design of the 100 blocks of North and South Marion Street. Happily, and responsibly, village trustees scaled back some of the most expensive elements of Marion Street saving $6 million off the initial price tag.

By Thanksgiving the work is scheduled to be complete. But it is going to be a struggle in the meanwhile for our local businesses.

A Shopper Rewards program has been funded by the village to encourage locals to be loyal to these businesses, many of them locally owned and without deep pockets. Oak Park talks a good game about loving local. We’re about to have that premise tested.

North-south streets will remain largely open in the downtown during construction — the result of intense planning and consultation by village engineers. All of the parking garages will remain accessible. But east-west stretches of Lake will be fully closed for extended periods as a way to speed construction.

Those businesses — Book Table, Lake Theatre, Delia’s, Katie’s Dumplings — will remain open and accessible at all times. You may have to just work a bit harder to get there. It will be worth it.

Ban Red-light cameras Three years ago, before everyone was on to the con of redlight cameras, Wednesday Journal, Forest Park Review and the Riverside-Brookfield Landmark did a deep dive that made clear these cameras have nothing to do with traffic safety, how rapidly small towns and cities had become fiscally addicted to this grift revenue, and how corrupt the politics of red-light contracts were at their core.

To its credit, Oak Park never fell for this scam. Now everyone is on to it. State legislators and municipal officials are resigning, being indicted, getting raided, lawyering up. The Sun-Times and the Trib are in the chase. Federal prosecutors are wiring and flipping weasel politicians. And down in Springfield, the dirty town on the prairie, momentum is building to attempt once more to outright ban red-light cameras.

We’re all for it.

Red-light cameras are a scam perpetrated by greedy con men — elected and otherwise — on overtaxed drivers just living their lives. The cameras cannot be justified as an advance in traffic safety. There are more serious traffic worries than a slightly rolling right turn on red. If the scoundrels behind this technology are so determined to save lives, if the town trustees hooked on $100 fines to pay their underfunded pensions want to argue it is all about safety, then just leave the cameras pointed at bad drivers actively running red lights. That could do some good.

Otherwise we are in support of state Sen. Mattie Hunter, quoted in the Sun-Times saying, “Traffic laws should be driven by safety, not bribery, shakedowns or the need to boost revenue.”

And we’ll urge Oak Park’s own state Senate President, Don Harmon, to take seriously his pledge: “It’s becoming increasingly clear that we need a full review of the red-light camera program in Illinois.”

We need a review before the exorcism.

V I E W P O I N T S

Nothing says romance like sidewalks

H

aving walked many, many miles around Oak Park the past 30 years, I’ve become a connoisseur of sidewalks. There is more in them than meets the eye.

Oak Park is a pedestrian-friendly town. On almost every street, there are two sets of sidewalks, divided into squares — thousands of squares, each a unique canvas. When I walk, I look around, but just as often I look down, my head tilting as I follow a train of thought or take a deeper dive and lose myself in the stream of consciousness.

So I’ve studied sidewalks for three decades and, as an object of contemplation, they are more rewarding than you might imagine. What initially seems blandly uniform is anything but. Cement has gone through stages — from coarse, dark and highly textured to fine-grained, white and smooth. Sand and pebbly gravel was the formula once upon an earlier time.

Some actually include seashells, the sand coming from some forgotten beach on some forgotten shore.

Not all of our sidewalks consist of cement.

Sandstone panels and even slate slabs survive, recalling a era closer to the beginning of the last century, closer to the founding of the village itself in the 1800s.

As squares crack and decay, they are replaced, hence the variety. Walking some blocks is like tracing sedimentary layers of the earth itself — or a museum exhibit on cement’s evolution. We take for granted the flatness of our walkways, but the remarkable power of tree roots can dislodge these slabs like some annoying nuisance, creating trip hazards, though municipalities now have machines that grind down the protruding edges, flattening them back into conformity, exposing a patchwork of imbedded stones, mosaic-like beneath the surface.

Cement when it’s wet is irresistible, judging by the imprints left behind, from shoe prints to paw prints to squirrel tracks to leaf fossils. If you appreciate textural diversity, Oak Park sidewalks offer a smorgasbord. If you pocket your magic rectangle and do nothing but look at the sidewalk, you will find beauty as well as mystery.

Mystery, you ask? Yes, because there is also a fair volume of sidewalk script if you care to decipher it. Humans being immortality seekers, initials are legion, sometimes united by plus signs, proclaiming coupledom. In the newer pavement where Rick Meegan’s newsstand operated for many decades, tucked under the overpass away from the elements near the corner of Oak Park Avenue and North Boulevard, Greg and Flo Wood left their marker. Close by, fans of Iron Maiden, Pink Floyd and Led Zeppelin (abbreviated to Led Zep) attest to someone’s faithful fandom. Along Erie, north side of the street, near Kenilworth Avenue, “Ginkgo Tree B&B” testifies to the former use of the grand Victorian on that corner and the giant ginkgo tree in the backyard.

Makes a wanderer wonder about the backstories.

Most mysterious of all is the inscription located

14 squares west of Oak Park Avenue along Erie, north side of the street, north edge of the square: “I still love Nan” Why “still”? The word stands out.

Who is/was Nan? And who scratched this in the wet cement, helpfully dated to August of 1977, almost a half-century ago? Someone saw a fresh square of cement and an opportunity. Something so private, yet so public. Was Nan present when he did it (presuming “he”) or was she already gone? Was the author thinking about the past or the future?

Maybe he looked at her and said, “When someone spots this 40 years from now, if I’m still alive, I will still love you.” Has that prophesy come to pass?

Whatever the circumstances, “he” felt strongly enough to set his love in stone. Not forever, but as close as we come — until the square is replaced or the words erode to illegibility.

Does he, in fact, still love Nan? Does Nan still love him? Are either still alive?

Was she already dead — perhaps tragically and too young — and he could no longer hold his emotions in? Did it console him every time he KEN TRAINOR/Staff passed this way or did his feelings fade over time? Would he shake his head when he saw it, amazed by love’s youthful intensity? Did he eventually stop looking as he passed? Did he leave a single blossom on the grass, unobtrusively honoring her memory or the memory of their love?

Or did he move away and never see those words again? Did she move away, then return much later in life, and come across the message, never having known it was there, at a loss over how to find him?

Maybe the story is less romantic. Perhaps they broke up years before, but he never quite got over it and needed to leave this message behind, frozen in time.

Four words that seem to say so much.

Ernest Hemingway, famously known for being a writer of few words, once responded to someone’s challenge to write an entire novel in just six. Here’s what he came up with: “For sale: baby shoes, never worn.”

It breaks your heart, and the novel writes itself in your mind — or tries to. Hemingway described his literary efforts as the tip of an iceberg, 7/8ths of which lies beneath the surface, unspoken.

“I still love Nan,” a four-word novel etched in cement. I suspect it was written by a young man, but a friend believes it was an old man at the end of a long, loving life together. Only death could part them. He had a hard time getting down on his knees to inscribe the words, but he had to.

He just had to.

Because the only thing greater than the intensity of youthful love is the depth of long-lived love.

Forty-three years have passed. For 30 of those years, I walked past this square on my regular path without noticing it.

Who says sidewalks aren’t romantic?

Happy Valentine’s Day.

KEN

TRAINOR

V I E W P O I N T S S H R U B T O W N

by Marc Stopeck

Wednesday Journal, February 12, 2020

W E D N E S D A Y

JOURNAL of Oak Park and River Forest

Editor and Publisher Dan Haley Senior Editor Bob Uphues Associate Publisher Dawn Ferencak Staff Reporters Michael Romain, Stacey Sheridan, Maria Maxham Viewpoints Editor Ken Trainor Sports/Staff reporter James Kay Columnists Marc Blesoff, Jack Crowe, Doug Deuchler, John Hubbuch, May Kay O’Grady, Kwame Salter, John Stanger, Stan West, Linda Francis Staff Photographer Alex Rogals Editorial Design Manager Claire Innes Editorial Designers Mark Moroney, Scot McIntosh Business Manager Joyce Minich IT Manager/Web Developer Mike Risher Advertising Design Manager Andrew Mead Advertising Designers Debbie Becker, Bobbie Rollins-Sanchez Revenue & Advertising Director Dawn Ferencak Advertising Sales Marc Stopeck

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Sales & Development Mary Ellen Nelligan

Fair tax, but only after reform

ednesday Journal has published countless articles and letters as well as commentary on President Trump, some deserved and plenty over the top. Meanwhile, the paper continues to understate or even overlook the crisis we face in Illinois with mismanagement and corruption at every level.

After attending Senator Harmon’s town hall at Julian Middle School, I have concluded that the current political leadership in Oak Park, as well as the entire state of Illinois, is hopelessly lost. Senator Harmon asserted that the state’s two sins over time have been failing to fund public education and failing to fund the pension system. His cure for these failures is his fair tax proposal.

Fritz Kaegi decried the limits homeowners may deduct on their federal income tax under the new tax laws. But he failed to mention that his proposed reforms were squashed in the legislature by none other than Mike Madigan. Property values have plummeted in Oak Park largely due to the overwhelming tax burden — especially on higher-end homes.

What’s wrong?

1) We allow elected office holders to work in businesses that have a direct conflict with their official duties as legislators.

2) We do not limit terms, which allow corrupt (and old) politicians to protect their power at the expense of progressive change.

3) We gerrymander.

4) We allow elected judges such as Illinois Supreme Court Justice Anne Burke to deem pension reform unconstitutional instead of recusing herself from the decision.

Senator Harmon likes to point out that all our neigh-

Client Engagement Natalie Johnson Circulation Manager Jill Wagner Distribution Coordinator Wakeelah Cocroft-Aldridge Front Desk Carolyn Henning, Maria Murzyn Chairman Emeritus Robert K. Downs

About Viewpoints

Capitol News Illinois file photo by Jerry Nowicki)

THE WAY FORWARD: Senate President Don Harmon proposes a fair tax to pay for education and pensions. boring states have a progressive tax, but he does so without acknowledging that these states are not hundreds of billions in debt. Wisconsin, Indiana and Iowa have been much more responsible stewards of their taxpayers’ money and don’t view recklessly issuing bonds to pay a backlog of debt as some miracle cure.

I am not opposed to a progressive tax but will only support it after the state legislators implement meaningful fiscal and ethics reform.

Sean O’Malley Oak Park

Our mission is to lead educated conversation about the people, government, schools, businesses and culture of Oak Park and River Forest. As we share the consensus of Wednesday Journal’s editorial board on local matters, we hope our voice will help focus your thinking and, when need be, fire you to action.

In a healthy conversation about community concerns, your voice is also vital. We welcome your views, on any topic of community interest, as essays and as letters to the editor. Noted here are our stipulations for filing.

Please understand our verification process and circumstances that would lead us not to print a letter or essay. We will call to check that what we received with your signature is something you sent. If we can’t make that verification, we will not print what was sent. When, in addition to opinion, a letter or essay includes information presented as fact, we will check the reference. If we cannot confirm a detail, we may not print the letter or essay.

If you have questions, email Viewpoints editor Ken Trainor at ktrainor@wjinc.com.

LETTER TO THE EDITOR

‘ONE VIEW’ ESSAY

■ 250-word limit

■ 500-word limit

■ Must include first and last names,

■ One-sentence footnote about yourself,

municipality in which you live, phone number (for verification only)

your connection to the topic ■ Signature details as at left

Email Ken Trainor at ktrainor@wjinc.com or mail to Wednesday Journal, Viewpoints, 141 S. Oak Park Ave., Oak Park, IL 60302 708 613 3300

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Wednesday Journal, February 12, 2020

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V I E W P O I N T S

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Oak Park’s new motto: ‘All that is excellent’

eidi Ruehle, your Jan. 29 One View [Village and Pete’s can do better at Oak Park and Madison, Viewpoints] was an excellent, authoritative piece about Oak Park and its history of architectural richness and the importance of respecting and continuing this legacy.

There were, additionally, excellent comments by Oak Park residents, which demonstrate the “collective intelligence” many of us love about living in this community. Unfortunately, it is a gift ignored, more often than not, by our leaders, and, as a result, that rich heritage is slowly being eroded by allowing poor design by developers and poor planning and scrutiny by the present village board and the village’s planning department.

There’s no excuse for this. Elected officials, planners and developers seem to have that patronizing stumbling-block attitude: “We know what’s best for you.” Hard to figure that out. Ego? We have the resources needed to continue protecting and expanding the valuable architectural history and its features of our village. We have wonderfully-informed architects, experts willing to advise and guide the decisions under consideration. Frank Heitzman, for example. Frank has spent

countless hours helping all of us to be well-informed on the history and potential value of retaining historic structures like 644 Madison Street, the Foley Rice (or Hill Motor Co. or Packard) building.

But our local government continues to ignore these recommendations in planning a community. The wisdom comes from people experienced in historic preservation in other agencies — like yourself, Heidi — people knowledgeable with what an incredible resource Oak Park’s diversity of architecture is, the work of over 100 architects, a “living laboratory” of American architecture, and how this stands to benefit a community in every way. That doesn’t mean allowing mediocre or bad architectural projects.

That means looking for excellence in design and construction. But, unfortunately, that hasn’t yet happened with boards in the recent past.

This past weekend, I drove from Devon (north), to Lake Street (south), I thought it was the perfect example of bad planning and sub-standard designs. That’s what happens when local governments muck up planning, including not cooperating with another adjacent town. You get an ugly

mish-mash. We do not want that lack of aesthetic consideration on Madison Street or anywhere else in Oak Park.

There are examples in the city, like North Clark Street, that are examples of how preservation creates better shopping areas and places that have character and saves the existing buildings, which people actually want to visit. We want this standard of excellence for our diverse population — not to serving just one demographic as we sadly see the variance of standards and/or lack of them, based on wealth or poverty in various parts of the city and suburbs.

Heidi, you said, “The current plan is not only in direct violation of Oak Park’s zoning ordinance design standards; the lackluster design screams of indifference to Oak Park’s longstanding tradition of design excellence.” That’s the problem now, not in every project, but in the majority of the projects approved and built in Oak Park.

I believe the majority of Oak Parkers aspire to incorporate excellence in all planning, design and construction going on in Oak Park. Citizens know it is a reasonable, achievable and responsible goal, one of the

CHRISTINE VERNON One View

important components we inherited from the generations before us that has made the village stand out, world renowned as a unique village. Oak Parkers traditionally worked to preserve the environment; to preserve the spirit of community while it grows and evolves; and to protect the quality of the architecture, which continues contributing to make the community a desirable place to live.

Let’s not quit now and become the generation that threw it all away.

Reading your comments, Heidi, I kept thinking of the motto at OPRF High School.

“Those Things That Are Best.” It’s great to think that young people would take that to heart and keep that lifelong as they make choices and make their way in the world.

Does Oak Park have a similar motto? I don’t think so. Oak Park has only the slogan, “Step Out of Line.” That’s a weird one, ambiguous and non-specific.

What if we ratchet up the high school motto to one suitable for the village, all of us, and adopt the motto “All that is excellent” (“Quod optimum est”) to help us remember collectively to continue striving for a standard of excellence in all endeavors?

Christine Vernon is a lifelong resident of Oak Park.

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Wednesday Journal, February 12, 2020

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Religion Guide You’re Invited to

Roman Catholic

St. Edmund Catholic Church

ELCA, Lutheran

A Church for All Nations A Church Without Walls SERVICE LOCATION Forest Park Plaza 7600 W. Roosevelt Road Forest Park, IL 60130

Good Shepherd Worshiping at 820 Ontario, Oak Park IL (First Baptist Church) 9:00a-Worship 10:30a-Education Hour

All are welcome. goodshepherdlc.org 708-848-4741

William S. Winston Pastor (708) 697-5000

on the corner of Thomas and Fair Oaks Ave.

Sunday Service 7AM, 9AM & 11:15AM

LIVE Webcast - 11:15AM Service Believer’s Walk of Faith Broadcast Schedule (Times in Central Standard Time) Television DAYSTAR (M-F)

3:30-4:00pm

Nationwide

WJYS-TV (M-F)

6:30-7:00am

Chicago, IL.

WCIU-TV (Sun.)

10:30-11:00am

Chicago, IL.

Word Network

10:30-11:00am

Nationwide

(M-F)

188 South Oak Park Ave. Saturday Mass: 5:30 p.m.

Sunday Masses: 9:00 & 11:00 a.m., 5:00 p.m.

Weekday Mass: 8:30 a.m. M–F Holy Day Masses: As Announced Reconciliation: Saturday 4:15 p.m.

Parish Office: 708-848-4417 Religious Ed Phone: 708-848-7220 stedmund.org

www.livingwd.org www.billwinston.org

Lutheran—ELCA

United Lutheran Church

409 Greenfield Street (at Ridgeland Avenue) Oak Park Holy Communion with nursery care and children’s chapel each Sunday at 9:30 a.m.

worship on Sundays @ 10am nursery care available

fairoakspres.org 744 Fair Oaks Ave. • 708.386.4920

OAK PARK MEETING OF FRIENDS (Quakers) Meeting For Worship Sundays at 10:00 a.m. at Oak Park Art League 720 Chicago Ave., Oak Park Please call 708-445-8201 www.oakparkfriends.org

Roman Catholic

Ascension Catholic Church

www.unitedlutheranchurch.org

708/386-1576

Lutheran-Independent

Grace Lutheran Church

7300 W. Division, River Forest David R. Lyle, Senior Pastor Sunday Worship, 8:30 & 11:00 a.m.

Sunday School/Adult Ed. 9:45 a.m.

Childcare Available

Grace Lutheran School

Preschool - 8th Grade Bill Koehne, Principal 366-6900, graceriverforest.org Lutheran-Missouri Synod

St. John Evangelical Lutheran Church

Upcoming Religious Holidays

Feb 12 Triodion

Orthodox Christian

14 St. Valentine’s Day 15 Nirvana Day

22 Maha Shivaratri

Christian

Buddhist, Jain

23 Meatfare Sunday

Hindu

Orthodox Christian

Transfiguration Sunday Christian

25 Shrove Tuesday

26 Intercalary Days begin Ash Wednesday Lent begins

Mar 1 St. David of Wales

Intercalary Days end

Christian Baha’i

Christian

Christian Baha’i

305 Circle Ave, Forest Park Sunday Worship, 9:30am Christian Education Hour 8:30am Wednesday Worship 7:00pm Wheelchair Access to Sanctuary Leonard Payton, Pastor Roney Riley, Assistant Pastor 708-366-3226 www.stjohnforestpark.org Methodist

First United Methodist Church of Oak Park

324 N. Oak Park Avenue 708-383-4983 www.firstUMCoakpark.org Sunday School for all Ages, 9am Sunday Worship, 10am Children’s Chapel during Worship Rev. Katherine Thomas Paisley, Pastor Professionally Staffed Nursery Fellowship Time after Worship

808 S. East Ave. 708/848-2703 www.ascensionoakpark.com Worship: Saturday Mass 5:00 pm Sunday Masses 7:30, 9:00, 11 am 5:00 pm at St. Edmund Church Sacrament of Reconciliation 4 – 4:45 pm Saturday Taizé Prayer 7:30 pm First Fridays Feb.– Dec. & Jan. 1 Rev. James Hurlbert, Pastor Roman Catholic

St. Bernardine Catholic Church

St. Giles Family Mass Community

We welcome all to attend Sunday Mass at 10 a.m. on the St. Giles Parish campus on the second floor of the school gym, the southernmost building in the school complex at 1034 North Linden Avenue.

Established in 1970, we are a laybased community within St. Giles Roman Catholic Parish.

Our Mass is family-friendly.

We encourage liturgically active toddlers. Children from 3 to 13 and young adults play meaningful parts in each Sunday liturgy.

Together with the parish, we offer Catechesis of the Good Shepherd, a Montessori-based religious education program for children in grades K-8.

For more information, go to http://www.stgilesparish.org/ family-mass-community or call Bob Wielgos at 708-288-2196.

Third Unitarian Church 10AM Sunday Forum 11AM Service Rev. Colleen Vahey thirdunitarianchurch.org (773) 626-9385 301 N. Mayfield, Chicago Committed to justice, not to a creed

Harrison & Elgin, Forest Park

CELEBRATING OUR 108TH YEAR! Sat. Masses: 8:30am & 5:00pm SUNDAY MASSES: 8:00am & 10:30am 10:30 Mass-Daycare for all ages CCD Sun. 9am-10:15am Reconciliation: Sat. 9am & 4pm Weekday Masses: Monday–Thursday 6:30am Church Office: 708-366-0839 CCD: 708-366-3553 www.stbern.com Pastor: Fr. Stanislaw Kuca

To place a listing in the Religion Guide, call Mary Ellen: 708/613-3342

V I E W P O I N T S

OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM

Ideas for the Winberie’s space I’m sure most of your readers are wondering what could possibly go into the Winberie’s space. I’ve been wondering the same thing, and I think there are only three possibilities. The first is to break it up into smaller spaces, which would be a shame.

There are two restaurants though, that I think could succeed in that space. The first would be a Lettuce Entertain You restaurant. I have many points with them and I have to drive to places such as Oak Brook, Skokie or the Loop to use them. I’ve been surprised that they haven’t opened a restaurant in Oak Park as of yet. They have such a large following that they could survive even construction.

The second restaurant that could succeed there would be something akin to the original Erik’s Deli. It was a nice, light, cheery place that invited you to bring your children.

I’m sure many restaurants offer children’s menus and do other things to accommodate children, but almost all the Oak Park restaurants are primarily adult-oriented.

If you want something that is more appealing to families you have to go over to Junction Diner in Forest Park. It was a shame that when the Erik’s owners remodeled with the best of intentions, they put in smoky windows and dark drab interiors. It made it look more elegant, but it lost its appeal to the family crowd.

Wednesday Journal, February 12, 2020

How to save the Lake Michigan shoreline

Administration to move forward to fund and complete the Great Lakes Coastal Resiliency Study. This study would identify areas in the Great Lakes that are vulnerable to climate change Like most Illinoisans, and recommend measures and there is a special place in my infrastructure to increase resilheart for Lake Michigan. ience.

But more recently, extreme I’ve also called on the Army weather and flooding in IlliDICK DURBIN Corps of Engineers to help exnois has had a major impact U.S. Senator pand the shoreline project to on the environment, infraadditional sections of the lakestructure, and economy of the shore and protect against rising lake levLake Michigan shoreline. If this weather els. I recently spoke to Assistant Secretary continues, it will do untold damage to the of the Army (ASA) for Civil Works R.D. future of our beloved Great Lake.

James, who oversees the Army Corps, and Climate change threatens so much urged him to make these projects a top priof what Lake Michigan provides to our state: recreation and relaxation by the ority in this year’s budget.

The bottom line is this: we need to wake shore, clean drinking water, and natural up and work together to strengthen our beauty. Lawmakers on both sides of the shorelines by letting science, not politics, aisle must recognize the challenge cliguide our actions. Lake Michigan has mate change presents and support legisbeen great to us, and it’s about time we lation that addresses both mitigation and return the favor. resiliency.

Teresa Powell Along with a group of bipartisan senators, I’ve repeatedly called on the Trump Oak Park This is something I think many readers will be interested in.

A message from U.S. Senator Richard Durbin:

File photow

Now with Tasty Dog gone there isn’t a place that really says, “Come on in and bring the kids and they’ll have a good time.”

I hope that changes in the next year or two when my grandson gets old enough to take him to places like that.

Joyce Porter Oak Park

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Wednesday Journal, February 12, 2020

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O B I T U A R I E S

Ronald Engels, 86 Active volunteer, community supporter

Ronald H. Engels Sr., 86, died peacefully on Feb. 2, 2020. Born in Chicago, he was the only child of Joseph and Augusta Engels. Growing up in Wrigleyville, he was a big fan of the Chicago Cubs and passed that on to RONALD his children and grandchilENGELS dren. He was a graduate of Lane Tech College Prep High School and earned his chemical engineering degree from Trine University. His career took him to several cities across the country but eventually he ended up back “home” to raise his family in Oak Park and then retire to La Grange. Through the years he volunteered and was an active supporter of the local communities, churches, and schools.

Ronald Engels was the husband of the late Sally M.; the father of Ronald H. Jr. (Sally), Thomas J. (Tamara), the late Michael S., Robert M. (Carmella) and Suzanne (Michael) Achenbaugh; grandfather to Ashley (Scott) Nye, Kristen (Kevin) Tenny, Danielle (Brian) Golobish, Andrew and Allison Achenbaugh, Sarah, Hailey, and Emma Engels; and the great-grandfather of Loyal and Henry Nye. A memorial Mass was celebrated on Feb. 8 at Christ the King Church in Lombard. The family appreciates donations to the Association of Horizon Inc., 3712 N. Broadway, Ste. 335, Chicago 60613.

To run an obituary

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Wednesday Journal, February 12, 2020

@ @OakPark

Dave Powers honored before Friars’ upset win 28

SPORTS

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OPRF swimming wins conference 29

Photo by Samantha Smart

DECISION: OPRF wrestler Joe Chapman looks to the referee as he tries to pin his opponent.

OPRF wrestling back on track with regional title Joe Chapman improves to 31-6

By MELVIN TATE Contributing Reporter

While OPRF is perennially known for boasting one of the best wrestling programs in the country, this season has been uncharacteristically average as the Huskies had several dual-team meet losses and saw Lyons Township High School claim the West Suburban Silver title - one that’s belonged to OPRF the past few seasons.

However, the IHSA state series is typically when the Huskies have been at their best, and on Feb. 8, OPRF found itself in a familiar position: a regional champion.

The Huskies claimed the team title in the 3A Lyons Township Regional with 191.5 points while the Lions were the runner-up

with 151.5 points.

“Today went about as well as it possibly could have,” said OPRF’s head coach Paul Collins. “We knew it was going to be a dogfight, so we needed some guys to step up and they did. To take home the regional plaque again is awesome and sets us up for team sectionals.”

LTHS head coach Griff Powell was also pleased with his team’s performance as the Lions carried over their strong regular season - which featured their first conference championship since 2011 - into the regional.

“Overall, I thought our guys did an outstanding job,” Powell said. “We ended up getting several guys through (to the individual sectional) and avenged a few losses in three different weight classes. I thought our energy and effort were outstanding.”

OPRF advanced nine individuals to the Hinsdale Central 3A Individual Sectional.

The Huskies had six champions - Jake Rundell at 120 lbs, Nico Bolivar at 132, Josh Ogunsanya at 145, Joe Chapman at 152, Daemyen Middlebrooks at 195, and Fabian Gonzalez at 285. Other OPRF wrestlers advancing were Zavian Stewart at 106 (third place), Jalen Dunson at 113 (third), and Malakye Rodriguez at 138 (third).

Chapman was particularly dominant, registering pinfalls in both the semifinal and championship rounds. After pinning Downers Grove North’s Will Schuessler at 2:55 in the semifinal, Chapman - ranked fourth in the state in his weight class notched a 15-0 technical fall victory over LTHS’ Will Bettiga for the title, improving his individual record to 31-6.

“That was fun,” said Chapman after the match. “I wrestled him earlier in the season and today it was good to meet him when I was stronger.”

Rundell, the state’s top-ranked wrestler in

his weight class, also had a relatively easy day. After getting a bye to the semifinals, the senior pinned Terrance Smith of Proviso East in 1:42 before he made short work of LTHS’ Jack Villareal in the title match.

Rundell got the pin in just 50 seconds to improve his season mark to 35-1.

Despite the uneven season, OPRF still has several state-ranked wrestlers. Besides Chapman and Rundell, the Huskies have Bolivar ranked third in the 132-lb class, Ogunsanya third at 145, Danny Lingen second at 182, and Middlebrooks second at 195.

Unfortunately, Lingen suffered an injury in practice three days before the regional and did not participate. It was a tough blow for OPRF, but Collins saluted his team for displaying resiliency.

“We thought we were going to solidly win (the regional) with Danny, but once he went See WRESTLING on page 28

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S P O R T S

Wednesday Journal, February 12, 2020

There isn’t a lot that Dave Power hasn’t seen during his illustrious career as Fenwick’s girls basketball head coach. However, on Feb. 4, he was left speechless after the Friars upset Evanston High School on a half-court buzzer beater by senior Elise Heneghan.

“You know I usually have a lot to say after these games,” said Power. “You’re going to have to talk to [the players and alumnae]. I have nothing for you right now. I’m so proud of this team.”

Pregame celebration Power was honored before the game with a plaque from athletic director Scott Thies who also gave a speech talking about what Power has meant to the school and community.

An anonymous donor gave $500,000 towards the locker room which will display the plaque outside of the entrance. It will be called, “The Power Locker Room.”

To add to the celebration on the night, Powers’ former players Erin Lawless, Tricia Liston, and Devereaux Peters (all of whom have their numbers retired at Fenwick) were in attendance to support their former coach.

“I remember eighth grade basketball when he would come to my school and I would be the most excited player to

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Fenwick’s Dave Power honored be able to play in front of him,” said former Friar and WNBA player Tricia Liston. “Whether it was winning a state title, yelling at us in practice, or little moments that happened on the bus, I have so many great moments with Coach Power that I am grateful for.”

Evanston’s head coach, Brittany Johnson, is also a former player of Power.

She tweeted before the game, “Attending Fenwick and being [coached]

by Coach Power changed the trajectory of my life. I am beyond grateful to come back and coach against him on a night where the living legend is honored.

As he always said Let’s play some balllllllllll!”

Heneghan said after the game that in third grade she attended a camp led by Liston and that seeing Liston and the other alumnae meant a lot to the team.

“It’s really humbling to come back here and have players like [this team] look up to me and know who I am,” said Liston. “I know when I was their age that there were players that I looked up to who I couldn’t say ‘hi’ to because I was so nervous that they were in the gym. I think that’s the culture that Fenwick has built where there is always someone you can look up to.”

Late-game thriller

Throughout the night, the Friars held their own versus the Wildkits as both teams went back and forth until Evanston held a one-point lead with 30 seconds left. After the Friars failed to score on multiple opportunities at the rim, they fouled the Wildkits to force free throws. However, the Wildkits missed the front end of a one and one and Heneghan grabbed the rebound.

With four seconds left, she dribbled to half court and heaved up a shot that hit the backboard and went in.

“I am not going to lie, I really just threw it up there,” said Hanneghan. “I looked at the clock and there were four seconds left. I took three or four dribbles and threw it up. I wanted it to go in but I didn’t think it was going to but it went in. Everyone played so well.”

The Friars dramatic regular season finale gives them momentum heading into the first round of the playoffs which start next week.

“We knew that this could be our last game at Fenwick,” said Heneghan. “For our seniors, this could have been their last time playing in this gym. We wanted to give them and everyone watching our all. It almost didn’t go our way, but it ended up working out.”

–James Kay

Fenwick Head Coach Dave Power

WRESTLING Regionals

from page 27 down, we knew we had some work to do,” he said.

“Today we had guys like Stephon Carr, Malcolm Gray, and Connor Nagela who, although they didn’t place, were able to win matches and get valuable points for us.”

Both Collins and Powell believe their teams are performing at the highest possible level as the state series enters into the individual sectional round, and both are optimistic about having several wrestlers advance to the individual state finals, which take place Feb. 20 through Feb. 22 at the University of Illinois’ State Farm Center in Champaign.

“Now for the next two weeks, these guys can solely focus on the individual tournament and try to get on the stand and get a state title,” Collins said. “The 14 guys we put on the mat today, we thought they gave their best efforts of the season, and that’s what we were hoping for. We solidified ourselves and let everyone know that we’re still a good team and a force to be reckoned with. It’s been a journey, and we’ve come a long way since the beginning of the year.”

Preliminary matches at the Hinsdale Central individual sectional begin Feb. 14 at 4 p.m., with the remaining matches starting the next morning at 9 am.

Photo by Samantha Smart

FOR THE WIN: OPRF had nine individuals advance to the next round. Josh Ogunsanya (left) was one of the nine.

S P O R T S

OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM

Wednesday Journal, February 12, 2020

29

OPRF alum earns shot at college coaching slot Bolden to head baseball program at UW-Eau Claire

By JAMES KAY Sports Editor

For years, all Charles Bolden wanted was a chance to run his own baseball program.

After beating out 90 candidates for the head coaching vacancy at University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, the former OPRF baseball player is ready to seize the opportunity he has prepared his entire adult life for.

“This is a dream come true for me,” said Bolden. “Eau Claire has a rich history with baseball and being able to build my own program is something I have wanted for a long time. It’s a rare opportunity and I am so grateful that the university chose me for this position.”

Eau Claire discontinued its baseball program in 1995 but decided to resurrect it this year to appeal to prospective students interested in baseball (the university is also adding women’s lacrosse and men’s soccer). According to Bolden, the athletic department was looking for someone to execute its four-year plan of creating a winning culture and effectively recruiting players around the Midwest.

This was the type of opportunity Bolden

Courtesy Charles Bolden

Former OPRF baseball player Charles Bolden is UW-Eau Claire’s new head coach. had been waiting in the wings for.

After playing two years of professional baseball, he wanted to get experience coaching at all levels. He created a travel baseball program called “Midwest Havoc” and coached high school players from OPRF, Lyons Township, Nazareth Academy, Riverside-Brookfield, Fenwick, and others from around the area. He also had coaching gigs at Illinois Tech and Chicago State University.

With his connections in the area and a hunger to build his own program, Bolden

was the ideal candidate to take the job at Eau Claire when it opened up.

“There was a set of criteria that we as a search committee tried to get to find the first coach since the reinstatement [of the program],” said Eau Claire’s athletic director, Daniel Schumacher, at the press conference introducing Bolden as head coach. “As a group, we talked about passion, the value of higher education, and the importance of recruiting great citizens of our community. After interviewing him on Skype and on-campus, Coach Bolden’s

enthusiasm was infectious.”

That enthusiasm can be traced back to Bolden’s time at OPRF where he played varsity baseball for two years before graduating in 2004. He routinely stayed after practice and worked with hitting coach Wayne Wente on his swing. He credits Wente for setting an example for him to be an extra-mile coach.

“I think we had 18 guys when I played who went on to play college baseball,” said Bolden. “I was probably the player people expected the least to get to the next level. I knew I had to work outside of practice to get where I wanted to be. [Wente] didn’t need to stay and put that extra work with kids, but he did.”

Now that he has his opportunity, Bolden no longer has to work five jobs to pursue coaching on a full-time basis. Above all else, he wants to spread the message to younger people to go after their dreams unimpeded by fear of not reaching their goals.

“I just want people to look at my story and see the value of hard work and grinding to achieve your dreams,” said Bolden.

“Looking back at my time in Oak Park, I am so appreciative of all the parents, teachers, and everyone who helped me to graduate from OPRF and get to where I am today.

Everything I do now, I want to send the message to kids that they can do anything they set their minds to and learn from my underdog story.”

OPRF swimming wins West Suburban Silver

Huskies notch first conference title since 1998

By JAMES KAY Sports Editor

For the first time since 1998, the Huskies’ boys swimming team won the West Suburban Silver Conference that had been dominated by Lyons Township and Hinsdale Central high schools for the last two decades.

With the depth the team has exhibited all season -- they went undefeated in conference dual meets -- the Huskies are keeping everything in perspective with bigger goals in mind.

“This is a really solid victory for us,” said junior Diego Pareja. “But we are more focused on the future with sectionals and state. [OPRF head coach Clyde Lundgren] was very proud of us and let us know how big a deal this was but let us know to keep focusing on what is ahead.”

OPRF finished first at the conference meet with 311.5 points. Hinsdale Central placed second (264), followed by LTHS (246.5), York (209), Downers Grove North (111) and Glenbard West (95).

Courtesy Amber Pareja

CONFERENCE CHAMPS: OPRF boys swim and dive team poses after winning conference for the first time since 1998.

Highlights from the night Junior Benjamin Guerrero had himself a day as he broke the conference record in the 200-yard individual medley with a time of 1 minute, 55.10 seconds. The previous record

was 1:56.48, set by Hinsdale Central’s Danny Thompson in 2011.

Guerrero also finished second in the 500yard freestyle (4:46.44) behind York High School’s Jay Jensen (4.44.57).

“It was funny because we were excited

for [Guerrero], but he came out of the pool disappointed he didn’t do better,” said Pareja. “We were like trying to tell him, ‘That was so good!’ He is already focused on the next meet.”

Junior Frank Tirone and Lyons Township High School senior Jack Thorell tied for first in the 50-yard freestyle at 21.67. Pareja placed first in the 100-yard butterfly (53.67) and 100-yard backstroke (53.13).

The Huskies’ 200-yard medley relay team (Pareja, Owen Osga, Will Raidt and Tirone) placed first in the event with a time of 1:36.23 over Hinsdale Central’s team, which finished second at 1:36.89.

OPRF’s 400-yard freestyle relay (Pareja, Guerrero, Raidt and James Shorney) also won with a time of 3:12.09.

Senior diver Taylor Hoyt blew his competition out of the water with a score of 411.35, outdistancing the second place finisher, who finished with 367.50 points.

Moving forward OPRF will get 11 days off until the IHSA Sectional meet, which will determine who will compete at the IHSA State Meet.

Fenwick High School, 505 Washington Blvd. in Oak Park, will host the sectional meet on Feb. 22 at 1 p.m.

30

Wednesday Journal, February 12, 2020

Fitness

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Wednesday Journal, February 12, 2020

OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM

Oak Park Eats positively encourages readers to think about the food and beverages they consume and seek our unique and memorable beer drinking experience while celebrating Kinslagher’s local partnerships with Carnivore, Opportunity Knocks, Daly Bagels, and Darr-B-Q. - Keith Huizinga, Kinslagher

Sip more at Kinslahger.com/ Keith Huizinga, Kinslagher

Keep up with Melissa Elsmo and what she’s cooking up at:

OakParkEats.com

31

32

Wednesday Journal, February 12, 2020

OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM New local ads this week

HOURS: 9:00 A.M.– 5:00 P.M. MON–FRI

WEDNESDAY

CLASSIFIED Deadline is Monday at 5:00 p.m.

Place your ad online anytime at: www.OakPark.com/Classified/

YOUR WEEKLY AD

REACHES SIX SUBURBAN COMMUNITIES: OAK PARK, RIVER FOREST, FOREST PARK, BROOKFIELD, RIVERSIDE, NORTH RIVERSIDE, AND PARTS OF CHICAGO

Please Check Your Ad: The publisher will not be responsible for more than one incorrect insertion.

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The newspaper reserves the right to edit or reject any advertisement.

BY PHONE: (708) 613-3333 | BY FAX: (708) 467-9066 | BY E-MAIL: CLASSIFIEDS@OAKPARK.COM | CLASSIFIEDS@RIVERFOREST.COM HELP WANTED Accountant sought by Askademic Inc. in Chicago, IL. Candidate must ha e a Bachelor’s degree in cctg Finance or Bus. Admin, & at least 6 mos exp in acctg. Send resume to ATTN: HR, Askademic Inc., 111 W Illinois St, Chicago, IL 60654.

C-LICENSE PART TIME DRIVER Looking for part time driver am shift.

Must be drug free, have valid C License. Must be able to lift 75lbs. $15/hr. email resume: HR@sievertelectric.com Instrument Interface Engineers sought by Mérieux NutriSciences, Chicago I .

S and or Int’l tra el. Deg’d e p’d pr rmg instrmt data process automation, etc. Send resume to Corrine.castillo@mxns. com.

PART-TIME COMMUNITY SERVICE COORDINATOR he Village o a ar is see ing uali ed candidates or the position of Part-Time Community Service Coordinator in the Adjudication Department. This person monitors individuals who have been ordered to provide community service in the Village coordinates ith organi a tions that provide community service opportunities, etc. Applicants are encouraged to isit the Village o a ar ’s ebsite http: .oa par .us . Interested and uali ed applicants must complete a Village of Oak Park application no later than February 27, 2020. uantitati e rader sought by Val y rie Trading, LLC in Chicago, IL. Effectuate systemic improvements to the trading strategy to ensure the long-term viability and competitiveness of the strategy. Must have authority to work in U.S. Apply online at www.jobpostingtoday.com (# 50931) TEACHER AND TEACHER AIDE MINI ME BUNCH seeks teacher and teacher aide to enhance and expand daycare serving children ages 6 weeks to 5 years. Teacher must have at least AAS in Early Childhood Education. Minimum 1 year experience preferred in each position.

Must love children and be outgoing, patient e ible.

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Wednesday Classified 3 Great Papers, 6 Communities To place an ad, call: 708/613-3333

SUBURBAN REAL ESTATE NEW CONCEPT FOR MAYWOOD In this quiet residential neighborhood

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Reserve your own affordable 2 or 3 BR condo unit of 1000+ sq ft of living space being built on this historic site. ou’ll bene it rom a unique 12-year tax freeze and lower monthly living expenses from energy saving systems/appliances, and you can help design your own individual unit. Plans also include building 5 new townhomes onsite.

For details Call 708-383-9223.

SUBURBAN RENTALS 1 BR APT IN BERWYN Co y Bright second oor unit in cludes, 1 garage parking space & storage unit in basement. Laundry facilities on-site, heat and water included in rent. The space is walking distance to grocery stores, restaurants, clubs, cafes and the Oak Park stop on the Blue Line (about 0.5 miles).$875/ mo. Available immediately. Security deposit 1st month’s rent. No smoking, no pets.No app fee but, if interested, we will ask for a $50 Credit/ Background Check Fee (per Person Over the Age Of 18) chrissy.ferrera@gmail.com CICERO Lg 3 RMS, 1BR. $795/mo. No pets.

Sec. dep. Incl. heat, water, appl., etc. Blvd Manor area.

BROKER 312-780-9257 FOREST PARK 2BR 2BR 2nd oor. 1 p g space a ail.

Tenant paid central air & heat. On Madison in downtown Forest Park.

Spacious apt. hard d oors. Very private. $1150/mo.

708-436-3644 RIVERSIDE 5RMS 2 BR incl. heat, water, parking, appl., etc. $995/mo. Sec. dep.

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AUSTIN RENAISSANCE APARTMENTS

A HUD subsidized affordable Apartment property announces the opening of its waiting list specifically for Two Bedroom Apartments only! Resident rent is approximately 30% of gross household income, some restrictions apply. Our property is located on Washington Blvd in Chicago’s Austin neighborhood.

Apartments offered with an occupancy of two to four persons permitted. Properties feature modern kitchens, include appliances, and offer onsite maintenance and laundry facilities.

Austin Renaissance will except requests for application packages by U.S. Mail postmarked no later than March 16, 2020. Send or email a written request for an application package that includes your name, mailing address.

Daytime telephone number, Email address, and the number of persons in your household to: Town Center Realty Group LLC, PO Box 64, Huntley IL 60142-0064. email requests to: mrpaul2u70@aol.com Application packages available by mail or email delivery only.

No walk-ins accepted.

Town Center Realty Group LLC

OakPark.com | RiverForest.com

ROOMS FOR RENT AUSTIN CLEAN ROOM With fridge, micro.

Nr Oak Park, Super Walmart, Food 4 Less, bus, & Metra. $116/wk and up.

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OFFICE SPACE FOR RENT SHARED OFFICE AVAILABLE Forest ar o ce a ailable to share, days, evenings and weekends,free standing building, warm, comfortably furnished, ideal for psychotherapy, massage therapy or acupuncture, located close to public transportation, free parking.

Call Connie 630-640-9693 THERAPY OFFICES FOR RENT herapy o ces or rent in north a Park. Rehabbed building. Nicely furnished. Flexible leasing. Free par ing. Free i Secure building Friendly colleagues providing referrals. Shared aiting room optional Conference. Call or email with questions. Shown on Sundays.

Lee 708.383.0729 drlmadden@ameritech.net Lost & Found, Items for Sale, and To Be Given Away ads run free in Wednesday Classified. To place your ad, call 708-613-3342

SUBURBAN RENTALS

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property management, inc.

708-386-7355 • www.mmpropmgt.com 649 Madison Street, Oak Park Contact us for a complete list of available rentals throughout Oak Park and Forest Park.

Apartment listings updated daily at:

BERWYN FOR RENT/LEASE STORE OR OFFICE App. 2750 sq ft. Great loc. 2 or 3 mo. sec. dep. Imm. poss. $2750/mo CENTURY 21 HALLMARK, LTD CHRIS T. 708-788-2800 CICERO FOR RENT/LEASE Vic. 35th St & Austin Blvd pp. s t. 2 e its. dd’ storage warehse avail in rear. Seller open to all ideas and remodeling. $1100/mo.

2 or 3 mo. sec. dep. Imm. poss.

CENTURY 21 HALLMARK, LTD CHRIS T. 708-788-2800

ITEMS FOR SALE FULL LENGTH SHEARLING COAT Brown full length shearling coat w/ attached hood. Beautiful condition. $89.00 708-488-8755

WANTED TO BUY WANTED MILITARY ITEMS: Helmets, medals, patches, uniforms, eapons ags photos paper or Also toy soldiers–lead, plastic–other misc. toys.

Call Uncle Gary 708-522-3400

PETS While you’re away, your pets are okay . . . at home

cat calls

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Find your new apartment this Saturday from 10 am – 4pm at 35 Chicago Avenue.

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Administrative Assistant Growing Community Media (Wednesday Journal) seeks a part-time Administrative Assistant. Reporting to GCM’s associate publisher, this position will primarily support sales and donor development staff and activities which grow revenue for GCM. Oak Park location. Bring your good energy and join our fast-paced, ever-changing, multicultural, and multigenerational team. Must be willing to take direction from multiple leaders and be comfortable community in-person yet also remotely with an outside sales team. Rare but occasional nights and weekends may be required. Please send a cover letter and resume to dawn@oakpark.com by February 12th.

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Wednesday Journal, February 12, 2020

OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM

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PUBLIC NOTICES

PUBLIC NOTICES

LEGAL NOTICE LAW OFFICE OF LINDA EPSTEIN 722 WEST DIVERSEY PARKWAY SUITE 101B CHICAGO, ILLINOIS 60614 STATE OF ILLINOIS) COUNTY OF COOK )ss Circuit Court of Cook County, County Department, Domestic Relations Division.

In re the marriage of MARIO ENRIQUEZ, Petitioner and ROSA OSDELIA FLORES, Respondent, Case No. 20 D 000798. he re uisite a da it or publication ha ing been led notice is here by given to you, ROSA OSDELIA FLORES, Respondent, that a Petition has been led in the Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois, by the Petitioner, for Dissolution of Marriage and or other relie and that said suit is now pending.

Now, therefore, unless you, the said espondent le your response to said Petition or otherwise make your appearance therein in the ce o the Clerk of the Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois, Room 802, Richard J. Daley Center, 50 West Washington Street, in the City of Chicago, Illinois, on or before March 11, 2020, default may be entered against you at any time after that day, and a judgment for Dissolution of Marriage entered in accordance with the prayer of said Petition.

DOROTHY A. BROWN, Clerk.

Published in Wednesday Journal 2/12, 2/19, 2/26/2020

PUBLIC NOTICES

PUBLIC NOTICES

McNulty Plastering & Stucco Co. 708/386-2951 • ANYTIME

708.749.0011

LEGAL NOTICE The Village of Oak Park will receive sealed proposals at the ce o the Village Engineer, 201 South Boulevard, Oak Park, Illinois 60302, until 10:00 a.m. on Thursday February 27, 2020 and at that time will be publicly opened and read aloud for the following Village Project: 20-4, 2020 ALLEY IMPROVEMENTS. In general, the improvements consist of the removal of the existing alley pavements and garage aprons; installation of storm sewers and drainage structures; installation of permeable aggregate trenches and base course; installation of permeable interlocking brick pavers; installation of concrete alley pavements and garage aprons; parkway restoration; and all appurtenant work thereto.

Plans and proposal forms may be obtained rom the o ce o the Village Engineer starting on Thursday, February 13, 2020 at 3:00 p.m. A non-refundable deposit of $50 is required for each set of plans and speci cations. he Village o a Park reserves the right to issue plans and speci cations only to those contractors deemed uali ed.

No bid documents will be issued after 4:00 p.m. on the working day preceding the date of bid opening. he bidder is speci cally ad ised that the Village is a Subgrantee of a Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago (MWRDGC) grant, pursuant to an agreement entered into and between the MWRDGC and the Village. Each bidder is required to comply ith the W D C’s rmative Action Requirements and Afrmati e ction rdinance o hich are as follows: 1) $47,500 for Women-Owned Business Enterprises (WBE) 2) $95,000 Project for MinorityOwned Business Enterprises (MBE) 3) $47,500 for Small Business Enterprises (SBE)

LEGAL NOTICE The Village of Oak Park will receive sealed bids at the Public Works Service Center, 201 South Boulevard, Oak Park, Illinois 60302, until 10:00 a.m. local time on Friday, March 6th, 2020 for the following: Village of Oak Park South Fire Station Locker Room, Restrooms and Bunk Room Renovation Proposal Number: 20-118 There will be a pre-bid meeting at the South Fire Station located at 900 S. East Ave., Oak Park, IL 60304 on Wednesday, February 19th, 2020 at 9:00 a.m.

Bid forms may be obtained from the Public Works Customer Service Center by calling 708-3585 or by stopping by the o ce located at 201 South Boulevard, Oak Park, Illinois between the hours of 7:30 a.m. and 4:00 p.m.

The Village of Oak Park reserves the right to issue proposal documents and speci cations only to those vendors deemed qualied. o proposal documents ill be issued after 4:00 p.m. on the working day preceding the date of proposal opening. For more information call the Public Works Service Center at 708.358.5700.

THE VILLAGE OF OAK PARK Published in Wednesday Journal 2/12/2020

33

4) $14,250 for Veteran-Owned Business Enterprises (VBE) The DBE requirements listed within these Contracts are requirements, not goals.

The MWRDGC requires that contractors entering into contracts shall have a performance bond and a payment bond. The Contractor shall furnish a satisfactory performance bond in the sum of the amount of the contract in dollars guaranteeing the proper completion of the work and the maintenance of the work during the period of one (1) year from and after the date of the completion and acceptance of the same. The Contractor shall furnish a satisfactory payment bond in the full amount of the Contract guaranteeing payment of all material used and for all labor performed.

The Contract will be subject to the requirements of the Multi-Project abor greement. copy is on le at the o ces o the ngineer and may be requested from the Engineer. The Contractor shall execute the orm entitled Certi cate o Compliance with Multi Project Labor Agreement (MPLA), as found in the Bid Proposal Submittal Packet.

All prospective bidders must prove they are pre uali ed by the Illinois Department of Transportation before receiving bid documents. This pro ect is nanced ith local Village funds and federal Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds and thus is subject to all federal rules, regulations and guidelines, including Davis-Bacon and Related Acts, Section 3, and Equal Opportunity requirements. Locally funded phases of the project as well as MWRDGC reimbursed phases are subject to the Illinois Prevailing Wage Act, 820 ILCS 130/0.01 et seq.

THE VILLAGE OF OAK PARK Bill McKenna Village Engineer

Published in Wednesday Journal 2/12/2020

NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING VILLAGE OF BROOKFIELD PLANNING AND ZONING COMMISSION FEBRUARY 27th, 2020 at 7:00 PM NOTICE is hereby given that the Village of Brookfield Planning and Zoning Commission will conduct a public hearing on Thursday, February 27th, 2020 at 7:00 p.m. in the Edward Barcal Hall located at 8820 Brookfield Avenue, Brookfield, Illinois for the purpose of considering a request for a variance at 4301 Prairie Avenue, Brookfield, Illinois 60513 (PINs 18-03404-057-0000; 18-03-404-058-0000; 18-03-404-059-0000).

Legal Description: Lot 217 through 221, both inclusive, and the east half of the vacated alley lying north of the south line of Lot 217 so extended West and South of the North line of Lot 220 extended West and also Lots 222 through 225, both inclusive and the west half of the vacated alley lying North of the South line of Lot 225 extended East and South of the North line of Lot 222 extended East, and also Lots 225 227, together with the West half of the vacated alley lying east and adjacent thereto, in Auspitz and Oakes Brookfield Park, being a subdivision of the West half of the East half of the southeast quarter,

also the East 6.8368 acres (except road) of the Southwest quarter of the Southeast quarter, all in Section 3, Township 38 North, Range 12 East of the third principal meridian, in Cook County, Illinois.

The public is invited to attend the public hearing and present oral and/or written comments.

The application may be viewed at the Village of Brookfield Village Hall during normal business hours. Written comments may be provided prior to the public hearing to: Village of Brookfield, Planning and Zoning Commission c/o Elyse Vukelich, 8820 Brookfield Avenue, Brookfield, IL 60513.

Individuals with disabilities requiring a reasonable accommodation in order to participate in any meeting should contact the Village of Brookfield (708) 485-7344 prior to the meeting. Wheelchair access is available through the front (South) entrance of Village Hall.

By the Order of Chuck Grund, Planning and Zoning Commission Chairman.

Published in Landmark 2/12/2020

PUBLIC NOTICES

PUBLIC NOTICES

NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING VILLAGE OF BROOKFIELD PLANNING AND ZONING COMMISSION FEBRUARY 27th, 2020 at 7:00 PM NOTICE is hereby given that the Village of Brookfield Planning and Zoning Commission will conduct a public hearing on Thursday, February 27th, 2020 at 7:00 p.m. in the Edward Barcal Hall located at 8820 Brookfield Avenue, Brookfield, Illinois for the purpose of considering a request for a special use for a daycare at 9219 Broadway Avenue, Brookfield, Illinois 60513 (PINs 15-34-307-005-0000 and 15-34-307-005-0000).

of the southerly line of the north ½ of said alley and lying southwesterly of a line drawn from the southwesterly corner of said Lot 7 to a point in the southerly line of said alley 65 feet northeasterly of the southeasterly corner of Lot 10 in Block 1, all in Portia anor being Frederic . Bartlett’s subdivision in the southwest quarter of Section 34, Township 39 North, Range 12, East of the Third Principal Meridian in Cook County, Illinois.

Legal Description: Parcel 1: Lots 4, 5, 6, and 7 in Block 1 in Portia anor being Frederic . Bartlett’s Subdivision in the Southwest Quarter of Section 34, Township 39 North, Range 12, East of the Third Principal Meridian, according to the plat thereof recorded February 6, 1915 as document number 5573274, in Cook County, Illinois.

The public is invited to attend the public hearing and present oral and/or written comments.

Parcel 2: That part of the 16 feet vacated alley lying southeasterly of Lot 7 in Block 1 in Portia Manor, being Frederic . Bartlett’s Subdi ision in the Southwest Quarter of Section 34, Township 39 North, Range 12, East of the Third Principal Meridian, described as follows: Lying northeasterly of the southwesterly line of Lot 7 extended southeasterly to the southerly line of the northerly ½ of said alley; Lying northerly

The application may be viewed at the Village of Brookfield Village Hall during normal business hours. Written comments may be provided prior to the public hearing to: Village of Brookfield, Planning and Zoning Commission c/o Elyse Vukelich, 8820 Brookfield Avenue, Brookfield, IL 60513.

Individuals with disabilities requiring a reasonable accommodation in order to participate in any meeting should contact the Village of Brookfield (708) 485-7344 prior to the meeting. Wheelchair access is available through the front (South) entrance of Village Hall.

By the Order of Chuck Grund, Planning and Zoning Commission Chairman.

Published in Landmark 2/12/2020

NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING VILLAGE OF BROOKFIELD PLANNING AND ZONING COMMISSION FEBRUARY 27th, 2020 at 7:00 PM NOTICE is hereby given that the Village of Brookfield Planning and Zoning Commission will conduct a public hearing on Thursday, February 27th, 2020 at 7:00 p.m. in the Edward Barcal Hall located at 8820 Brookfield Avenue, Brookfield, Illinois for the purpose of considering a request for a sign variance at 3453 Grand Boulevard, Brookfield, Illinois 60513 (PIN 15-34-131-051-0000).

The public is invited to attend the public hearing and present oral and/or written comments.

Legal Description: Lot 19 in Arcaris Resubdivision of Lots 18 and 19 in Block 36 in Gross First Addition to Grossdale, being a subdivision of the Southeast quarter, the East half of the Southwest quarter and the South half of the Northwest quarter in Section 34, Township 39 North, Range 12, East of the Third Principal Meridian in Cook County, Illinois.

Individuals with disabilities requiring a reasonable accommodation in order to participate in any meeting should contact the Village of Brookfield (708) 485-7344 prior to the meeting. Wheelchair access is available through the front (South) entrance of Village Hall.

The application may be viewed at the Village of Brookfield Village Hall during normal business hours. Written comments may be provided prior to the public hearing to: Village of Brookfield, Planning and Zoning Commission c/o Elyse Vukelich, 8820 Brookfield Avenue, Brookfield, IL 60513.

By the Order of Chuck Grund, Planning and Zoning Commission Chairman.

Published in Landmark 2/12/2020

NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING VILLAGE OF BROOKFIELD PLANNING AND ZONING COMMISSION FEBRUARY 27th, 2020 at 7:00 PM NOTICE is hereby given that the Village of Brookfield Planning and Zoning Commission will conduct a public hearing on Thursday, February 27th, 2020 at 7:00 p.m. in the Edward Barcal Hall located at 8820 Brookfield Avenue, Brookfield, Illinois for the purpose of considering a request for a sign variance at 3419 Maple Avenue, Brookfield, Illinois 60513 (PIN 15-34221-007-0000).

Legal Description: Lots 26, 27, and 28 in Block 22 in Brookfield Manor being a Subdivision of the Northwest ¼ Section 34, Township 39 North, Range 12, East of the Third Principal Meridian (except right of way of suburban railroad company) in Cook County, Illinois.

The public is invited to attend the

public hearing and present oral and/or written comments.

The application may be viewed at the Village of Brookfield Village Hall during normal business hours. Written comments may be provided prior to the public hearing to: Village of Brookfield, Planning and Zoning Commission c/o Elyse Vukelich, 8820 Brookfield Avenue, Brookfield, IL 60513.

Individuals with disabilities requiring a reasonable accommodation in order to participate in any meeting should contact the Village of Brookfield (708) 485-7344 prior to the meeting. Wheelchair access is available through the front (South) entrance of Village Hall.

By the Order of Chuck Grund, Planning and Zoning Commission Chairman.

Published in Landmark 2/12/2020

Starting a New Business in 2020?

Call the experts before you place your legal ad! Publish your assumed name legal notice in • Wednesday Journal • Forest Park Review • Riverside/Brookfield Landmark • Austin Weekly News Call Mary Ellen for details: 708/613-3342

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PublicNotice Illinois.com

PUBLIC NOTICES

LEGAL NOTICE PUBLIC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that a public hearing will be held by the Zoning Board of Appeals of the Village of Oak Park on Wednesday, March 4, 2020 at 7:00 p.m. in the Council Chambers of the Village Hall, 123 Madison St., Oak Park, Illinois on the following matter: Cal. No. 04-20-Z: 128 N. Lombard Avenue, Property Index Number 16-08-121-025-0000 The Applicant Monica Harper seeks a variance from section 9.3 (K) (1) and section 9.3 (K) (5) (b) of the Oak Park Zoning Ordinance, which sections provides that a coach house is permitted on a lot used for a single-family dwelling that is a minimum of 6,500 square feet in lot area and that a coach house shall not exceed the height of the principal structure, to permit the construction of a coach house on a lot that is approximately 4,147.2 square feet in lot area and that exceeds the height of the principal structure by 1’ 1 1 2 at the premises commonly known as 128 N. Lombard Avenue, Oak Park, Illinois.

Those property owners within 300 feet of the Subject Property and those interested parties wishing to cross-examine witnesses must complete and le an appearance with original signatures with the Village Clerk no later than 5:00 PM on the business day preceding the public hearing.

All papers in connection with the abo e matter are on le at the Village of Oak Park and available for examination by interested parties by contacting the Zoning Administrator at 708.358.5449. The Zoning Board of Appeals may continue the hearing to another date without further notice by public announcement at the hearing setting forth the time and place thereof.

DATED AT OAK PARK, ILLINOIS, this 12th Day of February, 2020 Published in Wednesday Journal 2 12 2 2

PUBLIC NOTICE Notice is hereby given, pursuant to “An Act in relation to the use of an Assumed Business Name in the conduct or transaction of Business in the State,” as amended, that a certi cation as registered by the undersigned with the County Clerk of Cook County. Registration Number: Y20003040 on January 21, 2020 Under the Assumed Business Name of ONLY BY HIS STRENGTH PHOTOGRAPHY with the business located at: 45 S V 1, OAK PARK, IL 60304. The true and real full name(s) and residence address of the owner(s)/partner(s) is: ALENA CRAFT 845 S HUMPHREY V 1 I 6 4.

Published in Wednesday Journal 2/5, 2/12, 2/19/2020

34

Wednesday Journal, February 12, 2020

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In print • Online • Available to you 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, every day of the year OakPark.com | RiverForest.com | PublicNoticeIllinois.com PUBLIC NOTICES PUBLIC NOTICE Oak Park Elementary School District 97 Oak Park, Illinois ADVERTISEMENT FOR BID Oak Park Elementary School District #97 will receive sealed bids for the: Asbestos Abatement and LeadBased Paint Mitigation Projects at Hatch Elementary, Irving Elementary and Mann Elementary The Bid Opening will be on Wednesday, February 26, 2020 at 2:00 p.m. at the Oak Park Elementary School District ce located at 260 Madison Avenue, Oak Park, IL 60302. At this time sealed bids will be publicly opened and read.

A Bid Security of 10% of the Bid is required with the proposal. The Contractor must pay the Prevailing Wage Rates for all work per Illinois Law. A Pre-Bid Meeting is scheduled on Monday, February 17, 2020. Pre-bid Meeting will be starting at Irving Elementary School at 9:00 am followed

by Hatch Elementary School then Mann Elementary School. Please allow at least 2-3 hours for the walk through.

Copies o speci cations may be secured prior to the Pre-Bid Meeting date rom the o ces o Jacob & Hefner Associates, Inc., 1333 Butter eld oad Suite Do ners Grove, IL 60515, (630) 652.4680.

Cut-off date for picking-up plans is 4:00pm, Friday, February 14, 2020.

Contractor shall demonstrate experience o at least e ID asbestos abatement projects in projects with a contract value of $100,000 or greater within the last 5 years.

The Owner reserves the right to reject any or all bids, to waive irregularities in the bidding procedure, or accept the Bid that, in its opinion, will serve the best interest of the School District. Any such decision shall be considered nal. he n er reserves the right to set aside a Bid from a Contractor who, in the ner’s opinion does not e hibit past experience equal to the size and scope of this project.

The bidder shall have a written sexual harassment policy in place in full compliance with Section 2-105 of the Illinois Human Rights Act. All questions shall be directed to Jacob & Hefner Associates, Inc., 1 Butter eld oad Suite Downers Grove, IL 60515, (630) 652.4680.

Published in Wednesday Journal 2/12/2020

REAL ESTATE FOR SALE IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS COUNTY DEPARTMENT C C DIVISI US BANK NATIONAL ASSOCIATION AS TRUSTEE FOR LEHMAN XS TRUST MORTGAGE PASS THROUGH CERTIFICATES S I S2 1 Plaintiff, vs.

ANGELO JOSEPH MESSINA AKA J. SSI W OWNERS AND NONRECORD C I S D

REAL ESTATE FOR SALE

REAL ESTATE FOR SALE

REAL ESTATE FOR SALE

REAL ESTATE FOR SALE

REAL ESTATE FOR SALE

REAL ESTATE FOR SALE

CROSSING CONDOMINIUM SS CI I Defendants, 19 CH 3643 NOTICE OF SALE PUBLIC NOTICE IS HEREBY IV that pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered in the above entitled cause Intercounty Judicial Sales Corporation will on Tuesday, March 3, 2020 at the hour of 11 a.m. in their office at 120 West Madison Street, Suite 718A, Chicago, Illinois, sell at public auction to the highest bidder for cash, as set forth below, the following described mortgaged real estate: P.I.N. 16-07-408-026-1010.

Commonly known as 610 Randolph Street 2, Oak Park, IL 60302.

The mortgaged real estate is improved with a condominium residence. The purchaser of the unit other than a mortgagee shall pay the assessments and the legal fees required by subdivisions (g)(1) and (g) (4) of Section 9 of the Condominium Property Act Sale terms: 10% down by certified funds, balance, by certified funds, within 24 hours. No refunds. The property will NOT be open for inspection.

For information call Sales Department at lainti ’s ttorney Manley Deas Kochalski, LLC, One East Wacker Drive, Chicago, Illinois 60601. (614) 220-5611. 19-009642 F2 INTERCOUNTY JUDICIAL SALES CORPORATION Selling Officer, (312) 444-1122 I3143369

Naperville, Illinois 60563-1890. (630) 453-6960. F19040247 INTERCOUNTY JUDICIAL SALES CORPORATION Selling Officer, (312) 444-1122 I3143389

scribed mortgaged real estate: P.I.N. 16-07-420-011.

Commonly known as 425 S. EAST V .

I 6 2.

The mortgaged real estate is improved with a single family residence. If the subject mortgaged real estate is a unit of a common interest community, the purchaser of the unit other than a mortgagee shall pay the assessments required by subsection (g-1) of Section 18.5 of the Condominium Property Act. Sale terms: 10% down by certified funds, balance, by certified funds, within 24 hours. No refunds. The property will NOT be open for inspection.

For information call Mr. Ira T. Nevel at lainti ’s ttorney a ices of Ira T. Nevel, 175 North Franklin Street, Chicago, Illinois 60606. (312) 357-1125. 17-00157 INTERCOUNTY JUDICIAL SALES CORPORATION Selling Officer, (312) 444-1122 I3144242

Upon payment in full of the amount bid, the purchaser will receive a Certificate of Sale that will entitle the purchaser to a deed to the real estate after confirmation of the sale.

The property will NOT be open for inspection and plaintiff makes no representation as to the condition of the property. Prospective bidders are admonished to check the court file to verify all information.

If this property is a condominium unit, the purchaser of the unit at the foreclosure sale, other than a mortgagee, shall pay the assessments and the legal fees required

by The Condominium Property Act, 765 ILCS 605/9(g)(1) and (g)(4).

If this property is a condominium unit which is part of a common interest community, the purchaser of the unit at the foreclosure sale other than a mortgagee shall pay the assessments required by The Condominium Property Act, 765 ILCS 605/18.5(g-1).

IF YOU ARE THE MORTGAGOR W V THE RIGHT TO REMAIN IN POSSESSION FOR 30 DAYS AFTER ENTRY OF AN ORDER OF POSSESSION, IN ACCORDANCE WITH SECTION 15-1701(C) OF THE ILLINOIS MORTGAGE FORECLOSURE LAW. You will need a photo identification issued by a government agency dri er’s license passport etc. in order to gain entry into our building and the foreclosure sale room in Cook County and the same identification for sales held at other county venues where The Judicial Sales Corporation conducts foreclosure sales.

For information, The sales clerk, SHAPIRO KREISMAN & SS CI S C lainti ’s Attorneys, 2121 WAUKEGAN RD., SUITE 301, Bannockburn, IL, 60015 (847) 291-1717 For information call between the hours of 1pm 3pm.. Please refer to file number 19-091229.

THE JUDICIAL SALES CORPORATION One South Wacker Drive, 24th Floor, Chicago, IL 60606-4650 (312) 236SALE You can also visit The Judicial Sales Corporation at www.tjsc.com for a 7 day status report of pending sales.

SHAPIRO KREISMAN & ASSOCIATES, LLC 2121 WAUKEGAN RD., SUITE 301 Bannockburn IL, 60015 847-291-1717 E-Mail: ILNotices@logs.com Attorney File No. 19-091229 Attorney Code. 42168 Case Number: 19 CH 9209 TJSC#: 39-7626 NOTE: Pursuant to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, you are ad ised that lainti ’s attorney is deemed to be a debt collector attempting to collect a debt and any information obtained will be used for that purpose.

Case # 19 CH 9209 I3144136

NOTICE OF SALE PUBLIC NOTICE IS HEREBY IV that pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered in the above cause on December 11, 2019, an agent for The Judicial Sales Corporation, will at 10:30 AM on March 12, 2020, at The Judicial Sales Corporation, One South Wacker Drive, CHICAGO, IL, 60606, sell at a public sale to the highest bidder, as set forth below, the following described real estate: Commonly known as 1187 SOUTH HIGHLAND PARK, OAK PARK, IL 60304 Property Index No. 16-17-325-0470000 The real estate is improved with a one story two unit brick building with no garage.

Sale terms: 25% down of the highest bid by certified funds at the close of the sale payable to The Judicial Sales Corporation. No third party checks will be accepted. The balance, including the Judicial Sale fee for the Abandoned Residential Property Municipality Relief Fund, which is calculated on residential real estate at the rate of $1 for each $1,000 or fraction thereof of the amount paid by the purchaser not to exceed $300, in certified funds/ or wire transfer, is due within twenty-four (24) hours. No fee shall be paid by the mortgagee acquiring the residential real estate pursuant to its credit bid at the sale or by any mortgagee, judgment creditor, or other lienor acquiring the residential real estate whose rights in and to the residential real estate arose prior to the sale. The subject property is subject to general real estate taxes, special assessments, or special taxes levied against said real estate and is offered for sale without any representation as to quality or quantity of title and without recourse to Plaintiff and in “AS IS” condition. The sale is further subject to confirmation by the court.

Upon payment in full of the amount bid, the purchaser will receive a Certificate of Sale that will entitle the purchaser to a deed to the real estate after confirmation of the sale.

The property will NOT be open for inspection and plaintiff makes no representation as to the condition of the property. Prospective bidders are admonished to check the court file to verify all information.

If this property is a condominium unit, the purchaser of the unit at the foreclosure sale, other than a mortgagee, shall pay the assessments and the legal fees required

by The Condominium Property Act, 765 ILCS 605/9(g)(1) and (g)(4).

If this property is a condominium unit which is part of a common interest community, the purchaser of the unit at the foreclosure sale other than a mortgagee shall pay the assessments required by The Condominium Property Act, 765 ILCS 605/18.5(g-1).

IF YOU ARE THE MORTGAGOR W V THE RIGHT TO REMAIN IN POSSESSION FOR 30 DAYS AFTER ENTRY OF AN ORDER OF POSSESSION, IN ACCORDANCE WITH SECTION 15-1701(C) OF THE ILLINOIS MORTGAGE FORECLOSURE LAW. You will need a photo identification issued by a government agency dri er’s license passport etc. in order to gain entry into our building and the foreclosure sale room in Cook County and the same identification for sales held at other county venues where The Judicial Sales Corporation conducts foreclosure sales.

MCCALLA RAYMER LEIBERT I C C lainti ’s ttorneys

One North Dearborn Street, Suite 1200, Chicago, IL, 60602. Tel No. (312) 346-9088.

THE JUDICIAL SALES CORPORATION One South Wacker Drive, 24th Floor, Chicago, IL 60606-4650 (312) 236SALE You can also visit The Judicial Sales Corporation at www.tjsc.com for a 7 day status report of pending sales.

MCCALLA RAYMER LEIBERT PIERCE, LLC One North Dearborn Street, Suite 1200 Chicago IL, 60602 312-346-9088 E-Mail: pleadings@mccalla.com Attorney File No. 9903 Attorney ARDC No. 61256 Attorney Code. 61256 Case Number: 12 CH 25204 TJSC#: 39-7957 NOTE: Pursuant to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, you are ad ised that lainti ’s attorney is deemed to be a debt collector attempting to collect a debt and any information obtained will be used for that purpose.

Case # 12 CH 25204 I3144011

IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS COUNTY DEPARTMENT C C DIVISI FIF I DB Plaintiff, vs.

LONTIER C. HOUGH AKA LONTIER HOUGH AKA LONTIER HICKSHOUGH AKA LONTIER C. HICKSAKA A. HOUGH AKA ANTHONY D VID D. D V C I D S S F IC UNKNOWN OWNERS AND C DC I S Defendants, 19 CH 6127 NOTICE OF SALE PUBLIC NOTICE IS HEREBY IV that pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered in the above entitled cause Intercounty Judicial Sales Corporation will on Wednesday, March 4, 2020 at the hour of 11 a.m. in their office at 120 West Madison Street, Suite 718A, Chicago, Illinois, sell at public auction to the highest bidder for cash, as set forth below, the following described mortgaged real estate: P.I.N. 16-17-302-034-0000.

Commonly known as 915 South Lombard Avenue, Oak Park, Illinois 60304.

The mortgaged real estate is improved with a single family residence. If the subject mortgaged real estate is a unit of a common interest community, the purchaser of the unit other than a mortgagee shall pay the assessments required by subsection (g-1) of Section 18.5 of the Condominium Property Act. Sale terms: 10% down by certified funds, balance, by certified funds, within 24 hours. No refunds. The property will NOT be open for inspection.

For information call The Sales Department at lainti ’s ttorney Anselmo Lindberg & Associates, LLC, 1771 West Diehl Road,

IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS COUNTY DEPARTMENT C C DIVISI US BANK TRUST NATIONAL ASSOCIATION NOT IN ITS I DIVID C CI B SOLELY AS OWNER TRUSTEE F V SS S Plaintiff, vs.

J. C S .

CI I SB Defendants, 18 CH 2459 NOTICE OF SALE PUBLIC NOTICE IS HEREBY IV that pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered in the above entitled cause Intercounty Judicial Sales Corporation will on Monday, March 16, 2020 at the hour of 11 a.m. in their office at 120 West Madison Street, Suite 718A, Chicago, Illinois, sell at public auction to the highest bidder for cash, as set forth below, the following described mortgaged real estate: P.I.N. 16-17-327-034-0000.

Commonly known as 1185 S. B D V .

I 60304.

The mortgaged real estate is improved with a single family residence. If the subject mortgaged real estate is a unit of a common interest community, the purchaser of the unit other than a mortgagee shall pay the assessments required by subsection (g-1) of Section 18.5 of the Condominium Property Act. Sale terms: 10% down by certified funds, balance, by certified funds, within 24 hours. No refunds. The property will NOT be open for inspection.

For information call Mr. Ira T. Nevel at lainti ’s ttorney a ices of Ira T. Nevel, 175 North Franklin Street, Chicago, Illinois 60606. (312) 357-1125. 18-04613 INTERCOUNTY JUDICIAL SALES CORPORATION Selling Officer, (312) 444-1122 I3144629 IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS COUNTY DEPARTMENT C C DIVISI NATIONSTAR MORTGAGE LLC D/B/A MR. COOPER Plaintiff, vs.

ELENA F. MARROQUIN A/K/A FI I DIVID AND AS GUARDIAN FOR CHRISTIAN MARROQUIN AND NICHOLAS MARROQUIN, JP MORGAN CHASE BANK, N.A., MARIELENA SANTANA I DIVID D S S S IV FOR THE ESTATE OF RICCARDO A. MARROQUIN A/K/A RICCARDO MARROQUIN, UNKNOWN OWNERS AND NON-RECORD CLAIMANTS Defendants, 17 CH 954 NOTICE OF SALE PUBLIC NOTICE IS HEREBY IV that pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered in the above entitled cause Intercounty Judicial Sales Corporation will on Friday, March 13, 2020 at the hour of 11 a.m. in their office at 120 West Madison Street, Suite 718A, Chicago, Illinois, sell at public auction to the highest bidder for cash, as set forth below, the following de-

IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS COUNTY DEPARTMENT C C DIVISI MIDFIRST BANK Plaintiff, -v.TAKYRICA Q. STYLES A/K/A TAKYRICA STYLES, TAYLOR LAKE CONDOMINIUM ASSOCIATION INC. A/K/A TAYLOR-LAKE CONDOMINIUM ASSOCIATION Defendants 19 CH 9209 11 V UNIT 1 OAK PARK, IL 60302 NOTICE OF SALE PUBLIC NOTICE IS HEREBY IV that pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered in the above cause on November 22, 2019, an agent for The Judicial Sales Corporation, will at 10:30 AM on March 17, 2020, at The Judicial Sales Corporation, One South Wacker Drive, CHICAGO, IL, 60606, sell at a public sale to the highest bidder, as set forth below, the following described real estate: Commonly known as 118 NORTH V I 1 PARK, IL 60302 Property Index No. 16-08-122-0381005 The real estate is improved with a condominium.

The judgment amount was $153,280.44.

Sale terms: 25% down of the highest bid by certified funds at the close of the sale payable to The Judicial Sales Corporation. No third party checks will be accepted. The balance, including the Judicial Sale fee for the Abandoned Residential Property Municipality Relief Fund, which is calculated on residential real estate at the rate of $1 for each $1,000 or fraction thereof of the amount paid by the purchaser not to exceed $300, in certified funds/ or wire transfer, is due within twenty-four (24) hours. No fee shall be paid by the mortgagee acquiring the residential real estate pursuant to its credit bid at the sale or by any mortgagee, judgment creditor, or other lienor acquiring the residential real estate whose rights in and to the residential real estate arose prior to the sale. The subject property is subject to general real estate taxes, special assessments, or special taxes levied against said real estate and is offered for sale without any representation as to quality or quantity of title and without recourse to Plaintiff and in “AS IS” condition. The sale is further subject to confirmation by the court.

IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS COUNTY DEPARTMENT C C DIVISI JPMORGAN CHASE BANK, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION Plaintiff, -v.S I D W V CLARK, JR, UNKNOWN OWNERS AND NON-RECORD CLAIMANTS, W V C J .

INDEPENDENT ADMINISTRATOR Defendants 12 CH 25204 1187 SOUTH HIGHLAND PARK OAK PARK, IL 60304

IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS COUNTY DEPARTMENT C C DIVISI WI I S VI S F D SOCIETY, FSB, NOT IN ITS I DIVID C CI B SOLELY AS TRUSTEE OF CSMC 2018-RPL12 TRUST Plaintiff, -v.KARL A. REESE, ROSALYN CUMMINGS-YEATES A/K/A ROSALIND CUMMINGS-YEATES, UNKNOWN OWNERS AND NONRECORD CLAIMANTS Defendants 2019 CH 08990 4 S. V . 2 B OAK PARK, IL 60302 NOTICE OF SALE PUBLIC NOTICE IS HEREBY IV that pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered in the above cause on December 11, 2019, an agent for The Judicial Sales Corporation, will at 10:30 AM on March 19, 2020, at The Judicial Sales Corporation, One South Wacker Drive, CHICAGO, IL, 60606, sell at a public sale to the highest bidder, as set forth below, the following described real estate: Commonly known as 439 S. V . 2 B IL 60302 Property Index No. 16-08-321-0311 6 16 21 1 1 The real estate is improved with a condo/townhouse.

Sale terms: 25% down of the highest bid by certified funds at the close of the sale payable to The Judicial Sales Corporation. No third party checks will be accepted. The balance, including the Judicial Sale fee for the Abandoned Residential Property Municipality Relief Fund, which is calculated on residential real estate at the rate of $1 for each $1,000 or fraction thereof of the amount paid by the purchaser not to exceed $300, in certified funds/ or wire transfer, is due within twenty-four (24) hours. No fee shall be paid by the mortgagee acquiring the residential real estate pursuant to its credit bid at the sale or by any mortgagee, judgment creditor, or other lienor acquiring the residential real estate whose rights in and to the residential real estate arose prior to the sale. The subject property is subject to general real estate taxes, special assessments, or special taxes levied against said real estate

P

Wednesday Journal, February 12, 2020

OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM

CLASSIFIED

35

(708) 613-3333 • FAX: (708) 467-9066 • E-MAIL: CLASSIFIEDS@OAKPARK.COM | CLASSIFIEDS@RIVERFOREST.COM

REAL ESTATE FOR SALE

REAL ESTATE FOR SALE

REAL ESTATE FOR SALE

REAL ESTATE FOR SALE

REAL ESTATE FOR SALE

REAL ESTATE FOR SALE

REAL ESTATE FOR SALE

and is offered for sale without any representation as to quality or quantity of title and without recourse to Plaintiff and in “AS IS” condition. The sale is further subject to confirmation by the court.

Upon payment in full of the amount bid, the purchaser will receive a Certificate of Sale that will entitle the purchaser to a deed to the real estate after confirmation of the sale.

The property will NOT be open for inspection and plaintiff makes no representation as to the condition of the property. Prospective bidders are admonished to check the court file to verify all information.

If this property is a condominium unit, the purchaser of the unit at the foreclosure sale, other than a mortgagee, shall pay the assessments and the legal fees required

by The Condominium Property Act, 765 ILCS 605/9(g)(1) and (g)(4).

If this property is a condominium unit which is part of a common interest community, the purchaser of the unit at the foreclosure sale other than a mortgagee shall pay the assessments required by The Condominium Property Act, 765 ILCS 605/18.5(g-1).

IF YOU ARE THE MORTGAGOR W V THE RIGHT TO REMAIN IN POSSESSION FOR 30 DAYS AFTER ENTRY OF AN ORDER OF POSSESSION, IN ACCORDANCE WITH SECTION 15-1701(C) OF THE ILLINOIS MORTGAGE FORECLOSURE LAW. You will need a photo identification issued by a government agency dri er’s license passport etc. in order to gain entry into our building and the foreclosure sale room in Cook County and the same identification for sales held at other county venues where The Judicial Sales Corporation conducts foreclosure sales.

For information, examine the court file, CODILIS & ASSOCIATES, .C. lainti ’s ttorneys 15W NORTH FRONTAGE ROAD, SUITE 100, BURR RIDGE, IL, 60527 (630) 794-9876 THE JUDICIAL SALES CORPORATION One South Wacker Drive, 24th Floor, Chicago, IL 60606-4650 (312) 236SALE You can also visit The Judicial Sales Corporation at www.tjsc.com for a 7 day status report of pending sales.

CODILIS & ASSOCIATES, P.C. 15W030 NORTH FRONTAGE ROAD, SUITE 100 BURR RIDGE IL, 60527 630-794-5300 E-Mail: pleadings@il.cslegal.com Attorney File No. 14-19-04531 Attorney ARDC No. 00468002 Attorney Code. 21762 Case Number: 2019 CH 08990 TJSC#: 40-85 NOTE: Pursuant to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, you are ad ised that lainti ’s attorney is deemed to be a debt collector attempting to collect a debt and any information obtained will be used for that purpose.

Case # 2019 CH 08990 I3145087

Property Index No. 16-05-127-0270000 The real estate is improved with a multi-family residence.

Sale terms: 25% down of the highest bid by certified funds at the close of the sale payable to The Judicial Sales Corporation. No third party checks will be accepted. The balance, including the Judicial Sale fee for the Abandoned Residential Property Municipality Relief Fund, which is calculated on residential real estate at the rate of $1 for each $1,000 or fraction thereof of the amount paid by the purchaser not to exceed $300, in certified funds/ or wire transfer, is due within twenty-four (24) hours. No fee shall be paid by the mortgagee acquiring the residential real estate pursuant to its credit bid at the sale or by any mortgagee, judgment creditor, or other lienor acquiring the residential real estate whose rights in and to the residential real estate arose prior to the sale. The subject property is subject to general real estate taxes, special assessments, or special taxes levied against said real estate and is offered for sale without any representation as to quality or quantity of title and without recourse to Plaintiff and in “AS IS” condition. The sale is further subject to confirmation by the court.

Upon payment in full of the amount bid, the purchaser will receive a Certificate of Sale that will entitle the purchaser to a deed to the real estate after confirmation of the sale.

The property will NOT be open for inspection and plaintiff makes no representation as to the condition of the property. Prospective bidders are admonished to check the court file to verify all information.

If this property is a condominium unit, the purchaser of the unit at the foreclosure sale, other than a mortgagee, shall pay the assessments and the legal fees required

by The Condominium Property Act, 765 ILCS 605/9(g)(1) and (g)(4).

If this property is a condominium unit which is part of a common interest community, the purchaser of the unit at the foreclosure sale other than a mortgagee shall pay the assessments required by The Condominium Property Act, 765 ILCS 605/18.5(g-1).

IF YOU ARE THE MORTGAGOR W V THE RIGHT TO REMAIN IN POSSESSION FOR 30 DAYS AFTER ENTRY OF AN ORDER OF POSSESSION, IN ACCORDANCE WITH SECTION 15-1701(C) OF THE ILLINOIS MORTGAGE FORECLOSURE LAW. You will need a photo identification issued by a government agency dri er’s license passport etc. in order to gain entry into our building and the foreclosure sale room in Cook County and the same identification for sales held at other county venues where The Judicial Sales Corporation conducts foreclosure sales.

For information, examine the court file, CODILIS & ASSOCIATES, .C. lainti ’s ttorneys 15W NORTH FRONTAGE ROAD, SUITE 100, BURR RIDGE, IL, 60527 (630) 794-9876 THE JUDICIAL SALES CORPORATION One South Wacker Drive, 24th Floor, Chicago, IL 60606-4650 (312) 236SALE You can also visit The Judicial Sales Corporation at www.tjsc.com for a 7 day status report of pending sales.

CODILIS & ASSOCIATES, P.C. 15W030 NORTH FRONTAGE ROAD, SUITE 100 BURR RIDGE IL, 60527 630-794-5300 E-Mail: pleadings@il.cslegal.com Attorney File No. 14-19-06429 Attorney ARDC No. 00468002 Attorney Code. 21762 Case Number: 2019 CH 08452 TJSC#: 39-8185 NOTE: Pursuant to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, you are ad ised that lainti ’s attorney is deemed to be a debt collector attempting to collect a debt and any information obtained will be used for that purpose.

Case # 2019 CH 08452 I3145090

IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS COUNTY DEPARTMENT C C DIVISI SELENE FINANCE LP Plaintiff, -v.LARSENIA HORTON, NEIL SMITH, ASSURANCE RESTORATION & CONSTRUCTION, INC., PRAIRIE HOUSES OWNERS ASSOCIATION, UNKNOWN OWNERS AND NONRECORD CLAIMANTS Defendants 18 CH 12736 14 DIVISI S 14 OAK PARK, IL 60302 NOTICE OF SALE PUBLIC NOTICE IS HEREBY IV that pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered in the above cause on December 16, 2019, an agent for The Judicial Sales Corporation, will at 10:30 AM on March 17, 2020, at The Judicial Sales Corporation, One South Wacker Drive, CHICAGO, IL, 60606, sell at a public sale to the highest bidder, as set forth below, the following described real estate: Commonly no n as 14 DIVISI STREET, # 14, OAK PARK, IL 60302 Property Index No. 16-05-127-0480000 The real estate is improved with a brown brick, three story townhouse with an attached one car garage.

Sale terms: 25% down of the highest bid by certified funds at the close of the sale payable to The Judicial Sales Corporation. No third party checks will be accepted. The balance, including the Judicial Sale fee for the Abandoned Residential Property Municipality Relief Fund, which is calculated on residential real estate at the rate of $1 for each $1,000 or fraction thereof of the amount paid by the purchaser not to exceed $300, in certified funds/ or wire transfer, is due within twenty-four (24) hours. No fee shall be paid by the mortgagee acquiring the residential real estate pursuant to its credit bid at the sale or by any mortgagee, judgment creditor, or other lienor acquiring the residential real estate whose rights in and to the residential real estate arose prior to the sale. The subject property is subject to general real estate taxes, special assessments, or special taxes levied against said real estate and is offered for sale without any representation as to quality or quantity of title and without recourse to Plaintiff and in “AS IS” condition. The sale is further subject to confirmation by the court.

Upon payment in full of the amount bid, the purchaser will receive a Certificate of Sale that will entitle the purchaser to a deed to the real estate after confirmation of the sale.

The property will NOT be open for inspection and plaintiff makes no representation as to the condition of the property. Prospective bidders are admonished to check the court file to verify all information.

If this property is a condominium unit, the purchaser of the unit at the foreclosure sale, other than a mortgagee, shall pay the assessments and the legal fees required

by The Condominium Property Act, 765 ILCS 605/9(g)(1) and (g)(4).

If this property is a condominium unit which is part of a common interest community, the purchaser of the unit at the foreclosure sale other than a mortgagee shall pay the assessments required by The Condominium Property Act, 765 ILCS 605/18.5(g-1).

IF YOU ARE THE MORTGAGOR W V THE RIGHT TO REMAIN IN POSSESSION FOR 30 DAYS AFTER ENTRY OF AN ORDER OF POSSESSION, IN ACCORDANCE WITH SECTION 15-1701(C) OF THE ILLINOIS MORTGAGE FORECLOSURE LAW. You will need a photo identification issued by a government agency dri er’s license passport etc. in order to gain entry into our building and the foreclosure sale room in Cook County and the same identification for sales held at other county venues where The Judicial Sales Corporation conducts foreclosure sales.

MCCALLA RAYMER LEIBERT I C C lainti ’s ttorneys

One North Dearborn Street, Suite 1200, Chicago, IL, 60602. Tel No. (312) 346-9088.

THE JUDICIAL SALES CORPORATION One South Wacker Drive, 24th Floor, Chicago, IL 60606-4650 (312) 236SALE You can also visit The Judicial Sales Corporation at www.tjsc.com for a 7 day status report of pending sales.

MCCALLA RAYMER LEIBERT PIERCE, LLC One North Dearborn Street, Suite 1200 Chicago IL, 60602 312-346-9088 E-Mail: pleadings@mccalla.com Attorney File No. 267501 Attorney ARDC No. 61256 Attorney Code. 61256 Case Number: 18 CH 12736 TJSC#: 39-8007 NOTE: Pursuant to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, you are ad ised that lainti ’s attorney is deemed to be a debt collector attempting to collect a debt and any information obtained will be used for that purpose.

Case # 18 CH 12736 I3144838

mortgagee, shall pay the assessments and the legal fees required

by The Condominium Property Act, 765 ILCS 605/9(g)(1) and (g)(4).

If this property is a condominium unit which is part of a common interest community, the purchaser of the unit at the foreclosure sale other than a mortgagee shall pay the assessments required by The Condominium Property Act, 765 ILCS 605/18.5(g-1).

IF YOU ARE THE MORTGAGOR W V THE RIGHT TO REMAIN IN POSSESSION FOR 30 DAYS AFTER ENTRY OF AN ORDER OF POSSESSION, IN ACCORDANCE WITH SECTION 15-1701(C) OF THE ILLINOIS MORTGAGE FORECLOSURE LAW. You will need a photo identification issued by a government agency (driver’s license passport etc. in order to gain entry into our building and the foreclosure sale room in Cook County and the same identification for sales held at other county venues where The Judicial Sales Corporation conducts foreclosure sales.

For information, examine the court file, CODILIS & ASSOCIATES, .C. lainti ’s ttorneys 15W NORTH FRONTAGE ROAD, SUITE 100, BURR RIDGE, IL, 60527 (630) 794-9876 THE JUDICIAL SALES CORPORATION One South Wacker Drive, 24th Floor, Chicago, IL 60606-4650 (312) 236SALE You can also visit The Judicial Sales Corporation at www.tjsc.com for a 7 day status report of pending sales.

CODILIS & ASSOCIATES, P.C. 15W030 NORTH FRONTAGE ROAD, SUITE 100 BURR RIDGE IL, 60527 630-794-5300 E-Mail: pleadings@il.cslegal.com Attorney File No. 14-19-02481 Attorney ARDC No. 00468002 Attorney Code. 21762 Case Number: 2019 CH 09264 TJSC#: 39-7338 NOTE: Pursuant to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, you are ad ised that lainti ’s attorney is deemed to be a debt collector attempting to collect a debt and any information obtained will be used for that purpose.

Case # 2019 CH 09264 I3145074

Anselmo Lindberg & Associates, LLC, 1771 West Diehl Road, Naperville, Illinois 60563-1890. (630) 453-6960. F19020192 INTERCOUNTY JUDICIAL SALES CORPORATION intercountyjudicialsales.com I3144920

that with respect to a lien arising under the internal revenue laws the period shall be 120 days or the period allowable for redemption under State law, whichever is longer, and in any case in which, under the provisions of section 505 of the Housing Act of 1950, as amended (12 U.S.C. 1701k), and subsection (d) of section 3720 of title 38 of the United States Code, the right to redeem does not arise, there shall be no right of redemption.

The property will NOT be open for inspection and plaintiff makes no representation as to the condition of the property. Prospective bidders are admonished to check the court file to verify all information.

If this property is a condominium unit, the purchaser of the unit at the foreclosure sale, other than a mortgagee, shall pay the assessments and the legal fees required

by The Condominium Property Act, 765 ILCS 605/9(g)(1) and (g)(4).

If this property is a condominium unit which is part of a common interest community, the purchaser of the unit at the foreclosure sale other than a mortgagee shall pay the assessments required by The Condominium Property Act, 765 ILCS 605/18.5(g-1).

IF YOU ARE THE MORTGAGOR W V THE RIGHT TO REMAIN IN POSSESSION FOR 30 DAYS AFTER ENTRY OF AN ORDER OF POSSESSION, IN ACCORDANCE WITH SECTION 15-1701(C) OF THE ILLINOIS MORTGAGE FORECLOSURE LAW. You will need a photo identification issued by a government agency dri er’s license passport etc. in order to gain entry into our building and the foreclosure sale room in Cook County and the same identification for sales held at other county venues where The Judicial Sales Corporation conducts foreclosure sales.

For information, examine the court file, CODILIS & ASSOCIATES, .C. lainti ’s ttorneys 15W NORTH FRONTAGE ROAD, SUITE 100, BURR RIDGE, IL, 60527 (630) 794-9876 THE JUDICIAL SALES CORPORATION One South Wacker Drive, 24th Floor, Chicago, IL 60606-4650 (312) 236SALE You can also visit The Judicial Sales Corporation at www.tjsc.com for a 7 day status report of pending sales.

CODILIS & ASSOCIATES, P.C. 15W030 NORTH FRONTAGE ROAD, SUITE 100 BURR RIDGE IL, 60527 630-794-5300 E-Mail: pleadings@il.cslegal.com Attorney File No. 14-19-07106 Attorney ARDC No. 00468002 Attorney Code. 21762 Case Number: 2019 CH 09325 TJSC#: 39-7348 NOTE: Pursuant to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, you are ad ised that lainti ’s attorney is deemed to be a debt collector attempting to collect a debt and any information obtained will be used for that purpose.

Case # 2019 CH 09325 I3145072

IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS COUNTY DEPARTMENT C C DIVISI QUICKEN LOANS INC. Plaintiff, -v.DRIKO DUCASSE, UNKNOWN OWNERS AND NONRECORD CLAIMANTS Defendants 2019 CH 08452 1226 S I B VD OAK PARK, IL 60302 NOTICE OF SALE PUBLIC NOTICE IS HEREBY IV that pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered in the above cause on December 17, 2019, an agent for The Judicial Sales Corporation, will at 10:30 AM on March 19, 2020, at The Judicial Sales Corporation, One South Wacker Drive, CHICAGO, IL, 60606, sell at a public sale to the highest bidder, as set forth below, the following described real estate: Commonly known as 1226 N AUSTIN B VD I 6 2

IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS COUNTY DEPARTMENT C C DIVISI W C DB S I S VICI Plaintiff, -v.I S SC VI COURT CONDOMINIUM ASSOCIATION Defendants 2019 CH 09264 5 W S I B VD I 107 OAK PARK, IL 60302 NOTICE OF SALE PUBLIC NOTICE IS HEREBY IV that pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered in the above cause on November 7, 2019, an agent for The Judicial Sales Corporation, will at 10:30 AM on March 17, 2020, at The Judicial Sales Corporation, One South Wacker Drive, CHICAGO, IL, 60606, sell at a public sale to the highest bidder, as set forth below, the following described real estate: Commonly known as 500 W S I B VD I 1 OAK PARK, IL 60302 Property Index No. 16-07-415-0271007 The real estate is improved with a residence.

Sale terms: 25% down of the highest bid by certified funds at the close of the sale payable to The Judicial Sales Corporation. No third party checks will be accepted. The balance, including the Judicial Sale fee for the Abandoned Residential Property Municipality Relief Fund, which is calculated on residential real estate at the rate of $1 for each $1,000 or fraction thereof of the amount paid by the purchaser not to exceed $300, in certified funds/ or wire transfer, is due within twenty-four (24) hours. No fee shall be paid by the mortgagee acquiring the residential real estate pursuant to its credit bid at the sale or by any mortgagee, judgment creditor, or other lienor acquiring the residential real estate whose rights in and to the residential real estate arose prior to the sale. The subject property is subject to general real estate taxes, special assessments, or special taxes levied against said real estate and is offered for sale without any representation as to quality or quantity of title and without recourse to Plaintiff and in “AS IS” condition. The sale is further subject to confirmation by the court.

Upon payment in full of the amount bid, the purchaser will receive a Certificate of Sale that will entitle the purchaser to a deed to the real estate after confirmation of the sale.

The property will NOT be open for inspection and plaintiff makes no representation as to the condition of the property. Prospective bidders are admonished to check the court file to verify all information.

If this property is a condominium unit, the purchaser of the unit at the foreclosure sale, other than a

IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS COUNTY DEPARTMENT C C DIVISI US BANK NATIONAL SS CI I Plaintiff, vs.

CORNELIUS MCALLISETER AKA C I S D. C IS GABRIELA MCALLISTER B I SECRETARY OF HOUSING AND B D V I I IS SI D V I W W S D C DC I S Defendants, 19 CH 4302 NOTICE OF SALE PUBLIC NOTICE IS HEREBY IV that pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered in the above entitled cause Intercounty Judicial Sales Corporation will on Friday, March 20, 2020 at the hour of 11 a.m. in their office at 120 West Madison Street, Suite 718A, Chicago, Illinois, sell at public auction to the highest bidder for cash, as set forth below, the following described mortgaged real estate: P.I.N. 15-08-101-026-0000.

Commonly known as 30 52nd Avenue, Bellwood, Illinois 60104.

The mortgaged real estate is improved with a single family residence. If the subject mortgaged real estate is a unit of a common interest community, the purchaser of the unit other than a mortgagee shall pay the assessments required by subsection (g-1) of Section 18.5 of the Condominium Property Act. Sale terms: 10% down by certified funds, balance, by certified funds, within 24 hours. No refunds. The property will NOT be open for inspection.

For information call The Sales Department at lainti ’s ttorney

IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS COUNTY DEPARTMENT C C DIVISI V S F DI LLC Plaintiff, -v.JEANETTE JOHNSON, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND B D V VI OF MAYWOOD Defendants 2019 CH 09325 1 S V MAYWOOD, IL 60153 NOTICE OF SALE PUBLIC NOTICE IS HEREBY IV that pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered in the above cause on November 7, 2019, an agent for The Judicial Sales Corporation, will at 10:30 AM on March 17, 2020, at The Judicial Sales Corporation, One South Wacker Drive, CHICAGO, IL, 60606, sell at a public sale to the highest bidder, as set forth below, the following described real estate: Commonly known as 130 SOUTH V W D I 60153 Property Index No. 15-10-235-0330000 The real estate is improved with a residence.

Sale terms: 25% down of the highest bid by certified funds at the close of the sale payable to The Judicial Sales Corporation. No third party checks will be accepted. The balance, including the Judicial Sale fee for the Abandoned Residential Property Municipality Relief Fund, which is calculated on residential real estate at the rate of $1 for each $1,000 or fraction thereof of the amount paid by the purchaser not to exceed $300, in certified funds/ or wire transfer, is due within twenty-four (24) hours. No fee shall be paid by the mortgagee acquiring the residential real estate pursuant to its credit bid at the sale or by any mortgagee, judgment creditor, or other lienor acquiring the residential real estate whose rights in and to the residential real estate arose prior to the sale. The subject property is subject to general real estate taxes, special assessments, or special taxes levied against said real estate and is offered for sale without any representation as to quality or quantity of title and without recourse to Plaintiff and in “AS IS” condition. The sale is further subject to confirmation by the court.

Upon payment in full of the amount bid, the purchaser will receive a Certificate of Sale that will entitle the purchaser to a deed to the real estate after confirmation of the sale.

Where a sale of real estate is made to satisfy a lien prior to that of the United States, the United States shall have one year from the date of sale within which to redeem, except

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Call 312-598-1758 or visit RefrigerantFinders.com

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Wednesday Journal, February 12, 2020

OAKPARK.COM | RIVERFOREST.COM

My first job was working as a stock boy at the National Tea Company grocery store in Forest Park.”

BOB SANTANGELO VICE PRESIDENT, COMMERCIAL LOAN OFFICER, BYLINE BANK

A Community Bank for Oak Park and River Forest.

Bob Santangelo was raised in North Oak Park, and graduated from St. Giles Grade School and OPRF High School.

Oak Park provided a great sense of family and community, which Bob still feels today. His Uncle was a local physician practicing at West Suburban Hospital, his father-in-law worked at Zenith Corporation on Austin Avenue for over 30 years, and his aunt was a book-keeper at a local newspaper publisher.

After finishing school at Loyola University, Bob returned with his wife—whose family is also deep in the community— to live in the area, where she continued to work for many years at a local pediatrician’s office on Chicago Avenue.

To learn more about our commitment to Oak Park and River Forest, visit bylinebank.com/oprf

©2020 Byline Bank. Member FDIC.

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CAMP LISTINGS

5 Ways Around the World Culture Camp for Caring Kids

Academia, Institute of Language and Culture 308 Madison Street Oak Park, IL 60302 708-401-0888 ChicagoAcademia.com

Spring break campers explore countries and cultures 5 ways: games, art, music, stories, and cuisine. After projects, play, and plenty of time in nature, our campers go home happy, fulfilled and “good tired.”

Next morning, kids can’t wait to come back!

A.L.M.A 5 Ways Around the World Culture Camp for Caring Kids

Experience A.L.M.A.’s:

Spring break campers explore countries and cultures 5 ways: games, art, music, stories, and cuisine. After projects, play, and plenty of time in nature, our campers go home happy, fulfilled and “good tired.” Next morning, kids can’t wait to come back!

• trained teachers • positive encouraging environment • easy, convenient enrollment/payment

Experience A.L.M.A.’s:

At A.L.M.A., we work with families who have an inclusive world view - a world where creativity and compassion are ordinary. If you share our vision, please email us at: cfi.alma@gmail, visit our website: ALMA-CF.org, or call us at 708-769-4853.

EST PREP HOMEWORK HELP SUMMER PROGRAMS PRE-K – 12TH GRADE

e Make Math ake Sense

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SAT, ACT & ISEE TEST PREP HOMEWORK HELP

• trained teachers • positive encouraging environment • easy, convenient enrollment/payment At A.L.M.A., we work with families who have an inclusive world view - a world where creativity and compassion are ordinary. If you share our vision, please email us at: cfi.alma@gmail or visit our website: alma-cf.org

Now Enrolling for Summ er Bravo Performing Arts Academy

325 S Kenilworth Ave, Oak Park, IL 60302 708-524-5621 BravoPerformingArts.org SUMMER PROGRAMS

Now nrollinMath g WeEMake for SumSense Make mer

Bravo Performing Arts Academy is a musical theater intensive designed to hone vocal, acting, and dance skills of students who have the passion and discipline for musical theater. Our BA camp is 5 weeks - grades 6-9.

Junior Bravo Academy camp is designed for students that may be new to the stage and have the desire to learn more about musical Theater. Our JBA camp is 4 weeks - grades 4-6.

After only a few weeks of classes and rehearsals, we will present three spectacular, professional-quality musicals featuring dozens of memorable songs, impressive choreography, dazzling costumes and amazing sets!

Learn more at BravoPerformingArts.org

The Country Experience Elizabeth, Illinois 312-852-7400 TheCountryExperience.com

Pre K - 12th Grade The Country Experience is a week-long overnight experience for kids Remediation to Enrichment ED WE ARE EXPERIENCED EARLY REGISTRATION SPECIAL: 7-16 S MATH SPECIALISTS FREESummer CONSULTATION CONSULTATION on a working family farm in Elizabeth, IL. The daily flow of camp Slide Prevention 25% OFF ALLFREE Summer is determined by the natural needs of the farm – animals require care, An in-depth SAT/ACT look at how the An in-depth look at how the Prep Programs during the vegetables are ready to be harvested, structures need repair. Kids have LS WE TEACH ALL LEVELS Mathnasium Method works Mathnasium Method works Algebra & Geometry and how we can meet your and how we can meet your OF MATH ABILITY plenty of down time to fish in the pond, lay in a hammock, bake in the month of February family’s needs. family’s needs. kitchen or play with their favorite animals including cows, goats, chickens, Review/Preview PROVEN RESULTS rabbits, pigs and mini-donkeys. For more information or to register Mathnasium Oak Park/River Forest Mathnasium La Grange 1101 Chicago Ave, Oak Park, IL 60302 1 S. Waiola Ave, La Grange, IL 60525 contact us at www.thecountryexperience.com or call Ed at 312-852-7400. mathnasium.com/your web address Your Locationlagrange@mathnasium.com mathnasium.com/your web address oakparkriverforest@mathnasium.com Family farm stays are also available.

123 Any Street Rd.

800-123-4567 800-123-4567 mathnasium.com/oakparkriverforest mathnasium.com/lagrange Any Town, ST 90000 708.613.4007mathnasium.com/your web address 708.582.6593

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Spring /SummerSwim /Summer Swim Lessons Lessons For Ages 3 and up • Sign-up is open now...limited spots available!

Indoor Pool No Rain Outs Small Class Sizes

Early Bird Special: $50 for camp sign ups by April 1st.

Experienced Instructors Join our mailing list at max-aquatics.com Or follow us on Facebook

4751 South Vernon in McCook • Across from The Max

4751 South Vernon in McCook Across from The Max

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CAMP LISTINGS The Friendly Music School 6731 Roosevelt Rd, Berwyn, IL 60402 708-749-1932 FriendlySchool.org The Friendly Music School is here to help you with the skills you need to play guitar in any style. Whether you’re brand new to the guitar, picking it up after a break, or trying to learn what you can online, you’ll progress faster and have more fun along the way with our core guitar program and supportive community. We offer group guitar lessons at the beginner, advanced beginner, and intermediate levels, but we also offer the popular “create your own group” class–register with your own friends, family, colleagues, etc., for a specific day/time/instructor. For any group, classes are 60 minutes and 8-lessons per session. Visit friendlymusic.community

International Mansion Hosting The The Language and Music School Est. 1994 509 N Oak Park Ave, Oak Park, IL 60302 708-524-5252 InternationalMansion.com/

Max Aquatics 4751 South Vernon Ave. McCook, IL 60525 Max-Aquatics.com Adult & Kids Swim Lessons, Lap Swimming, Water Running & More!

Welcome to Max Aquatics, an indoor, 25-yard, 6-lane pool serving the instructional, fitness and recreational needs of all ages and skill levels in the western suburbs (Western Springs, LaGrange, LaGrange Park, Brookfield, Riverside and more) and nearby Chicago. We are conveniently located in McCook, across the street to the south and east of The Max sports complex.

We are proud to be part of such a dedicated swimming community.

Chicago is the #2 swim market in the US, only behind Southern California, according to USA Swimming.

Visit Max-Aquatics.com/ to see all of our Swim Programs We look forward to seeing you at the pool!

Ovation Academy 1010 Madison St, Oak Park, IL 60302 708-222-7564 OvationAcadamy.org At Ovation Academy, we build, engage, inspire and educate our students through the transformative power of music, theater and dance.

Ovation is proud to present TWO different productions for full-day campers and the inaugural half-day camp this summer. With a stellar group of teachers and instructors, students will be in the best of hands as they explore under the sea, the village of Motunui and jolly Londontown through the magic of song & dance.

Register today at Ovationacademy.org.

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February 12, 2020

The Country Experience, owned and run by a local Oak Park family, is a week long sleep-away camp for children age 7 to 16 who love animals and the outdoors. A working farm where hands-on experiences, real-world work and play develops confidence, respect, appreciation and joy.

Come meet us and find out more about this unique camp experience.

We’ll be at the Oak Park Library Main Branch, 834 Lake Street, Tuesday, March 3, 4-6pm and Sunday April 26, 3-5pm

The Country Experience is located in Elizabeth, IL (2 hours from Oak Park) Contact us at ed@thecountryexperience.com or 312-852-7400

Farm stays also available.

Join us on the farm with your family or friends!

Contact us for more information.

www.TheCountryExperience.com The Country Experience at Amstutz Family Farm @thecountryexperience

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CAMP LISTINGS River Forest Community Center Summer Camp Programs 8020 Madison Street River Forest, IL 60305 (708) 771-6159 RFCC.info Offering full and part-time programs for parents & tots and children ages 3-12 years of age. Activities include arts &crafts, games, sports, water play/swimming, field trips, special events, and more!

The Viola Project 773-349-2685 Violainfo@violaproject.org ViolaProject.org Join The Viola Project in Austin Gardens for our signature Shakespeare summer camps! The Viola Project unites and empowers girls and gender nonconforming from diverse backgrounds to stand up, advocate for themselves, and demand inclusion. Both week-long camps are full of acting, ice cream, and fun, with a focus on getting campers to speak up and speak out on what’s important to them, whether that’s running for president or writing a sonnet. Financial aid is always available. Camps are run in partnership with Oak Park Festival Theatre and The Nineteenth Century Club.

Learn more and register online at ViolaProject.org

Summer = Freedom + Play

Summer Fun at Academia Field Trips • Outdoor Park+Splash Pad Fun • Arts+Crafts • Cultural Exploration • Spanish Lessons

June 8 - August 21 • Full Weeks + Drop In Passes available Little World Travelers: Ages 3.5 - 5 • World Travelers: Ages 6 - 11

Early bird pricing + 20% discount for siblings until April 1 Full Day - $350/wk (7:30am-6:30pm) • Short Day - $300/wk (9am-3pm) Half Day - $240/wk (8:30am-12:30pm or 12:30pm-4:30pm) Enroll today with $50/week deposit • Flexible payment plans Not sure what dates you need? Swap dates later for free.

chicagoacademia.com • (708) 401-0888

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Dear Oak Park Residents and Surrounding Community, This year we are giving back to you with an amazing one time offer (in celebration of our 25th anniversary)!

Perfect for children, teens, and adults!

Language and Music Camp!

Special 2020 Offer!

Spanish Immersion no Spanish experience necessary.

$248 per month

Our Summer Camp’s waitlist has been eliminated, with all the space we have at the new Mansion!

$199 for the first month!

Preschool Group (ages 2-4), Kindergarten through 2nd Grade Group (ages 5-8), 3rd-5th grade group (ages 9-11).

Monday through Friday 9:30am-2:30pm, choose your weeks $250 per week.

Private Lessons in ANY subject we offer!

Two-week minimum, 8-week recommendation for language acquisition.

All Languages, All Instruments, All Subjects for Academic Tutoring! All AGES! Don’t forget to ask about our other programs and offerings:

• Before and Afterschool “Homework Cafe” at The International Mansion • Language and Fine Arts Preschool and Elementary School (Homeschool-style in School) • Our Recording Studio • Translations and Interpretations LANGUAGES CURRENTLY OFFERED:

INSTRUMENTS CURRENTLY OFFERED:

ATHLETIC TRAINING CURRENTLY OFFERED:

SPECIALTIES CURRENTLY OFFERED:

Spanish, Polish, Chinese, French, Japanese, German, Italian, Russian, Arabic, Spanish, E.S.L. (English as a Second Language), Indonesian, Korean, Hebrew, Swedish, and much more!

Piano, Voice, Harp, Banjo, Violin, Trumpet, Cornet, Trombone, Euphonium, Tuba, Drum Set, African Drums, Saxophone, Clarinet, Viola, Cello, Oboe, Guitar, Bass Guitar, Upright Bass, Electric Guitar, Bagpipes, Accordian, Harmonica, Recorder, Ukulele, Music Composition, Ear Training, Musical Theater, Music Therapy, Music Production, Recording Studio, All Band & Orchestra Instruments

Karate, Fencing, Soccer, Dance, and Personal Strength Training

Cinematography, Coding

ACADEMICS CURRENTLY OFFERED: Math, Science, Reading, Writing, SAT, ACT, IEP/ Dyselxic/Alternative Learners, Architecture, and Chess

Co-Founders, Maria Emilia and Brando

The Language and Music School At International Mansion

509 N. Oak Park Ave., Oak Park, IL 60302 info@internationalmansion.com • (708) 524-5252 • InternationalMansion.com

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WEST COOK YMCA

RELATIONSHIP | ACHIEVEMENT | BELONGING

3 WAYS TO REGISTER

1 Register Online: www.westcookymca.org/camp

2 Contact Youth Development Department at 708-383-5200 or daycamp@westcookymca.org

3 Register at the West Cook YMCA Front Desk 255 S. Marion St., Oak Park, IL 60302

YMCA_2020_WJ_Camp_Ad_10_25x11_33_fnl.indd 1

CAMP MAGELLAN DAY CAMP 2020

June 8th– August 21st Program Site: 305 Circle Ave., Forest Park, IL

BEST SUMMER EVER There is no better way to spend a summer than enjoying outdoors with friends.

And this year, West Cook YMCA is the place for kids to be all summer long!

Summer camp at the Y means days filled with activities at the local forest preserve, swimming, games, sports and field trips!

SUMMER CAMP SPECIALS SAVE FOR CAMP ALL SUMMER LONG!

REGISTER EARLY AND SAVE!

Register for all 11 weeks and receive a complimentary Household membership for the summer months.

Register camp Program Site: 305 Circle Ave. ForestforPark, IL prior Plus, if you activate this promotional offer by to April 1st and receive April 1st, you get 5% off regular camp tuition for 15% off regular camp tuition each week ($280 value) Code: 20CAMPWJ1 Code: 20CAMPWJ2

2/10/20 12:14 PM

Special Advertising Section

CAMP GUIDE

|

CAMP LISTINGS WEST COOK YMCA 305 Circle Ave Forest Park, IL 60130 708.383.5200 WestCookYMCA.org/camp

F E B RUA RY 2 0 2 0

February 12, 2020

The Viola Project summer camps

West Cook YMCA’s Camp Magellan is your child’s destination to have the best summer ever! Days are filled with activities at the local forest preserve, swimming, games, sports and field trips. Your child will experience the best of what summer has to offer – all in a safe environment where they can try something new, build friendships, and make memories to last a lifetime.

For children ages 5-14. Camp runs weekly session from 9:00am to 4:00pm with available extended care from 7:00am-9:00am and 4:00pm7:00pm, so you can rest easy knowing your child is having their best summer ever, all day, with the Y. For more details, please contact our team at 708.383.5200 or daycamp@westcookymca.org

Frank Lloyd Wright’s Studio! Summer Camps 951 Chicago Ave, Oak Park, IL 60302 708-725-3828 educate@flwright.org | FLWright.org Design in Frank Lloyd Wright’s Studio! Summer Camps for Grades 3-8 Sound and Space: Designing with Architecture and Music The Frank Lloyd Wright Trust is offering a camp for creative spirits, grades 3-5 and 6-8, at Wright’s Oak Park Studio, where America’s most famous architect pioneered a bold new vision for modern architecture and design.

Sound and Space explores Wright’s design legacy through the lens of music, movement, and acoustics. Drawing from Wright’s belief that “music and architecture blossom on the same stem,” campers will work with experts in the field to design and build models inspired by sound.

Visit FLWright.org/camps

Do you have a camp you would like to promote?

Find out about our upcoming F EB RUARYin-print 2020 and online camp guides.

CampGuide

Contact Dawn Ferencak at 708-613-3329, Dawn@oakpark.com, or Marc Stopeck at 708-613-3330, Marc@oakpark.com.

B9

B10

CAMP GUIDE

February 12, 2020

|

F E B RUA RY 2 0 2 0

Special Advertising Section

Thanks Oak Park Eats for providing a platform to showcase how The Day Nursery carries out its mission to nourish young minds. Whether by shining a spotlight on our unique Popup dining experiences to raise much needed funds or our forward thinking spin on home cooked family style meals, they have been there to share our story. And more recently, by highlighting The Day Nursery’s national recognition for achievements in promoting Farm to School nutrition, Oak Park Eats has been able to give readers an opportunity to experience The Day Nursery Difference for themselves.

- Cari Christoff, The Day Nursery

Cari Christoff, The Day Nursery For more than a century, The Day Nursery has been providing exceptional care and education for young children and their families in our community. Yet, sometimes it seems as if we are one of the best kept secrets. Many know our beautiful Tudor home on the corner of Randolph and Harlem, but are not aware of what happens inside its walls. And sometimes, what happens inside those walls is nothing short of magical.

Learn more at TheDayNursery.org

Keep up with Melissa Elsmo and what she’s cooking up at:

OakParkEats.com

Special Advertising Section

CAMP GUIDE

|

F E B RUA RY 2 0 2 0

February 12, 2020

House Hunting?

Find a Realtor.

Find a home.

Get a list of Open Houses.

Every week, every day in

B11

F R E S H PA I N T

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U P DAT E D F LO O R I N G

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400 FOREST AVE, OAK PARK $1,167,500 :: 5 BED :: 3.5 BATH

1023 PARK, RIVER FOREST $1,650,000 :: 7 BED :: 6.5 BATH

Frank Lloyd Wright historic district - beautiful 1 acre lot.

Beautiful English Tudor - Exquisite Home.

NEW PRICE

Rules & Exclusions apply. Compass offers no guarantee or warranty of results. Subject to additional terms and conditions.

The Navigation Group is a team of Real Estate agents affiliated with Compass. Compass is a licensed Real Estate broker and abides by federal, state and local Equal Housing Opportunity laws. If your property is currently listed with another broker, this mailer is not solicitation for business.

Maximize the value of your home.

JUST LISTED

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906 COLUMBIAN, OAK PARK $799,000 :: 4 BED :: 2.5 BATH

900 FRANKLIN, RIVER FOREST $849,000 :: 4 BED :: 3.5 BATH

1023 WENONAH, OAK PARK $774,000 :: 5 BED :: 4 BATH

Beautiful totally new renovation top to bottom. Great location.

Brick Colonial Home.

New kitchen & baths.

Unique Victorian in Lincoln School district. Renovated kitchen & baths.

KATHY & TONY IWERSEN 708.772.8040 708.772.8041 tonyiwersen@atproperties.com

B12 View more at OakPark.com/Real-Estate ■ February 12, 2020

700 COLUMBIA N, OAK PAR K

OPEN HOUSE - SUNDAY, FEBRUA RY 16, 2-4PM Vintage C. E. White estate home facing Augusta Blvd extensively renovated by current architect / builder owner to today’s standards. Casually elegant, open and functional plan that lives unusually well. 6 Bedrooms/3.5 baths featuring massive Great Room that overlooks private rear yard with garden wall, bluestone patios, gas fire pit and dining pergola. All new mechanicals including Control 4 Smart Home with A/V, lighting, HVAC and motorized shade control. 3 car garage + side drive for total of 6 car parking. Offered @ $1,350,000.

KEVIN@ KEVINWOO DGROU P.COM

773.382.4310

Property transfers p. B18

February 12, 2020

Homes

Powered by the Oak Park Area Association of Realtors

The front line of affordable housing

YMCA a resource ‘upstream’ from homelessness

By TOM HOLMES

I

Contributing Reporter

n a village like Oak Park where, according the online site Rent Jungle, the average monthly rent at the end of last year was $1,604, what do you do if your total income working at the minimum wage for a month is $2,240?

Renting for $500 a month, the 90 SROs (single-room occupancy) available at the West Cook YMCA at 255 S. Marion St. are an option if you are a single man needing affordable housing while you are making a transition in your life.

Brian (not his real name) said that the SRO at the YMCA in which he is presently living has been a needed stopgap which has allowed him to stay off the street.

“I am a retired veteran,” he said. “Living at the Y saved me from the cold and saved me from being homeless. It saved me from living with someone else and dealing with their rules.”

Phil Jimenez, the West Cook YMCA’s CEO,

made a point of saying that Brian’s situation illustrates the role the nonprofit plays in the community-wide effort to address the issue of homelessness. The role of the Y, he said, is “upstream” from homelessness.

“We are not a homeless shelter,” he said. “Our role is homeless prevention. Becoming homeless is a process. You don’t go from a home in River Forest to living on the street overnight.

Housing Forward serves the people who are See YMCA on page B16

HOME OPTION: Paige Clincy, residence case manager at the West Cook YMCA in Oak Park (below), assesses applicants who seek to rent one of the 90 rooms available at $500 a month. Many of the residents are long-term ones.

ALEX ROGALS/Staff Photographer

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B13

OAK PARK

4 BR, 2 BA .....................................$455,000 Tagger O’Brien • 708-456-6400

3 0 :DOVK &2 1SVEFOUJBM 6LQFH

NEW LISTING!

OAK PARK Amazing newer construction 2-bedroom luxury condo in the heart of downtown Oak Park!

2 BR, 2 BA ..................................................................................................................... $352,000 Steve Scheuring • 708-369-8043

OAK PARK OAK PARK

3 BR, 2.1 BA ..................................$549,900

Beautiful 4 BR 4-Square in the heart of Oak Park!

4 BR, 1.1 BA .................................................................................................................. $535,000 Steve Scheuring • 708-369-8043

Victoria Witt • 708-790-1319

OAK PARK

4 BR, 2.1 BA ..................................$670,000 Victoria Witt • 708-790-1319

OPEN SUNDAY 2  4 P.M. 700 COLUMBIAN

OAK PARK

OAK PARK

Spectacular estate home in central Oak Park designed

by Tallmage & Watson.

6 BR, 5.2 BA .................................................................................................................. $968,000 Steve Scheuring • 708-369-8043

OAK PARK

5 BR, 4 BA .....................................$774,000 Kathy & Tony Iwersen 708-772-8040 or 708-772-8041

Casually elegant estate home fully renovated by architect/owner with massive kitchen/great room

6 BR, 3.5 BA ............................................................................................................... $1,350,000 Kevin Wood • 773-382-4310

Want to see your listings in Distinctive Properties?

Contact Marc Stopeck at 708.613.3330 or marc@oakpark.com B14 View more at OakPark.com/Real-Estate â– February 12, 2020

NEW LISTING!

OAK PARK

4 BR, 2.1 BA ..................................$779,000 Kathy & Tony Iwersen 708-772-8040 or 708-772-8041

OAK PARK

4 BR, 4.1 BA ...............................$1,049,000 Gagliardo Realty Assoc. • 708-771-8040

OAK PARK

5 BR, 3.1 BA ...............................$1,167,500 Kathy & Tony Iwersen 708-772-8040 or 708-772-8041

7375 West North Avenue River Forest, Illinois 60305 708.771.8040

RIVER FOREST RIVER FOREST

RIVER FOREST

3 BR, 2.2 BA ..................................$499,000 Tagger O’Brien • 708-456-6400

RIVER FOREST

4 BR, 3.1 BA .................................$849,000

5 BR, 4.1 BA ...............................$1,167,000

Kathy & Tony Iwersen 708-772-8040 or 708-772-8041

Kathy & Tony Iwersen 708-772-8040 or 708-772-8041

Stunning French Provincial with incredible kitchen!

4 BR, 4.2 BA ............................................................................................................... $1,049,000 Steve Scheuring • 708-369-8043

3 0 :DOVK &2 1SVEFOUJBM 6LQFH

Now in our Second Century of Service RIVER FOREST

5 BR, 5 BA ..................................$1,525,000 Gagliardo Realty Assoc. • 708-771-8040

7375 West North Avenue River Forest, Illinois 60305 708.771.8040

RIVER FOREST

7 BR, 6.1 BA ...............................$1,650,000 Kathy & Tony Iwersen 708-772-8040 or 708-772-8041

To find a local expert, go to oakparkrealtors.org

Want to see your listings in Distinctive Properties?

Contact Marc Stopeck at 708.613.3330 or marc@oakpark.com February 12, 2020 â– Wednesday Journal/Forest Park Review

B15

YMCA

Affordable, safe from page B13 downstream, i.e., who are already homeless.

The position the Y has is to prevent a man who is at risk from going over the margin.”

The TMCA and Housing Forward had a partnership until about three years ago in which the Y provided 10 rooms to Housing Forward (then called PADS) to men whom Housing Forward had selected. A full time AmeriCorps member offered onsite case management services to help the clients transition to permanent, independent housing.

Jimenez said that his nonprofit backed out of the partnership because “in 2015 we began to see that this Y was not outfitted to address mental illness or substance abuse.

We were not outfitted to be a homeless shelter where individuals cannot pay the rent.”

He contends that the main issue that every organization has to address is the question of whom they can serve and whom they cannot serve.

“It’s a difficult question,” he said, “because it’s hard for me to say no to people. But if you don’t have the discipline to be truthful about what you can and cannot do, the entire organization suffers.”

Jimenez and the board of directors concluded that what the West Cook PHIL JIMENEZ YMCA could do well West Cook YMCA CEO was to provide, in the words of the Y’s website, “secure housing for men transitioning between housing, not wanting the commitment of an apartment or home, living temporarily in the community for school or employment, or simply desiring an affordable, safe place to live.”

Paige Clincy, West Cook YMCA’s residence case manager, interviews an average of five men a month who are applying for one of the SRO rooms.

“The main focus of the interview with potential residents,” she said, “is to assess if the program is a good fit for the applicant’s needs. We also want to understand what brought the applicant to the program and begin to develop an individual service plan for residents to get on track with the goals they set out to achieve.”

She explained that the purpose of the requirement of a minimum monthly income of $1,500 is to make sure that the $500-permonth rent does not exceed one-third of their total income.

Jimenez said that one of his big challenges regarding the SRO program is chang-

“You don’t go from a home in River Forest to living on the street overnight.”

ALEX ROGALS/Staff Photographer

UPSTREAM: Paige Clincy (top) explains what each room for rent at the West Cook YMCA includes – a bed, dresser/desk, chair, personal fridge, telephone and Direct TV. There’s also a common area (above left) for residents. YMCA CEO Phil Jimenez (above right) says residences provide a housing option that’s “upstream” of homelessness. It is not, he said, a homeless shelter. ing the public’s perception of the men who live at the Y. Clincy offered the following as examples of men who are not right on the verge of becoming homeless.

Cleotis acknowledged that some of the residents are “down on their luck” but that he personally has lived at the Y for 18 years, because he “likes the access [to the village] and accommodations offered at the Y.” Tom, who retired after working for the CTA for 41 years, said, “Living at the Y has given me the opportunity to save money and focus on my financial goals.”

When the Rev. Dean Leuking came to the area 66 years ago to be the assistant pastor at Grace Lutheran Church in River Forest, he stayed at the YMCA until the rest of his family arrived to join him.

B16 View more at OakPark.com/Real-Estate ■ February 12, 2020

“We want people to think of our residence program as a resource within the community that can help provide the stability and assistance in which our residents are searching for, if they stick to the program,” said Clincy The West Cook YMCA has closed off the third floor of the building, which contains 37 more single occupancy rooms, because the demand for what the nonprofit feels it can offer does not warrant keeping them open.

Jimenez said that he is entertaining several scenarios regarding use of the space, including a place for patients after they are a discharged from a healthcare system but aren’t ready to go home or office space for other nonprofits who don’t have enough in

their own facilities.

With the top floor closed off, there are 90 rooms available to men seeking housing, with about 60 currently occupied. And, many of the tenants have lived there quite a while. According to Jimenez, about onethird of the residents have lived there more than 10 years with another one-third living there between three and 10 years.

One resident has called the West Cook YMCA home for three decades.

For the $500 a month rent, residents receive a room with a twin-size bed, dresser, desk, chair, personal refrigerator, Direct TV basic service, a private telephone, membership to the Y at no extra cost, weekly linen service, access to coin operated washers and dryers and bathrooms down the hall.

OPEN SUN 122

500 WILLIAM ST, RIVER FOREST

427 N OAK PARK AVE, OAK PARK

735 AUGUSTA ST, OAK PARK

1220 N GROVE AVE, OAK PARK

234 S KENILWORTH AVE, OAK PARK

5 br, 5 ba $775,000

4 br, 4 ba $739,000

4 br, 2.1 ba $729,000

4 br, 2.1 ba $670,000

5 br, 2.1 ba $649,000

Monica Dalton 708.848.5550

Alice McMahon 708.848.5550

Alice McMahon 708.848.5550

Victoria Witt 708.848.5550

Kelly Fondow 708.848.5550

OPEN SAT 122

NEW LISTING

NEW LISTING

NEW LISTING

7660 WILCOX ST, FOREST PARK

442 LENOX ST, OAK PARK

1224 N KENILWORTH AVE, OAK PARK

611 N RIDGELAND AVE, OAK PARK

742 N RIDGELAND AVE, OAK PARK

4 br, 3 ba $619,800

3 br, 2.1 ba $549,900

4 br, 3.1 ba $524,900

4 br, 1.1 ba $524,895

4 br, 3 ba $465,000

April Baker 708.848.5550

Victoria Witt 708.848.5550

Cara Carriveau (Busch) 708.848.5550

Jennifer Hosty 708.848.5550

Victoria Witt 708.848.5550

Get Noticed.

World-Class Marketing that moves your home from Listed to Sold.

101 N. Oak Park Avenue | Oak Park, IL 60301 BHHSChicago • 866.795.1010 OPEN SAT 122

NEW LISTING

NEW LISTING

1105 LYMAN AVE, OAK PARK

1108 S SCOVILLE AVE, OAK PARK

1170 S HUMPHREY AVE, OAK PARK

7707 YORK ST, FOREST PARK

1407 N 16TH AVE, MELROSE PARK

3 br, 2.1 ba $399,000

4 br, 2.1 ba $399,000

4 br, 2 ba $385,000

2 br, 3.1 ba $319,900

3 br, 3 ba $250,000

Alice McMahon 708.848.5550

Susan Abbott 708.848.5550

Robert Hann 708.848.5550

April Baker 708.848.5550

Donna Serpico 708.848.5550

OPEN SUN 13

OPEN SUN 13

OPEN SUN 122

NEW LISTING

424 PARK AVE 303, RIVER FOREST

424 PARK AVE 302, RIVER FOREST

911 MARENGO AVE, FOREST PARK

200 HOME AVE 2C, OAK PARK

643 GARFIELD ST 3, OAK PARK

2 br, 2 ba $239,000

2 br, 2 ba $219,000

2 br, 2 ba $198,000

2 br, 1.1 ba $179,900

2 br, 1 ba $134,900

Susan Maienza 708.848.5550

Susan Maienza 708.848.5550

Tabitha Murphy 708.848.5550

Jeffrey O'Connor 708.848.5550

Sarah O'Shea Munoz 708.848.5550

BHHSChicago.com February 12, 2020 ■ Wednesday Journal/Forest Park Review

B17

P R O P E R T Y

T R A N S F E R S

River Forest home sells for $1,200,000

The following property transfers were reported by the Cook County Recorder of Deeds for November 2019. Where addresses appear incomplete, for instance where a unit number appears missing, that information was not provided by the recorder of deeds.

OAK PARK ADDRESS

PRICE

SELLER

BUYER

436 S Maple Ave

$1,975,000

Kerr Charles

Meridan Maple Llc

615 S Maple Ave

$1,000,000

Mauban Bernabe Chris

Rush Oak Pk Hosp Inc

142 N Harvey Ave

$785,000

Kitsos Laura

Musielak Katherine F

719 Linden Ave

$718,000

Faust C Stan

Molter Dane J

829 N Kenilworth Ave

$713,000

Filo Jeffrey J Tr

Johnson Mary L

1019 Chicago Ave

$685,000

Sternhagen Paul

Brodeur Brian

1018 N Kenilworth Ave

$570,000

Barcia Joseph M Tr

Rose Seasonne

710 N Elmwood Ave

$530,000

Coberly Linda Terry

Mariottini Michael

320 Wesley Ave

$523,500

Blaber Mark B Tr

Najem William

327 N Harvey Ave

$520,000

Chicago Title Land Trust Co Tr

Weinstein Matthew

949 Augusta St

$500,000

Wakai Kathleen M Tr

Pierce Todd M

ADDRESS

PRICE

SELLER

BUYER

634 S Elmwood Ave

$500,000

Cole Wendy M Tr

Frank Jordan N

922 N East Ave

$494,500

Lofgren Philip A Tr

Ayisi Emmanuel Joseph

947 N Oak Park Ave

$489,500

Shinker James L

King James Patrick

327 N Taylor Ave

$475,000

Harper Monica

Jang Dongsoo

735 S Kenilworth Ave

$460,000

Vogt Keith A

Vermeer Wilhelmus H

847 S Kenilworth Ave

$424,000

Wslt Holdings Llc

Schultz Kevin Michael Tr

14 Chicago Ave

$410,000

Dojo Inv Llc

Ridgewood Ent Inc

1120 Fair Oaks Ave

$375,000

Arnold Charles

Miller Bendict P

1188 Clinton Ave

$363,500

Voster Erik

Pender Kristopher N

6037 North Ave

$350,000

Deep River Dev Llc

Mia Prop Acq Llc-6033 N

228 N Harvey Ave

$340,000

Drechsler Walter Tr

Guaman Fausto Anolfo

156 N Oak Park Ave 24

$320,000

Dworkin James L

Armstrong Elaine

1108 Dunlop Ave 821 Marengo Ave 920 Circle Ave 1104 Elgin Ave 824 Dunlop Ave 815 Marengo Ave 622 Beloit Ave 445 Ferdinand Ave 1W 7314 Randolph St 4A 7717 Monroe St 1101 Harlem Ave 203 320 Circle Ave 206 1043 Elgin Ave 604 Marengo Ave

$425,000 $425,000 $405,000 $365,000 $285,000 $238,000 $232,000 $185,000 $172,500 $133,000 $105,000 $83,500 Unknown Unknown

Murphy Ken Edward Chicago Title Land Trust Co Tr Duncan Allison Mason Denise Wilkie William G Merkley Sarah Adm Dirks Scott A Sprudzs Andris P Angelus Laura E Empathy Fin Llc Sarmiento Hugo Boysen Robert J Judicial Sales Corp Judicial Sales Corp

Arzon Trust Konstantos Dionisios Herrera Fernando Zhou Yangfei Brooks Al-Fuquan Sippel Jason Alfieri Kenneth A Banks Blanche F Harper Bobbie J Elle J Abode Llc Velazquez Maria A Nunley Felicia Mtglq Inv Lp Federal Home Loan Mtg Corp

1168 S Ridgeland Ave

$315,000

East Kathryn

Odenbach Jessica Elizabeth

431 S Ridgeland Ave

$265,000

Loehr Michael

Razzino Amy Beth

1020 S Taylor Ave

$250,000

Ih2 Prop Illinois Lp

Lowrance Haley E

732 S Humphrey Ave

$235,000

Bmo Harris Bk

Dream Home Rebuilders Llc

704 S Lombard Ave

$212,000

Koch Patricia M Tr

Ahc Properties Llc

802 S Taylor Ave

$188,000

Guldin Lois C

Chicago Title Land Trust Co Tr

200 Home Ave 3C

$176,000

Bluewater Inv Trust 2018-1

Mendoza David

514 N Taylor Ave

$170,000

Umb Bank Tr

Dalkilic Ali

228 N Oak Park Ave 2AA

$160,000

Barnhill Grady Colson

Heck Davis L

408 S Lombard Ave 1233

$160,000

Lasisi Idiatu A

Porter Elliot K

1174 S Grove Ave

$150,000

Ferraris Florencio

Durczak Joseph

1140 S Oak Park Ave

$150,000

Canicosa Marlene Portillo

Amici Prop Grp Llc

929 S Oak Park Ave 1NW

$115,000

Mcfadden Antonio Adm

Mcfadden Antonio

1107 Holley Ct 110

$100,000

Leen Madonna M

Smith Jennifer W

415 S Lombard Ave 301

$88,000

Deutsche Bk Natl Trust Co

Stigger Aaron

725 S Maple Ave 205

$47,000

Johnson Betty

Carlson Clifford

307 Madison St

Unknown

Parks Fdn Oak Pk

Park Dist Oak Pk

307 Madison St

Unknown

Harvey Madison Dev Llc

Parks Fdn Oak Pk

214 S Kenilworth Ave

Unknown

Matoka Megan Crowley

Matoka Megan Crowley Tr

B18 View more at OakPark.com/Real-Estate â– February 12, 2020

940 Clinton Pl., River Forest

FOREST PARK

RIVER FOREST ADDRESS

PRICE

SELLER

BUYER

940 Clinton Pl 310 Gale Ave 542 Franklin Ave 603 Thatcher Ave 1339 Lathrop Ave 1018 Park Ave 820 Ashland Ave 543 Clinton Pl 210 Franklin Ave 346 Gale Ave 936 Forest Ave 316 Ashland Ave 755 Monroe Ave 605 Park Ave 1010 N Harlem Ave 202 415 Franklin Ave 2FN 411 Ashland Ave 4C 7911 North Ave 1535 Monroe Ave 15353 409 Lathrop Ave 4092E

$1,200,000 $1,100,000 $970,000 $705,000 $705,000 $705,000 $675,000 $630,000 $520,000 $500,000 $493,500 $488,000 $432,500 $417,000 $289,000 $269,000 $260,000 $175,000 $142,000 $51,000

Holliday Lynda J Steinke Brian D Irvin Jayne Dowling Owen Q Tr Iijh Homes Inc Walsh Dawn Avra Prop Fund Ii End-User Llc Lopez Jorge Murphy Kinga Morningstar Marjorie Adm Kennelly John M Fields Kimberly Chicago Title Land Trust Co Tr Chemler Joseph Adm Oconnor Lori Beese David R Tr Donoghue Timothy J Tr Curk Maria C Lowry Nicholas A Soni Rohit

Merrick Edwin Smith Kevin B Augustyn James Broschka David Berti Michael Palivos Gregory Przybrowski Carl Severson Thomas Swetland Beth Ann Detmer Martin J Iii Beese David R D Antonio Joseph Singh Daljit Bowen Ryan Neely Norman Randall Putz Richard Cheng Nelly C Tr Kim Hae Kyun Villamor John E Martinez Michelle

g lin

T

el s o r AY ! g i n TO D y bu us f o ct g ik n o n t a n C hi

?

THE ATM TEAM

OPRF’S TOP AREA TEAM! MOST CLOSED SALES & HIGHEST VOLUME FOR THE PAST FOUR YEARS! This data was provided by Midwest Real Estate Data, LLC and includes properties listed and sold by various participants in the MLS. Data supplied by the MLS does not reflect all market activity in the area.

101 N. OAK PARK AVE. OAK PARK, IL. 60301 E: Info@theATMteam.com | P: 708.848.5550

2016

2017

2018

2019

© BHH Affiliates, LLC. An independently operated subsidiary of HomeServices of America, Inc., a Berkshire Hathaway affiliate, and a franchisee of BHH Affiliates,LLC. Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices and the Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices symbol are registered service marks of HomeServices of America, Inc.® Equal Housing Opportunity.

February 12, 2020 ■ Wednesday Journal/Forest Park Review

B19

FALL IN LOVE WITH A NEW HOME 703 N East Ave | Oak Park

$1,130,000 Patricia McGowan

725 Belleforte Ave | Oak Park

$799,000 Anne Ferri & Lynn Scheir

814 Wenonah Ave | Oak Park

630 N East Ave | Oak Park

$1,099,000 Catherine Simon-Vobornik

507 Monroe | River Forest

$629,000 Ann Keeney

1207 Rossell Ave | Oak Park

$459,000 Sandra Dita Lopez

$449,000 Catherine Simon-Vobornik

716 N Harvey | Oak Park

609 South Blvd | Oak Park

$390,000 Susanne Johnson

$349,000 Swati Saxena

1201 N Kenilworth | Oak Park

$925,000 Kara & Jon Keller

949 Linden Ave | Oak Park

$560,000 Patricia McGowan

842 N Euclid Ave | Oak Park

$434,900 Ed Bellock Jr.

1179 S Humphrey | Oak Park

$349,000 Kara & Jon Keller

1000 Fair Oaks | Oak Park

880,000 Lloyd Behrenbruch

1130 Paulina | Oak Park

$534,000 Hughes Home Team

1139 S Elmwood | Oak Park

$419,000 Mary Carlin

2247 S 4th Ave | N. Riverside

$285,000 Vanessa Willey

202 N Ridgeland | Oak Park

$838,000 Mike Lennox

547 N Ridgeland | Oak Park

$529,000 Catherine Simon-Vobornik

133 S Lombard | Oak Park

$418,000 Bobbi Eastman

1931 Cuyler Ave | Berwyn

$230,000 Sandra Dita Lopez

Baird & Warner Oak Park/River Forest | 1037 Chicago Ave. Oak Park, IL 60302 | 708.697.5900 | oakpark.bairdwarner.com Source: BrokerMetrics® LLC, 1/1/2019 - 12/ 31/2019Detached and Attached only. Chicagoland PMSA

B20 View more at OakPark.com/Real-Estate ■ February 12, 2020

189 S. Oak Park Ave., Oak Park, IL 60302 (708) 386-1400

HomesInTheVillage.com

Featured Listings for This Week Open Sat 12-2 pm

Open Sat 1-3 pm

7660 Wilcox Ave

Open Sun 12-1:30 pm

3523 Cuyler Ave

Forest Park $619,800 4BR, 3BA Laurie x186

838 Fair Oaks Ave

Berwyn $229,000 2BR, 1BA Maria x117

Oak Park $579,900 5BR, 3.2BA Marion x111

Maria Rodriguez and her team join REMAX In The Village

Open Sun 1-3 pm 3704 Grove Ave

Erika Villegas,

Oak Park $398,000 3BR, 2.2BA Jane x118

Berwyn $239,900 2BR, 1.1BA Plus tandem Maria x117

Oak Park $517,000 Multi unit Laurie x186

Forest Park $352,000 3BR, 1.1BA Patti x124

Oak Park $349,000 3BR, 2.1BA Harry x116

Oak Park $322,500 2BR, 2.1BA Jane x118

Oak Park $275,000 3BR, 2.1BA Elissa x192

Forest Park $219,500 2BR, 2BA Elissa x192

Forest Park $219,000 2BR, 1BA Patti x124

We are excited to welcome Maria Rodriguez and her team member Brenda Martinez to the REMAX In The Village family. Maria brings 33 years of experience and a wealth of knowledge to our office. She has consistently been a top producer in the elite TOP 1% of Realtors in The Chicago Association of Realtors. Since 2012, Maria has been in the National Association of Hispanic Real Estate professionals TOP 250. She has also earned the highest honors a REMAX agent can receive: the REMAX Lifetime Hall of Fame and The Circle of Legends Award.

Maria prides herself in always going above and beyond for her clients, having in-depth community and market knowledge, superb negotiation skills and above all,integrity.

Managing Broker/Owner

Mike Becker

Laurie Christofano

Marion Digre

Morgan Digre

Ed Goodwin

Leticia Cruz

Jane McClelland

Sharon O’Mara

Elissa Palermo

Kyra Pych

Maria Rodriguez

Linda Rooney

Kris Sagan

Patti Sprafka-Wagner

Harry Walsh

February 12, 2020 ■ Wednesday Journal/Forest Park Review

B21

Quality

(qual i’ ty) noun The basic nature, the degree of excellence, the best available when compared to others.

Sunday, February 16, 2020

Tom Carraher redefines the essence of real estate service.

ADDRESS

REALTY CO.

LISTING PRICE

TIME

3315 Maple Ave, Brookfield. . . . . . . . . . . . . . Baird & Warner Oak Park/River Forest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $199,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Sat. 12-2 3523 Cuyler Ave, Berwyn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Re/Max In The Village. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .$229,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Sat. 1-3

Any comparison of quality requires a perception not often utilized in today’s society.

3704 Grove Ave, Berwyn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Re/Max In The Village. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .$239,900 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1-3

...unless you experience the extraordinary real estate service of Tom Carraher.

The quality choice in real estate professionals. Tom’s standards are simply higher.

842 N. Euclid, Oak Park. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Baird & Warner Oak Park/River Forest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .$434,900 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1-3

640 N. Harvey Ave, Oak Park . . . . . . . . . . . Beyond Properties Realty Group. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .$430,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12-2

SINGLE FAMILY HOMES

Call Tom Carraher at 708-822-0540 to achieve all of your real estate goals.

133 S. Lombard, Oak Park . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Baird & Warner Oak Park/River Forest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $418,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Sat. 12:30-2

734 Home Ave, Oak Park . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Beyond Properties Realty Group. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .$435,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12-2 814 Wenonah Ave, Oak Park . . . . . . . . . . . . Baird & Warner Oak Park/River Forest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $459,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1-4 632 Home Ave, Oak Park . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Coldwell Banker Residential . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .$474,700 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Sat. 2-4 3015 N. 76th Ct., Elmwood Park . . . . . . . . . Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Chicago . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $499,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12-2 2128 N. Claremont Ave, Chicago . . . . . . . . . Coldwell Banker Residential . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .$520,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Sat. 12-2 638 N. Elmwood Ave, Oak Park. . . . . . . . . . Gagliardo Realty Associates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .$562,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1-3 537 W. Lorraine Ave, Elmhurst . . . . . . . . . . Coldwell Banker Residential . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .$574,900 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11-1 838 Fair Oaks Ave, Oak Park . . . . . . . . . . . . Re/Max In The Village. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .$579,900 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-1:30 7660 Wilcox St. Forest Park. . . . . . . . . . . . . Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Chicago . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $619,800 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Sat. 12-2 7660 Wilcox Ave, Forest Park . . . . . . . . . . . Re/Max In The Village. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $619,800 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Sat. 12-2 507 Monroe, River Forest. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Baird & Warner Oak Park/River Forest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .$629,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1-3 234 S. Kenilworth Ave., Oak Park . . . . . . . . Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Chicago . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $649,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12-2 1423 Lathrop Ave, River Forest. . . . . . . . . . Gagliardo Realty Associates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .$699,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12-2 926 Forest Ave, Oak Park. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Beyond Properties Realty Group. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .$725,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1-3 1000 Fair Oaks, Oak Park . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Baird & Warner Oak Park/River Forest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $880,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12-2 1114 Forest, River Forest. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Baird & Warner Oak Park/River Forest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $885,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2:30-4:30 605 N. Kenilworth Ave, Oak Park . . . . . . . . Coldwell Banker Residential . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $899,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1-3 700 Columbian Ave, Oak Park . . . . . . . . . . . @properties. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $1,350,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2-4

Tom Carraher CONDOS

ADDRESS

REALTY CO.

LISTING PRICE

TIME

201 S. Maple Ave. UNIT 107, Oak Park . . . . Coldwell Banker Residential . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $127,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11-12:30 200 Home Ave., Oak Park. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Chicago . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $179,900 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12-2 424 Park Ave., Oak Park . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Chicago . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 219,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1-3 424 Park Ave., Oak Park . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Chicago . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 239,000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1-3

Realistic Expectation–Proven Results

This Directory brought to you by mrgloans.com

7375W. West NorthAve. Avenue 7375 North River Forest, Illinois River Forest 60305 708.771.8040 708.771.8040

http://tomcarraher.realtor.com

B22 View more at OakPark.com/Real-Estate ■ February 12, 2020

Providing financing for homes in Oak Park and surrounding communities since 1989.

Conventional, FHA, and Jumbo mortgages Free Pre-approvals

7544 W. North Avenue Elmwood Park, IL 708.452.5151

Mortgage Resource Group is an Illinois Residential Mortgage Licensee.

NMLS # 207793 License # 1031

201 S. Maple Ave #107 | Oak Park Just Listed! 1 bed 1 bath with an open floor plan and parking in the middle of Oak Park! ......................................................... $127,000 Stephanie Eiger 708-557-0779 Stephanie.eiger@cbexchange.com

947 Monroe Ave | River Forest Just Sold! Charming River Forest Central Entrance Colonial on huge corner lot!...... ................................................... $510,000 Monica Klinke 708-612-3031 Monica.klinke@cbexchange.com

911 N Marion St | Oak Park MANSION on Marion with a rare 1st floor Inlaw/family room suite has 4 levels and 5000 sqft of wow to explore.............$875,000

810 Dunlop Ave | Forest Park Just Listed! Beautifully updated 3 BR 2BA home with gorgeous kitchen, finished basement, big backyard and so much more. Move right in! .................. $375,000

Lisa Andreoli and Meredith Conn 708-557-9546 | 708-743-6973 Teamgo2girls@gmail.com

Sandi Graves 708-752-6540 sgraves@cbexchange.com

1135 Forest Ave | River Forest Love at first sight! Elegant 5 BR, 3.1 BTH French Normandy offers quality design and spacious rooms. You will be wowed by the spacious family room addition with barrel vaulted ceiling and wall of windows that bring the outside in................. $1,199,000

540 Keystone Ave | River Forest Ideally located featuring spacious rooms, charming details & high-end amenities. .. ................................................... $929,000

Kirstin Gloor | 708-351-8977 Kirstin.gloor@cbexchange.com

Shea Kiessling 708-710-5952 shea@cbexchange.com

142 S Cuyler Ave #3 | Oak Park 2 Bedroom Unit in Recent High-End Conversion! ............................... $199,900

537 S Elmwood Ave | Oak Park Four levels of finished living space, 4 Bdrms, 2 1/2 baths , eat in kitchen, double living room w/gas fireplace, large dining room and foyer. Central air, newer roof and boiler. Great condition and close to school and transportation. .................... $595,000

Monica Klinke 708-612-3031 Monica.klinke@cbexchange.com

Nancy Leavy | 708-209-0070 Nancy.leavy@cbexchange.com

605 N. Kenilworth Ave | Oak Park Open House 2/16 1-3 p.m.

Say “BE MINE” to this huge, updated 2-flat building w/7BR 4 full and 2 half baths, beautiful kitchens with high end appliances on a park-like lot in FLW District ................................................... $899,000

730 S. Oak Park Ave | Oak Park Open House 2/16 2-4 p.m.

You’ll “LOVE LOVE LOVE” this move in ready, open concept home near it all!

3BR/2.5 BA home with HWD floors, granite counter kitchen with island. Fully fenced yard, deck and patio. ............... $425,000

Sara Faust | 708-772-7910 Sara.faust@cbexchange.com

Sara Faust | 708-772-7910 Sara.faust@cbexchange.com

1015 Ferdinand Ave | Forest Park Open House 2/16 1:30-3 p.m.

Cute updated 2 BR home just freshly painted. Great back porch! ................................................... $205,000

1086 Douglas Lane | Crete Spacious 4 BR 2 ½ bath home with beautiful front and back porches, large yard, fireplace, hardwood floors and much more. ......................................... $284,500

Margie Bidinger 708-257-7617 Margie.bidinger@cbexchange.com

Andrea “Bonnie” Routen 708-544-8440 Andrea.bonnie@cbexchange.com

COLDWELLBANKERHOMES.COM Oak Park 114 N. Oak Park Avenue, Oak Park | 708.524.1100 The property information herein is derived from various sources that may include, but not be limited to, county records and the Multiple Listing Service, and it may include approximations. Although the information is believed to be accurate, it is not warranted and you should not rely upon it without personal verification. Real estate agents affiliated with Coldwell Banker Realty are independent contractor sales associates, not employees. ©2020 Coldwell Banker Realty. All Rights Reserved. Coldwell Banker Realty fully supports the principles of the Fair Housing Act and the Equal Opportunity Act. Owned by a subsidiary of NRT LLC. Coldwell Banker and the Coldwell Banker Logo are registered service marks owned by Coldwell Banker Realty LLC.

February 12, 2020 ■ Wednesday Journal/Forest Park Review

B23

Generations of Excellence since 1958

708.771.8040 • 7375 W. North Ave., River Forest DonnaAvenue Barnhisel 7375 West North Dan Bogojevich MANAGING Anne Brennan River Forest, Illinois 60305 BROKER/OWNERS Karen Byrne Calkins 708.771.8040 Kevin Tom Carraher Andy Gagliardo Pat Cesario Joe Cibula

Tom Poulos

Don Citrano Alisa Coghill Kay Costello Maria Cullerton Julie Downey Kurt Fielder Yvonne Fiszer-Steele Ramona Fox

Laura Gancer Lisa Grimes Dan Halperin Sharon Halperin Greg Jaroszewski Vee Jaroszewski Noa Klima Jack Lattner

Jane Maxwell Iris McCormick Vince McFadden Elizabeth Moroney Colleen Navigato John Pappas Rosa Pitassi Sue Ponzio-Pappas

Jenny Ruland Laurel Saltzman Laurie Shapiro Tom Sullivan Debbie Watts George Wohlford Nancy Wohlford

Randy Ernst • 773-290-0307

947 CLINTON PL • RIVER FOREST

846 FOREST • OAK PARK

417 N MAPLE • OAK PARK

715 BONNIE BRAE • RIVER FOREST

NE W LISTI NG!

N EW LI S T I N G!

N EW LI S T I NG!

N E W L ISTIN G!

UNIQUE BURMABUILT HOME is a must-see property. You will appreciate the high-quality craftsmanship and sophisticated details throughout, including art glass doors, a custom milled cherry mantel, and custom kitchen cabinetry. The home has been very well maintained. ......................................................$1,275,000

FABULOUS BRICK HOME has it all! On extra-wide lot with 4 BRs, 4-1/2 BAs. Features include private office, open kitchen, breakfast room, family room, Butler’s bar, master suite w/sep sitting room, finished bsmt w/full wet bar & media room, private backyard, garden and pond. ...........................................$1,049,000

EXPANSIVE HOME in the FLW Historic district! This 5 bedroom, 3-1/2 bath house offers a beautiful combo of architectural details & modern updates with a generous floor plan, tall ceilings, airy foyer, updated white kitchen, mudroom, and fully finished 3rd level and basement............................................................ $659,000

MOVEIN CONDITION HOME in a Great Location! Vintage Charm with all the modern conveniences which include updated kitchen and baths, C/A, new deck, office with Built-Ins, DR which can easily become a 4th BR, kitchen w/breakfast room, family room. Professionally landscaped. ......................................$599,950

745 S TAYLOR • OAK PARK

1423 LATHROP • RIVER FOREST OPEN SUNDAY 122

638 N ELMWOOD • OAK PARK OPEN SUNDAY 13

909 BONNIE BRAE • RIVER FOREST

CLASSIC OAK PARK HOME on a large corner lot in the Harrison Arts district. This four BR, three BA home boasts four levels of living space. Tall ceilings, hardwood floors, vintage leaded glass windows, updated kitchen with breakfast bar. Finished 3rd floor, newly finished basement. ..................................................$549,000

HANDSOME TUDOR with classic original archway details beautifully blend w/ tasteful updated bathrooms and kitchen. Spacious formal living room with wood-burning fireplace. Lovely dining room with built-in corner cabinets. OUTSTANDING BACKYARD. Finished basement!............................................................ $699,000

BEAUTIFUL HOME found in Oak Park Historic District. Offers three large bedrooms, all with hardwood floors, two and a half bathrooms, new kitchen with butler pantry, full finished basement, over-sized backyard, brick paver patio, dog run, two car garage and two outdoor parking spaces.......................... $562,000

UNIQUE QUALITY BURMA BUILT HOME with 5 bedrooms and 3 full, 2 half baths. House has many wonderful features; 2 separate office areas, hardwood floors, kitchen with all newer appliances, adjoining eating area-family room. Finished basement. Three car garage ................................................................................. $795,000

RIVER FOREST HOMES

NEWLY UPDATED HOME on large lot in a great location. Brand new eat-in kitchen. Four spacious bedrooms, two and half baths of which upstairs have radiant heated floors. Completely painted, refinished floors, newer windows. New staircase leading to the basement. ............................................................................$699,000 BEAUTIFUL BURMA BUILT TUDOR sits on a lovely lot with side drive leading to attached 3 car garage and large yard. This 4 bedroom, 3-1/2 bath home offers a great flow throughout the 1st floor, large eat-in kitchen, hardwood floors, leaded glass and classic cove ceilings. ............................................................$684,000 LOVELY SPLITLEVEL HOME offers newly refreshed contemporary style and wonderful space. Three BRs, three brand new BAs, beautiful front entryway, vaulted ceiling family room, sun room, game room, deck, spectacular backyard, attached two car garage. ...........................................................................$659,000 VINTAGE CHARMER on tree lined cobblestone street. Warm, inviting home with lots of potential! Living room is centered with a cozy fireplace, separate dining room, bright kitchen and spacious family room. 2nd floor has 3 BRs and 1 full BA. Large deck overlooking backyard..........................................................$425,000

OAK PARK HOMES

BURMA BUILT BUHRKE HOUSE combines Tudor revival & chateau style architecture elements. Gorgeous décor and impeccable attention to detail and care found in house and landscaped grounds, extends to fabulous in ground pool and patios. Perfect for entertaining. ...................................... $1,975,000 BEAUTIFUL, CLASSIC HOME offers everything for today’s modern living. Custom-built, has the highest quality finishes. No detail was missed. Brick and stone exterior, wrap around porch, eleven-foot ceilings. LL has 2K of living area. ................$1,525,000 BEAUTIFUL BRICK & STONE CLASSIC HOUSE with a unique front wrap-around porch sits on private park-like lot. 4 BRs, 2 full/2 half baths, natural wood, art glass windows, open kitchen with breakfast room, family room, mudroom, finished basement.

Nothing will disappoint! .................................................. $1,150,000 GORGEOUS RESTORATION of stately home offers 3BRs, 4 full baths, updated kitchen/dining, art glass windows, French doors, hdwd flrs, sun rm and large family rm. Fab finished basement.

Private, landscaped, fenced yard, in ground pool. ......... $1,100,000

UNPRECEDENTED ESTATE in the Frank Lloyd Wright Historical district! Meticulously renovated 5 BR, 5 full / 2 half BA offers exquisite details and refined finishes that boast timeless materials and over the top custom millwork. Showcase home! ...$1,450,000 LOVELY TRADITIONAL HOME, in walkable OP location, offers wonderful space for family and entertaining. Original details blend seamlessly with updated 3 story addition. 5 BRs, 4-1/2 BA, newer kitchen, abundant storage, family room, wine cellar. ...$1,065,000 STUNNING RENOVATION with exquisite modern finishes.

Solid brick home features new hardwood floors throughout, recessed lighting, wood burning fireplace, family room, 3 generously sized BRs. Spacious finished LL. Central air, and 3-car garage. Just Move in and Enjoy!.........................................$629,500 CENTER OF TOWN VICTORIAN with high ceilings, four spacious levels of living in beautiful Oak Park. This 5 BR, 3-12 BA home offers a formal entry, wood burning FP, sun room, family room, eat-in kitchen. Great flow, tons of natural light & storage throughout this beauty!...................................................... $519,000

CONDOS/TOWNHOMES/2 FLATS

RIVER FOREST 3BR, 2-1/2 BA. Two garage spaces.......$479,000 RIVER FOREST 1BR, 1BA. Updated, move-in ready. ..... $169,000 OAK PARK Two Flat ..........................................................$669,000 OAK PARK Two Flat ..........................................................$530,000 NEW LISTING OAK PARK Two Flat ..............................$510,000 OAK PARK 3BR, 2 full / 2 half BA. East facing balcony. .$429,900 OAK PARK 2BR, 2-1/2BA. Stunning, bright tri-level ......$330,000 OAK PARK 2BR, 2BA. Location and more! ......................$299,000 OAK PARK 3BR, 2-1/2BA. 3 floors of living ...................!$259,000

For more listings & photos go to GagliardoRealty.com

B24 View more at OakPark.com/Real-Estate ■ February 12, 2020

Get Ready for the Spring Market!

Contact a Gagliardo Realty Associates Agent for a free market analysis

With interest rates at record lows, it’s a HONEY of a time to Buy Real Estate.

Since the Spring Market is upon us, it’s a SWEET time to put your Home on the Market.

Whether you’re Buying or Selling, I will keep your best interests at HEART.

Happy Valentine’s Day! Patti Sprafka Wagner

Contact me 708-218-8102, 1pswagner@gmail.com, for a Market Evaluation of your property - You’ll find I’m a proven leader in the local market.

ASSISTED LIVING • SHELTERED CARE • MEMORY CARE • SKILLED NURSING • RESPITE CARE

Move to our awardwinning memory care this winter and save up to two months!*

WE SHALL

Whether you’re Buying or Selling, I will keep your best interests at heart.

OVERCOME

A CELEBRATION OF DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR

We know what a living room is for.

featuring DAMIEN SNEED

2.15.20

More than a place to live, it’s a place to call home.

Laughter echoing across every room. Meals shared, stories swapped. Impromptu dancing in the living room.

An electrifying production, tying together a living lineage of music and culture including traditional and modern gospel, classical, jazz, Broadway and spirituals, interwoven with spoken word from Dr. King’s recorded speeches.

At Caledonia Senior Living, we care for each person’s quality of life without losing the essence of life.

events.dom.edu

Featuring the music of Aretha Franklin, Wynton Marsalis, Duke Ellington, Stevie Wonder; Nina Simone, songs from The Wiz and more...

SCHEDULE A PERSONAL TOUR TODAY! 2800 Des Plaines Avenue, North Riverside, IL 60546 (708) 477-5092 | CaledoniaSeniorLiving.org

SATURDAY, February 15, 2020 | 7:30 p.m. formerly The Scottish Home

BOX OFFICE (708) 488-5000 • FREE PARKING 7900 West Division Street • River Forest, IL 60305

February 12, 2020 ■ Wednesday Journal/Forest Park Review

B25

B26 View more at OakPark.com/Real-Estate â– February 12, 2020

February 12, 2020 â– Wednesday Journal/Forest Park Review

B27

“Kopit’s absurd logic is delightful and disturbing.”

—The Chicago Reader

Feb 28 - Mar 1

Chamber Music

by Arthur Kopit

In this absurdist dark comedy, a group from the women’s ward in an asylum call a meeting to plan a pre-emptive attack on the men’s ward.

Each believes herself to be a fierce historical figure—Joan of Arc, Queen Isabel of Spain, Gertrude Stein, Amelia Earhart and others.

Things get out of hand when the plan transforms into the unsettling demise of one of their own.

FEBRUARY 28-MARCH 1, 2020 Friday & Saturday 7:30 p.m. | Sunday 3:00 p.m.

BOX OFFICE (708) 488-5000 • FREE PARKING 7900 West Division Street • River Forest, IL 60305

B28 View more at OakPark.com/Real-Estate ■ February 12, 2020

events.dom.edu