Village Free Press_012622

Vol. VI No. 4

JANUARY 26, 2022

Forman Mills coming to North Riverside Mall, PAGE 8

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D209 strike looms after talks collapse

Forest Park boxer Jeremy Ortiz, left, gets in the ring with his dad, coach and gym owner, David Ortiz, on Thursday, Jan. 6, 2022, at The Barracks in Chicago. Read their story on page 11.

After contract negotiations between Supt. Henderson and union stall, union prepares to vote Jan. 29 on strike authorization

By MICHAEL ROMAIN Editor

Teachers at Proviso Township High School District 209 will vote later this month on whether or not to strike after months of tense contract negotiations between their union and Superintendent James Henderson have collapsed.

The Proviso Teachers Union (PTU), which D209 officials said represents nearly 300 teachers, social workers and school counselors in the district, declared its “intent to prepare for a work stoppage” in a statement posted Jan. 19 to the Proviso Teachers Care Facebook page, which district teachers utilize to communicate with community members. A member of the union’s negotiating team confirmed that the statement was, in See D209 STRIKE on page 5

Maywood’s oldest resident dies, PAGE 2

Alex Rogals

After new trustee sworn in, Broadview touts historic firsts With swearing in of Trustee Jarry Shelby last month, the village has its first all-female trustee board; also gets first Black female patrol cop and first female police sergeant

By MICHAEL ROMAIN Editor

It took 107 years, but the village of Broadview now has its first trustee board com-

prising all women.

Mayor Katrina Thompson, the first Black woman mayor in the suburb’s history, acknowledged the historic first during a meeting on Dec. 20, when Trustee Jarry Shelby was appointed to replace former trustee John Tierney, who retired last year.

Shelby, who was sworn in by Broadview Clerk Kevin McGrier, will serve the remainder of Tierney’s term, which expires in 2023.

During that December meeting, McGrier also swore in Ofc. Brandy Johnson and Det. Beata Grzymkowska. Thompson said Johnson is the first Black woman patrol officer in the village’s history while Det.

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Grzymkowska is the first woman in Broadview history to be elevated to the rank of sergeant.

The historic appointments were followed by the board approving appointments and reappointments to the village’s Board of Fire and Police Commissioners. All of those appointed or reappointed during the meeting were women, including Gwenevere Turner, Angenita Harper-Jordan and Diamond Portee.

Thompson said Portee, a recent college graduate, is the youngest appointed official in Broadview.

See HISTORIC FIRSTS on page 6

MEET US

YOU SHOULD KNOW YOUR BANKER. Jose Villa

Vice President & Branch Manager 708-483-0030 | jvilla@hinsdalebank.com Proviso Community Bank is a branch of Hinsdale Bank & Trust Company, N.A.

1759 N. Mannheim Rd., Stone Park | 1111 Madison St., Maywood 708-483-0030 | www.provisobank.com

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Village Free Press | January 26, 2022

NEWS briefs Bithella Bulger, Maywood’s oldest resident, dies at 105

the village free press Editor & Publisher Michael Romain Senior Sales & Strategic Consultant Kamil Brady Editorial Designer Andrew Mead HOW TO REACH US Village Free Press 141 S. Oak Park Ave. Oak Park, IL 60302 PHONE: 773-626-6332 FAX: (708) 467-9066 vfpress.news Twitter: @village_free Facebook: @maywoodnews The Village Free Press is published weekly

by Michael Romain. It is distributed free of charge at locations throughout Maywood. © 2022 Village Free Press

We’re proud to partner with Growing Community Media, NFP.

“To learn to be human is to develop through the give and take of communication an effective sense of being an individually distinctive member of a community.”

—John Dewey

Maywood board officially recognizes dissolution of Maywood Housing Authority During a special meeting on Jan. 18, the Maywood village board voted unanimously to pass an ordinance acknowledging the official dissolution of the Maywood Housing Authority (MHA).

Michael Jurusik, the village’s attorney, said the adoption of the ordinance is a minor housekeeping item that’s required by the state. Jurusik first informed village officials in July 2020 that the long-troubled agency had lost its charter and would be taken over by the Joliet Housing Authority.

The Maywood Housing Authority had been in serious financial trouble several years before it dissolve. In 2013, the agency’s former executive director, Gwendolyn Robinson, pleaded guilty to theft and official misconduct for stealing more than $400,000 from the authority during her tenure that lasted between May 2006 and November 2009. She was indicted in 2011 and eventually sentenced to six years in prison, according to the Chicago Tribune.

The Maywood Housing Authority was primarily responsible for issuing Housing Choice Vouchers for people who need rental assistance.

As part of the takeover agreement, the MHA was required in 2020 to transfer its last remaining property, an office building at 801-805 S. 5th Ave. in Maywood, over to the Joliet Housing Authority.

The MHA, which was created by the village of Maywood in 1976, effectively dissolved on June 30, 2020, but village officials never got formal notice of the effective dissolution, Jurusik said.

“We knew the Joliet Housing Authority took over and assets were transferred over, but it was only recently that we got the paper copy of the dissolution resolution,” he said. “Once that was provided to me prior to the meeting, I packaged it up and put together our resolution. It’s really just a housekeeping item on our part.”

Bithella Bulger, likely Maywood’s oldest resident, has died — one month before her 106th birthday. Her granddaughter, Angela Price, said Bulger died in her sleep on Jan. 15. Price said her grandmother had dementia.

Village Free Press interviewed Price in 2020, when Bulger turned 104. Price said Bulger was born Feb. 25, 1916 in a town near New Orleans, La. Bulger moved to the 800 block of South 21st Ave. in Maywood in 1962.

Price said that her grandmother was a world traveler who has been to “many European countries, Africa, China, Switzerland … Grandpa didn’t like getting on airplanes, but she was like, ‘See ya!’”

Bulger was also a serial entrepreneur who owned a beauty shop, a restaurant and even a grocery store back in her more active days. But the role Bulger may cherish the most?

“She’s our matriarch,” Price said at the time.

Mass vaccination sites reopens at Forest Park Plaza On Tuesday, Price said that Bulger will be cremated. A memorial service for the 105-year-old will likely take place next month, she said.

The Cook County Department of Public Health (CCDPH) reopened a mass vaccination site at the former Home Owners Bargain Outlet (HOBO) store at 7630 W. Roosevelt Rd., on Tuesday, Jan. 18.

The reopening marks a return to Forest Park Plaza for public health officials who first created a mass vaccination site there last March, just as the COVID-19 vaccines were being rolled out to the general pub-

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141 S. Oak Park Ave., Oak Park, IL 773.626.6332 | VFPress.news

lic. The site closed in July as demand for the vaccine waned.

The HOBO store closed its doors in 2018 after its parent company filed for bankruptcy.

More than 85% of Forest Park residents had received at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine as of Monday, Jan. 17, but just 63.9% were fully vaccinated, and the reopening of the mass immunization site comes as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) expanded its recommendations for booster doses.

On Jan. 5, the CDC adjusted its recommendations to say that anyone age 12 to 17 is now eligible to receive a booster dose five months after receiving their second shot of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, which is the only vaccine approved for use in children. Booster doses were already recommended for any adult who had received the full vaccine series from any of the three drugmakers — Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson.

The vaccine clinic at Forest Park Plaza will operate from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday, and from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday.

The clinic will offer first, second and booster doses, depending on eligibility.

Appointments are recommended because of increased demand, although walk-in visitors will be “seen as resources allow,” according to CCDPH. To make a vaccine appointment, call 833-308-1988.

Area elected officials give back on MLK Day Elected officials from Bellwood, Broadview, Maywood, Melrose Park, Oak Park, River Forest and Westchester converged at the Tender Care Learning Center in Maywood on Jan. 17, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, to pack over 400 snack bags for Maywood-based nonprofit Housing Forward.

Represents from the nonprofit, which focuses on housing insecurity, also spoke with the elected officials. The event was organized by Maywood Trustee Isiah Brandon.

“I came up with this idea to connect communities through service,” Brandon said. “We discussed identifying entities that impact our collective communities.

We’re looking at doing something similar to this quarterly.”

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Village Free Press | January 26, 2022

Welch’s safety task force hears from top cops on crime

Police chiefs, sheriffs voice concerns during Jan. 21 hearing of Speaker Welch’s House Public Safety and Violence Prevention Task Force

By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois

SPRINGFIELD – Police chiefs and sheriffs told a panel of state lawmakers Friday, Jan. 21 that they need more resources and support from the public and the General Assembly to combat a rising rate of violent crime in Illinois. Some said they don’t feel they are getting that now, especially in light of recently-enacted criminal justice reforms.

“There are members in policing that believe that the community should have nothing to say about what we do in our profession,” Hazel Crest Police Chief Mitchell Davis said. “Conversely, there are members in the community that want nothing to do with police officers of any kind. All sides are entitled to feel the way that they feel. But until we are able to work together in spite of our differences, we will never fully reach our potential in equitably addressing the

concerns of public safety and violence in all communities.”

Davis spoke during a hearing of the House Public Safety and Violence Prevention Task Force, a group that House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch, D-Hillside, formed in September “to develop a collaborative approach to the violence crisis.”

Welch formed the task force as Chicago and many other cities were experiencing their most violent year in decades. Chicago alone had some 800 murders during the year, the most in the past quarter century.

The panel is co-chaired by Reps. LaShawn K. Ford and Frances Ann Hurley, both Chicago Democrats.

The increase in violent crime has come just after the General Assembly enacted a sweeping criminal justice reform package known as the Safety, Accountability, Fairness and Equity-Today, or SAFE-T Act that included, among other things, the scheduled elimination of cash bail in Illinois beginning next year.

When that law takes effect Jan. 1, 2023, courts will still be able to detain people they believe pose a risk to public safety, but those who are not detained will be released on conditions other than posting bond.

Ford was the chief House sponsor of that bill, which passed during a lame duck session in January 2021. It was an initiative of

Contact: Vena Nelson at (708) 975-6059.

Send resume to: Vnelson@gobigaccounting.com

the Illinois Legislative Black Caucus and it came about, in part, in response to a large number of police shootings of unarmed Black people, including the 2020 killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis, and the disproportionately large number of Blacks and Hispanics being held in jail awaiting trial because they could not afford the price of bail.

But it has come to be seen in some circles as part of a larger anti-law enforcement movement, and Republicans in the General Assembly have called for its repeal.

Lemont Police Chief Marc Maton said public criticism of policing in general has led to officers being less willing to take aggressive actions to stop crime.

“Our cops aren’t laying down,” he said.

“They see the media, proposed legislation and community commentary, and they think that this is the role that’s expected of them, and that the community wants a less aggressive approach to policing and is asking for this model of policing.”

Springfield Police Chief Kenny Winslow said his department has been losing officers who get trained in Illinois but later move to work in other states that they perceive to be more supportive of law enforcement.

“I’ve lost three officers to the state of Indiana in the last year, who are going to a state that they think is more supportive,” he said.

“I recently had an officer who’s talking about

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… accepting a job in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, for the same reason, because they believe that the state is more police friendly, more supportive of law enforcement.”

Addressing police concerns about cashless bail, Rep. Lindsey LaPointe, D-Chicago, said she believes people have misinterpreted what the elimination of cash bail is really about.

“We are removing money as the factor of if we’re going to detain somebody or not,” she said. “And with our current system – and this happens, unfortunately – people can buy their way out of jail pretrial, because somebody is making a decision that, you know, it’ll cost them whatever $30,000 to get out.”

Ford tried to dispel the idea that the SAFE-T Act was meant to be an anti-law enforcement measure or that he, personally, was anti-law enforcement.

“Let me just say that I want to thank law enforcement for the things that you do every day to make our streets safer and to work with the communities,” he said. “I know that it is law enforcement that runs into the line of fire. If I’m in trouble, I’m calling the police. And we want to do everything to make sure that the police are strong, and make sure that the police are well educated as it relates to serving the people.”

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Village Free Press | January 26, 2022

Survey: Illinois schools face worsening educator shortage The problems are made worse by the pandemic, experts say

By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois

School officials across Illinois say a shortage of teachers and substitutes is forcing them to cancel course offerings, move them online or fill open positions with people who are not fully qualified.

Those are the findings of the latest survey by the Illinois Association of Regional Superintendents of Schools, the fifth such survey the organization has conducted in as many years.

“Our schools need help, now more than ever,” said Mark Klaisner, IARSS president.

“For five years of our study, we have shown how schools are struggling to find qualified teachers and are under tremendous stress to provide the best education possible while understaffed and overwhelmed. COVID-19 has only made those challenges worse.”

The survey included responses from 663 of the state’s 852 school districts, representing 78 percent of public schools in Illinois. It was conducted in the fall of 2021 by Goshen Education Consulting, based in Edwardsville.

Overall, 88 percent of the districts responding said they had a shortage of fulltime teachers, while 96 percent said they had a shortage of substitute teachers. Districts responding reported a total of 412 classes were canceled and 385 were converted to online instruction because of teacher shortage issues.

More than 2,000 positions are either not filled or filled by someone not qualified to teach there, more than double the number reported from last year. That includes the increased use of paraprofessionals – people who are not fully licensed as teachers but who are credentialed to work under the direction of a licensed teacher.

The shortage is most acute in the east-central and west-central regions where more than 90 percent of the districts responding said they had a teacher shortage problem.

But even in the northeast region where the shortage appeared to be least significant, 79 percent of districts reported a teacher shortage, while overall 77 percent of districts said the shortage is getting worse.

In an interview, Klaisner said the biggest shortage areas were among special education and English as a Second Language teachers, while science and math teachers were also in short supply.

He also said regions that largely depend on career technical education have had a difficult time with staffing. He also found “interesting” challenges in hiring physical education instructors.

Districts also reported having a harder time hiring administrators. Although the problem was less severe, 35 percent of the

districts responding said they had a minor-to-serious problem hiring administrators, while 95 percent said they are receiving fewer applications for open administrator positions.

ISBE data The survey results paint a different picture than the most recent state report card from the Illinois State Board of Education, which indicated the teacher workforce has been growing, due in large part to the additional funding districts have received from both state and federal sources.

“We are encouraged by a lot of what we can see at the state level in terms of growth overall in the number of full-time teachers,” Jen Kirmes, ISBE’s executive director of teaching and learning, said in an interview.

“We’re also encouraged by what we see in terms of educator preparation, programs, enrollment and completion. And so there certainly are reasons to be optimistic.”

“We also know that there are great needs in places still for classroom educators,” she added. “But also, we’re hearing from districts about the need for other really critical support professionals who make school work for students like bus drivers, substitute teachers, paraprofessionals. And of course, especially during a pandemic, school nurses.”

Klaisner said IARSS does not dispute the data from ISBE, but he said 2020-21 findings were skewed by the pandemic and the fact that most districts were operating entirely remotely.

“A lot of folks are scratching their head, like, how do you measure those numbers in a year where some schools were closed all year long,” he said. “And what are you counting? Are you counting contacts? Were you counting the number of kids enrolled?

Were you counting attendance? And so we recognize our data, as well as anybody else’s data over the course of [fiscal year 2021] was skewed to some degree, no matter what you did, because we weren’t really sure how to count things.”

Kathi Griffin, president of the Illinois Education Association, the state’s largest teachers union, said there is definitely a teacher shortage that is being made worse by the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We’ve been struggling with a teacher shortage for a number of years,” she said.

“We’ve had fewer and fewer college students choosing the profession of education for their college degree. However, the pandemic has just really brought to light the real, true shortage.”

She said shortages have also been fueled by early retirements and by teachers who left the profession.

“I don’t think that the general public realizes the stress, as well as what is being expected of educators,” she said. “It’s like, OK, we went back in the fall, and the doors opened, and magically everything was supposed to go back to how it was from March

of 2020. And that’s just not realistic.”

COVID-19 impact The IARSS survey also found that the COVID-19 pandemic has worsened the teacher shortage. More than 70 percent of the districts responding said the pandemic has created budget or logistical challenges that have increased the need for more hiring, while nearly 60 percent reported increased hiring of teachers and paraprofessionals.

That was in spite of the fact that during the pandemic the state has relaxed some of its licensing requirements and given districts more flexibility in assigning teachers to different grade levels. Klaisner said those measures haven’t done enough to increase the supply of teachers.

“More and more people are exiting, and the pipeline just can’t keep up,” he said.

“Flexibility is one thing. But if you’ve got hundreds and thousands of teachers who are leaving, the pipeline’s just not producing enough people to fill the gaps.”

Superintendents in 42 percent of the districts surveyed said economic instability and educator burnout caused by the COVID-19 pandemic had increased teacher turnover in their district.

ISBE’s Kirmes said the pandemic has definitely impacted the supply of substitute teachers.

“We are hearing a lot from school districts about the need for substitutes,” she said.

“And so we believe that that is part of some larger labor dynamics in terms of just competition in the labor market, in general, for folks who can do all sorts of positions, including being a substitute. ... And certainly, given conditions with regard to the pandemic, there is an even greater need potentially for subs, especially in certain areas as the conditions change.”

Policy options In recent years, Illinois lawmakers have taken several steps to address teacher shortages, including passing a 2019 law that raises the minimum starting salary for a teacher to $40,000 in 2023.

Klaisner, however, said that has not had the desired effect, especially in poorly funded districts.

“We found, particularly the downstate districts that weren’t paying $40,000, in some cases were having to eliminate positions to meet the statutory requirement,” he said.

“In other words, if you have two people at $30,000, and you’ve got to raise it to $40,000, then maybe you let one of those people go so that you can raise the [other] salary because you just don’t have more money in the budget. You can require a higher salary, but if there’s no funding behind it, then they have to make some tough choices.”

The regional superintendents are proposing several measures to the General Assembly that they say could help alleviate the shortage, including increased funding of the Evidence Based Funding formula with

an additional $500 million in the upcoming fiscal year. Currently, they argue, more than half of all districts are funded at less than 70 percent of adequacy.

They are also proposing funding the Illinois Teachers Retirement System at 100 percent of the actuarially required level to increase confidence in the system. Under the so-called “Edgar Ramp,” named after former Gov. Jim Edgar, the state contributes less than the required amount, but the contribution rate gradually goes up each year until 2045, when the plan is projected to be 90 percent funded.

Klaisner, however, said one of the most effective things the state could do would be to create new pathways to earning a teaching license.

“For instance, one of my favorite strategies is, if you came to me and said you want to be a teacher, what if I handed you a teacher’s license that day and assigned to you a mentor, and you had agreed to take classes at night and I’m evaluating you as a teacher?” he said. “So now you are earning a salary, you’re in a classroom with kids, you have been built-in supports. And you don’t have to take two to three years [of college], and student teaching on top of it, where you have to step away from your profession. I think there’s a real power in this sort of apprenticeship kind of model.”

Read the full article at capitolnewsillinois. com.

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Village Free Press | January 26, 2022

D209 STRIKE

Union poised to vote from page 1 fact, from the union.

“This decision was not taken lightly, but the Union has been left with no other choice because the Board team has not bargained in good faith,” the union explained.

In a subsequent statement posted to Facebook on Jan. 20, union officials said that Supt. Henderson had “refused to meet with Union leadership for the contractually required monthly meeting for over a year. The last meeting took place on December 4, 2020.

The Board refuses to require him to attend.”

Union officials added that they sent a request to begin the current negotiations to Henderson on March 10, 2021, but that he “did not respond in a timely fashion and because of this the parties did not begin meeting until May.” Since then, 13 negotiating sessions have taken place — six of them in the presence of a federal mediator, who was brought into the process in July 2021 in order to help both sides reach an agreement.

“Despite multiple bargaining sessions and much hard work, the District and the Union have not been able to reach an agreement on several key issues,” D209 board President Rodney Alexander said in a statement released on Jan. 19. “The Board is committed

to continuing to negotiate with the PTU.” Alexander said that the district has offered 5% salary increases for D209 teachers over two years, a 2-year contract “to provide stability and flexibility amid economic uncertainty” and a return to an eight-period school day at all D209 schools beginning in the 2022-23 school year.

But union members said that the negotiating team has not made any movement toward reaching a bargaining agreement since November — despite the union offering a range of opportunities to negotiate, including offering expedited negotiations, or speed bargaining sessions, over the summer, and formal counter proposals.

In his statement, Alexander said that D209 teachers are requesting a nearly 30% salary increase, which he said would not be “fiscally responsible or sustainable.” The board president added that teachers are also proposing to increase payments for “teacher-run extra-curricular activities” and freeze “teacher compensation for athletic coaching.”

During an interview on Thursday evening, PTU President Maggie Riley said that teachers are actually proposing a 5-year contract that includes a 5.7% pay raise for each year of the contract. She said the district is proposing a 2-year contract with no pay increase the first year and a 5% increase in the second year.

The district’s negotiating team comprises Henderson and the district’s attorney. No D209 board members have been part of the

negotiations, Alexander said during an interview last year.

The teachers’ current contract expired on June 30, 2021. That expired contract, however, was actually an extension of an old contract that spans back to former D209 Superintendent Jesse Rodriguez’s tenure.

Both Alexander and union officials confirmed that there are three more mediation sessions scheduled for February and March.

The next mediation session will take place on Feb. 9, Alexander said. Union officials said that a strike date has not yet been set, but that only one of the three future sessions “may actually occur before a work stoppage.” Riley said that union members will vote on whether or not to strike on Jan. 29.

“All along the Board team has delayed,

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stalled, and postponed negotiations,” union officials said. “It is the position of the Union team that the Board has refused to bargain in good faith and why we find ourselves in this position.”

Alexander said that as part of a formal public posting process under the Illinois Educational Labor Relations Act (IELRB), the most recent offers and cost summaries from both D209 and the PTU will be posted on Illinois Educational Labor Relations Board’s website on Feb. 3. The IELRB’s website states that users have to have permission to access it. Alexander added that district officials will post ongoing updates on the bargaining process to D209’s website.

Henderson could not be immediately reached for comment on Thursday evening.

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Village Free Press | January 26, 2022

Harbor Freight Tools, Auto Zone coming to Broadview Both businesses are eyeing Broadview Village Square shopping center

By MICHAEL ROMAIN Editor

Broadview Village Square in Broadview will be getting two new tenants soon.

Harbor Freight Tools, the California-based tool and equipment retailer, will be opening a new store at 450 Broadview Village Square this spring, Harbor Freight officials announced in a statement released Jan. 19.

Meanwhile, the Broadview village board on recently approved a business license application for AutoZone, the retail auto parts and accessories firm, which is looking to open a new location at 900 Broadview Village Square.

During a Jan. 3 regular meeting at which the board approve AutoZone’s license, Broadview Building Commissioner David Upshaw said that Auto Zone will be located

next to an existing Pep Boys, which is an auto service chain.

Upshaw said Auto Zone will sell the parts and Pep Boys will be installing them, as part of a partnership between the two national chains.

“Broadview is a beta test site and if that works in the next two to three years, then they will roll that out nationwide,” Upshaw said.

Harbor Freight Tools officials said construction has already started at the location, adding that the work involves local workers and companies in the Broadview area.

“We’ve been looking to open a location in Broadview for a number of years so that we can provide the tools and equipment at tremendous value to the community,” said Trey Feiler, Harbor Freight’s senior vice president for real estate and construction.

“In addition to finding a great location, we were attracted by the availability of great associates in the Broadview area,” Feiler added.

Harbor Freight officials said they are looking to create between 25 and 30 new positions at the Broadview location, including sales and logistics supervisors, senior asso-

An aerial view of Broadview Village Square in Broadview, where California-based Harbor Freight Tools and Auto Zone are planning on opening locations.

ciates and sales associates, as well as various seasonal positions.

The company employs over 24,000 people at 1,200 locations in the country, officials said.

Harbor Freight Tools has been listed on various Forbes lists. The company was ranked #85 on the publication’s America’s Largest Private Companies list for 2021, #22 on the list of Best Employers for Veterans

HISTORIC FIRSTS Village diveristy from page 1 “Her background is criminal justice,” the mayor said. “Her ultimate goal is to work for the FBI. This is a process to give her insight into what that looks like.”

During the Dec. 20 meeting, Broadview Police Chief Thomas Mills said the diversity within the department is reflective of the village’s diversity.

“This is very monumental and historic for Broadview,” Mills said. “The diversity of Broadview changes constantly and I am very proud and honored to say our department is changing in that same way.”

Thompson said that Broadview Fire Chief Tracy Kenney, the village’s first woman fire chief, was a trailblazer who helped make way for the current swell of female leadership in the village.

“Chief Kenney set the tone for women leadership,” the mayor said. “She was the first woman fire chief in Broadview, so she set the tone for the diversity as it relates to women taking leadership roles.

“Broadview was established in 1914, we are 107 years old and we have an all-female board of trustees. How cool is that? As we can see the changes being made in our village we know we are very diverse in our

Broadview Clerk Kevin McGrier swears in Trustee Jarry Shelby on Dec. 20. Shelby replaced former trustee John Tierney on the board. With her swearing in, the village got its first all-female trustee board.

Screenshot

leadership and we embrace the change.”

More public safety comings and goings in Broadview In addition to Johnson, the Broadview Police Department also added new patrol Officers Shelton Williams and Zachary Brichta.

Sgt. David Yurkovich was elevated to lieutenant.

During a regular meeting on Jan. 3, the village board also authorized the fire and police board to proceed with the hiring

of another woman patrol officer, Patricia Scalise. Chief Mills said Scalise would be a lateral hire. She’s already a certified probationary officer who was hired and laid off by another agency, he said.

Mills said the department currently has a recruit who is going through the state’s police training academy, but it’s not necessarily a guarantee that the recruit will be joining the force anytime soon, given the pandemic realities.

“With Covid spiking, training academies have shut down,” Mills said. “And even

Provided

2021, among others.

This interested in positions with Harbor Freight can apply online at: jobs.harborfreight.com/retail/.

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when they’re open, they’re backlogged …

We’re hoping and praying our new recruit will survive the academy before they shut it down.”

Broadview Fire Chief Kenney said that her department is looking to hire two additional firefighters.

As Broadview’s fire and police departments look to add more employees, one of the village’s longest-tenured public safety employees has moved on.

Paul Kurtzner, a police department administrator and supervisor for the Ike 911 Center that is jointly operated by Broadview and Maywood, retired in December after 37 years with Broadview.

“I you,” Mayor Thompson told Kurtzner during a tribute presentation held during the Jan. 3 meeting. “I appreciate your professionalism [and] your leadership … You’ve brought so much to this village [in terms of] skills and talent.”

During brief comments, Kurtzner said he started working for Broadview when he was 18 years old.

“I spent [more than] two-thirds of my life working with the village of Broadview,” he said. “It all started with someone having a belief in me at a young age. That belief carried on.”

Mayor Thompson said on Jan. 3 that Francisco Reyes, a Broadview emergency tele-communicator who has worked for the village for 18 years, will succeed Kurtzner as the Ike 911 Center supervisor.

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Village Free Press | January 26, 2022

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Letters Changes to 2022 Scavenger Sale will benefit bidders and communities

By MARIA PAPPAS Cook County Treasurer

Cook County Treasurer Maria Pappas’ 2022 Scavenger Sale will look different as the Treasurer’s Office takes steps to help small developers, homeowners and investors rebuild neighborhoods and create generational wealth.

Under Illinois law, the Treasurer’s Office is required to conduct a Scavenger Sale every two years, offering at auction the taxes on properties with three or more years of delinquent taxes. The Sale is scheduled to take place Feb. 14 through March 2.

How the Scavenger Sale works A property’s unpaid taxes are sold for cash bids. The minimum bid is $250.

The amounts bid typically are significantly less than the total amount of delinquent taxes and interest due. The highest bidder wins a lien on the property. If the current property owner does not redeem (pay) the delinquent taxes within a certain time period (typically 2 1 2 years for residential properties and six months for commercial properties and vacant lots), the tax buyer can petition the Circuit Court of Cook County for a deed to take ownership of the

property.

Tax buyers do not pay delinquent taxes on a property. However, after the sale but prior to getting a deed, the buyer must pay whatever taxes went unpaid after the Scavenger Sale. Bidder registration for the sale will take place Jan. 14 through Feb. 4.

What’s included in the Scavenger Sale The 2022 Scavenger Sale includes 31,209 property index numbers, or PINs, with 14,598 of them in the City of Chicago and 16,611 in suburban Cook County. The unpaid taxes on those properties totals almost $1.15 billion countywide, including $254.9 million just in Chicago, and adds to the financial challenges many communities face.

More than half of the PINs are vacant lots and many are on the same block, creating opportunities for meaningful development.

The list includes thousands of properties in Chicago and suburban Cook County that were originally offered at previous Scavenger Sales but were not sold.

What’s new for the 2022 Scavenger Sale Changes to the 2022 Cook County Scavenger Sale are intended to remove potential barriers for bidders, increase transparency and make the Scavenger Sale more successful. The changes include: The list is now free. The Treasurer’s Office has removed the $250 fee required to obtain a list of all Property Index Numbers (PINs) scheduled to be offered during the sale.

The list is downloadable. The entire list is available at cookcountytreasurer.com to view and/or download.

There is a searchable map. A new interactive map will allow anyone to view all properties on the Sale list, see how many are in a certain community and block and learn the characteristics of each property to be offered.

Why the changes matter A 2020 Treasurer’s Office study of seven Scavenger Sales conducted from 2007 to 2019 found the process, created in 1939 by the General Assembly, no longer is an effective tool in returning properties to productive use and the tax rolls. Out of 51,320 unique properties offered over 13 years at the Scavenger Sale, just 3,655 were purchased by private buyers.

Pappas said her changes to the 2022 Scavenger Sale are incremental improvements that may increase the Sale’s success while her office formulates more improvements.

“By making the list free, putting it online and making an easily searchable map, I hope we see more potential bidders intent on improving their communities. A vacant lot could become a side yard, helping a homeowner build generational wealth. A cluster of parcels could attract a local developer interested in adding new houses to a block,” Pappas said.

How communities can benefit from the Scavenger Sale

One participant at several previous Scavenger Sales was Noble Development Associates, headed by Louis Williams and Yolanda Davis. With roots in the community, Williams and Davis decided to focus on the area near Garfield Boulevard and Shields Avenue in the northeast corner of Englewood.

Since winning bids, Noble has gone through the court process to obtain the deeds to dozens of vacant lots in the neighborhood. Now it plans to partner with developers to build homes. “We have a significant investment in the neighborhood,” Williams said.

Construction is expected to start this spring on a three-flat at 333 W. Garfield Boulevard that Noble has sold to developers and real estate agents Rich Aronson of Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Chicago and Greg Viti of Keller Williams ONEChicago Lincoln Park. They hope to sell it to someone who will live in the building.

“The ultimate goal is the create ownership and generational wealth,” Aronson said.

“We want to recreate the neighborhood.”

“Throughout Cook County, there are groups and individuals working hard to better the lives of the people around them,” Pappas added. “The Scavenger Sale can be an effective tool to obtain a deed to a property that no longer has delinquent taxes attached to it.”

For more information, visit cookcountytreasurer.com CONTACT: info@vfpress.news

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Village Free Press | January 26, 2022

Discount retailer inks lease for old Sears space Forman Mills to occupy second-floor anchor at North Riverside Park Mall

By BOB UPHUES Riverside-Brookfield Landmark

The commercial real estate broker in charge of marketing the former Sears store at North Riverside Park Mall, 7501 Cermak Road, announced on Jan. 17 that his company had reached a deal with a new tenant.

Joe Parrot, vice president of retail services at CBRE tweeted that the 94,000-squarefoot, second-floor anchor space at the north end of the mall would be the future home of Forman Mills, a New Jersey-based discount retailer with 44 locations in eight states, including seven locations in the Chicago area.

“This was our 5th lease in the redevelopment of the former Sears box, transforming a former department store into a vibrant

destination with entertainment, fitness, grocery, medical & apparel uses,” Parrot tweeted.

It’s not clear when Forman Mills will begin building out the second-floor retail space or when they might open. Parrot did not return a call from the Landmark seeking additional information.

Glenn Lindholm, general manager of North Riverside Park Mall, said on Jan. 19 that Seritage had not notified him about the lease agreement, though Lindholm was aware of the social media post.

“We’re excited to get somebody in there,” Lindholm said.

Forman Mills was founded in Philadelphia in 1981 by Rick Forman, who’d gotten his start in the late 1970s “selling T-shirts, sweat-shirts and sportswear in local flea markets on weekends,” according to the company’s website.

The company’s first warehouse store opened in 1985 and the clothing racks are still jammed with T-shirts, sweats and

sports apparel, though Forman Mills also sells some housewares, luggage, toys and shoes. Forman sold the chain to a New York investment firm in 2016.

The former Sears anchor property comprises the two-story, roughly 180,000-squarefoot retail box that anchors the mall’s north end, the freestanding 20,000-square-foot former Sears Auto Center and the parking lots directly north and west of the shopping center, which include about 760 parking spaces.

That entire package is owned by Seritage Growth Properties, a real estate investment trust created to purchase Sears and Kmart retail properties and optimize their value by attracting new tenants as the legacy retailers disappeared.

Sears initially consolidated its retail operation into the second floor of the anchor space in late 2017 and then closed the store outright in 2020.

The entertainment venue Round One leases about 45,000 square feet of the anchor box’s lower level, with Amita Health occu-

pying another 10,000 square feet. Seritage is marketing 25,000 square feet of the lower level that remains vacant.

Blink Fitness moved into the former Sears Auto Center in 2020 and occupies about three-quarters of the building. At that time, a Mexican restaurant had eyed the roughly 5,600-square-foot space remaining in the former auto center, but the deal fell through. It remains vacant.

Last year, Seritage confirmed that it had reached a deal to bring a new 20,000-squarefoot Aldi grocery store to the north parking lot of the former Sears property.

Seritage’s planned unit development application for the new store will be considered by the North Riverside Planning and Zoning Commission at a public hearing scheduled for Jan. 27 at 6 p.m.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the hearing will be conducted remotely. Anyone wishing to attend is asked to contact the village by Jan. 24 to obtain an online link. The phone number of village hall is 708-447-4211.

Proviso businesses get roughly $2M in state grants

They were among nearly 3,000 Back to Business grant recipients across the state

By MICHAEL ROMAIN Editor

Last week, state officials announced the most recent round of Back to Business Grant recipients, with more than 50 small businesses in the nine suburb Village Free Press readership area receiving a total of $1.9 million.

In a Jan. 20 statement, Gov. J.B. Pritzker and the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) said that more than $111 million in grant money has been allocated to nearly 3,000 small businesses across the state since September.

The Back to Business Grant program was designed to assist businesses that have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The money for the program came from American Recovery Plan Act (ARPA) funds. In total, the state seeks to give out $250 million to small businesses affected by the pandemic.

Eligible businesses include those with revenues of $20 million or less ($35 million or less for hotels) that experienced reduced revenue in 2020 due to COVID-19, as well as those that are in hard-hit industries and/or located in areas that were disproportionately affected by the pandemic.

In Proviso Township, all or parts of Bellwood, Broadview, Maywood and Melrose Park have been designated Disproportionately Impacted Areas (DIS).

Among the nine Proviso suburbs in VFP’s readership area, Melrose Park led the way

in funding, with 20 businesses receiving $630,000. Broadview was not far behind, with 10 businesses receiving $615,000. There were no businesses in Berkeley and Westchester that received funding during this most recent round.

Chicago West Management Inc. — the entity that runs the Holiday Inn Express & Suites, 200 S. Mannheim Rd. in Hillside — received $250,000 in Back to Business grant funding, the most of any Proviso recipient.

Broadview Family Restaurant in Broad-

businesses rehire staff, cover operating costs, and afford additional customer safety precautions. These are not loans, so businesses getting help won’t owe a cent back to the state.”

Illinois Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton said that the grants are “successfully helping the small businesses that are cornerstones in our communities sustain and grow. Our administration is fully committed to stepping up for small businesses, providing them the resources needed to continue being a pathway of opportunity for entrepreneurs and jobs throughout Illinois.”

State officials said that more than half of the Back to Business grants have been allocated to businesses Businesses in Proviso Township that received the owned by people of color, with 25% most in Back to Business grant funding include going to Asian American or Pacific Islander-owned businesses, 17% going (clockwise from top right) Broadview Family to Black-owned businesses and 13% Restaurant in Broadview, Holiday Inn Express going to Latinx-owned businesses. & Suites in Hillside and a Shell gas station in They said 43% of the latest round Northlake. Left, a chart tracking VFP suburbs by of grants went to businesses that aptotal grant amount. plied for grants last year, but did not File receive funding. Nearly 80% of grants went to businesses located in DIAs), view, at 2417 Roosevelt Rd. in Broadview, 71% went to hard-hit industries, including and Mahin Inc., which operates the Shell restaurants and hotels. gas station at 70 E. North Ave. in Northlake, In addition, 62% of the grant funding went each received $150,000, the second-highest to businesses with revenue under $500,000 in funding amount awarded to businesses in 2019 while 79% went to businesses with revthe township. The lowest grant amount dis- enue under $1 million. bursed to businesses in Proviso was $5,000.

“Businesses will continue to be notified of “The men and women of the General As- their application status throughout the next sembly worked with me to craft the Back to few weeks until all the funds are exhaustBusiness program,” Gov. Pritzker explained ed,” state officials explained. in the Jan. 20 statement.

CONTACT: info@vfpress.news “It’s $250 million in grants to help small

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Village Free Press | January 26, 2022

9

COVID test firm, lab operating local pop-ups accused of fraud Illinois AG demands continued shutdown of Center for Covid Control sites ‘for the foreseeable future’

By BOB UPHUES Riverside-Brookfield Landmark

Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul announced late on Jan. 20 that his office demanded that Center for Covid Control, a Rolling Meadows-based company which provided free COVID-19 testing at pop-up sites throughout the Chicago area and in several other states, extend their voluntary shutdown of test sites “for the foreseeable future.”

He also stated his office had launched an investigation in the company in response to complaints from Illinois residents, which “have ranged from testing results being delayed or not received at all, to results being provided to individuals who were never administered a test, to tests being stored improperly and staff incorrectly using PPE and face masks.”

Center for Covid Control confirmed on its website that their voluntary shutdown, which started Jan. 14, would be extended beyond their planned re-open date of Jan. 22.

“CCC remains committed to providing the highest level of customer service and diagnostic quality and will not resume collection of patient samples until staffing resources permit CCC to operate at full capacity,” the company stated on its website.

The Illinois attorney general’s demand came a day after Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison announced he had sued Center for Covid Control and its primary lab partner, Doctors Clinical Laboratory, alleging they failed to report results to state health authorities, deceived customers by promising results they could not deliver on time or did not deliver at all and provided fraudulent test results to customers.

Rolling Meadows-based Center for Covid Control operated pop-up sites in a storefront at 9219 Broadway Ave. in Brookfield and in a mobile pod at 1527 Harlem Ave. in Forest Park until Jan. 14, when they abruptly paused operations in the face of an avalanche of complaints and heightened scrutiny by officials in several states, including Illinois.

Center for Covid Control also operated a testing site in the lobby of the former Oak Park Arts Center at 200 N. Oak Park Ave. The building is now the home of the Free Church, which bought the property in 2020.

The location was a newer one for Center for Covid Control, having opened on Jan. 10.

That testing site closed its doors on Jan. 14 along with other Center for Covid Control locations. Unlike the other local locations, however, the Oak Park Avenue site reopened its doors on Jan. 17.

“They told us we could resume testing because the lab was able to produce the results,” said Pastor Chuck Colegrove, who was at the site when a Growing Community Media reporter visited on Jan. 20.

The Oak Park testing site remained open to the public on Jan. 21, but Colegrove said it was no longer affiliated with Center for Covid Control. Instead, Colegrove said, the site was being run by one of Center for Covid Control’s former lab partners, Ravinia Health.

“I don’t have all the information on when the change happened,” said Colegrove, who added he requested “better documentation” from Ravinia Health. “I said, ‘Listen, you’re putting us in a spot, because most of those other [testing sites] they’re going to close up shop and disappear, and no one will ever see them again.’ But this is our life right here.”

Someone from Ravinia Health had approached the church about opening a free testing site, said Colgrove, and he agreed it would be a beneficial service for the community.

“It just felt like a great thing to offer the community,” Colegrove said. “Within a few blocks there are a lot of apartments.”

When the site opened on Jan. 10, workers brought with them signage indicating it was a Center for Covid Control site. That signage remained up through Jan. 20. Those signs were gone on Jan. 21, replaced by a simple sandwich board sign in front of the building indicating a free COVID testing site was inside.

A check of Illinois Secretary of State records shows that Ravinia Health Group LLC was created in September 2021 and lists its principal office in northwest suburban Park Ridge. The manager is listed as Shanawaz Khan, a Chicago resident.

The Ravinia Health website’s “About Us” page gives a vague description of the company as a “distinctive organization applying the highest level of service in the fight against SARS – coV-2 (Covid-19) by offering varying forms of testing.” It also states, “We partner with a CDC approved & licensed laboratory.”

That lab partner is not disclosed on that page, but at the bottom of the “Services” page of the Ravinia Health website, it directs those looking for test results to O’Hare Clinical Lab, which Illinois Secretary of State records show to be located in a different suite at the same address as Ravinia Health in Park Ridge. The manager of O’Hare Clinical Lab Services is Nasir Qader.

Center for Covid Control’s primary testing lab partner is Doctors Clinical Laboratory, which is also named in the Minnesota lawsuit. Doctors Clinical Laboratory shares the same Rolling Meadows address as Center for Covid Control and was engaged to process the thousands upon thousands of PCR tests they promised results for within 72 hours.

The complaints about the companies in the Minnesota lawsuit mirror some of

Although the Center for Covid Control announced Jan. 14 it was shutting down its testing sites until Jan. 22, its location at 200 N. Oak Park Ave. in Oak Park has been up and running since Jan. 17.

Bob Uphues

those Growing Community Media heard as it researched local COVID-19 pop-up testing sites runs by Center for Covid Control and another outfit called Free Covid Testing Site (FCTS), which uses its lab partner’s name, Northshore Clinical Labs, interchangeably.

According to online data from the Centers for Disease Control, Doctors Clinical Laboratory has been paid more than $110 million in federal reimbursements for COVID-19 testing while Northshore Clinical Labs has received more than $137 million from the federal government after submitting claims from people who were said to be uninsured.

O’Hare Clinical Lab Services has been paid nearly $180 million in federal claims for conducting testing services, according to the CDC. Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul on Jan. 11 issued a warning to residents who were considering using the services of the pop-up testing providers and followed up a statement confirming his office had opened a formal investigation into Center for Covid Control.

Neither Northshore Clinical Labs nor FCTS are the subjects of any investigations at this time. On Jan. 17 Northshore Clinical Labs announced that it “has paused all third-party operation of COVID -19 testing pop-up sites.”

Meanwhile, visitors to the FCTS website now are greeted with the message: “Our Website Is Undergoing Maintenance. Thank you for your patience, FCTS!” FCTS/Northshore Clinical Labs had operated pop-up sites at 2704 Harlem Ave. in Riverside; at the North Riverside Park Mall, 7501 Cermak Road; inside a vacant storefront at 321A Harlem Ave. in Forest Park; at 6325 W. North Ave. in Oak Park; and at 6816 W. North Ave. in Chicago.

All of the local FCTS/Northshore pop-up testing locations were closed as of Jan. 20, though signage remained on the location at 2704 Harlem Ave. in Riverside.

According to the lawsuit filed by Minnesota’s attorney general, former employees of Center for Covid Control reported that the

company could not keep up with the volume of tests as it expanded rapidly across the country.

By early December 2021, according to the lawsuit, Center for Covid Control was administering 8,000 to 10,000 tests per day in Minnesota and data entry workers were unable to keep pace.

“Employees have been gathering incoming tests in garbage bags and piling them in various corners of their office without any semblance of organization,” the lawsuit states.

When employees asked the Center for Covid Control’s owners, Akbar Syed and Aleya Siyaj, for more help they reportedly refused. Instead, according to the lawsuit, Siyaj “instructed employees to ‘streamline’ data entry by entering the name of a patient and immediately hit a series of keys that would input defaults for the remaining entries, including defaulting a patient’s insurance information to ‘uninsured.’”

The company then would reportedly seek reimbursement from the federal government, claiming those with private insurance were actually uninsured.

Because of the huge backlog of tests waiting to be processed and knowing that tests were no longer “good” after three days or so, a Center for Covid Control official reportedly instructed employees to post-date test samples to make them appear more recent than they were and then send them on to the lab for processing.

Some people who had competed online forms to receive tests, but who actually never followed through with getting tested, complained that they received test result nonetheless from center for Covid Control.

“I’m holding these companies accountable that sent back false or inaccurate results, when they send them back at all, for deceiving Minnesotans and undermining the public’s trust in testing,” Ellison said in a press release.

CONTACT: info@vpress.news

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Village Free Press | January 26, 2022

REAL ESTATE PUBLIC NOTICES SALEHEARING NOTICE FOR OF PUBLIC CONCERNING THE INTENT OF

THE VILLAGE OF BROADVIEW, COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS, TO ISSUE GENERAL OBLIGATION BONDS IN AN AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED $4,000,000 PUBLIC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the Village President and Board of Trustees of the Village of Broadview, Cook County, Illinois (the “Village”), will hold a public hearing on the 7th day of February, 2022, at 7:00 P.M. The hearing will be held at the Council Chamber, 2350 South 25th Avenue, Broadview, Illinois 60155. The purpose of the hearing will be to receive public comments on the proposal to sell one or more series of general obligation bonds of the Village during the next thirty six (36) months in an aggregate amount not to exceed $4,000,000 for the purpose of (i) providing funds to pay debt service on the Village’s outstanding obligations, (ii) finance capital projects of the Village, including acquisition and maintenance of vehicles, equipment, street improvements and building improvements, (iii) paying the costs of issuing the bonds, and (iv) any other purposes permitted by law. Those wishing to give testimony at the hearing may do so by attending the meeting in person. Masks are required to be worn.

You may join the hearing remotely by using the information to be posted by the Village in its agenda for the public hearing. Such posting will occur on the Village’s website (https:// broadview-il.gov/) and at 2350 South 25 th Avenue, Broadview, Illinois.

The Village is also accepting written comments received by the Village Clerk (kmcgrier@broadview-il. gov) prior to 5:00 p.m. on February 4, 2022.

By Order of the Village President of the Village of Broadview, Cook County, Illinois.

DATED the 24th day of January, 2022. /s/ Kevin McGrier Village Clerk Village of Broadview, Cook County, Illinois Published in Village Free Press January 26, 2022

REAL ESTATE FOR SALE IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS COUNTY DEPARTMENT - CHANCERY DIVISION BMO HARRIS BANK N.A. F/K/A HARRIS N.A. Plaintiff, -v.MALZINA JOHNSON Defendants 2019CH13687 2129 S 9TH AVE MAYWOOD, IL 60153 NOTICE OF SALE PUBLIC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered in the above cause on February 27, 2020, an agent for The Judicial Sales Corporation, will at 10:30 AM on March 1, 2022, at The Judicial Sales Corporation, One South Wacker, 1st Floor Suite 030R, Chicago, IL, 60606, sell at a public sale to the highest bidder, as set forth below, the following described real estate: Commonly known as 2129 S 9TH AVE, MAYWOOD, IL 60153 Property Index No. 15-14-324-0300000 The real estate is improved with a residence.

Sale terms: 25% down of the highest

REAL ESTATE FOR SALE

REAL ESTATE FOR SALE

REAL ESTATE FOR SALE

REAL ESTATE FOR SALE

REAL ESTATE FOR SALE

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 (HOMEOWNER), YOU HAVE 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, P.C. Plaintiff’s Attorneys, 15W030 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. 14-19-06248 Attorney ARDC No. 00468002 Attorney Code. 21762 Case Number: 2019CH13687 TJSC#: 41-3463 NOTE: Pursuant to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, you are advised that Plaintiff’s attorney is deemed to be a debt collector at-

tempting to collect a debt and any information obtained will be used for that purpose.

Case # 2019CH13687 I3184699

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 Plaintiff’s Attorney, Anselmo Lindberg & Associates, LLC, 1771 West Diehl Road, Naperville, Illinois 60563-1890. (630) 453-6960.

F19070047 INTERCOUNTY JUDICIAL SALES CORPORATION intercountyjudicialsales.com I3185073

closure 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 (HOMEOWNER), YOU HAVE 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.

MCCALLA RAYMER LEIBERT PIERCE, LLC Plaintiff’s Attorneys, 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) 236-SALE 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. 2004614IL_613727 Attorney ARDC No. 61256 Attorney Code. 61256 Case Number: 18 CH 08388 TJSC#: 42-51 NOTE: Pursuant to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, you are advised that Plaintiff’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 08388 I3185862

$100,058.98.

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 (HOMEOWNER), YOU HAVE 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, The sales clerk, LOGS Legal Group LLP Plaintiff’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 18-089312.

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

LOGS Legal Group LLP 2121 WAUKEGAN RD., SUITE 301 Bannockburn IL, 60015 847-291-1717 E-Mail: ILNotices@logs.com Attorney File No. 18-089312 Attorney Code. 42168 Case Number: 16 CH 11114

IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS COUNTY DEPARTMENT - CHANCERY DIVISION U.S. BANK NATIONAL ASSOCIATION; Plaintiff, vs.

SPARKLE GIBSON AKA SPARKLE N. GIBSON; ILLINOIS HOUSING DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY; UNKNOWN OWNERS AND NON RECORD CLAIMANTS; Defendants, 19 CH 2628 NOTICE OF SALE PUBLIC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered in the above entitled cause Intercounty Judicial Sales Corporation will on Wednesday, February 23, 2022 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. 15-22-402-036-0000.

Commonly known as 2616 South 11th Avenue, Broadview, Illinois 60155.

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 Plaintiff’s Attorney, Anselmo Lindberg & Associates, LLC, 1771 West Diehl Road, Naperville, Illinois 60563-1890. (630) 453-6960.

F19020045 INTERCOUNTY JUDICIAL SALES CORPORATION intercountyjudicialsales.com I3185069 IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS COUNTY DEPARTMENT - CHANCERY DIVISION LEADERONE FINANCIAL CORPORATION; Plaintiff, vs.

ALEJANDRO RIOS; UNKNOWN OWNERS AND NON RECORD CLAIMANTS; Defendants, 19 CH 9197 NOTICE OF SALE PUBLIC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered in the above entitled cause Intercounty Judicial Sales Corporation will on Wednesday, February 23, 2022 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. 15-05-204-032-0000.

Commonly known as 300 1/2 44th Avenue, Northlake, Illinois 60164.

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.

IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS COUNTY DEPARTMENT - CHANCERY DIVISION U.S. BANK NATIONAL ASSOCIATION Plaintiff, -v.ANTIONETTE WALKER Defendants 18 CH 08388 2006 SOUTH 22ND AVENUE BROADVIEW, IL 60155 NOTICE OF SALE PUBLIC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered in the above cause on August 12, 2019, an agent for The Judicial Sales Corporation, will at 10:30 AM on February 25, 2022, at The Judicial Sales Corporation, One South Wacker, 1st Floor Suite 030R, Chicago, IL, 60606, sell at a public sale to the highest bidder, as set forth below, the following described real estate: Commonly known as 2006 SOUTH 22ND AVENUE, BROADVIEW, IL 60155 Property Index No. 15-15-318-0190000 The real estate is improved with a red brick, two story single family home, detached two 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 fore-

IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS COUNTY DEPARTMENT - CHANCERY DIVISION U.S. BANK NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, AS TRUSTEE, SUCCESSOR IN INTEREST TO STATE STREET BANK AND TRUST COMPANY, AS TRUSTEE FOR GSMPS MORTGAGE LOAN TRUST 1999-1 Plaintiff, -v.JERRALD LEE KENNEDY AKA JERRALD KENNEDY AKA JERRALD L. KENNEDY, SCHULAR E. KENNEDY AKA SCHULAR KENNEDY, UNKNOWN OWNERS AND NON-RECORD CLAIMANTS Defendants 16 CH 11114 2341 SOUTH 16TH AVENUE BROADVIEW, IL 60155 NOTICE OF SALE PUBLIC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered in the above cause on February 26, 2018, an agent for The Judicial Sales Corporation, will at 10:30 AM on February 24, 2022, at The Judicial Sales Corporation, One South Wacker, 1st Floor Suite 030R, Chicago, IL, 60606, sell at a public sale to the highest bidder, as set forth below, the following described real estate: Commonly known as 2341 SOUTH 16TH AVENUE, BROADVIEW, IL 60155 Property Index No. 15-22-209-0070000 The real estate is improved with a single family residence.

The judgment amount was

REAL ESTATE FOR SALE TJSC#: 42-187 NOTE: Pursuant to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, you are advised that Plaintiff’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 # 16 CH 11114 I3185844 IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS COUNTY DEPARTMENT - CHANCERY DIVISION NATIONSTAR MORTGAGE DBA MR. COOPER; Plaintiff, vs.

UNKNOWN OWNERS AND NONRECORD CLAIMANTS; UNKNOWN HEIRS AND LEGATEES OF CHRISTINE BRIDGES AKA CHRISTINE BRIDGES, DECEASED; PEARL BRIDGES; PEARL BRIDGES, AS INDEPENDENT EXECUTOR OF THE ESTATE OF CHRISTINE BRIDGES, DECEASED; Defendants, 19 ch 10135 NOTICE OF SALE PUBLIC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered in the above entitled cause Intercounty Judicial Sales Corporation will on Wednesday, March 2, 2022 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. 15-16-216-010-0000.

Commonly known as 1129 32nd Avenue, Bellwood, IL 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 Sales Department at Plaintiff’s Attorney, Manley Deas Kochalski, LLC, One East Wacker Drive, Chicago, Illinois 60601. (614) 220-5611. 19026370 F2 INTERCOUNTY JUDICIAL SALES CORPORATION intercountyjudicialsales.com I3185505

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Village Free Press | January 26, 2022

18-year-old Jeremy Ortiz’s rapid rise in the ring has come alongside that of his coach/father David, and now both have their sights set on a professional career

By ANDY VIANO Editor

When David Ortiz and his son, Jeremy, showed up at their first tournament, the organizers asked the coach for his boxing books.

David, then new to the coaching business, and Jeremy, then a pre-teen, had no idea what he was talking about. The father-son duo also brought the wrong headgear, tried to wear the wrong mouthpiece and did as good a job as one possibly could at looking completely out-of-place and entirely beatable.

Then, David says, Jeremy stepped in the ring and beat every fighter that was put in front of him.

In the six years or so since then, Jeremy has gone on an incredible tear, becoming one of the country’s top-ranked boxers and defeating nearly all comers, including national champions, future professionals and potential Olympians. He is coming off his first tournament against adults, the 2021 USA Boxing Nationals, where he finished fourth in the Elite division at 132 pounds.

The 18-year-old Ortiz, one of the youngest fighters in the field, came into the event seeded sixth in a field that included fighters in their 30s.

Next up is a professional career, one the Ortizes see as a logical step in the younger man’s progression, and a chance to create both a family legacy and bring attention to dad’s newly opened Chicago gym, The Barracks, where a growing number of young fighters are latching onto the coach who now knows well which mouthpiece and headgear to bring to the ring.

For hard-charging David Ortiz, who grew up in Chicago and now makes his home in Forest Park, and Jeremy, who splits time between here and Oswego, the path to boxing success was sometimes hazy, occasionally rocky, and remains full of potential pitfalls, but to get to where they have together has brought them joy beyond whatever success lies ahead in the ring, and closer as father and son than ever before.

“I feel like we’ve come a long way just learning about the sport, getting better at training and even our relationship,” Jeremy said from the floor of The Barracks earlier this month. “I feel like we’re able to talk to each other more now, about certain things that we can work on and things we’re doing.”

“There’s an off button now, too,” David,

Learning the ropes together sitting nearby, chimed in with a laugh.

“There’s also an off button, yes,” Jeremy said.

Finding the right sport Jeremy Ortiz is an athlete. He’s a college athlete, in fact, a cross country and middle distance runner at Elmhurst University where he is a freshman studying exercise science. But it took a while for David and Jeremy to find the sport that suited the younger Ortiz best.

They started with the traditional routes, like soccer and football, before transitioning to combat sports and training in taekwondo. After a brief return to football, Jeremy found his way to judo for a short while, then to a mixed martial arts gym where his former taekwondo instructor, now working at that gym, suggested kickboxing.

“We put him in kickboxing for a couple weeks and I was realizing that every time the kid that he would spar with would kick, my son would check him with a punch,” David said.

The problem was there was no boxing program at the gym where Jeremy was training. So David, who never boxed either but said his dad (Jeremy’s grandfather) fought in his youth, started up the program himself, despite having only previously coached football and wrestling.

For Jeremy, who was around 12 years old when boxing came into focus, the fit was apparent right away.

“Boxing was where I felt my best,” he said. “I just really fell in love with it as I kept doing it and just kept going.”

“It’s kind of weird,” he said, “because really, basically, you’re volunteering to get punched. That’s it. It’s just the rush and the fact that it’s me. I don’t have to rely on a team. It’s just me. I’m relying on myself and my ability to win this match.”

Wins, however, didn’t come right away.

After a brief stint at some other gyms, Jeremy made his way to the Chicago Youth Boxing Club (CYBC) in Little Village where he met a much stiffer brand of competition.

“They kicked the [crap] out of him,” David said of the young fighters at CYBC. “They whupped his [butt] every week. And I told him in the car, this will happen every single time until it doesn’t, and this is something I can’t teach you.”

There were moments, unsurprisingly, where Jeremy wasn’t sure that getting his butt kicked time and again was the right path.

“For sure there are definitely days where you’re just like ‘what am I doing? Am I even getting any better?’” he said. “But it’s just the fact that I didn’t want to leave. I just wanted to keep going. I just had a feeling that if I keep going, I’m going to get better … and that’s just how it went. We just kept going and then we saw progress.”

Lalo Beas was one of the first people to see Jeremy fight and after joining David Ortiz in the corner at an early event, the two

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went on to coach briefly together at Unde- sible.” feated Boxing Academy, where Beas still That doesn’t mean Jeremy goes into his bouts carefree. He is fairly soft spoken and coaches.

In those early days, Beas saw Jeremy’s claims to have never been in a fight outside immense potential when one of his prized the ring. He has a thinking man’s approach pupils challenged an inexperienced Ortiz in to the sport — something David said he believes is driving a whole generation of the ring.

“My fighter fought Jeremy and we ac- young fighters — but Jeremy has an anger tually won [but] it was a great fight, it was he can tap into as well.

David said he works to keep his fighters a war,” Beas said. “And I was like, wow, that from seeking knockouts, something he said Jeremy kid is really, really good.”

Ortiz’s next major challenge would come comes from a “bloodthirst” but there has to in the Silver Gloves tournament in 2017 and be a certain amount of anger, an ability to 2018. Ortiz advanced to the national tourna- channel that anger effectively, that comes ment in Independence, Missouri — his first after getting punched in the face.

Beas said he’s seen a different side of major tournament — and he finished third.

From there, he was off to the races, and his Jeremy in the ring and, certainly, his oppocareer has taken him across the country to nents have as well.

“It’s not the fact that you shouldn’t be find new challenges as word of his prowess has made finding opponents in Chicago emotional,” Jeremy said. “It’s the fact that you need that control. You show it when more difficult, Beas said.

Then, of course, the pandemic struck, you need to. If you’re angry, you wait for it. and everything in the world of traveling You’ve got to wait for it. And then when the sports went on hold. David Ortiz convert- opportunity shows itself, then you can use ed his garage into a home gym, and father the anger.” and son worked to develop a training plan ahead of the elite nationals in December, where Ortiz returned with a fury and posted his fourthplace finish.

Gym owner David Ortiz, left, And as they practices with his son, boxer Jeremy have moved up Ortiz, on Thursday, Jan. 6, 2022, at the ranks, Dathe Barracks in Chicago. vid and Jeremy have managed to grow Alex Rogals alongs i d e e a c h other as well.

T h e younger Ortiz’s s t u d ies have helped him temper his dad’s high-intensity instincts in training, including more rest days and out-of-thering workouts among their schedule, and the elder Ortiz has learned to back off a bit, especially when competitions roll around.

“In the fights it’s a lot different than training,” Jeremy said. “In training, he’s We regularly publish articles about people, places on me about everything. Everything is for a and things that spill beyond our nine-suburban, reason. Offense has to be good, defense has largely Proviso Township readership area. This article to be nice and tight.” is an example of that kind of cross-border coverage.

“In the fights, though, there can’t be Every once in a while we’ll point out this aspect of our stress,” he continued. “It’s all up to the fightreporting with a notice such as this one, informing er. You don’t want to overstress the fight. I readers about this practice, because what happens give [David] a lot of credit for that because in nearby suburbs like Forest Park and Oak Park also he never really stresses me in those fights. impact us.

He tries to make me as comfortable as pos-

Crossing Borders

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Village Free Press | January 26, 2022

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