NOVEMBER 22, 2017
Vol. I No. 16
@village_free
@maywoodnews
thevillagefreepress.org
Meet Shantiah Watt, PAGE 3
Maywood wants tougher penalties for loosie sellers Suspensions, fines not enough to deter illicit tobacco sales, say trustees By MICHAEL ROMAIN Editor
Some customers who may be looking to buy tobacco from Sam’s Quick Stop, 1919 St. Charles Rd. in Maywood, may be disappointed for a while. The business recently agreed to a 9-month suspension of its tobacco license, which went into effect on Nov. 15 after the store was caught earlier this year selling loose cigarettes to someone under 21 years old, the village’s minimum tobacco-purchasing age. If during that period Sam’s violates the agreement by selling tobacco, the village could permanently revoke the business’s tobacco license. This is the second time that Sam’s has agreed to suspend its tobacco license. In January, it agreed to voluntarily suspend its tobacco license for 60 days after it was cited for illegal tobacco sales twice last year. And after employees of Falcon Fuel, 201 W. Roosevelt Rd. in Maywood, were caught selling loose cigarettes and possessing drug paraphernalia back in June, the store offered to pay $10,000 in lieu of its tobacco license being suspended. The village is still negotiating with the store over penalties, with a hearing to be held sometime in the coming months. Falcon is no stranger to fines, suspensions and threats by the village to revoke its license. Last November, the village board voted unanimously to direct staff to begin the process of revoking the store’s license after it was cited twice earlier that year for selling small plastic baggies that are commonly used to store narcotics. In See LOOSIE SELLERS on page 4
Sebastian Hidalgo
NIGHT OUT AT THE MUSEUM: The West Town Museum of Cultural History in Maywood is packed with memory. The museum’s curator, Jeri Stenson, gave tours on Nov. 18, during a fundraiser. The museum’s parent organization, Operation Uplift, will turn 50 next year. Read more on page 9.
A move to Maywood is risky, say homebuyers
Young homeowners may be village’s salvation, but the town’s a hard sell By MICHAEL ROMAIN Editor
Charles Sergeant, 35, lives with his wife and children in Chicago’s Austin neighborhood, but they’re considering a move back to Maywood, where Sergeant grew up. Some things, however, stand in their way.
“For African Americans, we’re looking for a place that is color-friendly, safe and affordable — those are our bare minimums,” Sergeant said during a Nov. 15 community meeting Village Free Press hosted at the Quinn Community Center, 1851 S. 9th Ave. in Maywood. But no matter where blacks populate, the Maywood native said, voicing a
concern that was front of mind for most of the roughly two dozen attendees, they encounter the same problems: high taxes, crime, poor infrastructure and failing schools. “To be honest with you, though, in the Chicago area, an area that has those bare See MAYWOOD MOVE on page 7