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Family of West Side man who died in suburban police custody sues
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The T Tragedy d off MacNolia Cox, page 7
Ald. seeks to overturn ban on cops working at liquor stores
Ald. Jason Ervin (28th) says the current prohibition, in place to prevent conflicts of interest, ‘doesn’t make any sense’ By IGOR STUDENKOV Contributing Reporter
Ald. Jason Ervin (28th) introduced an ordinance that would repeal a long-standing ban on police officers having second jobs in any business that sells liquor. The prohibition exists because police officers are required to enforce the liquor code and working for a liquor-selling business would pose a conflict of interest. In a recent interview, Ervin said that despite the apparent conflict, he wants to allow off-duty officers to work security at liquor stores. Many liquor stores tend to be trouble spots, he said, and allowing police officers to work security for them would help enhance safety in those areas. Ervin introduced the legislation during a Chicago City Council meeting on June 25. As of July 22, it doesn’t have any co-sponsors. The heads of both the Austin Chamber of Commerce and the Garfield Park Chamber of Commerce expressed support for Ervin’s legislation, saying that having trained police officers would make the areas around liquor stores safer. In addition to prohibiting officers from havSee ORDINANCE on page 10
PROVIDED
Bitoy’s Sweet Treats specializes in gelato, gourmet popcorn, and candies.
Popular Austin dessert shop getting sweet makeover
Bitoy’s Sweet Treats in Austin was awarded a city Neighborhood Opportunity Fund grant, which will be used to upgrade the building and customer experience By PASCAL SABINO Block Club Chicago
Renovations funded by a city grant will help a West Side sweets shop more closely replicate the experience of the gelato shops in Italy that inspired the owner to get into the dessert business.
The improvements to Bitoy’s Sweet Treats, 5957 W. Chicago Ave., will make way for an expanded dining area, as well as an updated building façade and new windows. The renovations are funded with help from a nearly $250,000 Neighborhood Opportunity Fund grant, a key part of Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s campaign
S W E N LASH! F
to boost investment on the South and West sides. Owner Layla Bitoy designed her shop to be a treat for the senses, with décor like handblown glass and flavors of gelato meant to invite guests into a whimsical See BITOY’S on page 11
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Austin Weekly News, July 28, 2021
City Council backs bank Pioneer Bank building plan The redevelopment of Pioneer Trust & Savings Bank, which has sat vacant for 13 years, would “preserve our cultural identity,” aldermen said By PASCAL SABINO Block Club Chicago
After years of sitting empty, a closed West Side bank could be home to a Latino heritage center after the City Council endorsed a land agreement for the bank and surrounding lots Wednesday. The plan for the Pioneer Trust & Savings Bank, 4000 W. North Ave., which would also include affordable housing, is part of the city’s INVEST South/West program targeting a stretch of North Avenue that was once a main business corridor. “It’s the most prominent structure on North Avenue,” said Mike Parella, a project manager for the planning department. “It’s redevelopment… would be vital for securing a vibrant future for the neighborhood and its existing residents.” The city’s planning department is seek-
CITY OF CHICAGO
The former Pioneer Trust & Savings Bank at 4000 W. North Ave. ing a developer to lead the project, and buy the bank and vacant lots near North Avenue and Pulaski Road from the current owner, Pulaski Investments LLC. If for whatever reason the developer and the current property owner cannot negotiate a sale, the City Council vote
Wednesday authorizes city leaders to buy the property themselves, then transfer it to a developer, said Peter Strazzabosco, a spokesperson for the planning department. Ald. Roberto Maldonado (26th) praised the development for bringing investment
to the area and helping to “preserve our cultural identity in that area and repel any symbols of gentrification,” he said. A building to the north of the bank would have all units dedicated to affordable housing, planning officials said. The selection process and the final design of the redevelopment project will incorporate community feedback, Parella said. The five-story Pioneer Bank was built in 1925 in a neoclassical architectural style. The historic building has been a Chicago landmark since 2012, but it has sat vacant for 13 years. Pulaski Investments had previously been unsuccessful in redeveloping the site, Parella said. Developers that submit proposals for the project will present their plans at community roundtables so residents can offer their input and evaluate each plan using surveys designed by the planning department. “We will look to the community and the alderman to guide the decision-making process,” Parella said. Subscribe to Block Club Chicago, an independent, 501(c)(3), journalist-run newsroom. Every dime we make funds reporting from Chicago’s neighborhoods.
CONTACT: pascal@blockclubchi.org
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Austin Weekly News, July 28, 2021
West Side man’s familiy sues Oak Park, Forest Park police Police don’t comment, family’s attorney says dashcam video is proof
news
Equity Editor/Ombudsman/Editor Michael Romain Senior Editor Bob Uphues
By STACEY SHERIDAN
Contributing Reporter Igor Studenkov
Wednesday Journal
The family of a West Side man who died last August after being apprehended by police for a traffic violation has filed a misconduct lawsuit against the Oak Park and Forest Park police departments. Filed July 19 in the Circuit Court of Cook County, the complaint alleges that 27-yearold Dajuan Gates exhibited multiple symptoms of an obvious medical emergency while being detained but police sought no medical attention despite being within 60 feet of the emergency room at Rush Oak Park Hospital, allegedly resulting in his preventable death. “It is the primary responsibility of a police officer to protect the wellbeing of the citizens in custody,” said attorney Dan Kotin, of Tomasik, Kotin, Kasserman LLC, the firm representing Gates’ family. Kotin told Wednesday Journal, Gates, who attended Collins Academy High School in North Lawndale, was suffering from hyperthermia caused by an overdose of PCP combined with the agitation of being detained, which resulted in his overheating. “Then over the course of 20 minutes, his organs began to shut down,” said Kotin. Representatives from the two police departments provided little in the way of comment but shared that neither department was aware of the filing. “We have not been served as of yet, which means our attorney has not reviewed the lawsuit,” said Forest Park Police Chief Tom Aftanas. “For those reasons as well as the fact that the Illinois State Police Public Integrity Unit has not completed their investigation I can’t comment at this time.” Oak Park spokesman David Powers said the village could not comment on matters relating to pending litigation as a matter of policy. The police incident in question occurred the afternoon of Aug. 22, 2020 when a Forest Park police officer pursued Gates at approximately 4:12 p.m. after observing him drive through a stop sign without coming to a complete stop, according to the complaint. “Then Dajuan made his only mistake, which was being afraid of police, and he ran,” Kotin said. Eight minutes later, Gates was handcuffed for the traffic violation by an Oak Park police officer, the complaint states, with his arms behind his back on the southwest corner of Madison Street and Maple Avenue in
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Reporting Partners Block Club, Austin Talks Columnist Arlene Jones Staff Photographer Alex Rogals Design/Production Manager Andrew Mead Editorial Design Manager Javier Govea Designer Mark Moroney Sales & Marketing Representavies Lourdes Nicholls, Marc Stopeck Development Manager Mary Ellen Nelligan Circulation Manager Jill Wagner ≈ Publisher Dan Haley Business Manager Joyce Minich ≈ GROWING COMMUNITY MEDIA Board of Directors Chair Judy Greffin Treasurer Nile Wendorf Photo provided by Tomasik Kotin Kasserman
Dajuan Gates and family Oak Park. He remained in that position for the next 21 minutes according to Kotin. Between “4:20 and 4:22 p.m., while in control of Oak Park and/or Forest Park police officers, Dajuan Gates became unresponsive, and could not stand or sit up,” the complaint reads. Instead of taking him to the emergency room, the complaint states officers put Gates in the back of a Forest Park police vehicle, ignored his condition and taunted him, saying, “Don’t play these dramatic games,” and, “You’re being a pain in the ass.” “Everything that’s in the complaint is verifiable down to the minute based on the dashcam,” Kotin said. At 4:27 p.m., a Forest Park officer drove an unresponsive and handcuffed Gates approximately 60 feet into the driveway of the Rush Oak Park Hospital Emergency Department, according to the complaint, which stated that Gates’ speech was incomprehensible and slurred and he was unable to lift
his head or sit upright. The complaint argues that paramedics arrived to assess Gates at 4:41 p.m., but earlier medical intervention would have saved his life. “Paramedics will testify that by the time they got to Dajuan, he was essentially brain dead in the back of the car in full cardiac arrest,” Kotin said. Gates was put on life support but died the following day, leaving behind five children, the youngest of which had not yet been born. His family is seeking in excess of $50,000 in damages from the two police departments, but Kotin said his firm believes the damages are worth far more. “Hopefully, the lawsuit will provide some accountability for what happened and offer some compensation for these kids because there’s nothing else that our system can do to help right a wrong.”
CONTACT: stacey@oakpark.com
Deb Abrahamson , Gary Collins, Darnell Shields, Sheila Solomon, Eric Weinheimer ≈ HOW TO REACH US 141 S. Oak Park Ave., Oak Park, IL 60302 PHONE 773-626-6332 FAX 708-467-9066 CIRCULATION Jill@oakpark.com ONLINE www.AustinWeeklyNews.com TWITTER @AustinWeeklyChi Austin Weekly News is published digitally and in print by Growing Community Media NFP. It is distributed free of charge at locations across Austin and Garfield Park. Our hours are Monday through Friday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Advertising rates are available by calling our office. Printed entirely on recycled paper. © 2021 Growing Community Media NFP.
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Austin Weekly News, July 28, 2021
A couple’s passion honed in lockdown to become café Jackie and Pierre Marquez plan to open Tasa Coffee at 4136 W. North Ave. next year By PASCAL SABINO Block Club Chicago
A couple is turning a hobby picked up during the pandemic into a full-time business, opening a neighborhood coffee shop on the West Side. Tasa Coffee will be one of the only local cafés and roasters in West Humboldt Park when it opens at 4136 W. North Ave. Owners Jackie and Pierre Marquez received about $230,000 from the city’s Neighborhood Opportunity Fund to build out of the store. They hope to open in early 2022. The couple didn’t initially have ambitions of starting their own business when they dove into coffee last year. They started exploring coffee beans, roasting and the history of coffee around the world as a way to break the monotony and solitude of the pandemic, they said. Jackie Marquez has a background as a chef. But since many restaurants were closed throughout the pandemic, she had a lot of spare time to pursue other interests, she said. “We started kind of just supporting local coffee shops and we really got into coffee. One day, I thought, ‘Let’s look into the history of coffee,’” she said. The couple’s curiosity blossomed into a full-blown hobby when they decided to buy a small roaster and green coffee beans. “Obviously, the first few batches were pretty bad. But once we got the hang of it, we were surprisingly pretty good at it,” Jackie Marquez said. The pair started experimenting with roasts and offered them to friends and neighbors to taste test, Pierre Marquez said.
They researched beans and flavor profiles for coffees grown in Mexico, Ethiopia, Columbia and Guatemala, he said. All that inspired them to turn their newfound love of coffee into a business. A core value of Tasa Coffee is cultivating direct relationships with coffee growers and ensuring they are fairly compensated, Pierre Marquez said. “People are kind of cut off from the process sometimes, so they don’t realize you’re paying $10 for a pound of coffee beans, you’re not really supporting the farmer adequately. That’s important to us,” he said. The shop will have a café area with seating and a full kitchen serving food and pastries to go with the coffee roasted on site, Pierre Marquez said. The shop will have a pickup window for grab-and-go coffee, and guests will be able to view the roasting area so “people can see me roasting the coffee. They can really see what it takes to make that cup of coffee,” Pierre Marquez said. The city grant will help them increase the scale of the coffee shop, including having a bigger coffee roaster. The area doesn’t have many options for coffee besides Starbucks, McDonald’s and Dunkin’, they said, so they are eager to give residents a local café where families and friends can get together and enjoy themselves. “We always remember that our families would bond with a cup of coffee,” Jackie Marquez said. “It just reminds us of how that one cup of coffee brought the family together. That’s kind of what we want to do with the community, bring people together just to have a cup of coffee.”
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Coffee beans being roasted by Tasa Coffee.
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Beignets baked by Jackie and Pierre Marquez.
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Austin Weekly News, July 28, 2021
After mass shootings, faith leaders mobilize
Rev. Ira Acree and Father Pfleger partner up on anti-violence message, announce separate initiatives By ZACH CUNNING
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The Rev. Ira Acree was out of town last week – his cousin’s son had lost his life to gun violence – when a reporter called to ask for his thoughts on the July 17 mass shooting in Austin. “And I’m saying, ‘What mass shooting?’ I only been gone a couple of days,’” Acree said Wednesday during a service at Greater St. John Bible Church. The service followed a weekend in Chicago with 60 people shot, including six children, the Chicago Sun Times reported. The mass shooting in Austin wounded six people, one adult, four teens and a 12-year-old. Echoing his comments made two weeks ago, in the wake of July 4, when 104 people were shot, including 15th District Commander Patrina Wines and a 15th District sergeant, Acree said, “We are in an undeclared Photo credit: AustinTalks state of emergency.” Acree said he asked Father Father Michael Pfleger at Greater St. John Bible Michael Pfleger, senior pas- Church in Austin on July 21. tor at Saint Sabina Church, to speak at the Greater St. John where the change can take place, he said. service weeks ago. The topic was supposed On Thursday, St. Sabina officially anto be “hitting reset for the post-pandemic nounced a gun buyback program, starting world. And then we had to shift gears be- July 26. cause there’s another pandemic, a gun vioThey’re offering $200 for handguns and lence pandemic.” assault rifles, $100 for rifles and $20 for highPfleger was once asked what would mo- capacity magazines. The buyback program is tivate people to stand up against gun vio- anonymous, and open only to those 25 years lence, he said. “If seeing children shot and old and younger. killed does not motivate you, what is wrong Pfleger said the buyback program came with you?” about when a businessman approached him “Chicago should be outraged” at the and said he was tired of people being shot. deaths of children, he said. When a young person comes in to turn in a The Sun Times reported last week that gun, Pfleger said, St. Sabina will do more than over 90 children under 15 have been shot in just hand them the money. Chicago so far this year. “We’ll give you the cash, but first want “We have saved the whales and the birds, to talk to you. Here’s what we can offer you. but we haven’t learned how to save our chil- Here’s the programs we can offer you, here’s dren,” Pfleger said at the service on July 21. what we do for young adults with records and He said everyone has to get past the finger on parole.” Pfleger said, adding he wants the pointing and blame, “just get in the room, youth to know they have options. lock the door and figure it out.” The Leaders Network, a Westside social jusPfleger called for neighborhood town tice organization co-chaired by Acree, will be halls to connect police, faith leaders and hosting training in the Greater St. John fellowCity Hall with residents old and young. ship hall Sunday, Aug. 1 at 2 p.m., Acree said. “The young brother standing on the cor“We’ll be training you how to be first rener knows more about what’s going on than sponders because this violence is not going sometimes those in the elected official’s of- to go away overnight,” he said. fice,” but people with that knowledge aren’t being engaged with or invited to the table CONTACT: austintalks.org@gmail.com
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Austin Weekly News, July 28, 2021
A playful event series returns to Garfield Park this summer The Garfield Park Community Council’s PlayStreets summer outdoor event series resumed on July 17 after a pandemic pause By IGOR STUDENKOV Contributing Reporter
The Garfield Park Community Council (GPCC) has relaunched its PlayStreets summer outdoor event series after a 1-year pandemic-induced hiatus, but the pandemic is still informing many aspects of the event. For the past 10 years, GPCC held outdoor events in East Garfield Park and West Garfield Park to encourage the community to come together, get connected to resources and enjoy activities, games and free food. Due to the concerns about vaccination disparities in Black communities and the spread of the Delta variant of COVID-19, PlayStreets organizers have emphasized safety during the events. Unvaccinated residents will be able to get their shots at every event and organizers are encouraging attendees to wear masks and social-distance. This year’s first PlayStreets event took place on July 17 around the Fulton Street Flower and Vegetable Garden, 4427 W. Fulton St. The next PlayStreets event will take place on July 31 at Herban Produce urban farm, 2900 W. Van Buren, at 2 p.m. to 5 p.m., and three more events are planned in August. While the July 17 event only saw one person get vaccinated, the attendees and neighbors agreed that the opportunity to get together and do something positive was welcome, especially after roughly a year of limited gatherings. PlayStreets are organized by Angela Taylor, GPCC’s wellness coordinator. The July 17 event was located on the block
PHOTO BY IGOR STUDENKOV
West Garfield Park residents play oversized chess at a PlayStreets event on July 17. where she and her husband, Sammie Taylor, live. She said that the event didn’t go away entirely in 2020. They still held virtual events. In 2021, she is trying to balance having people together outdoors and keeping them as safe as possible. “We’re still masked up, still social distancing, while still bringing the residents together for something positive,” Taylor said. “We’re trying to promote that we can come together and not hug. We can do things like bike-riding and still social distance.” Taylor and most volunteers wore masks, but while masks
were encouraged, they were not required. Taylor also personally went around the block, asking her neighbors whether they were vaccinated and encouraged the ones that did to take advantage of the opportunity. Several responded that they already got vaccinated while one said that he considered taking a vaccine, but he got scared off. In addition to the vaccination tent, the July 17 PlayStreets featured a cooking demonstration, games, and toys and books giveaways. Representatives with the Garfield Park Conservatory handed out kids’ activity kits. Working Bikes, a Pilsen-based nonprofit bike shop at 2434 S Western Ave., whose board of directors Taylor serves on, gave away bikes and organized a bike ride around the nearby blocks at the start of the event. According to Working Bikes board member Phil Caplan, residents who got bikes will be able to get them fixed at the shop for free. “We gave away over 50 bikes today,” he said. “Getting the bikes brings people together and enables them to get around and run errands.” John Ware, a longtime resident, mostly watched the festivities from his porch. He said that his block has a very strong block club, with many events taking place throughout the year and he was pleased with this one. “I think Mr. and Mrs. Taylor do a great job putting together community events,” he said. “It was a nice bike giveaway for kids in the neighborhood.” For more information about PlayStreets events, visit https://www.gpcommunitycouncil.org/programs/playstreets.
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Austin Weekly News, July 28, 2021
The word is N-E-M-E-S-I-S
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arlier this month, 14-year-old Zaila Avantgarde won the Scripps National Spelling Bee, becoming the first African American to win the competition. Jody-Anne Maxwell, a Black Jamaican girl, won the bee in 1998. To her credit, Avant-garde invoked the spirit of 13-yearold MacNolia Cox, who might have won the National Spelling Bee in 1936. I learned of Cox in 2015, during an interview with the renowned poet A. Van Jordan at Oak Park and River Forest High School. Jordan had come to the school at the request of Peter Kahn, himself a renowned poet educator. Jordan’s 2004 book of poems, called “M-AC-N-O-L-I-A,” centers on Cox’s tragic life. She made it all the way to the final round of the 1936 National Spelling Bee in Washington, D.C., only to get stumped by a word that the southern white judges shouldn’t have asked her to spell in the first place. Mabel Norris, a reporter with The Akron Beacon Journal, documented how the “judges, all Southern educators, were becoming visibly uncomfortable” as Cox coolly slayed one multisyllabic dragon after another. “So they’re at the National Spelling Bee in D.C., they go through the preliminary rounds and the people in that round with her are all there on technicality,” Van Jordan told me in 2015. “Either they misspelled a word or they spelled an alternate spelling of the word, but were allowed to stay in. MacNolia, however, just spelled straight through with no technicalities. It was clear that she looked like the winner.” But the judges, going against the contest rules, had given Cox a proper noun that was not on the list of 100,000 words she had memorized. “Believe it or not, the word was ‘Nemesis,’” Van Jordan said, referencing the Greek goddess of retribution. “The word in this situation stands in for injustice. There are people and forces in the world, irrespective of what you have done or prepared for or how you’ve comported yourself in the world, that will come with their own presumptions about you and inflict those presuppositions upon you. [That dynamic] comes in the form of a word like nemesis. People will use that as some kind of tool to pull the rug out from under you.” Jordan said Cox never recovered from the loss, despite Norris reporting at the time that the little Black girl “didn’t cry, nor did her stoic mother.” For all the debate that’s currently trending around the teaching of history, what this country needs is more poets. “[The poem deals] with the emotional resonance behind the story,” Jordan said. “We
get the facts of the history, but now we’re trying to get some interiority of this person.” Imagine yourself as MacNolia Cox, a little girl with possibly the IQ of a genius, who during her trip to the nation’s capital is forced to sit in the back of the train, cannot eat with her white contestants and has to stay at the home of a Black doctor because she cannot stay in the city’s segregated hotels. But when you read Norris’ account of your trip in the Beacon Journal about a large Negro delegation welcoming you, the “fifth best speller in the United States,” back to your hometown of Akron, you see no trace of your actual experience in Washington, D.C. As smart as you are, how can you not notice the dissonance? The injustice has been turned into something else (you are now a little school girl “who lost out in her fight for the national spelling championship on her spelling of ‘Nemesis’ Tuesday”). The burden is now yours alone to bear. And according to the record, you had a grand old time after your loss. “With Jean Trowbridge, of Des Moines, Iowa, the national spelling champion, as the most important figure in the group, the children were taken to the towering Washington monument for the view of Washington, and the blue Potomac river,” Norris writes. “Then there was the White House,” the reporter continues. “MacNolia paused before the huge painting of George Washington — remembering her history — she wondered again at Dolly Madison’s being able to save it when Washington was threatened by the British. And then you were off to Mt. Vernon “for a tour of the famous old home, the expansive gardens, the view of the Potomac.” In 1937, you and your mother were invited to a luncheon feting past Akron Beacon Journal champions, who brought forth “memories of their own glorious weeks in Washington” so that year’s bee champ, 14-year-old Robert Farrell, would know what was in store for him. In the grainy photo taken of the luncheon, you and your mother are looking off, as if in your own worlds, flanked by white adults who are smiling or momentarily unbothered. “The world is wrong. You can’t put the past behind you,” Claudia Rankine writes in “Citizen,” her luminous book of poems. “It’s buried in you; it’s turned your flesh into its own cupboard. Not everything remembered is useful but it all comes from the world to be stored in you.” Some clarification is in order. Although Zaila Avant-garde is the first Black American winner of the Scripps National Spelling Bee, she is not the first Black American to
MICHAEL ROMAIN
win a national spelling bee. In fact, the nation’s very first national spelling bee, the National Education Association Spelling Bee, was held in 1908 in New Orleans and predates the first Scripps spelling bee by nearly two decades. And a 13-year-old Black girl named Marie C. Bolden from Cleveland was its winner. The NEA’s bee was team-based and Bolden was the only Black in the competition on the only racially integrated team that competed. The Cleveland team won because it had the fewest errors and Bolden, the only speller on her team with no errors at all, was named the bee’s individual champion. “Of 510 students, she was 1 of only 3 who had perfect scores,” writes the Root’s Michael Harriot. Despite the popularity of the NEA’s spelling bee, the organization, forced to confront the fallout from the Black girl’s victory, never held a National Spelling Bee again, Harriot writes. In Rankine’s book of poems, the narrator is reflecting on being told by someone white that “his dean is making him hire a person of color when there are so many great writers out there.” When I look at your face, MacNolia, and the face of your mother, in that luncheon photo, I think of this passage in “Citizen,” wherein Rankine portrays the moments after that micro-aggression, as we’ve come to call systemic injustices that span time and space, seemingly with the cosmic intensity of black holes.
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“When you arrive in your driveway and turn off the car, you remain behind the wheel another 10 minutes. You fear the night is being locked in and coded on a cellular level and want time to function as a power wash. Sitting there staring at the closed garage door you are reminded that a friend once told you there exists a medical term — John Henryism — for people exposed to stresses stemming from racism. “They achieve themselves to death trying to dodge the buildup of erasure. Sherman James, the researcher who came up with the term, claimed the physiological costs were high. You hope by sitting in silence you are bucking the trend.” So does MacNolia buck the trend, I asked Jordan in a roundabout way in 2015. What happened to her? “She ended up being a domestic in the home of a doctor,” he said. “And so, she marries a guy who’s more streetwise than her. She’s diagnosed with cancer and dies at age 53. So it’s a pretty depressing story. I start the book on her death bed and move in reverse chronological order to the night before the spelling bee. We close the book at the moment of her greatest potential. Hopefully, the progression, the experience of the read, is one of transcendence.” If Scripps allows the history of MacNolia Cox to inform its future actions, Zaila Avant-garde’s victory can be transcendent, too.
CONTACT: michael@oakpark.com
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Austin Weekly News, July 28, 2021
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Austin Weekly News, July 28, 2021
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Austin Weekly News, July 28, 2021
ORDINANCE Safety an issue from page 1
ing second jobs at businesses that sell liquor, the current ordinance also bans officers “from engaging directly or indirectly in the ownership, maintenance, or operation of a tavern or retail liquor establishment,” and doesn’t allow officers to serve as bartenders or cocktail waiters under any circumstances. On Jan. 9, 2020, the police department added the same type of ban on working at cannabis dispensaries. Ervin’s ordinance would remove the language about working second jobs at liquor-selling establishments, while keeping the other aspects of the ban in place. Ervin said that he has seen many examples of crime happening in and around liquor stores. “We’ve had problems from those establishments and barring officers from working at those establishments doesn’t make any sense,” he said. Ervin’s legislation would need to clear the Committee on Public Safety before passing the full City Council. The earli799_1C01_QEXL1134000_10.25X5.58.INDD est it could go before the committee is August. GOOGLE EARTH Inks Used: CMYK Links: PD014799_1c01_QEXL1134000_10.25x5.58.ai Bleed: 10.25"and x 5.58" Notes: Austin Weekly News Client: ComEd Taliaferro (29th), who chairs the committee Ald. Chris Campaign: 2021 STEM Lab Print Ads Trim: 10.25" x 5.58" BANNED NO LONGER? Ald. Jason Ervin is lookingFonts: Posterama Text an ordinance that would life the ban on police offi cers to usher through is responsible for what goes on each agenda, didn’t respond Live: 10.25" x 5.58" Agency Job #: B1241-022203-00 toProdigious a request comment by deadline. working off-duty as security at West Side liquor stores like this one. Job for #: B1124-014799-00 Keyline Scale: Actual Size, 100% Tina Augustus, the head of the Austin Chamber of ComAD ID: QEXL1134000 Page: Horizontal 1/2 Size vandalizing your business and busting out your windows?” lin’s Super Food and Liquors, 501 N. Kedzie Ave. Hibbler said Region:business US merce, said that she has spoken to several Austin Language: English Date Modified: 7-20-2021 4:22 PM Siri Hibbler, head of Garfield Park Chamber of Commerce, that she lives nearby and the incident was “quite devastatowners who had to deal with drug-dealing inside and nearby their stores. Some of them were also concerned about theft said she also supports Ervin’s measure, because she believes ing” to her and her neighbors. NOT TO BE USED FOR COLOR APPROVAL police training makes off-duty officers better equipped to re“I think if they had maybe a trained off-duty police officer, and vandalism. ECD: Ainara Del Valle CD: George Apfelbachwith AD: aPaige Simpson owner CW: Jake in Dunnington CSM: Jennifer Baur PD: Harry Archer spondCapola to crimes. maybe it could’ve turned out differently,” she said. “I don’t “I’ve had conversations business Austin P: Colleen Hibbler said on May 21, a 23-year-old woman and an see anything wrong with having off-duty officers work secuwho’s been shot three times, but he’s still here,” Augustus T:10.25" said. “Who wants to operate a business when you have people 18-year-old man were fatally shot at the parking lot of Frank- rity at liquor stores, from the business perspective.”
THE JOURNEY TO MARS STARTS WITH STEM
T:5.58"
For STEM Homelabs students, getting to Mars takes only three days. This summer 100 Chicagoland students will build, code and compete with their own Mars rovers. It's one more way ComEd supports STEM education in Chicagoland. Learn more at ComEd.com/STEMeducation © Commonwealth Edison Company, 2021
Austin Weekly News, July 28, 2021
PROVIDED
Hand made gelato at Bitoy’s Sweet Treats.
BITOY’S
Makeover coming from page 1 mood to enjoy “sweets and treats and yumminess,” she said. The upgrades will further improve the shop’s atmosphere to “help connect the community with sight, touch, taste.” As part of the Chicago Alfresco initiative, Bitoy’s Sweet Treats planned an outdoor seating area in partnership with the Austin Chamber of Commerce to promote foot traffic. But thanks to the Neighborhood Opportunity Fund grant, the sweet shop’s lobby will be expanded to create more indoor seating so visitors can gather year-round to enjoy themselves over dessert. “We’re going to be creating our own inviting space … where our customers can be engaged and still be met with that same whimsical experience,” Bitoy said. The dessert shop was twice burglarized in recent months, so the renovations will also include measures to improve public safety in the area and make the building more secure, Bitoy said. She opened Bitoy’s Sweet Treats eight years ago after spending time in Italy. During her travels, she was enamored by the intimate feeling of walking through streets lined with countless small family businesses where people could pop in to get snacks, sweets and treats. “I wanted to bring that local feel. When you’re out in Italy at the end of the evening, folks go walk out and have their constitutional with their kids and families. They go out to the local gelato shops or delicatessens and have that unique community experience,” she said. Bitoy noticed in Italy that gelato shops were a local gathering place where people
could “create a safe engagement with the community,” she said. She wants her dessert shop to create a similar kind of connection between Austin residents who can bond over her gelato, sorbet, gourmet popcorn or chocolates, she said. “Those gelato shops weren’t just a quick grab-and-go. They were a sentiment and a staple in the community they serve,” she said. “People connected through that experience. They were sharing ideas and talking about things.” Bitoy’s menu features a fusion between traditional Italian gelato and “the flair of my culture, and the culture of Chicago and Austin,” she said. “If you go to Italy, you’re not going to see banana pudding, peach cobbler, red velvet,” she said. The shop also specializes in gourmet popcorn, including a signature Sweet Cheese Popcorn that combines Chicago-style cheese and caramel flavors “blended into one kernel,” she said. Another bestseller is Bitoy’s Chicago Fire Popcorn, which “has a little bit of heat,” she said. The eclectic flavors on her menu have made Bitoy’s shop an attraction for people across the city and even from Western suburbs like Oak Park, she said. As her business grows, she hopes to continue drawing more foot traffic to other businesses along Chicago Avenue, she said. “We do have a following, and we’re able to bridge the gap,” Bitoy said. “We know that we can draw people into Austin with a unique experience. How wonderful would it be if there were other business anchors for them to explore while they’re there.” Block Club Chicago’s coronavirus coverage is free for all readers. Block Club is an independent, 501(c)(3), journalist-run newsroom.
CONTACT: pascal@blockclubchi.org
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Austin Weekly News, July 28, 2021
HELP WANTED 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 Associates’ degree in Early Childhood Education. Minimum 1 year experience preferred in each position. Must love children and be outgoing, patient, flexible. Contact 773-521-9499 PART-TIME ELECTRICIAN’S HELPER Must have own transportation. For more information CALL 708-738-3848 MAINTENANCE Hiring one Maintenance position at private health club in Oak Park.
HELP WANTED
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SUBURBAN RENTALS
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DOWNTOWN OAK PARK 1BR Small 1BR apartment in DTOP. Renovated and freshly painted. Harwood floors. Walking distance to El. No pets. $850/mo, utilities included. 708-657-4226
District 90 is seeking qualified and experienced applicants for the following positions:
• Speech and Language Pathologist (Roosevelt Middle School) • English Language Learners Teacher (Full-time at Roosevelt Middle School and Part-time FTE 0.50 at Lincoln Elementary School) • School Social Worker (Part-time FTE 0.50 at Lincoln Elementary School & Part-time FTE 0.50 Willard Elementary School) • Speech and Language Pathologist (Roosevelt Middle School) • Grade 1 Teacher (Lincoln Elementary School) • Grade 4 Teacher (Willard Elementary School) • Physical Education Teacher (Willard Elementary School) For detailed qualifications requirements and job duties, please visit our website at https://www.district90.org/about/ employment for our complete list of employment opportunities. Interested candidates should complete the online application available at www.district90.org. Please do not send hard copies of supporting documentation, i.e. cover letters, resumes, licensure, etc. to River Forest Schools District 90; instead, upload these materials onto the online job application system for proper processing.
Hours will be variable between 20 and 32 per week and may include some night and/or weekend hours. Adult applicant should be out of high school and able to work with common power tools, including snow blowers, lawn mowers, drills and sanders.
ANIMAL CONTROL OFFICER The Village of Oak Park is seeking qualified candidates for the position of Animal Control Officer in the Health Department. This position will perform a variety of duties involved in enforcing Village ordinances governing the care and keeping of animals in the Village; and to impound, care for and assist with redemption of animals as appropriate. Applicants are encouraged to visit the Village of Oak Park’s website http://www. oak-park.us/jobs. Interested and qualified applicants must complete a Village of Oak Park application no later than August 3, 2021.
Applicant should be competent in painting, basic repairs and janitorial duties. This job requires climbing ladders and some heavy lifting- please do not apply if you cannot do physical work. Interested parties, please email your skills and contact information to: Lisa Tanzer at: LisaT@tenandfit.com
Starting a New Business? Call the experts before you place your legal ad! Publish your assumed name legal notice here. Call 708/613-3342
GRANTS SUPERVISOR The Village of Oak Park is seeking qualified candidates for the position of Grants Supervisor in the Development Customer Services Department. This position will perform a variety of responsible for developing. Administering and coordinating activities related to Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) and other grant-funded programs for the Village. Applicants are encouraged to visit the Village of Oak Park’s website http://www.oakpark.us/jobs. Position opened until filled.
SUBURBAN RENTALS
Join our team to help lead our program take its next steps! Beginning in early August, the Early Childhood Coordinator will assist teachers and enrichment staff utilize an emergent curriculum to develop thinkers and doers that are innovative, resilient, and compassionate. Partner with the Early Childhood Supervisor to provide a wonderful educational experience for our young students and their families. The ideal candidate has a passion for early childhood education, is nurturing, creative, responsible, communicates well with parents and colleagues, and collaborates with our team to provide a positive learning environment. Director qualified according Illinois DCFS regulations.
To view full job description and to apply. Go to www.pdop.org/jobs
SUBURBAN RENTALS
AustinWeeklyNews.com
OFFICE SPACE FOR RENT OAK PARK THERAPY OFFICE Oak Park: Free wifi; flexible leasing, and offices nicely furnished right down to the Kleenex. Secure building & friendly colleagues, often giving referrals to other office mates. Shared Waiting room, Conference room & option to join Peer Supervision Group. Ideal for new practice or 2nd location. 708-383-0729
FOREST PARK HIGHLY VISIBLE OFFICE/STORE AVAILABLE FOR LEASE 1350 SF w/ AC & HIGHLY VISIBLE MADISON STREET EXPOSURE. 7607 Madison Street. Village parking lot next door. Bright, clean office. Great Madison Street exposure! Call Francis 708-383-8574
ROOMS FOR RENT Large Sunny Room with fridge, microwave. Near Green line, bus, Oak Park, 24 hour desk, parking lot. $125.00. New Mgmt. 312-212-1212
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AUSTIN RENAISSANCE APARTMENTS
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CITY RENTALS
A HUD subsidized affordable Apartment property announces the opening of its waiting list for both One and Two Bedroom Apartments! 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 one to four persons. Properties feature modern kitchens, include appliances, and offer onsite maintenance. Austin Renaissance will accept requests for application packages by U.S. Mail postmarked no later than , September 15, 2021. 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 or Email requests to mrpaul.tcrg@gmail.com Application packages available by mail or email delivery only. No walk-ins accepted.
RIVERSIDE 3 FLAT FSBO Three above grade 2BR apts. Unfinished basement w/ laundry & 1/2 BA. 4 car brick garage. Zoned for residential and office, if desired. Well maintained. $529,000 BY APPOINTMENT ONLY 708-446-1324
PARK DISTRICT OF OAK PARK EARLY CHILDHOOD COORDINATOR
Apartment listings updated daily at: CITY RENTALS
SUBURBAN REAL ESTATE FOR SALE
Find your new apartment this Saturday from 10 am – 4pm at 35 Chicago Avenue. Or call us toll free at 1-833-440-0665 for an appointment.
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Austin Weekly News, July 28, 2021
PAINTING & DECORATING
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EQUAL HOUSING OPPORTUNITY All real estate advertising in this newspaper is subject to the Fair Housing Act, which makes it illegal to advertise any preference, limitation or discrimination based on age, race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status or national origin, or intention to make any such preferences, limitations or discrimination. The Illinois Human Rights Act prohibits discrimination in the sale, rental or advertising of real estate based on factors in addition to those protected under federal law. This newspaper will not knowingly accept any advertising for real estate which is in violation of the law. All persons are hereby informed that all dwellings advertised are available on an equal opportunity basis. Restrictions or prohibitions of pets do not apply to service animals. To complain of discrimination, call HUD toll free at: 1-800669-9777. Austin Weekly News
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
PUBLIC NOTICES
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REAL ESTATE FOR SALE
REAL ESTATE FOR SALE
REAL ESTATE FOR SALE
IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS COUNTY DEPARTMENT CHANCERY DIVISION DEUTSCHE BANK NATIONAL TRUST COMPANY, AS TRUSTEE FOR ARGENT SECURITIES INC., ASSET-BACKED PASSTHROUGH CERTIFICATES, SERIES 2005-W4 Plaintiff, -v.ROSEMARY ANDERSON, WILLIE ANDERSON, STATE OF ILLINOIS - DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA Defendants 2019CH13260 3916 W WILCOX ST CHICAGO, IL 60624 NOTICE OF SALE PUBLIC NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered in the above cause on April 26, 2021, an agent for The Judicial Sales Corporation, will at 10:30 AM on August 26, 2021, 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 3916 W WILCOX ST, CHICAGO, IL 60624 Property Index No. 16-14-102-0280000 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 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 (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) 236-SALE 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. 14-19-10514 Attorney ARDC No. 00468002 Attorney Code. 21762 Case Number: 2019CH13260 TJSC#: 41-827 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 # 2019CH13260 I3172858
Hire Local. Place an ad on AWN’s Local Online Job Board. Go to
AustinWeeklyNews.com/classified today!
Contact Mary Ellen Nelligan for more information. (773) 626-6332 • maryellen@austinweeklynews.com
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Austin Weekly News, July 28, 2021
I
Children suffer the sins of their parents
cannot disagree. Simone Biles is GOAT (greatest of all time)! As I watch her soar through the air during her routines, I can’t help but wonder where are all the other Simone Bileses that we will never know about? Biles’ backstory is not emphasized as much as it should be. That story is emblematic for a lot of stories within the black community. Her biological mother struggled with drug and alcohol addictions, which is not uncommon within a certain portion of the black community. Her mom was also a single mother — another far too common occurrence as well. At some points during Simone’s early years from the age of 2-5, she was sporadically placed in foster care because of her mother’s inability to care for her and her siblings. That, too, is an unfortunate reality occurring far too often, even though we are the most “social serviced” people ever. According to news reports, Simone’s mother’s father, Ron, would be notified every time his grandkids were put into the system. At some point, he stepped in and rescued all four children and had them come live with him in Texas. One would think that with the children finally in a stable environment, their mom would want the best for them. And she probably did. However she managed to convince the two oldest to return to Ohio with her and those two oldest were eventually adopted by Ron’s sister. Simone and her sister continued to live with Ron and were eventually adopted. The grandparents became the parents. Simone and her sister ended up in a stable environment. A daycare trip to the gymnasium began her journey into the
world of gymnastics. But even more than that, she was in an environment that allowed her to pursue her interest. Is there anybody who believes Simone would be the athlete she is today if she had remained with her mother? I don’t! If the black community suffers from anything, it is the numerous children who have had their dreams and interests squashed because they have drug- and alcohol-addicted parents. How many children cannot fulfill their dreams because the instability of the household doesn’t permit it? Why do people who cannot take care of the children that are already here, continue to have more? Why are they even having children? More interesting is that as the details came out regarding her past, Simone’s mother got indignant in the way that her father portrayed her. But isn’t that also a common problem within the black community? People never want to hear about the errors of their ways. And if they have to hear it, they want it painted in a more suitable light. But why? You do your dirt, why should we make it clean dirt? Why should struggles with drugs and alcohol be tolerated when in reality those two vices are the result of personal choice? Growing up, I always wondered why in church we were told that the sins of the father were suffered by the children. I remember how unfair that felt. But I see it now. The mistake parents make directly affects their children. And the careless procreation by adults brings forth children who suffer those consequences. I am sure that there are other children who could flip just like Simone or even better. Those children suffer from never having had the opportunity. They suffer their parents’ sins.
ARLENE JONES
“Where are all
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the other Simon Biles that we will never know about?”
AUSTIN WEEKLY NEWS Mail your letter to the editor to: Austin Weekly News, 141 S. Oak Park Ave., Oak Park, IL 60302 or email michael@austinweeklynews.com
Austin Weekly News, July 28, 2021
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West Side groups combating crime with community “The way we think about safety is having a healthy community,” said Brittany Spralls, an organizer with the North Lawndale Community Coordinating Council By PASCAL SABINO
CREDIT: ALONZO ALCARAZ
Block Club Chicago
West Side leaders know they face uphill battles in creating safer communities. Violence that shakes their neighborhoods — including two mass shootings over the weekend — results from deeply rooted problems, they say. To quell that, first they have to tackle a history of neglect that has left residents without adequate health care, education, housing, jobs and other critical services for generations. That’s what the North Lawndale Community Coordinating Council is trying to resolve. Through outreach that promotes peace, fosters community and connects people with vital resources, community organizers said they’re chipping away at the problems that
they hope will lead to less gun violence. “These are symptoms. This is a result of instability and racism as a whole,” said Brittany Spralls, chair of the coalition’s public safety committee. “And it is an epidemic, and one of the ways we can go about solving these things is making things more equitable across the board around education, housing, arts and culture, greening spaces. The way we think about safety is having a healthy community.” The council, a coalition of residents and organizations, has been implementing community improvements laid out in the North Lawndale Quality of Life Plan. At a recent meeting, they said they’re gaining traction
on some of their goals. “We recognize that addressing crime in North Lawndale is not just about using the tool of criminal justice,” said Rodney Brown, chair of the neighborhood’s economic development committee. “We’ve got to talk about housing. We’ve got to talk about education. We’ve got to talk about jobs. All those things have to be part of the tools we use to address the crime issue.” Members of the public safety committee plan outreach events throughout the summer to coordinate opportunities for antiviolence groups like UCAN and Lawndale Christian Legal Center to “meet people where they are to help them with the things
they need,” Spralls said. The coalition’s Light in the Night events build more community engagement in areas considered high-risk for crime. The Hoops in the Hood program gives young people positive activities to do in the summer. Members of the public safety committee also host peace circles and cookouts to build community connections. “You’ll always see us out in the community at different parks … trying to address the issue of creating safe and peaceful spaces. We are also there to engage the community and loop them into different services available in North Lawndale and provide them with wraparound spaces,” Spralls said. The One Lawndale Peace Party organized by the neighborhood’s arts and culture committee aims to build unity between North and South Lawndale so communities can work together to make both neighborhoods healthier, stronger and more peaceful. The One Lawndale Peace Party is scheduled for 11 a.m.-2 p.m. July 31 at Douglass Park, 2950 W. 19th Street. Subscribe to Block Club Chicago, an independent, 501(c)(3), journalist-run newsroom. Every dime we make funds reporting from Chicago’s neighborhoods.
CONTACT: pascal@blockclubchi.org
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Austin Weekly News, July 28, 2021