WednesdayJournal_090926

W E D N E S D A Y

September 9, 2026 Vol. 47, No. 11

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JOURNAL of Oak Park and River Forest

@oakpark

Oak Park Film Festival opens Sept. 16 Page 8

Review of Wallace shooting shifts to state’s attorney VILLAGE OF OAK PARK

Rendering of the Home Avenue pedestrian bridge

At Home Avenue, Oak Park plans ‘a statement’ with new bridge Interim Editor

The plan to rebuild the pedestrian bridge over the Ike at Home Avenue took

a major step ahead Sept. 1 when Oak Park’s village board chose one of three architectural designs and approved the broad financial obligations the project will require.

By DAN HALEY Interim Editor

In choosing Concept C, the board opted in a 6-1 vote for the design deemed the most architecturally notable with a goal

An Illinois State Police investigation of an officer involved shooting in Oak Park on May 31 has concluded. The results of the investigation have been turned over to the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office for its prosecutorial review, Wednesday Journal has confirmed.

Christian Wallace, 38, was pulled over for a traffic stop near Austin Blvd. and Harrison Street on Sunday evening, May 31. After he exited his car at the direction of the still-

See BRIDGE on page 15

See SHOOTING on page 14

High arches and a wider platform are featured

By DAN HALEY

With Illinois State Police investigation complete, state’s attorney determines if charges against officer are warranted

Follow us on Instagram! @wednesdayjournal Top stories, local government, features, events, dining, art, and sports right at your fingertips!

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Wednesday Journal, September 9, 2026

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W E D N E S D A Y

JOURNAL of Oak Park and River Forest

General Manager Max Reinsdorf Staff Reporters Hector Cervantes, Bill Dwyer, Jackie Pisano, Bob Skolnik, Gregg Voss Sports Reporters Melvin Tate, Bill Stone News Intern Sydney Lovan Viewpoints Editor Ken Trainor Real Estate Editor Lacey Sikora Contributing Editor Donna Greene Columnists Marc Blesoff, Nicole Chavas, Jack Crowe, Vincent Gay, Mary Kay O’Grady, John Stanger, Josh VanderBerg Shrubtown Cartoonist Marc Stopeck Editorial & Digital Design Lead Javier Govea Design and Production Associate De Sergio Villalona LOOPNET.COM

11 W. Madison Ave., site of the current U.S. Bank, future site of the Oak Park Police Department.

U.S. Bank moving across Madison, easing path to new police station Zoning board approves drive-thru variations for bank’s new location

By DAN HALEY Interim Editor

With a quick and unanimous vote by Oak Park’s Zoning Board of Appeals, plans for the village to move ahead with a new police station at the site of the U.S. Bank building at Madison Street and Austin Boulevard came closer to reality.

The zoning board on Sept. 2 granted the bank two variations allowing it to install drive-thru banking lanes behind a different building that the bank has now leased at Madison Street and Humphrey, kittycorner from its current location.

That 1960s-era two-story office building is currently vacant, having last been operated as a childcare facility. An attorney for the bank told the zoning board that U.S. Bank would “relocate” from its current site and become a tenant and operator at 44 Madison St.

The Oak Park village government has been working to acquire the existing bank since U.S. Bank first put it on the market for sale. Initially, the bank said it would oppose the sale as its goal was to sell the building but remain as a tenant there.

Oak Park has threatened to use eminent domain as a means to obtain the site for a new police station. It has also worked with state Sen. Don Harmon and the Pritzker administration to gain quick take authority to force a sale.

Vicki Scaman, Oak Park village president, told Wednesday Journal Sept. 4 that while there is no final purchase agreement that “conversations are progressing normally” with the bank and that the “conversations have moved forward.”

The village board recently approved funding to move the police station project into a more active design phase. Renderings of the proposed station have now been

released along with new and somewhat lower cost estimates. An earlier estimate put the price of the new station at $63.7 million. The revised estimate is $57.6 million.

The bank went to the zoning board because any new drive-thru facility on Madison Street requires a special use allowance.

Additionally, because the bank seeks two drive-thru lanes on the north side of the 44 Madison St. site, it needed an additional variation as the limited space does not allow for bailout lanes which are now commonly required.

With a minimum of discussion, the zoning board unanimously approved the zoning changes. The bank’s representatives did not offer a time frame for the new location to be made operational.

The bank’s attorney said U.S. Bank will “modernize and reactivate a vacant building.” It will also add landscaping to the 32-space parking lot.

Designer Susan McKelvey Sports Photographer Steve Johnston Senior Media Strategist Lourdes Nicholls Marketing & Advertising Associate Emma Cullnan Legal Notices Mary Ellen Nelligan Circulation Manager Jill Wagner Operations Associate Susan Liss Babin Social Media and Digital Coordinator Maribel Barrera Senior Advisor Dan Haley

H OW TO R E ACH US P.O. Box 6670, River Forest, IL 60305 ■ PHONE (708) 613-3300 ■ EMAIL dhaley@newswellchicago.org ■ ONLINE www.OakPark.com

CIRCULATION Jill Wagner • jill@oakpark.com • (708) 613-3340 PRINT/DIGITAL ADVERTISING Lourdes Nicholls • lourdes@oakpark.com • Ext. 3329 Emma Cullnan • emma@oakpark.com • Ext. 3304 CALENDAR EVENTS calendar@wjinc.com Wednesday Journal is published weekly by NEWSWELL Chicago.

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Wednesday Journal, September 9, 2026

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Trustee Derek Eder speaks during the village board meeting on Aug. 25.

History of zoning will be topic of planned panel discussion Oak Park trustees want to add historical context to zoning debate

By DAN HALEY Interim Editor

As it continues its community engagement process related to overhauling Oak Park’s single-family zoning policies, the village board on Sept. 1 approved a plan to host a panel of experts to discuss the history of zoning in the village.

Trustees voted unanimously in support of a motion brought by Chibuike Enyia and Derek Eder to have the Community Relations Commission and the village government’s DEI department plan the event.

“There is a lot of information and misinformation out there” related to the proposed zoning changes, said Eder. He said the new session will “bring historical context to the issue.”

Village President Vicki Scaman said the

presentation will “educate us” on the board and that “it is very important to learn from history.”

Trustee Cory Wesley has spoken plainly on his views of the origins of single-family zoning, both in Oak Park and across the nation, as an exclusionary policy targeting Black and Brown people. He said, “People are not going to like what they find out,” in the history lesson. Zoning history, he said, “is downright icky in a lot of places.”

Village Manager Kevin Jackson said the comments from trustees were “spot on. I appreciate this motion.” Jackson said the panel will likely include the director of the Oak Park River Forest Museum and academics. A date for the panel has not been set.

Wesley said he hopes the event will be “talking to people who are silent, but who are listening. We do not want to let ignorance prevail.”

Scaman closed the conversation and said, “Oak Parkers are willing to engage in a genuine way. We have great pride (in our history) but there is still a truth to be told.”

Wednesday Journal, September 9, 2026

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Wednesday Journal, September 9, 2026

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Imagine Foundation hits $12.2M toward OPRF goal Group also plans to raise money for Act 3, the arts project

By BOB SKOLNIK

fiscal year and $500,000 each in the three fiscal years after that.

The Imagine Foundation is also taking The Imagine Foundation committed to credit for a $3.5 million state construction contributing $12.5 million toward the ap- grant that OPRF received and is counting proximately $102 million cost of Project that towards its $12.5 million commitment.

2, the new physical and athletics focused The Imagine Foundation did the prelimisoutheast corner of Oak Park and River For- nary work in identifying the grant and workest High School. The nearly complete project ing with State Senator Don Harmon’s office includes a long sought new swimming pool to help OPRF apply for the grant. OPRF expects to receive the state grant this school and a new third floor gym.

Thus far the Imagine Foundation has year.

Funds contributed to OPRF by the Imagturned over only $5 million to OPRF. But ine Foundation thus far have not to worry, another $1 million been used to reimburse OPRF check is expected to be gifted for some of the payments it has to OPRF by the end of the year already made in connection and Heidi Ruehle, the executive with Project 2. OPRF will use director of the Imagine Founmoney from its operating funds dation, says the foundation has to pay for Project 2 expenses that raised or has commitments for future donations from the Imag$12.2 million and fundraising efine Foundation would theoretiforts are continuing. cally cover.

Because some of the larger “All Imagine donations will be donations to the Imagine FounHEIDI RUEHLE accounted for in the Capital Projdation are given over a multiects Fund since they are devoted year period the foundation is to Project 2,” said OPRF Director expected to be donating money to of Finance Brian Imhoff in an email. “In the OPRF for Project 2 until 2030.

“The majority of our donations are one short term, we are transferring money from time donors or possibly someone who wants the operating funds to cover the donations to give annually but they don’t have a multi- that are yet to be received. For donations year gift agreement, but that said there is a that arrive after the completion of Project 2, we will essentially be paying back the operatlarger percentage of funds that are part of those (multiyear) gift agreements,” Ruehle ing funds by having to transfer less for our 10-Year Maintenance Plan capital projects in said.

OPRF’s five-year financial projections those years.”

The foundation is continuing its fundraisproject the school will receive $1.5 million from the Imagine Foundation in the current ing efforts and last month sent out postcards 2026-27 fiscal year, $1 million in the 2027-28 to all of River Forest and northwest Oak Staff Reporter

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Ruehle said that fundraising will likely continue even after Project 2 is completed.

“Since we are reimbursing the school for expenses related to Project 2 our fundraising doesn’t end just because the project is completed so our fundraising will continue until we meet our commitment to the high school,” Ruehle said. “Our intention is to continue to raise funds until we meet our goal. Our goal is actually $15 million.”

Ruehle said the goal of raising $15 million is, in part, to cover the Imagine Foundation’s expenses, which includes staff salaries and fundraising expenses.

“We are 100% confident that we will definitely accomplish the 12.5 (million dollars) commitment to the high school but we need to raise money in addition to that to be able to cover the last four or five years of expenses, fundraising expenses,” Ruehle said. “We do need to raise above and beyond that.”

As the saying goes it costs money to raise money. The Imagine Foundation’s largest expense is salaries. The Imagine Foundation has three employees, two full time and one part time. According to the Imagine Foundation’s 2024 tax return, the most recent available on the IRS website, the Imagine Foundation spent $325,939 on salaries in 2024.

Ruehle said part of the contributions of some early donors were set aside to pay

for salaries and other expenses.

“We have board members who committed early on that they would use part of their contribution to pay for expenses so if a community member is donating they can feel certain that their money is going directly to Project 2,” Ruehle said. “But then we do need to raise above that 12.5 (million dollars) to even that out.”

Ruehle said she is proud that that the Imagine Foundation has more than 500 distinct donors. But large donations account for a substantial portion of money the foundation has raised. Ruehle cited the 80/20 rule which in fundraising states that 80% of money raised comes from 20% of donors.

The Imagine Foundation was co-founded in 2019 by current Imagine Foundation Board President Emeritus Stephen Schuler, a 1980 graduate of OPRF, and Lynn Kamenista to support the facilities improvement plans created at OPRF in what was called the Imagine process.

Ruehle said that if and when the OPRF District 200 Board of Education decides to go forward with arts focused Act 3, the next stage of the five phase Imagine plan, the Imagine Foundation will be there ready to help out.

“If and when Project 3 gets started then we’ll switch our fundraising efforts toward that project,” Ruehle said. “We’ll follow their lead in that but our intention is to raise funds for Project 3 when it’s time.”

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Wednesday Journal, September 9, 2026

Demolition begins on burned North Avenue building

OAK PARK FILM SCREENINGS

Property owner obtains permit after paying thousands in fees

By SYDNEY LOVAN Reporting Intern

Wednesday, September 16 6:15 - 8:45 pm

health, safety and welfare for this court to issue injunctive relief in favor of the village and against defendants, including but not limited to requiring Sameer Chhabria and U.S. Bank, joint and several, to demolish the building or in alternative authorize the village to demolish the structure and assess and lien costs to the subject property,” wrote village attorneys in a court filing in April.

The legal battle to get the building demolished was not the first between the village and Chhabria as they had been locked in court for a large portion of the past two years, as previously reported.

Village inspections revealed many health

The severely damaged apartment building on the corner of Taylor and North Avenues is finally getting demolished after a months-long legal process.

A fire burned through the property at 1239 N. Taylor Ave., on Feb. 17 this year for over 10 hours and required 4 million gallons of water to put out according to a court filing by village attorneys and previously reported by Wednesday Journal.

Demolition began last Friday, Sept. 4, starting with the southern portion of the building and is being completed by property owner Sameer Chhabria according to village government.

Chhabria received a village demolition permit on Aug. 25, 2026, after paying $13,300 in permitting fees and also has obtained the necessary Cook County permit.

Demolition is expected to go on for about a week and a half, per the contractor, wrote a governSYDNEY LOVAN ment spokesperson in an An excavator moves debris at the fi re-damaged North/Tayemail to Wednesday Journal. Once the structure is lor Avenue apartment building on Sept. 8 in Oak Park. demolished, the permit outlines that debris is not allowed on site for more than seven days and the site is to be and safety violations such as open elecleveled and turned to grass within 60 days. tric boxes and raw sewage leakage.

According to the motion in May, the vilAfter being leveled and seeded, the security lage was notified that squatters had taken fence should be taken down.

The Village of Oak Park filed an emer- shelter in the building, and Chhabria told gency motion on Feb. 20 to get permission to Wednesday Journal in February, that the knock the building down. They filed again presence of squatters is what led to the for the same thing multiple times with the deterioration of the building. He shared fifth, and last, verified emergency motion in that some contractors refused to work on the building prior to the fire because of late May. “It is in the best interest of the public their presence as well.

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Wednesday Journal, September 9, 2026

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Third year for Oak Park’s film festival

Festival opens Sept. 16 with local people, places and Tavi Gevinson

By JACKIE PISANO Staff Reporter

Venice. Cannes. Toronto. Sundance.

Tribeca. South by Southwest.

And — Oak Park?

Major film festivals have long taken center stage as vital cultural and commercial launchpads connecting visionary directors and renowned filmmakers with audiences and critics. But in 2023, a group of Oak Park creatives came together to establish the village’s very own film festival, proving masterful cinema and storytelling doesn’t just happen on global stages.

Now in its third year, the Oak Park - IL Film Festival (OPILFF) has established itself as a celebration of independent cinema right in our own backyard — an annual event honoring filmmakers who share a deep-rooted bond with the community through projects spotlighting Oak Park through content, casting, crew or setting.

This year’s fest kicks off Wednesday, Sept. 16, with a special Opening Night program at the Lake Theatre, 1022 Lake St., featuring a Hollywood film with a special Oak Park connection — 2013’s “Enough Said,” starring the late James Gandolfini, Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Oak Park native Tavi Gevinson.

Gevinson, who launched fashion blog, “Style Rookie,” at age 11 founded the iconic “Rookie Magazine” just four years later, quickly becoming a global sensation and one of the most distinctive voices of her generation. Following her 2014 graduation from Oak Park and River Forest High School, Gevinson expanded her reach into acting, landing celebrated roles on both Broadway (“This Is Our Youth,” “The Crucible”) and television (“Scream Queens,” “Gossip Girl”).

Prior to screening Gevinson’s film, the film fest’s Opening Night will feature a special video interview, filmed especially for the event.

The festival continues Saturday, Sept. 19 and Sunday, Sept. 20 at Madison Street Theater, 1010 Madison St., transforming the small stage theater into a cinema venue for a jam-packed weekend of all things movies.

The weekend marks the indie film-portion of the festival, where audiences will have the opportunity to enjoy 31 films from across a variety of genres, including documentaries and shorts — all with an Oak Park connection. The festival will also feature industry professionals sharing insights and experiences with attendees, along with food complimentary from Oak Park restaurants.

Joyce Porter, an Oak Park resident and SAG-AFTRA actress, model and voiceover talent, is the festival’s founder and board president. For over 20 years, she served on the board of Oak Park Festival Theatre, and as someone familiar with the film festival circuit both across the U.S. and abroad, she felt that Oak Park’s reputation as a vibrant, arts-centric community gave the village the perfect potential to host a strong local film festival.

“In 2023, I made a Facebook post to see who would also be interested in helping organize a film festival in Oak Park,” she said. “The right people showed up, and we created a board that was talented to bring it together.”

After one year of planning, the Oak Park - IL Film Festival launched in September 2024.

At first, Porter says, it was a bit of an experiment to see how many films would actually be submitted. Three years in, she says the board gets more film submissions than they can show.

“Oak Park is a unique community,” she said. “There are not many other communities, other than a large city, where you could actually have all the films have connection to that community — and have enough creative people that there would be more than enough films to show.”

This year, 44 films were submitted to the festival, with final selections made by the event’s 13-member board.

Porter says Opening Night sets the stage for a cinema fest with locally-focused glitz and glamour.

“Opening Night is elegant,” she said.

“People can have their photos taken by a professional photographer in front of a backdrop, and a lot of people dress up for

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Board members and volunteers of the Oak Park - IL Film Festival promote this year’s event at the village’s Thursday Night Out this summer. the evening.”

Oak Park resident Katelyn Capri Zenie, a producer and production designer in Chicago’s indie film scene, is participating in the event for the first time as the festival’s manager.

While she’s worked in the Chicago-area film space for over a decade, Zenie says joining the film fest’s team has shown her even more of the artistic talents that thrive within the Oak Park community.

“Since joining the hyperlocal filmmakers community within Oak Park, I’m learning that there’s more and more creative people within Oak Park,” Zenie said. “It’s been helpful to see that, and I feel like I’ve gained a lot of new friends just this year.

It feels really validating and goes to show that we have so much more to offer within Oak Park and how we can contribute to the bigger picture of Chicagoland.”

After the 2024 and 2025 festivals, Porter says feedback from audiences and participants about the fest has been nothing but positive.

“Everyone loves it,” she said. “We do a survey to people who attend the festival asking for their feedback, and one of the questions is, ‘Would you come back next year?’ I’ve never seen anyone say ‘no.’”

Porter adds that the growing success of the film festival proves Oak Park is not just a creative hub, but a community eager to embrace new traditions and celebrate diverse arts.

“The festival shows that there is so much creativity in Oak Park,” she said. “We have excellent films — and an advantage over most film festivals in that a lot of film festivals you go to, people have to fly in, and only sometimes does everyone show up.

But in our case, because it is locally oriented, we have almost all the directors there for the Q&A and you get to see them, hear from them and connect with them.

That makes it very special.”

Zenie agrees, adding that unlike other film fests, Oak Park’s provides more flexibility for producers and their entries — notably, not having a time limit as to how long ago submitted films were produced.

“A lot of the filmmakers are able to contribute their works they’ve produced over time,” she said. “Films take many years to produce, and this way, they’re still able to show their films to their local community and connect with their neighbors. This year in particular, I feel like we’ve really reached an ever deeper kind of audience within the Oak Park

Wednesday Journal, September 9, 2026

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The hidden history of a local hero

25 years after 9/11, Brookfield filmmaker debuts documentary at Oak Park Film Festival about a La Grange native’s, historic mission to combat terror

By JACKIE PISANO

nomination for best long-form documentary.

Scaletta, the owner of Motion Source Film Studio in Brookfield, teamed up with When the events of Sept. 11, 2001 come his wife, Stephanie (a former staff member to mind, most people picture the horrors for outreach with Oak Park Township), who endured by the victims of the hijacked air- served as executive producer, to create “Nasplanes, inside the Twin Towers and at the ty,” recalling both the harrowing details of Pentagon. They also recall the brave first re- what Nash witnessed on 9/11 and stories of sponders at Ground Zero, the lifelong trauma the man behind the uniform from those closof both survivors and victims’ families, and est to him.

The idea for the film came after Scaletta, a the heavy toll paid by soldiers who fought high school friend of Nash, was inspired to overseas in the resulting war on terror.

However, unseen in public memory is the create a float for the annual La Grange Pet story of Lt. Colonel Daniel “Nasty” Nash — Parade in 2021 in Nash’s honor.

Initially, Scaletta was going to create a an F15 fighter pilot who, on the chaotic morning of 9/11, was tasked with scrambling into randomly themed Evel Knievel float for audiences. Instead, as Scaletta found out about action from Otis Air National Guard Base off Cape Cod, Mass. with his wingman, blasting Nash’s untimely passing at age 54 that June, into supersonic speed to intercept what was his idea pivoted from a float of fun to one of believed to be a hijacked commercial airliner. honor, building an F15-themed float dedicatAlthough the attacks on American soil end- ed to Nash.

When Scaletta began building the float, he ed that day, their effects on Nash, a La Grange native and 1984 graduate of Lyons Township considered making a short documentary of the float’s creation.

High School, did not.

“When you’re doing a documentary, you’re In a powerful new documentary created

by Nash’s high school classmate and friend, kind of just filming everything and everyJohn Scaletta, “Nasty: The Battle After the body around what’s happening, and then at Mission” shares with audiences the story of 212 S Marion Street Fl G the end, trying to make something out of it,” Nash’s local background, his heroic efforts he said. “I thought, ‘Let’s just film the buildon the day of the deadliest Oak Park, IL terrorist 60302attacks ing of the float and see what we get.’”

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Monday & Friday 9am-5pm After being warmly received at film festi- a light-hearted film to one honoring the life vals across the country, including the film’s of a local American military hero.

Tues/Wed/Thurs 9am-7pm Originally planned to be a 10-minute short screen debut at La Grange Theatre in May, Saturday 9am-12pm “Nasty” has been selected for screening at film, Scaletta’s project quickly expanded into the Oak Park - IL Film Festival, along with a a 42-minute biographical film on Nash — an Staff Reporter

ambitious five-year undertaking which was supported by the help of over 50 people.

“The intention was always to be a short documentary, but as I started to film and then interview Dan’s brother, Brendan, I realized we needed more interviews — and it just grew and grew,” he said.

“Nasty” maps Nash’s life growing up in La Grange and his early military career to recalling the moments which led Nash to being one of two pilots scrambled on the morning of 9/11 — exploring how those events ultimately led to his death.

“Some people were fine after 9/11, and some people weren’t,” Scaletta said. “Dan was one of those guys — he was never the same after that day. He had PTSD and was never able to shake it.”

Shortly after 9/11, Nash began drinking

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community itself. We’re really excited.”

Zenie hopes locals will attend the fest for its focus as a hyperlocal celebration of storytelling from all walks of life.

“There’s not a specific genre of film — it’s all that’s from Oak Park, and you really get to build up other creatives around you and the community at large,” Zenie said.

Porter adds the fest provides more of an inclusive and immersive experience than

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heavily. As Scaletta says, Nash’s life “quickly spiraled out of control.”

While Nash eventually received an honorable discharge from the military, the effects of his service on Sept. 11 lingered. Nearly 20 years after the attack, Nash died, leaving behind three children, his mother, three siblings and countless extended family, friends and former Air Force comrades.

“His brother, Brendan, was very receptive to be a part of the project to honor his brother,” Scaletta said. “We really wanted to highlight Dan as a hero, because he was for what he did for the country. Brendan said it best: over 20 years later, 9/11 took his brother. That interview was a poignant moment of the film. It was true — had 9/11 not happened, we don’t think Dan would have ever started drinking.”

Upon the film’s completion, Scaletta says first sharing the film in May with local audiences in Nash’s hometown — and with a hyperlocal audience — felt like a profound, emotional homecoming.

“It meant a lot to me, and I know it meant a lot to his family, to have the film premiere at the La Grange Theatre because Dan lived just down the street on La Grange Road and used to see films at the theater when he was a little kid,” he said. “We thought it was pretty special for the film to come full circle back to the La Grange Theatre.”

Scaletta says there was not a dry eye in the theater when Nash’s family, friends and even

PROVIDED

Lt. Col. Daniel “Nasty” Nash died in June 2021 due to the effects of PTSD and alcoholism. strangers first saw the film.

“There were a lot of people who didn’t know Dan’s full story, including myself, until we had all these interviews from talking to different people,” he said. “To put all of that into one film was pretty powerful.”

While 9/11 is still in the memory of those who were alive to remember the day’s catastrophic events and its resulting global effects, Scaletta hopes “Nasty” helps audiences both reflect on a local hero’s story from the day and give younger audiences the opportunity to learn the significance of the day, along with the story behind someone whose life was forever changed because of it.

“The whole idea is to get as many people to learn about Dan and his story and the 9/11 angle,” he said.

Including La Grange and Oak Park, so far, “Nasty” has been picked up by 16 film festivals across the U.S. The film will screen on Sunday, Sept. 10 at 10:30 a.m. at Madison Street Theater, 1010 Madison St.

PROVIDED

Scaletta’s 2021 La Grange Pet Parade F15 float in honor of Nash

Wednesday Journal, September 9, 2026

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11

Mars development at crossroads as groups demand less housing In response to community unity letter, Mars and developer say public will be engaged in amending site plans

By JESSICA MORDACQ Staff Reporter

A multi-year community planning process to redevelop the now-shuttered Mars Wrigley candy plant in Galewood has come to a crossroads. This summer, four community organizations came together in opposition to a developer’s plan and seek to restart the planning effort. But Mars said that would be repetitive and aims to engage the community while moving forward with the developer, McCaffrey Interests.

In 2024, the former Mars Wrigley candy plant at 2019 N. Oak Park Ave. in Galewood closed its 20-acre manufacturing site after 95 years. Following multiple public meetings and months of community engagement, locals are dissatisfied with the direction that the developer is headed.

Last month, local organizations met with Ald. Chris Taliaferro and signed a unity letter that says, “We are in agreement that the current redevelopment proposal for the Galewood Mars factory site from McCaffery Interests, Inc. falls short of community expectations. The current proposal is too strongly focused on housing and lacks details for future use of the landmark building.”

The letter was signed by Austin Coming Together, Galewood Montclare Community Organization, Galewood Neighbors and Northwest Center Chicago. They recommend that, come fall, Mars reenlists Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC), a national nonprofit that often facilitates discussions between community groups and businesses.

On Sept. 2, Mars sent the community groups a response, saying that reengaging LISC would be repetitive and set back the timeline for redevelopment.

“We agree the next engagement phase should be professionally-facilitated, respectful of all participants, and open to all voices.

We would also welcome LISC to be involved in future meetings if they desire,” said Jesse Greenberg, Mars Snacking local affairs director, in the letter. “There are housing mix and the historic building use details being worked out by the McCaffery team. Once that work reaches a point where we have an update to bring to the community, we will reach out to this group to help organize the next meeting.”

Steve Green, chairperson for Galewood Neighbors, told Austin Weekly News after receiving Greenberg’s letter, “We’re not starting over. We have a proposal from a developer, so that’s the basis for the next conversations.”

Mars hired LISC in 2022 to create a community-driven plan for new development where the Mars factory sits.

“Over the past four years, we have closely collaborated with community groups, LISC and our chosen developer, McCaffery Interests, to map the next best use for the existing manufacturing site. This collaboration continues today,” a Mars spokesperson told Austin Weekly News. “As conversations progress, we remain committed to working constructively with our partners and members of the community for an outcome that reflects our shared commitment to the neighborhood.”

As a result of community meetings, in 2023, LISC released a report that said community members wanted a mixed-use site with community areas, green space, housing and small businesses. They also wanted to maintain the facade of the Mars Wrigley headquarters facing Oak Park Avenue.

Last December, McCaffrey — who, like other bidders, submitted a proposal and was evaluated based on how well they aligned with the mission of Mars and the surrounding Galewood community — presented its plans to the community, including 150 senior living units, 197 multi-housing units and 132 townhome units. Plans also include a 64,000-square-foot multipurpose space for events.

According Green, LISC reported that the community wanted three acres of housing, but McCaffrey’s plan had closer to 12 acres.

“There wasn’t much discussion about any community amenities, which obviously cost money and they don’t want to focus on that until they get approval for the amount of housing, or what’s going to make them money,” Green said. “But the community wants to know the opposite — What’s in it for them?”

Dan McCaffrey, CEO of McCaffrey Interests, told Austin Weekly News that he’s open to amending the housing plan for the Mars factory site.

Using a hypothetical number of residences, McCaffrey said, “If I say ‘1,000’ and someone says, ‘No, you can’t do 1,000.’ I can’t go

from 1,000 to 10. Maybe it goes from 1,000 to 850.”

Green is also hopeful that there can be compromise on the site’s housing.

“In 2022, there were people who came to those [LISC] community meetings who didn’t want any housing at all,” Green said.

“After small group conversations where everyone’s voice was able to be heard, that final template created by the community actually has some housing on it.”

McCaffrey said their plan for the Mars site develops 55% of the property into housing, and 45% would remain streets, a park, open space and a parking lot.

McCaffrey added that, if residents want to leave 17 acres of the 20-acre site without housing, “Who pays for it? OK let’s put flowers down, who plants them every spring?

How much does that cost? Where’s the landscaping company that’s going to cut the lawn? Who pays for the lights to make sure that that 17 acres doesn’t become vagrancy?”

And many factors in the building process are outside McCaffrey Interests’ control, the CEO said — Mainly, the cost of infrastructure to install sewers, water pipes, streetlights and roads. Whatever McCaffrey Interests builds has to cover those costs, and the more houses there are, the better the cost per house.

“The LISC report was not an economic report. The LISC report was a wish list of potential community uses,” McCaffrey said.

But Green said there could be ways besides housing to meet economic goals.

“The thing we don’t know and the community doesn’t know, and McCaffrey does know, is what’s the minimum amount of housing that could go in there?” Green said.

“What other things could go in there besides housing that could help pay for itself ?”

McCaffrey told Austin Weekly News, “There is a number against which you have to build. ...Until you know the plan, you don’t know the cost.”

What comes next?

After a handful of meetings with community groups this year, earlier this summer, some met with Ald. Taliaferro twice to discuss next steps — once in July with Mars present, and a few weeks ago without the property owner there.

“We needed to have all the commu-

nity leaders talk freely and come to an agreement on how to move forward. If the community can’t come together, it doesn’t make sense to have more meetings with Mars,” Green said. “All along they’ve wanted to do something more for the community. …Their intention has always been really good, but I think a lot of people, including them, didn’t realize how difficult a process it is.”

“It’s a very legitimate crossroads of a lot of good intentions,” McCaffrey agreed.

“This is an expected part of the process.

People in the community, I’m not there; they’re there. They’ve been there a long time, and they get nervous and/or overexpectant. He added that McCaffrey representatives try to “be patient, listen, modify where possible, try to be persuasive where things aren’t possible, and work together.”

In their unity letter, community groups said they also wanted to work together: “Most importantly, we are in agreement on the need for everyone to come together as a community and have a rational, detailed conversation on the future of the Mars site.

We all want an approach that should result in a productive and transparent process to reset everyone’s efforts in developing an equitable and feasible plan.”

“I would like nothing more than unity, but it’s got to be unity around a plan, not obstruction,” McCaffrey said. “What I think will happen — whether it’s McCaffrey or the man in the moon, next month or 10 years from now — there will be a prudent development on that site,” McCaffrey said. He cites its vicinity to Chicago and a community railroad, plus potential tax money generation as draws of developing the property with housing.

Green said, though Mars made an unusual move in engaging the community before putting the property on the market, he would be disappointed if Mars reverted to the industry standard.

“Most corporations, if they close the factory, hand the keys over to a commercial real estate company and say goodbye. What Mars is trying to do is unique,” Green said.

“My worst-case scenario is Mars says, ‘We tried, but obviously the community doesn’t want to agree on anything or compromise on anything, so we’ll just put it on the market as an industrial site.’ …It doesn’t have to have anything for the community.”

12

Wednesday Journal, September 9, 2026

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Pact on vaulted sidewalks under the Avenue project nearly finalized

es, said the village attorneys. However, in Still awaiting signature from order for the agreement to “be fully executed” the village still needs both of the Busbuilding owner houses’ signatures and was seeking those

By DAN HALEY Interim Editor

Addressing what might be an obstacle in completing the Oak Park Avenue streetscaping project by a Thanksgiving deadline, Oak Park’s village board Sept.

1 approved an agreement with a property owner to fill in nearly 200-feet of vaulted space under sidewalks adjacent to a mixeduse building at Oak Park and Lake.

As of Sept. 8, the owners of the Scoville Block #1 Building, James and Noreen Bushouse, have not signed off on the agreement. However, lawyers for the village government said, through Dan Yopchick, its spokesperson, that it has obtained signatures from the Chicago Title Land Trust which manages a trust for the Bushouses.

The trust would not have signed the agreement without direction from the Bushous-

signatures as of Sept. 8.

It is a long and strange story that goes back over a century to when the multi-story building was constructed with vaulted sidewalks along Oak Park Avenue from 116 to 136 North. Legal ownership of the space has never been fully resolved and in recent decades, Bushouse has, he says with village permits, installed various mechanical systems critical to his building in the space.

In anticipation of the major water, sewer and streetscaping project, village officials have been negotiating with the Bushouses for months seeking their agreement to remove those systems and fill the void under the sidewalk with “light weight cellular concrete.” Contractors would then lay a new sidewalk over the concrete.

The agreement passed by the village board Sept. 1 as part of its consent agenda, said the owners of the building would be

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Agreement on the vaulted sidewalks under this stretch of Oak Park Avenue will help move construction along. responsible for the “removal of certain utilities and mechanical facilities” from the existing space. Those systems include steam heat, an air intake vent system and a fire suppression system.

Bushouse has claimed that the vaulted sidewalks should be considered a historic landmark and therefore be protected. He has also argued in interviews with Wednesday Journal that the village approved his use of the open space for building systems and those uses should be honored.

With the completion of the underground sewer work now accomplished, a concrete street on the 100 block of North Avenue is currently being poured. Installing a brick street on top of the concrete will follow.

However, replacing the sidewalks remains an essential aspect of the project.

The village closed Oak Park Avenue from

Randolph to Ontario in March. The street remains closed in the commercial areas from Lake Street to Pleasant. Village officials have pledged the street will reopen by Thanksgiving in time for the holiday shopping season.

In an interview last week, Bill McKenna, village engineer, said Thanksgiving was “an aggressive timeline” and some “punch list” items may carry over into early 2027.

But he said the street should be open as promised and that the overall project “is trending under budget.”

Vicki Scaman, Oak Park village president, said of the sidewalk issue, “I will watch it very closely. The agreement allows us to stay on time and under budget. I’ve been assured that the work has progressed and that staff ’s understanding is that this will move forward.”

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SHOOTING

State’s attorney to review from page 1 unidentified officer, the officer patted him down and detected a handgun. An extended, hand-to-hand fight ensued near gas pumps at the Shell station for control of the weapon. Eventually, Wallace regained the gun and was then shot multiple times by the Oak Park officer. Wallace died of those injuries.

Oak Park police turned the investigation of the shooting over to the Illinois State Police Public Integrity Unit. As is protocol, once that investigation was completed, it was turned over to the local state’s attorney’s office for review and a determination of whether criminal charges against the officer were warranted.

In response to an inquiry from the Journal, the state’s attorney’s office said in a Sept.

3 email, “We can confirm that the matter is under review by prosecutors in our Law Enforcement Review Unit (LERU), who review investigations of all on-duty officer involved shootings to determine if criminal charges

are appropriate. We are unable to further comment at this time.”

On Sept. 4 a spokesperson for the village of Oak Park wrote in an email that, “The village has been made aware that the investigation has been submitted to the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office for review. As the investigation remains active and ongoing in that regard, we will not make any additional comment at this time. We will defer to the state’s attorney’s office for any future updates on the status of its review.”

In response to community concerns over the traffic stop and the shooting, the village of Oak Park released officer worn body camera, dash cam and gas station security footage of the incident on June 30. That video also reported that Wallace was pulled over for failing to signal a lane change on Austin Blvd. In July, the village board took steps to limit the reasons officers can use to initiate a traffic stop. It also turned to its Citizen Police Oversight Committee and a consultant to undertake a more thorough policy review related to traffic stops.

The May 31 officer involved shooting was the first to result in a death in nearly 40 years. The officer remains on medical leave.

Wednesday Journal, September 9, 2026

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15

BRIDGE

Ambitious redo planned from page 1 of building a bridge that would be seen by the 200,000 vehicles on the Eisenhower Expressway each day as a “gateway to the village.”

The architect described the bridge design as “simple and elegant” with its high arches and cable structure. The design also includes illumination of the arches, the platform and the underside of the bridge.

“Rarely do we get to make a forever statement with a modest cost,” Village President Vicki Scaman said. “It is an investment.”

Scaman said the expanded and more accessible pedestrian and bicycle bridge will allow for a greater connection between Oak Parkers to the north and the south of the I290 highway.

She said Oak Park is known for its art, architecture, net zero buildings and Percy Julian — “And now you can say, immediately, ‘And that bridge.’”

The construction timeline of the new bridge is “a little up in the air” but will not take place until at least 2030, said Bill McKenna, Oak Park’s village engineer, in an interview with Wednesday Journal. Still ahead are further discussions with the Illinois Department of Transportation on funding and other logistical issues, he said.

The full cost of the new bridge will be

VILLAGE OF OAK PARK

Rendering of the new Home Avenue pedestrian bridge just more than $15 million. In discussions with the Illinois Department of Transportation dating back to 2016, the state government agency said at that time it would pay $6 million to build a standard-issue pedestrian bridge. Oak Park and its consultants are counting on IDOT agreeing now to spend somewhere in the range of $8 million to $10 million to build the new bridge.

That will leave a considerable funding gap that the village government will now seek to fill with additional grants before

TODD BANNOR

Demonstrators protest ICE killings in Minneapolis on the Home Avenue pedestrian bridge over the Eisenhower Expressway on Jan. 24.

any final construction is approved.

McKenna said the village will “aggressively pursue” new funding sources.

In approving the costliest of the three bridge designs, trustees said the cost differential among the options was about $600,000.

The public was invited to evaluate the three bridge options in July and expressed a slight preference for Concept C. The village’s plan commission also reviewed the three designs and strongly preferred the third option. Mike Sturino, chair of the commission, told the board that one commissioner summed up the feelings of the group when she said that Concept C “made her happy.” He said the new bridge would be a “unique landmark.”

The new bridge would be built at a slightly different angle and stretch some 300 feet across the Eisenhower ditch. It will have a platform that is 14 feet wide, five feet wider than the 1950s structure it will replace. The added width is expected to allow two bikes and a pedestrian to comfortably pass each other.

The new design also addresses the decided lack of accessibility on either end of the current bridge, which directly abuts both Harrison and Garfield streets. There will be ramps and steps on each end of the bridge. A winding bicycle ramp will be featured on both ends. That will require the acquisition of some additional land on both Harrison and Garfield. On the south end, the necessary land is currently in private hands, McKenna said.

Is the Ridgeland Avenue bridge next?

In anticipation of eventually receiving federal funding for the “down to the dirt” rebuilding of the almost 70-yearold Eisenhower Expressway, Bill McKenna, Oak Park’s village engineer, said IDOT is gradually making plans to replace bridges over the highway, including in Oak Park.

Engineers for IDOT are “actively working” on designs for a new bridge at Ridgeland Avenue, he said. Replacing that bridge could happen as soon as 2028, he said.

IDOT continues to have discussions with the CTA about its plans for the Blue Line and its stations in Oak Park.

That impacts planning for the bridges at Austin, Lombard, East, Oak Park Avenue and Harlem. There are no rail connections to the Ridgeland Avenue bridge.

“It is definitely exciting as an engineer” to be involved in the bridge project, he added.

McKenna said the money the village has spent so far for engineering and architectural work on the Home Avenue project is coming out of a series of three federal grants the village received a decade ago during its “Cap the Ike” discussions with the state.

16 Wednesday Journal,, September 9, 2026

S P O N S O R E D

C O N T E N T

The Elmcrest always helping the community celebrate The Oshana’s keep true to Biancalana hospitality

By ALICIA SAMS

Contributing Reporter

Community, family, tradition and a love of parties all went into Oriana and Larsen Oshana’s decision to buy The Elmcrest Banquets from the Biancalana brothers in 2019. For second-generation owners Jim and Al Biancalana, trusting someone with the family legacy was paramount, and the Oshanas were a perfect choice.

Oriana Oshana grew up in the business.

Her father owned and ran The Thirteen Colonies Banquet Rooms in nearby River Grove. She remembers loving going to work with him as a young child and working events all through high school and college. Then, after graduating with a mas-

ters in biomedical engineering, she left the business and began a new career. But when her father called her to say he could use her help -- but only if she wanted -- she leapt at the chance to work with him again running Thirteen Colonies. She was there until he retired and sold the business.

When the opportunity to buy Elmcrest presented itself, Oriana and her husband Larsen stepped right up.

The Elmcrest has over 90 years of history in Elmwood Park -- originally started as an ice cream parlor in 1929 by Al Biancalana,

COURTESY OF THE ELMCREST BANQUETS

Owners Oriana and Larsen Oshana with their daughter

COURTESY OF THE ELMCREST BANQUETS

Daughter looks ready to join the family business!

Wednesday Journal,, September 9, 2026 17

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COURTESY OF THE ELMCREST BANQUETS

The Oshana family inside the Banquet Hall.

Sr., it became a family restaurant and then in 1994 Biancalana’s Elmcrest Banquets.

“The Biancalanas are an amazing family,” says Oriana, “They really created an amazing institution of a banquet hall. It’s a community center. They were very philanthropic. They were very involved in their community. They were very much a cornerstone of Elmwood Park. So we came in and it was big shoes to fill, like, how are we going to live up to this? But they really held our hands the entire way.”

When Oriana and her husband took over, they kept as many of the original staff as they could as well as all the original recipes, planning to continue the already-thriving business as it was.

Five months later they were shut down by the COVID-19 pandemic. At the time, Oriana was pregnant with her first child, things were tenuous. But with the help of the Small Business Administration and their own perseverance they kept almost everyone on board and began hosting parties again in 2021. Since taking over they’ve added Latin cuisine to their traditional Italian menu to serve the needs of the community today.

The Elmcrest seats from 50 to 500 people for a variety of events from weddings and anniversaries, bridal and baby showers to quinceañeras, fundraising galas, sports and school banquets. The business is still very community-based with many repeat customers. “I love this business because they’re life events ... everyone who has grown up in Elmwood Park knows The El-

mcrest, “ says Oriana. People have a need to celebrate and for the Ohanas, making sure they can do so with quality and trust is their mission. “Growing up in this business I saw that people get taken advantage of and it bothered me. I try to keep things reasonable and establish transparency and try my hardest to take care of everyone.”

The thank you notes she receives from clients after their wedding or anniversary saying it was everything they’d hoped for are her reward.

Larsen Oshana was a computer engineer before joining his wife in the family business. She reports that he was skeptical at first but today he loves it, using his engineer’s mind to plan ahead and problem solve to keep the facilities in shape and everything running smoothly. While it was a leap of faith, there has been no looking back. For Oriana, it’s the fulfillment of a dream she’s had since she was a child, made more special by running it with her husband.

And her six-year-old daughter? She got her first taste of the business helping her mom in the office this summer -- and she loved it!

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Wednesday Journal, September 9, 2026

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School is in for Chocolat Milk, dark, white, golden, ruby, learn about them all

By RISÉ SANDERS-WEIR Eats Reporter

On Saturday, Sept. 5, an echo of Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory opened in Oak Park. Chocolat by Christina is a new brickand-mortar chocolate school and event space at 902 S. Oak Park Ave. Christina Nixon worked as an occupational therapist for 36 years before exploring chocolate making at Triton College. It was a way to give herself an outlet other than work, something to “feed her soul.”

Soon she started selling her chocolates at farmers markets and local craft fairs.

Then she began traveling worldwide to increase her skill set. She studied in Belgium, Italy, France and with expert chocolatiers in Las Vegas. An idea formed of not only making chocolates for sale but also sharing the art of chocolate making in Oak Park.

Now that dream has become a reality.

“I want to make it accessible,” Nixon said. “I want it to be hands-on and not intimidating. There aren’t going to be any fancy machines here. Everything is hands-on, so that anyone who comes and takes a class, they can go home and do the exact same thing.”

For locals who came to the open house on her first day, the addition of a chocolate shop is very welcome.

“I love chocolate,” Rejeta Saunders said.

“In the Southtown District.

We don’t have chocolate.

So, this is wonderful! You can come and make chocolate. You come and eat chocolate. You can buy chocolate and ship it out to your friends and your relatives. I just love it.”

Father and daughter Zach and Zofia Lobe were excited to see Nixon expand her chocolate horizons.

“We had bought some of her chocolates before at an Irving School craft fair, so we knew that everything is really tasty.” Zach Lobe said. “Since we live within walking distance, it was easy and sort of exciting to see what the location is. It’s fantastic.”

Classes will start at Chocolat by Christina within a month.

“We’ll have intro to chocolate – just basic

RISÉ SANDERS-WEIR

Owner Christina Nixon learning how to temper chocolate,” Nixon said. “Then each one is another advanced level: how to create bonbons, how to make ganache. And the most advanced one is learning how to work with cocoa butter painting chocolate molds.”

Classes will be a maximum of 10 students at a time. Nixon will also host children’s parties for up to 10 guests.

She continues to serve clients with her custom chocolate creations made in the workshop as well. An upcoming creation for the River North Design District Walk will reflect the elements of the world: earth, sky, water and fire.

She was pleased to see so many people stopping by her grand opening.

“Just beyond my expectations,” Nixon said. “Maybe they will come back and take a class and that little peanut butter or caramel something that they tried here, they can learn to do the same thing at home. All you need is a thermometer, a double boiler or a microwave and you can do it.”

RISÉ SANDERS-WEIR

Chocolat by Christina, 902 S. Oak Park

RISÉ SANDERS-WEIR

Various chocolate barks on offer

Wednesday Journal, September 9, 2026

OAKPARK.COM

19

Mayor promotes a Forest Park stop on the O’Hare Flyer Site could be a village-owned parking lot north of the Eisenhower

By GREGG VOSS Staff Reporter

technical assistance.”

In an interview he would not name that agency, though he said there would be no cost to the village for its services.

Forest Park Mayor Rory Hoskins is bullish about the possibility of a Forest Park stop on the route of the proposed O’Hare Communication timing curious Flyer express train that would connect But the timing of that email was a comdowntown Chicago with O’Hare Internaplete surprise to Maria Maxham, village tional Airport.

The train would make its way through commissioner of accounts and finance.

“I was not informed that these discusForest Park and neighboring communities at 80 mph every 15 minutes from 4 sions had occurred,” she said, adding the a.m. to 10 p.m. The total travel time from communication left her “very surprised. I would say blindsided.” downtown Chicago to the In response to the comairport would be 15 minmunication, Maxham sent utes. an email to Hoskins and Hoskins envisions an two other village officials added stop in Forest Park late Wednesday that indion the north side of the cated she was apparently Eisenhower Expressway out of the loop on the matat a village-owned parking ter. lot that has been underuti“I want to be clear that I lized since the pandemic. am not opposed to explor“It’s virtually empty ing economic development most days,” Hoskins said opportunities for the vilThursday, adding a stop lage, and I understand there would not be related this project’s potential sigto a proposed CTA refurRORY HOSKINS nificance,” she said in her bishment plan for the nearemail. “However, I learned

by Blue Line terminal.

In fact, Hoskins is so bullish about an of the initiative the same way every other O’Hare Flyer stop that he sent out an resident did: through a mass email on Sept. email to residents Wednesday stating his 2, 2026.

“I was not consulted prior to the public personal view, which was also posted on statement being issued, prior to any consocial media.

In it, he noted that “O’Hare Flyer rep- versations with O’Hare Flyer representaresentatives contacted village hall to dis- tives taking place, or prior to a planning cuss their project and the economic ben- agency being engaged on the village’s behalf.” efits it could bring to Forest Park.

She then posed seven questions to “Forest Park offers an ideal location,” the statement continued, “village-owned Hoskins, including: ■ Who at village hall participated in conland adjacent to the CTA Blue Line terminal, providing seamless connections versations with the O’Hare Flyer represenbetween the airport, the Loop and the tatives, and on what dates did those conversations take place? western suburbs.

■ Which elected officials, if any, were in“While many details need to be discussed, the potential benefits are clear. formed of or participated in these converA station located in Forest Park would sations prior to today’s public statement?

■ What specific commitments, if any, attract investment, support local businesses, increase property tax values and were made to O’Hare Flyer representatives further establish our village as a regional on behalf of the village?

■ According to Maxham, Hoskins’ retransportation hub.”

Additionally, the statement said the vil- sponse to her noted that “the project ownlage has engaged a leading Chicago-area ers asked us to sign a non-disclosure agreeplanning agency “to explore available ment. I signed their document.

Mr. Lundy, if their plan goes forward, community engagement with Forest Park will be important,” she said.

When reached via text Friday, Michelle Melin-Rogovin, commissioner of streets and public improvement, also noted the possibilities for the village.

“This project has a lot of moving parts and a great deal of potential, it seems, for Forest Park,” she said. “I’m committed to ensuring that this project includes public participation and engagement as the project develops.”

Lundy said late Thursday that he agreed with Hoskins’ statement.

“I thought it was great,” he said. “What he put out was a statement of aspiration and he wouldn’t have put that out if we hadn’t been talking about this.

“But talking isn’t the same as planning and procuring. The first filter is, it’s really important to deliver people in 15 minutes.”

Who was involved?

He was also adamant that no specifics Maxham underscored that she is “very about a stop have been discussed with the interested in the project. village.

“I do see the potential for economic “We can’t commit to anything yet, bebenefits it could bring, but for me, it’s far cause more analysis needs too premature to support to be done,” he said. it or oppose it,” she said.

Voogd said she wants “I know that neighboring a community discussion towns like River Forest are about the matter, either via against it.” a town hall meeting or an Jessica Voogd, commisagenda item on an upcomsioner of public property, ing board meeting. said Friday she didn’t reStill, Hoskins defended view Hoskins’ statement the timing of his statebefore it was sent out, but ment, noting that a mayor did say she had “sat in on “to some extent speaks for one meeting in April” with the village, so it’s the benHoskins and David Lundy, efit for the village.

O’Hare Flyer LLC co-found“I didn’t consult with all er and CEO, along with MARIA MAXHAM of the commissioners,” he members of his team. said. “The project is subject “They were just sharing their proposal for the Flyer,” Voogd said. to confidentiality. We’ll have public meet“I think Mr. Lundy said he’s been reach- ings.”

Hoskins was recently appointed to the ing out to all stakeholders that could be new Northern Illinois Transit Authority impacted or involved.”

Voogd added she was aware that Hoskins board. The agency, created by the state was considering distributing a statement. legislature, will take on oversight of the Additionally, in her discussions with him CTA, Metra and Pace. Hoskins was chosen for a five-year term on the board by and Lundy, she emphasized the process of Toni Preckwinkle, president of the Cook public outreach.

“I did stress in the short meeting with County board. His term began on Sept. 1.

“The village has not incurred any costs in communicating with the project owners.

No commitments were made on behalf of the village. There is no specific parcel of land at issue.”

He also thanked her for offering her support.

“It seems he won’t tell me anything,” Maxham said. “(Regarding) any transparency he made in his statement to the residents, how can you be transparent if you’ve already signed an NDA with the developer?

“I’m an elected official and I feel like I should have this information.”

She also said shortly before the statement was sent out, she had received a communication from a village resident expressing concerns about multiple things related to the project, including potential diminishment of quality of life and decrease in property values.

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Homes

Wednesday Journal, September 9, 2026

OAKPARK.COM

Fall real estate market underway – for better and worse Local Realtors weigh in on what to expect this fall

By LACEY SIKORA Real Estate Reporter

Schools are back in session and while meteorological summer has a few days left, in the real estate world, the fall market has begun. In real estate, it’s a commonly held idea that the spring and early summer months move the fastest, with many buyers wanting to be in new homes before the school year starts. Local professionals tell us whether those preconceived noSCOTT BERG tions hold in the current market.

Local Realtor Scott Berg of Berg Properties likes to look at data to inform his work with buyers and sellers. “I’ve heard over the years that fall is supposed to be the time for buyers to get discounts, but what I’d experienced is that the good listings were still really competitive.”

This year, he said he had buyers asking him in June and July if the 2026 market was over and they should pause their home searches until 2027.

Berg dug into data for the last eight years of single-family home sales in Oak Park and found there really are no deals to be had in the fall, but that doesn’t mean that sellers aren’t out there. He shares his research here: https:// oakparkexpert.com/oak-park/market-seasonality/ Outside of a blip during the Covid market of 2020, he says, “The data confirms that if you’re priced right, it’s going to sell. In most cases, it makes no sense to wait until spring to list your house.”

For his buyers who have been in the market with no success, Berg says he needs to temper any belief that there will be significantly less competition or that home pricing will fall. “The great houses MICHAEL NOWICKI are still going to sell, and they’ll

sell pretty fast.”

Michael Nowicki of Ideal Location — Oak Park agrees with Berg but says he’s seen some slight changes as the weather cools down. In fall of 2025 for instance, he says he had two properties on the market that both needed a bit of work, but nothing that a normal buyer wouldn’t take on and do over time. Both homes MONICA DALTON were priced in the mid-to-low $500,000 range. He had over 46 showings, with no offers.

He doesn’t necessarily attribute those slow sales to the fall season, but he adds, “There is some nuance to the fall market. That said, I think if your house looks nice and is ready to go, it will sell with multiple offers.”

Monica Dalton of the Dalton Collective at Compass Real Estate says that over the past few months, the list-tosales ratio in Oak Park has hovered at 105%. That might

Wednesday Journal, September 9, 2026

OAKPARK.COM drop in the fall to 100% or maybe a bit over 100% but she notes, “You’re not going to get a great deal in the fall. Homes are going to sell at whatever the market will bear. If it’s priced competitively, at what similar homes have sold for, it will sell.”

Dalton does see a smaller pool of buyers and sellers in the fall market. For buyers who have been in a crowded pool, the field can thin out a bit. She says, “One benefit is that all buyers are not necessarily focused on buying in the fall. Their kids have begun a new school year, or they’ve resigned a lease.”

Some sellers need to sell in the fall for various personal reasons, but if her sellers can choose a time to list, Dalton counsels them to spend the fall and holiday seasons readying their homes for the spring market.

“Pare down and get your house ready for a spring listing. You’ll have a whole new group of buyers entering the market plus buyers who lost out last year will be really motivated,” she says.

Berg says that while buyers should go in knowing they won’t be saving money in the fall market, sellers should know that they won’t necessarily lose out by listing a market-ready home in the fall.

If their home isn’t market ready, like Dalton, he says this season is the time for buyers to start prepping for a later listing.

With the disclaimer that the holidays are not a great time for listing a home, he notes that the “spring” market is really a misnomer. “With the warm weather we’ve had in January, the buyers are coming out early. If you’re a seller, get your house ready and be ready to jump on it when the weather turns.”

Nowicki says he’s seeing more buyers who are not guided by the seasons. This fall, he’s working with multiple clients who he says are not “school-oriented,” as well as those with no kids left in the house.

“If you’re trying to buy, it’s still unbelievably brutal out there,” he says.

According to Berg, the strategy for some sellers might change in the fall. Spring might have warranted an aggressive pricing strategy that would garner multiple bids, allowing sellers to choose the offer with the best terms — e.g. all cash or a waived appraisal. “That might not work in the fall,” he says, adding “Can you get five offers in one weekend?”

Dalton also says her strategy can differ depending on the season. In the spring, if a listing agent didn’t have a number of showings scheduled soon after listing, that might have been a sign that some-

thing was off with the home that needs to be addressed or that the pricing strategy needed to be reconsidered, and the agent would change course quickly. In the fall, agents might wait a bit longer before making a change to sales strategy.

Nowicki agrees that for sellers hitting the market in the fall, they should be prepared that the market might not be as fast as what they saw in the spring but says it’s still a strong market for the well-prepared seller.

All of the agents agree that buyers no longer are demotivated by the higher interest rates of the past five years. They say that life events such as marriage, additions to the family, a new job or retirement motivate people to enter the market.

Nowicki says for clients already in homes who want to make a change into another home, the timing can take a while if they can’t find a new home to move into.

“Until that part evolves, it will still be one house for one house,” he says.

Dalton agrees and says that “In the end, inventory is not going to catch up with demand. At least for now.”

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Wednesday Journal, September 9, 2026

Shrubtown

p. 25

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VIEWPOINTS

DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSIONS IS FRIDAY 5 P.M.

Call Viewpoints editor Ken Trainor at 613-3310 Email: ktrainor@newswellchicago.org

A pilot program we can all support

avi Parakkat’s recent One View [Our zoning debate should not divide us, Viewpoints, Sept. 2] calls for a pilot study of zoning changes before we embark upon a village-wide rezoning project. This seems a reasonable compromise. It’s an opportunity to judge the impacts firsthand without subjecting the rest of the village to the potentially deleterious effects of new neighbors.

We must of course pick the pilot study area carefully.

Because we will be adding new housing, we want to pick an area that has space, with large lots to accommodate the new housing types. Because we’re worried about parking, we’ll need to pick an area where parking isn’t an issue. Because we’re worried about traffic and congestion, we’ll have to find a part of Oak Park that doesn’t have much traffic.

Therefore I propose that we do our zoning pilot in Northwest Oak Park.

Northwest Oak Park fits all of our criteria and is most lacking in the housing diversity we are trying to add. It also presents almost ideal social conditions.

This neighborhood values equity, education and inclusion and will surely extend those ideals to new neighbors.

We should set aside at least 30 blocks; that way nobody will be able to accuse the results of being watered down by too small a sample size. The pilot, of course, will be voluntary. Nobody will be forced to sell their home or to build an apartment building. They will just be allowed to do so.

Existing residents will continue to enjoy their homes just as they are, with the potential added inconvenience of knowing somebody who rents.

As Ravi notes, we will need measures of success. Will the new zoning produce more affordable housing? Will it allow for greater diversity? Will it provide accessible housing for the elderly? Will it make space for younger folks with no children? Will people who work in Oak Park be able to afford living there? This will likely require extensive consulting engagements, exhaustive data tracking, and perhaps even a new village commission to manage the process.

One of the primary benefits of a pilot is that it will provide ample opportunities for the public engagement that has been so lacking in this process thus far. The residents of Northwest Oak Park are old hands at registering their opinions. They will thoroughly vet the changes that result, ensuring we get an extensive accounting of any potential adverse impacts. This level of scrutiny should reassure those who worry we aren’t proceeding with care.

Some might prefer to do a pilot along one of our existing commercial corridors — Madison, Austin, or Roosevelt for example. But these areas are already dense.

Putting new apartments beside existing apartments wouldn’t tell us much about the viability of introducing middle housing into single-family neighborhoods.

A zoning pilot in Northwest Oak Park is an excellent opportunity for compromise. Small enough to limit the impact, large enough to provide clear data, voluntary, and conducted in a neighborhood with residents deeply committed to progressive values.

I look forward to former trustee Parakkat’s support of this modest proposal.

Unless, of course, the location requires further study.

JOSH VANDERBERG

ADOBE STOCK ILLUSTRATION

9/11, Shabbat and Rosh Hashanah

T

wenty-five years ago, September 11 became a date forever associated with tragedy. For my family, it also became deeply personal. My uncle, Stephen Lefkowitz, was among the nearly 3,000 people whose lives were taken that day.

Each Sept. 11, alongside the collective memories we share as Americans, I carry a family memory as well. Twenty-five years may have passed, but some dates never become merely history. This year, it leads directly into another moment of reflection. As the sun sets this Friday evening, Jews around the world will welcome both Shabbat and Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year.

The Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson, of righteous memory, taught that when Rosh Hashanah falls on Shabbat, the combination carries a lesson for the entire year.

Shabbat reminds us of a humbling truth. For six days we work, build and attempt to shape the world around us. Then Shabbat arrives and we stop, acknowledging that despite all our accomplishments, we are not masters of the universe.

Yet Judaism does not ask us to become passive observers. The Rebbe described our relationship with the world in seemingly contradictory terms: We are guests in G-d’s world, recognizing that it ultimately belongs to Him. Yet we have also been entrusted with a mission — to make our portion of that world better. The world is not ours to control. But what we do with the part entrusted to us is very much our responsibility.

Few events demonstrated the first truth as painfully as Sept. 11, 2001. In a matter of hours, lives, families and a nation were changed by events they could not control.

But what followed demonstrated the second.

Firefighters ran upstairs as others fled down. Strangers helped strangers reach safety. Knowing Stephen, I can easily imagine him doing just that — helping an elderly person or someone with a disability make their way down the stairs as they tried to evacuate.

Americans lined up to donate blood, comforted grieving families and reached out to neighbors.

Faced with terrible darkness, countless individuals asked: What can I do? That question lies at the heart of Rosh Hashanah as well.

Jewish tradition teaches that each person should view the world as evenly balanced between good and evil, and our next action as capable of tipping the scale. It is an extraordinary statement about the significance of one human being and one seemingly small act.

We cannot change what happened on Sept. 11, 2001. My family cannot bring back Stephen, nor can thousands of other families bring back those they lost. But we can decide what their memory asks of us.

We can answer hatred with goodness, bridge divisions, notice someone who is hurting, perform another act of kindness and bring a little more light into our corner of the world. Shabbat reminds us that we cannot control everything that happens in this world. Rosh Hashanah reminds us that what we do within it still matters enormously.

Twenty-five years later, we remember those who were taken from us. And then we ask the question their memory leaves with those of us who remain: What will I do to make this world better?

Rabbi Yitzchok Bergstein is co-director of Chabad of Oak Park-River Forest serving the OPRF and surrounding Jewish communities.

YITZCHOK BERGSTEIN One View

V I E W P O I N T S

OAKPARK.COM

We can help Students Feeding Students

O

n May 9, students, parents, siblings and faculty at RiversideBrookfield High School packed 50,544 meals in a two-hour “Nurture & Nourish” event. Forest Park Middle School packed more than 35,000 meals on January 19 and will again next January. Each of those meals cost $.42 and contain 9 grams of protein. Meals are packed six servings per shelf-stable packet. For $21, 228, then, Students Feeding Students (OPRF’s SFS) could create a store of 8,242 packets to distribute through their much-needed food lockers. Over the course of the school year, then, OPRF High School’s SFS could distribute 234 six-serving packets per week.

If, as a community, we can recruit 100-120

RON ELLING One View

PHOTO PROVIDED BY RON ELLING

volunteers and raise the needed $21,228, then Feed6.org can bring to OPRF, as we did for Riverside-Brookfield, a mobile, turnkey production system that has been used for 15 years to pack 9.5 million meals.

OPRF has the necessary space in its gymnasium or cafeteria. Feed6. org has the production system. And I am sure that Oak Park and River Forest residents have the heart and can raise the necessary volunteers and money.

Anyone interested in seeing how we enable communities to care for their food-insecure neighbors, is welcome to attend packing events we have coming up on Oct. 24 and Nov. 1 at the Allstate Arena in Rosemont. I’ll be happy to talk with anyone about attending one of those events and, hopefully, work with OPRF’s SFS and Feed6.org to plan our own event in the near future.

On Oct. 24 at the Allstate Arena in Rosemont, an organization with which I volunteer (Feed6 in partnership with The Chicago Wolves) will be managing a meal-packing event called HungerHeroes! It will benefit food-insecure veterans in Northern Illinois. This event should be of interest to Oak Park and River Forest residents because the 100,000 meals we will pack get donated to the Greater Chicago Food Depository and then to organizations like our own Beyond Hunger.

The meals we will pack provide 9 grams of protein and are shelf-stable which is why Beyond Hunger can keep a supply on hand.

To learn more about Feed6, go to https://www.feed6.org. You can donate through that webpage. Please annotate your donation with “HungerHeroes!” and the name of your village. And if you want to be part of a team, please email relling@feed6.org. When you do, please specify whether you prefer the 9 a.m. shift or the 2 p.m. shift and let me know if you made a donation.

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Wednesday Journal, September 9, 2026

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Summer’s end, 2026

ummer’s over. We mark it unofficially with Labor Day, as if to say, “Time to get back to work.”

Summer ends not with a bang but with a whisper. Some bid farewell with a hushed “good riddance,” others with a more funereal release. We declare summer over, with relief or regret, and turn toward the year’s final third, with eagerness or reserve.

The weather either overwhelmed or underwhelmed, climate change clearly altering a season we once cherished. Health issues complicated my summer, but Wednesdays with my grandsons continued, running the gamut from the Museum of Science and Industry to the Museum of Ice Cream and everything between (Brookfield Zoo, Morton Arboretum, bowling, skeeball at Enchanted Castle, Puttshack and Millennium Park mini-golf, the Art Institute, the Harry Potter Superstore on Michigan Avenue, the Lizzadro Museum of Lapidary Art (stones and gems). I enjoyed a few precious visits with granddaughter Charlotte, soon to turn 4, who is gifted at picking out creature shapes in the summer’s migratory clouds.

The Odyssey was the big movie event of the summer, which I saw twice and understood once.

Steven Spielberg’s Disclosure Day and Project Hail Mary with Ryan Gosling were the two other notable blockbusters. I didn’t see Spiderman because I’m done with superhero flicks.

Our baseball teams exceeded expectations, the White Sox wildly, and I spotted the ultimate baseball honorific: a single white sock dangling from someone’s rear fender on Harlem Avenue, a tribute to the long-suffering fans of a team that lost over 300 games the last three seasons, but miraculously spent most of this summer in first place.

Witnessed were the solstice sunset and a lunar eclipse. Late evening and early morning daylight, deeply savored. Reading in the park on a bench while the early morning sun is still friendly.

Dressing light. Attending three plays in one week, two of them outside, accompanied by a host of fireflies. The season when one of my favorite night sounds (crickets) follows one of my least favorite sounds (cicadas). Winding down, reducing stress, slathering on sunscreen and letting the rays have at you.

A time to realize you’re not so young anymore but not so old that you can’t live life a little fuller, and time itself warrants a different reckoning.

When you lose your hurry, you can recollect —

and re-connect with — who you are.

I stayed local for the most part this summer, but several of us marked the season’s end with a long drive to the Northwoods of Wisconsin to visit friends who have taken permanent refuge there. They live on a lovely lake, where the still water impersonates liquid glass yielding to the blades of a kayak’s double-edged oar, gliding toward the far bay where a 101-yearold woman lives alone on her own and probably doesn’t mind if you tarry a few moments to wonder about her.

If she’s anything like me, she keeps the windows open whenever possible to remove the distinction between outside and inside. Meanwhile, the puttering of an outboard motor awakens echoes of long-gone vacations in these same Northwoods.

The end of summer is tinged with just such memory melancholy, accompanied by a little gladness for the coming coolness, tingling anticipation of the Big 4 holidays to come, and a mellow afterglow as summer gradually dissolves into autumn.

We don’t mark the end of fall or winter or spring with regret — one less in a dwindling number — but we do with summer. At least I do.

No one has written about summer and its end quite like Ray Bradbury, so I’ll give him the final words for this season: They left the mellow light of the dandelion wine and went upstairs to carry out the last few rituals of summer, for they felt that now the final day, the final night had come. As the day grew late they realized that for two or three nights now, porches had emptied earlier of their inhabitants. The air had a different, drier smell … the open, white-fluttercurtained windows were closing in the great bays. … Now Tom and Douglas and Grandfather stood, as they had stood three months, or was it three long centuries, ago on this front porch which creaked like a ship slumbering at night in growing swells, and they sniffed the air. … But the new cold touched Grandfather first, like a raw hand chording the yellow bass piano keys in the dining room. As the compass turns, so turned Grandfather, north.

“I guess,” he said deliberating, “we won’t be coming out here anymore.”

And the three of them clanked the chains shaken down from the porch-ceiling eyelets and carried the swing like a weathered bier around the garage, followed by a blowing of the first dried leaves.

Inside, they heard Grandma poking up a fire in the library.

The windows shook with a sudden gust of wind.

KEN

TRAINOR

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Wednesday Journal, September 9, 2026

Safe streets or lucky ones?

have a confession many Oak Park drivers could make. More than once, driving north on Oak Park Avenue at night, I have rolled through the crosswalk at Thomas Street with someone standing at the curb, because I never saw them. I wasn’t speeding or on my phone. The crosswalk was dark, and the person waiting had learned, the way pedestrians here learn, to wait for the cars.

That corner now has flashing beacons, and Thomas on either side has diverters that keep through-traffic off the block. This paper’s letters page has spent the summer calling the village’s traffic calming excessive, ugly and unstudied. I live at that corner, and I’d like to make the opposite case, without telling anyone they’re a bad driver. Most of us aren’t. That’s the point.

A street that is only safe when every driver is careful every single time isn’t safe. It’s lucky. And you can feel the difference, even if you’ve never had a crash. It’s the parent on the parkway who says “car!” every 90 seconds. It’s the kid who isn’t allowed to bike to Mann alone. It’s the neighbor across the street you’ve never met because neither of you lingers out front.

That feeling is the first thing calming changes. Donald Appleyard’s famous San Francisco study compared a street carrying 2,000 cars a day with a similar one carrying 16,000. People on the quiet street had three more friends and twice as many acquaintances and thought of the sidewalk as part of home. In 1971, 80 percent of British 7- and 8-year-olds walked home from school alone;

by 1990, 9 percent. The kids didn’t change. The streets did.

The numbers behind that feeling are real, too. From 2018 to 2022, 132 people were killed or seriously injured in Oak Park crashes; 68 percent involved a driver failing to yield, slow, or obey a sign. People like me at a dark crosswalk. Federal Highway Administration studies put driver yielding at crosswalks like that near 18 percent; with beacons, 80 percent or better.

Doesn’t this just push traffic onto Division? London has built more than a hundred low-traffic neighborhoods this way. Inside them, injuries fell by a third; on the main roads around them, they didn’t rise. That’s why the village made the Thomas diverters temporary and is counting cars through this fall: the pilot is the study. If Division gets worse, the fix belongs on Division.

Every town that has done this has had this fight, then kept the streets. Stockholm’s congestion charge had 34 percent support before its trial and 68 percent five years later.

So here is my ask: Before you post “remove it” on the village’s Engage page, stand at Thomas and Oak Park at school dismissal for 10 minutes. Then post what you saw and what you’d change. That’s the feedback that gets acted on. And if you’d like your block to feel the way Thomas feels now, the petition process is open to you. I’ll walk it with you.

(Sources for this piece can be found in the online version at oakpark.com/Opinion) Thomas Hallock lives at Thomas Street and Oak Park Avenue, where his kids walk to school.

THOMAS HALLOCK One View

We need a quantifiable debate

The village trustees are considering a proposal to change Oak Park’s zoning code, allowing single-family lots to be converted into multi-family lots. The main reasons are to reverse a 1921 policy that promoted racial segregation and to increase affordable housing options and density and diversity, aligning with the village’s values.

While we acknowledge the need for both objectives, eliminating SFH zoning for much of Oak Park needs careful consideration. The board owes homeowners a thorough plan, not a vague “we know what to do” and “we need to change this.” This policy proposal would impact every current and future homeowner.

Some trustees have used numbers to make the argument sound “data-driven” and “scientific.” They cite economic studies and data from other cities and villages, but often extrapolate these without qualification, evaluation, or consideration of assumptions.

The following are not reasonable defenses of the proposal: “I’ve researched this a lot, so I know more than everyone else.”

“I know the problem and how to fix it.”

“I’m a trustee, so I get to decide what’s best for the village.”

“I will not vote based on public opinion.”

“Any level of supply helps, and more supply is better. The market determines the exact number of units.”

“Five homes for sale and 20 buyers mean everyone sells over ask. We can’t remove buyers, but we can allow more homes.

Fifteen homes and 20 buyers is a different market.”

The importance of turning out the vote

I don’t need to say how important it is that we all turn out to vote and that independents need to be persuaded to vote. With all our high-rises, there is turnover, so many residents are not correctly registered with a new address, etc.

I plan to walk with my sandwich sign with the QR code at the Farmers Market.

Here is information sent by Oak Park Village Clerk Christina M. Waters: Tuesday, Oct. 6 Voter registration closes for deputy

registrars and local election officials.

After this date, voters will no longer be able to register in person with the Office of the Village Clerk in Oak Park.

However, we will still be available to assist residents with online voter registration.

Wednesday, Oct. 7 – Monday, Nov. 2 Grace period registration and voting.

During this time, voters may register and vote with election judges.

Sunday, Oct. 18 Online voter registration closes.

Monday, Oct. 19 – Monday, Nov. 2

Early Voting period.

Thursday, Oct. 29 Last day to apply for a Vote by Mail ballot.

Please feel free to respond directly with election-related inquiries. The Office of the Village Clerk is always available to provide guidance, support, and resources to both voters and staff throughout the election season. The Cook County Clerk’s website is also phenomenal resource.

Cynthia Breunlin Oak Park

The proposal is controversial and could change the village’s character without benefitting its stated goals. More development doesn’t automatically mean more affordable housing, especially if developers replace existing SFHs with luxury offerings that cost more. It also doesn’t automatically mean lower taxes, better schools, or more facilities.

I request answers to the following questions, along with a credible defense of the assumptions: 1. What is the expected additional supply in a time frame?

2. What is the expected demand during this time frame?

3. What is the expected decrease in home prices?

4. How much do external macro-economic factors affect the pricing equation? What are the variables?

5. How will affordability be measured over time? Which metrics will be tracked?

6. What safeguards will ensure affordable housing? How will this be monitored and enforced?

7. What’s the tax benefit of spreading the levy across more residents vs. the higher levy needed to serve them?

Many residents have raised these questions, yet haven’t been answered or quantified. The elected Board of Trustees should provide a transparent, quantifiable, well-considered plan with relevant data and defensible assumptions. This is a crucial proposal, so it deserves a credible, transparent, and quantifiable debate.

Rohan Fernandes Oak Park

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

Wednesday Journal, September 9, 2026

by Marc Stopeck

W E D N E S D A Y

JOURNAL of Oak Park and River Forest

Viewpoints Guidelines

Shrubtown wrong on substance, huge on progress

The Sept. 2 Shrubtown cartoon about two referendums was quite the mixed bag: 1. Good messaging on civic engagement: On one hand, the cartoon’s message, that we need to think about where we put our efforts and what is the most strategic use of our time and activities as citizens, is spot on. There is so much in our communities and the world at large that demands our attention and engagement, so choosing to get involved in any issue should be a strategic decision, based on both our sense of the moral gravity of an issue as well as the anticipated efficacy of our involvement.

2. Substantively wrong: The proposed referendum asks Oak Park voters to support the repeal of the 2015 Illinois anti-boycott law. The idea advanced by the cartoon that we cannot change our state legislation is not only wrong but also sends voters the message that they have no effective role in a democracy. In fact, this legislation that the referendum will address, has gained huge support within our community and within the state legislature, and it is because people have raised their voices in the me-

dia, in elections, in churches, synagogues and mosques, and with our legislators about the need for our state to stop shielding Israel from the people’s constitutionally protected right to boycott due of its human-rights abuses.

The state repeal legislation will pass – the question is just how quickly. And Oak Park’s support of this referendum will let our legislators know how important it is to us that they make this happen soon.

3. Messaging progress: Though the cartoon’s messaging was substantively wrong, the fact that it characterized those advocating for the referendum as doing something ineffective — rather than attacking them as antisemitic — is a huge step ahead. It is because our communities are no longer cowering in fear of being wrongly accused of antisemitism just because they are criticizing Israel’s actions that this smearing attack is finally falling flat with the public, which is eager to engage with very important moral and political issues.

Rebekah Levin Oak Park

The goal of the Viewpoints section is to foster and facilitate a community conversation and respectful dialogue. Responsible community voices are vital to community journalism and we welcome them. Space is at a premium and readers’ attention is also limited, so we ask that Viewpoints submissions be brief. Our limit for letters to the editor is 350 words. For One View essays, the limit is 500 words. Shorter is better. If and when we have sufficient space, we print longer submissions, but when space is limited — as it often is — we may ask you to submit a shorter version or hold the piece until space allows us to print it.

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26

V I E W P O I N T S

Wednesday Journal, September 9, 2026

OAKPARK.COM

Yes, why now?

Expanding on the Aug. 26 Viewpoints letter “Why the sudden crackdown on parking?” I second this. I received a ticket this past Wednesday, for allegedly overstaying in a 2-hour zone by a meager 14 minutes, on a block my coworkers and I have not had issues with prior.

What struck me about the particular citation was a line stating, “chalked time: 2:13 p.m.” Our 7th U.S. Circuit Court is behind the 6th on this matter, in declaring the practice a violation of our 4th Amendment, but I was nevertheless curious. I proceeded to try and find the chalked line on my tire indicating my vehicle had not moved. There was no mark, I then wondered if these Oak Park enforcers were removing their mark after reaping their bounty.

The curiosity grew to compel a 45-minute call to the parking enforcement office the next day when the office staff resumed their post. After being bounced up and around, through alarming levels of supervisors, I landed at somebody who knew something about anything. More importantly, somebody willing to debrief me, likely in order to get on with their day. The village does not physically chalk tires, instead using ALPRs, the same technology used in Flock Cameras, which were commendably banned by the board in August of last year. The supervisor

On behalf of retailers serving Oak Park residents, we strongly oppose the village’s escalating single-use bag fee and planned 2030 plastic-bag ban [Oak Park ramps up fee for single-use bags leading to full ban in 2030, News, Sept. 2].

Retailers have long cautioned that bag fees are promoted as environmental policy but operate more reliably as government revenue sources. Oak Park has now confirmed that concern. The village’s 10-cent bag fee has been in place for eight years, generated more than $1.16 million since 2018, and, by the village’s own account, has not reduced bag use.

The Shrubtown cartoon is an irreverent look at Oak Park and our foibles.

Sometimes it hits the ball out of the park; sometimes it swings and misses.

The Sept. 2 cartoon was a swing and a miss. It suggests that the Nov. 3 referendum is about something 6,000 miles away — something Oak Parkers can’t do anything about and that doesn’t really affect us.

Here’s the actual Nov. 3 referendum ques-

The North Avenue mural

emphasized that license plate readers are not contracted from a third party but wouldn’t share whether the data is volunteered to law enforcement at the local, state, or federal levels.

The technology’s use was defended by the employee as a means of making parking more convenient for local residents impacted by construction. The irony of which was not lost on me, given I am daily awakened by jackhammering outside my window on the 100 block of South Oak Park Avenue, and now must cough up 33 dollars.

Though my main concern here is the lack of transparency from the board on this matter and their continued funding of ALPR use within our village. How long is this data stored, how safe is this means of storage from unwarranted breach, who is the data voluntarily shared with, what procedures exist to prevent rogue agencies from subpoenaing this data for infringement upon our civil liberties, and what percentage of these tickets are issued to villagers the rules are allegedly intended to assist?

Is the money really worth it and as the original poster asked, why now?

Thank you for last week’s story about the new mural on Beyond Hunger’s future North Avenue HQ [Meal by meal & piece by piece, News, Sept. 2].

I’m writing to clarify how this striking mural came to be.

It was funded by a grant from Oak Park’s ARPA allocation.

The North Avenue District and Oak Park Area Arts Council (OPAAC) were jointly awarded this grant in 2022 for the North Art Bridge project, which aims to revitalize the district and unite both sides of North Avenue — as well as north Oak Park and Chicago’s Galewood neighborhood — through public art.

We’ve added several wonderful murals since receiving the grant, including the meaningful mosaic mural at 6209 W. North Ave. in Oak Park. While this is the first time the North Avenue District was involved in funding an Off the Wall program mural, we already had one such mural on the west wall of Wonder Works Children’s Museum, 6445 W. North Ave. in Oak Park. We’re delighted to have them both!

Oak Park

Founder, North Avenue District

Aidan Sullivan

The single-use bag fee doesn’t work That is not a success story. It is an admission that the policy has failed at its stated purpose while costing consumers and families more money at the check-out counter.

Rather than reconsider a fee that has not changed behavior, the village plans to raise it to 15 cents in 2027, 20 cents in 2028, and 25 cents in 2029, followed by a ban on singleuse plastic carryout bags in 2030. When an eight-year experiment does not produce the promised result, the appropriate response is to examine the evidence — not raising prices for shoppers even further.

Village officials say the current fee generates roughly $170,000 annually. That

may explain why an ineffective policy has become difficult to abandon. It may not be changing consumer habits, but it is producing revenue.

The village has described the planned increases as creating a greater annual “pain point” for shoppers. That description is revealing. Grocery, pharmacy, convenience, and other retail purchases are routine necessities, not luxuries. Yet the village’s answer to a policy failure is to make everyday transactions more inconvenient and expensive — particularly for residents making frequent trips, using public transportation, caring for family members, managing unpredictable

A swing and a miss

tion: “Should the State of Illinois repeal laws that ban state investment in businesses that boycott the State of Israel?”

Strike 1: This referendum is about an Illinois law. We are Illinois taxpayers, and in November we will be voting on the referendum while electing state officials. The referendum’s goal is to urge our four state legislators to join 37 of their colleagues in supporting repeal of the Rauner-era 2015

anti-boycott law.

Strike 2: In 1982, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously recognized boycotts as protected speech. The ACLU of Illinois has also argued that Illinois’ anti-boycott law violates the First Amendment. Why shouldn’t Oak Park voters be part of the statewide movement to correct this legislative error?

Strike 3: Oak Park residents include state

Judith Alexander

schedules, or simply forgetting reusable bags.

The charge may be only a few cents per bag, but it is imposed at checkout every day on residents already dealing with high food and household costs. Trustee Cory Wesley reasonably questioned whether increasing the fee signals indifference to those pressures.

Oak Park should reconsider this escalation and the 2030 ban. The village should pursue environmental policies that can demonstrate measurable results rather than simply increasing everyday costs.

Alec Laird

On behalf of retailers serving Oak Park

employees and retirees who depend on state pensions. Pension investment decisions should be based on sound financial considerations — not on singling out one country, Israel, for special protection from boycotts.

Sometimes, even the best batters have an off day. Sept. 2 was one such day for Shrubtown.

Dean Christ Oak Park

Wednesday Journal, September 9, 2026

OAKPARK.COM

Stay out of the bike lane

This is an open letter to the driver of the black Ford Escape who has passed me on my lime green adult tricycle on my right in the bicycle lane at a high rate of speed, three times as a green light came up at Madison Street and Oak Park Avenue and a fourth time on the evening of Sept. 5 as I pedaled

27

Let’s have a Prairie-style police station

forward on a green light and you cut off several cars in the legal lane. Simply put, stop it!

Your rude driving, almost brushing an adult tricyclist, is very scary. Please stay in your lane, not in the clearly marked bicycle lane.

Frank Vozak Oak Park

The much needed police station seems to be in the preliminary design process. I don’t know a thing about what it should contain, but I have a suggestion about its exterior. Take a look at the one in Hickory Hills. It looks as if it should be in Oak Park, more than anything our village has

built.

I don’t know why our public buildings never pay tribute to Prairie-style architecture that to a large extend had its origins here. Please consider giving it that look.

Joyce Porter Oak Park

O B I T U A R I E S

Douglas Stewart, 85

Herta Lisicic, 104

Douglas Stewart, 85, a loving husband, father, grandfather and friend to so many in Oak Park, died Aug. 30, 2026. Born in 1940, he was the son of Arnold Stewart, who sold shoes in New York City.

He credited his mother Dorothy’s financial acumen and thrift for lifting the family’s prospects.

A charismatic sales executive and Oak Park-based entrepreneur, he was a believer in face-to-face contact and flew the equivalent of 9.3 trips to the moon and back during his long career, clinching deals and forging partnerships. His success made him a kind of invisible force in American commerce. For years, if you bought toothpaste or medicine in an aluminum tube, it was reasonable to assume Douglas sold it.

His confidence and charisma propelled him to the top of his field. It also got him into mind-bending situations, like the time he convinced Donald Trump, long before politics, to autograph a pair of boxer shorts. Or when he persuaded an airport to stop a plane already moving on the tarmac so his family could board, stunning the other passengers, for whom such things were impossible. On a visit to the Pentagon, a reporter from Agence France-Presse mistook him for a U.S. senator. Knowing how he carried himself, it was an easy mistake to make.

His marriage of 55 years to Linda Sahagian was perhaps as improbable as everything else about his journey through life. Three days after meeting in Manhattan, the two decided to marry and get to know each other along the way — a bet that paid off handsomely.

Douglas is survived by his three children, Devan, Phillip and Gregory; his five grandchildren, Joshua, Connor, Logan, Graham and Nico; his daughters-in-law Valquiria and Amy; his brother, Robert; his sisters-in-law, Cynthia, Harriet, Marcia, Pat and Diane; and his brothers-in-law, Bob and Denny.

A wake will be held on Sept. 11 from 3 to 8 p.m. at Conboy-Westchester Funeral Home. His funeral will be held on Sept. 12 at St. Giles Church in Oak Park at 11 a.m., preceded by a visitation at 10.

Herta Lisicic, 104, of Oak Park, died on Aug. 23, 2026. Born in Poland in March 1922, she was raised in a German household. Her early life was profoundly shaped by World War II. As Russia invaded Poland and wartime conditions worsened, she fled to Germany with her older sister and two young children in search of safety. They ended up in a displaced persons camp where she met her future husband, Milomir, beginning a partnership built on courage, survival and determination.

In 1951, pregnant, Herta, her husband and 4-year-old daughter Karin were put aboard a troop transport ship that arrived at Ellis Island. They were first sent to Arkansas where they picked cotton as repayment for their passage.

With the help of their best man, they moved to Chicago, eventually purchased a house in Lincoln Park and rebuilt their lives through hard work and perseverance. During that time their sons Peter and Johnny, who died at the age of 4, were born.

Fluent in German, Polish, Serbian and English, she created a home rich in both Serbian Eastern Orthodox and German languages and traditions, ensuring that her children grew up connected to their family’s cultural heritage.

After her husband’s death, Herta moved to Oak Park and participated in programs at the Oak Park Senior Center, where she taught German until the age of 90 and sang joyfully for many years at First United Church of Oak Park.

Her working life included Illinois Bell Telephone and Zenith Radio Corporation. Her enthusiasm for learning and education earned her a feature picture on the cover of the Oak Leaves while she participated in senior computer classes.

She was a resourceful, brave, strong and deeply resilient individual. Her remarkable journey is a great example of strength, adaptability and perseverance while preserving family and cultural traditions.

Herta is remembered by her children, Karin Pietrini (Dan) and Peter Lisich (Susan); her grandchildren, Rachel, Dan, Calvin and Elizabeth; and her great grandchildren, Isabelle, Dan and Aleaha.

Charismatic, confident entrepreneur

Oak Park centenarian

A memorial service will be held on Sept. 27 at First United Church of Oak Park, 844 Lake St., at 3 p.m.

In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to First United Church.

Art Perivolidis, 84

Cook Co. Circuit Court judge

The Honorable Arthur C. Perivolidis, 84, of Mount Prospect, died peacefully in his home, surrounded by family on Aug. 29, 2026. Born on Nov. 1, 1941 in Oak Park, he grew up in an apartment above the storefronts near the corner of North Boulevard and Oak Park Avenue.

He served as an associate circuit court judge in Cook County for 36 years, spending most of his time in the probate division where he was fondly known as the “Peacemaker of Probate.” His passion for bringing families together during what was arguably the most difficult time in their lives propelled him to a successful and rewarding career. A decades-long resident of Mount Prospect, he took pride in his community and served as an active member of various organizations and charities helping others in need.

Art Perivolidis is survived by Phyllis Perivolidis (née Pergakes), his wife of 56 years; his two children, Chris (Jorie) Perivolidis and Marisa Nash; his three grandchildren, Reese, Jane, and Allison; and he had many cherished canine companions throughout the years, including Snowball, Molly, and his grand-pup, Foster. He is also survived by his sistersin-law, Bess Shizas and Janet Reyes; many nieces, nephews; and other family and close friends.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Chris and Antonia Perivolidis; his two brothers, Stanley (Peggy) Perry and George (Evelyn) Perivolidis; and his brothers-in-law, Spero Shizas and José Reyes.

Visitation was held on Sept. 2 at the Smith-Corcoran Funeral Home, 1104 Waukegan Road in Glenview. A funeral service followed at Sts. Peter & Paul Greek Orthodox Church, 1401 Wagner Road, Glenview. Interment at the Elmwood Cemetery, 2905 Thatcher Ave., River Grove.

Memorial donations may be made in Judge Art Perivolidis’ name to either the Humane Society or the Gary Sinise Foundation.

28

Wednesday Journal, September 9, 2026

SPORTS Thies, Fenwick run DePaul Prep aground OPRF can’t hold on at Glenbard West

By MELVIN TATE Staff Reporter

Most high school football teams would be thrilled with a 3-0 start to the season. But while Fenwick is happy to have that mark following a 38-14 victory over DePaul Prep in its home opener at Triton College, Sept.

4, the Friars weren’t satisfied with how they played.

“There’s a lot of growing up to do still,” said Fenwick coach Matt Battaglia. “Effort’s not an issue with this squad, but we’ve got a lot of learning to still do. We’ve got to reset our mindset to 0-0 and keep finding ways to get better because the schedule doesn’t get easier.”

A disconcerting issue is penalties.

Against DePaul, Fenwick committed 13 for 105 yards.

“Penalties are something we can’t afford, especially that many,” said Fenwick senior co-captain Jake Thies. “It’s definitely something we’ve got to clean up in

CAROL DUNNING

Fenwick wide receiver Jimmy Watts makes a move on a DePaul Prep defender. Watts had five receptions for 73 yards.

CAROL DUNNING

Fenwick running back Rocco Nero (#25) breaks away from the line of scrimmage against DePaul Prep during a Chicago Catholic League crossover football game at Triton College, Sept. 4. Nero ran for 93 yards on 14 carries in the Friars’ 38-14 victory. practice this week.”

Penalties aside, there were plenty of bright moments for the Friars, particularly in the run game. Thies tallied 177 yards and three touchdowns on just 11 rushes, while Rocco Nero added 93 yards on 14 carries and quarterback Myles Hill 52 yards and a touchdown on eight carries. In all, Fenwick amassed 357 yards on the ground.

“We’ve got a lot of young guys up front who are improving,” Battaglia said of the offensive line. “There’s a lot of potential with this group; it’s scary how good they can be.”

Hill completed 11 of 22 passes for 172 yards. Jimmy Watts had five catches for 73 yards and freshman Noah Marshall also had five catches, for 90 yards. Defensively, Corey Griffin had an interception, and Cormac Monahan had 9.5 tackles.

As Fenwick opens Chicago Catholic League Orange Division play at St. Ignatius on Friday at 7 p.m., Thies knows how

important it is for the Friars to elevate their game.

“We’re definitely not satisfied,” he said.

“3-0’s great, but we want to win more games and keep this momentum going.”

Glenbard West 39, OPRF 21 For the second straight week, OPRF led a highly regarded opponent at halftime and late into the third quarter. But like the previous week against Fenwick, the Huskies couldn’t hold on and lost 39-21 at Glenbard West in the West Suburban Conference Silver Division opener, Sept. 5.

“We were right there against a good team,” said OPRF coach John Hoerster.

“Glenbard West is a well-coached team and has some tough dudes over there. We hung right with them and I’m really proud of our kids. They fought really hard.”

After Glenbard West (2-1, 1-0 in WSC Silver) went ahead 7-0 late in the first quar-

ter, OPRF (1-2, 0-1) put together an impressive drive that ate up just over 8 minutes, capped by a 2-yard touchdown run by Liam Smith (22 carries, 83 yards) with 6:23 left in the second quarter.

Harris got his second touchdown on the Hilltoppers’ ensuing drive, but the Huskies again responded on a 31-yard reception by Cameron Minish-Murray (four catches, 65 yards) from Liam Brown (12-of-22, 107 yards), which set up Smith for his second score, again from 2 yards out. Max Smith booted the PAT to give OPRF a 14-13 halftime lead.

After Glenbard West’s Brady Johnson scored on a 2-yard run early in the third quarter, OPRF marched downfield and scored on Smith’s third score, from 6 yards out. But the Hilltoppers took the lead for good as time expired in the quarter on a 9-yard pass from A.J. Rayford to Johnson.

Then Glenbard West took command on OPRF’s next drive as a punt by Alphonse Bamujje was blocked and recovered by Griffin Glascott with 10:32 remaining.

“The blocked punt was huge,” Hoerster said. “A punt’s the biggest play in football; it swings the game more than any other play. That was a huge momentum shift and at that point against a good team when you get behind two scores, it’s really tough.”

The Hilltoppers sealed the game when with 7:42 left, former OPRF track star Keyonte Johnson scored on a 53-yard jet sweep to the left.

However, Hoerster believes the Huskies are getting better each week, and he wants his players to focus on the positives they’ve shown so far.

“It’s really easy to get caught up in the emotions of losing a game,” he said, “but we can’t get down by the final score. (Instead) can we look ourselves in the mirror and say we fought really hard, and did we get a little bit better? After playing a team like Glenbard West, I thought we did get better.”

OPRF returns home to face Proviso West, Sept. 11, at 5 p.m.

S P O R T S

OAKPARK.COM

Wednesday Journal, September 9, 2026

29

All on board for OPRF girls swimming/diving Trinity and Fenwick have new head coaches

By MELVIN TATE

little things well,” he said. “I’m excited to see how much we can grow between now and the end of the season.”

Staff Reporter

The Oak Park and River Forest High School girls swimming and diving team has gotten accustomed to practicing and competing away from campus while Project Two, which includes a new natatorium, nears completion. The new pool was originally scheduled to open last month, but construction delays pushed it back to Oct. 1. Then the school announced it wouldn’t open until November as another unanticipated construction delay came about.

But OPRF coach Clyde Lundgren says his team has stayed positive and focused despite the ordeal.

“Our challenge is to continue to be optimistic while facing the challenges of not having a pool. So far, the girls have been great,” said Lundgren, in his 28th season.

This year’s squad will look different as several familiar names, like state qualifier Hailey Boland, Evie Hasenbalg, and Avaa Ruffer, graduated. Senior Kylie Miller teamed up with those three last year in the state-qualifying 200 medley relay.

Other swim returnees for the Huskies include junior Lily Cook and seniors Yeojun Kim, Claire McFarlin, and Erica Qi. Sophomore Ayanna Dairyko and seniors Tori Hall and Zoe Schwartz are the returning divers.

Lundgren said there are seven freshmen on the varsity this season: Carolina Cides, Elizabeth Cook, Catriona Kelly, Brigid McDonnell, Aphra Morales, Amelia Preissner, and Aria Ricchetti.

“They all bring a wide variety of gifts and talents,” he said. “It will be interesting to see how our sectional lineup will flesh out.”

OPRF competed in the season-opening Kendall Pickering Invitational at Hinsdale Central, Aug. 29. Miller swam a personalbest time of 25.44 seconds in the 50 freestyle, finishing 13th, while Cides led off the 200 freestyle relay with a personal-best 28.03.

“Our girls swam well,” Lundgren said.

“Some of the returning girls swam a bit faster in that meet than they had in years past, so that was super-encouraging. We are highly optimistic about the rest of the season, especially considering the freshmen that are coming in.”

Trinity

STEVE JOHNSTON

OPRF’s Lily Cook competes in the 200 Medley Relay during the Kendall Pickering Invitational, Aug. 29, in Hinsdale.

Fenwick First-year head coach Bryan Lee, who was an assistant last season, inherits a solid nucleus of four state qualifiers: seniors Maggie Raniere and Maeve Ryan, along with juniors Audrey Munley and Samantha Stowe.

“With this being my first year as head coach, there has been an adjustment period, but I think we’re continuing to move in the right direction,” Lee said. “One thing that has really stood out so far is the team’s strong work ethic. The girls have been willing to work hard, learn, and continue to push themselves every day.”

Fenwick has started well, with a dualmeet victory over Glenbrook South – Lee’s alma mater – and second to St. Ignatius in a triangular meet with Chicago U-High.

Both Raniere and Ryan swim the 50 and 100 freestyle events. Munley swims the 200 and 500 freestyle, while Stowe swims the 100 freestyle and 100 backstroke.

Senior Valencia Ptak returns to lead the diving unit. A newcomer to keep an eye on is freshman Gracie Federico.

“Gracie has been a strong addition to our varsity lineup and gives us additional depth in the butterfly events,” Lee said.

Fenwick hosts its annual Friar Invitational, Sept. 12, and Lee is interested to see how his team fares not just there, but in all the meets leading up to the Metro Catholic Aquatic Conference championships and the IHSA state series.

“Our biggest goal is to establish a strong foundation for the program. We want our athletes to understand that results come from consistently doing the

Trinity graduate Cailey Mazur (Class of 2009) returns to take over the swimming program. And she’s excited about the opportunity to coach the Blazers.

“Coming back to lead the program that helped shape me is an incredible honor,” Mazur said. “But I’m also coming back with high expectations. Trinity is an all-girls school built around developing strong, confident young women, and I want our swim program to reflect that same standard.”

Trinity’s top returning swimmers are senior captains Erin Basney, Frida Morales, Theresa Olson, and Aniya Suggs, and Mazur has high expectations for them.

“They’re embody exactly what we want Trinity athletes to become: confident, competitive, resilient, and unafraid to lead,” she said. “They’re not simply leading this year’s team, they’re helping define what it will mean to swim for Trinity going forward.

Others expected to contribute to the Blazers are juniors Diana Fedorovicz and Kaylee Lopez along with sophomores Olivia Maldonado, Sofia Vargas, and Sophia Wikell.

“They bring different strengths and levels of experience to the pool, but they share something even more important: they are coachable, competitive, willing to work, and hungry to improve,” said Mazur, adding that Trinity is using this season to build a foundation, one that will support the program standards she’s hoping to raise.

“Be the Blaze” captures exactly what we’re building. A blaze creates energy. It grows. It draws attention. Once it has momentum, it’s difficult to contain,” Mazur said. “We want that same energy surrounding Trinity swimming.

“Ultimately, we’re not building for one season. We’re establishing an identity, raising expectations, and creating a standard that will outlast all of us. The goal is not simply to have a successful season; it is to change what people expect when Trinity walks onto a pool deck.”

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Published in Wednesday Journal September 9, 2026

PUBLIC NOTICE ADVERTISEMENT OF BIDDING Request bids for the” Pleasant Home ADA Bathroom Addition” at the National Historic Pleasant Home located in the Park District of Oak Park’s Mills Park.

Owner: Park District of Oak Park 218 Madison St, Oak Park, IL 60302 The Park District of Oak Park will accept sealed bids for individual trades, including Plumbing, Electrical, Fine Carpentry and the procurement and installation of an ADA Vertical Platform Lift for the Pleasant Home ADA Bathroom Addition located at 217 Home Ave. Oak Park, Il. 60302.

The project consists of selective demolition of interior walls, stair well, exterior windows, masonry and roof. Installation of foundation, fine carpentry, walls, windows, doors, roofing, rough carpentry, electric work, and plumbing work. The Park District of Oak Park will receive individual sealed Bids for Plumbing, Electrical and Fine Carpentry and Installation of an ADA Platform Lift until 10:00 a.m. (Central Daylight time) on Friday, October 9th, 2026, at 218 Madison St., Oak Park, Illinois.

Copies of the bidding documents and requirements will be available at 2pm, Friday, September 11th, 2026, via the Demand Star website at:

Park District of Oak Park By: Chris Wollmuth, Parks and Planning Committee, Park District of Oak Park 218 Madison St. Oak Park, Il. 60302 Published in Wednesday Journal September 9, 2026

LEGAL NOTICE The Village of Oak Park will receive sealed bids from qualified contractors at the Public Works Center, 201 South Boulevard, Oak Park, Illinois 60302 Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. local time until 2:00 p.m. on Monday September 21, 2026 for the following: Village of Oak Park 2026 Sidewalk Snow-Ice Removal Assistance and Fall Leaf Collection Assistance Bid Number: 26-123 Bid documents may be obtained from the Village’s website at http://www.oak-park.us/bid.

For questions, please call Public Works at (708) 358-5700 during the above hours.

Published in Wednesday Journal September 9, 2026

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Public Notice:

Your right to know...In print • Online

pdop.org/rfps-bids A Mandatory Pre-bid walk-thru is scheduled for Friday, September 18th, at 10:00 a.m. (Central Daylight time) at Pleasant Home, 217 Home Ave., Oak Park, IL 60302.

For additional information, contact Bill Hamilton at bill.hamilton@ pdop.org or 708-725-2052. Bid bonds will be required by bidding contractors. This contract bid must adhere to the Prevailing Wage Act of 2025. Only the bids in compliance with the provisions of the bidding specifications will be considered. Minority and Women

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Wednesday Journal, September 9, 2026

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Wednesday Journal, September 9, 2026

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