The Talk

LP YOUTH PANEL A MODEL FOR OTHERS

2009-10-01T04:55:00.003-05:00

Once a month, a group of La Grange Park teens get together as the village's appointed Youth Advisory Commission to discuss and debate and reach consensus on all of the same issues on the Village Board's agenda the very next day.

We think this is a great idea and one that should be explored and, hopefully, adopted by others: including the Village of La Grange, the Park and Library districts, perhaps even the schools.

Ever since the former Rich Port YMCA of La Grange closed its doors three years ago, a variety of youth activities -- such as the successful indoor inline skate park, basketball courts and a variety of water sports -- have been swept under the rug.

As a result, kids continue to use area park district facilities for organized and pick-up sports games, but unless they belong to a private swim club or get rides from parents and driving-age friends to visit skate parks in other suburbs miles away from here, they have few outlets to recreate.

So, they play basketball in parks after hours, hang out on the top floor of the parking garage or in area parks and school grounds, skateboard where they cannot legally do so or play in the new downtown fountain.

A few weeks back, we suggested in this space the formation of some kind of public effort, by the Park District of La Grange, the Village of La Grange and/or a local developer, to purchase and redevelop one of several vacant properties in town into a combination skate/water park. Maybe a joint venture can be established with La Grange Park or its Park District.

Land is available along the north side of Cossitt Avenue just east of the Indiana Harbor Belt Railroad tracks or at the northwest corner of Ashland and Harris avenues -- which we previously mentioned would be an excellent site due to its proximity to a school, a senior home and senior center, the downtown business district and its virtual lack of many next-door neighbors.

The former funeral home property, site of a failed condominium development, is completely shielded on one side by a high-rise brick wall, courtesy of AT&T.

On this issue and many others, we need to just sit back and listen, to the kids in La Grange or La Grange Park, maybe those whom the YMCA first assembled a decade ago to determine what kind of skate park could be created there.

Maybe our youth can come up with a solution, that is if we listen to their input.

Recreational options, however, are just some of the myriad of issues we should be asking our youth for their input on.

Every community around here should establish its own youth advisory commission, not just to let them opine about where a skate or water park can be built but to hear what they have to say about all the issues of the day.

It might be nice to know what the teens of La Grange or other taxing districts think about the latest sales tax hike, whether a pawn shop should be a permitted use in a downtown, whether a liquor license is granted or what safety measures need to be implemented on area roads. After all, they are our present and future consumers, parents and taxpayers.

Let's give a shout out to the youth and give them a voice once and for all. Not just on teen official day, but every day.

Just ask La Grange Park. The idea seems to working just fine over there.

SOME THOUGHTS ABOUT TOWN

2009-09-23T19:42:00.003-05:00

I couldn't help but overlook the fact that the recent visit to La Grange by the 12 Turkish government officials did not include a stop by the Turkish-owned breakfast bar on Burlington Avenue.

Besides the owner, there's nothing Turkish about Cafe Calbay, but perhaps the dignitaries would have enjoyed talkng to someone in their own language.

(I remember doing a profile on the owner years ago when a destructive earthquake hit his native Turkey)

Will someone tell Congressman Lipinski his community service field office on the north side of the tracks no longer houses the offices of State Rep. Bob Molaro? Maybe Mike Zalewski can inform the representative. After all, he was appointed to the seat nearly a year ago when Molaro resigned to become a lobbyist.

How many times do I have to mention the annoying spelling error on a yellow caution sign as drivers pass into La Grange over the Ogden Avenue bridge? The sign cautions motorists of the approaching roadway, Burlington Avenue. But the sign reads BurliGton.

In other useless minutae, it seems it's been at least a couple years since the meeting room upstairs in Village Hall has had every white sconce light illuminated at once. That one light off stage right (that's above the left side of the dais) has been out forever.

We thought nobody noticed the words "Stone Avenue" were no longer visible on the faded royal blue Metra sign along the platform on the Hillgrove Avenue side of the train station. But Assistant Village Manager Andrianna Peterson has let us know a new sign will grace the new platform when it is fully rebuilt by next spring.

Hopefully, someone at La Grange Public Library -- or the village for that matter -- will realize the utter danger disabled people have crossing the driveway to access the library entrance on Cossitt. Seems the curb cut should be placed within the parking lot except of just a few feet from where cars and minivans are often zooming in or out of the lot.

Could the lonely, single strand of white holiday-type lights hanging from a tree between Francesca's and Prasino's be a sign seasonal lighting is going up sooner than ever? Or could it mean the organic restaurant is soon to open in the La Grange Pointe senior center?

Last but not least, thanks to La Grange Officer Herrera for helping me out the other night. Shows you can always depend on the Police Department.

A NEW 'DOWNTOWN' EVENT SITE?

2009-09-15T19:59:00.003-05:00

Many visitors and organizers of the recent BIG Picture art easel auction in the park adjacent to Stone Avenue Station on the Burlington Northern Santa Fe line in La Grange were in agreement the site is perhaps one of the West End's best kept secrets.

Not used for much more than the occasional picnic or waiting place for train commuters and their rides, the unnamed park under the shade of numerous trees proved a great place to cool off and walk the paved path during the West End Art Festival.

But when the white lights were strung up high above everyone's heads on the night of Sept. 12, something magical seemed to take place. With beverages sold by La Bella Catering and pizza by Aurelio's, the natural atmosphere of the park setting, sans the occasional loud train, proved somewhat peaceful and tranquil a good part of the night.

Almost immediately after the auction ended, visitors and organizers were talking up the potential of turning the West End park -- some four blocks from the main business district -- into an informal event site in future summers.

The park, leased by the village from Metra, is accessible, attractive and offers lots of area parking space, especially at night when businesses such as the new Wyckoff-Tweedie photo studio,, Circle of Stones, the First National Bank of La Grange Katherine Dierkes' State Farm Insurance office and Harder's are closed. And any music or noise coming from the park will not impact neighbors, whose homes are a good distance away.

The park could be the site of summer concerts, kid's activity nights or perhaps a weekly dance or temporary beer garden sponsored each week by a different bar or restaurant.

Plus, opening up that end of the downtown to more events could finally tie the West End into the main downtown.

Shuttle buses could transport park patrons to and from the downtown parking deck or Calendar parking lot. Train commuters from neighboring communities could simply hop on and off the Metra for a short visit to La Grange.

Of course, if anything else is held there, the park's asphalt path system would have to be repaved and made accessible to the handicapped. And more park benches and seating and both drinking and ornamental fountains could be installed.
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Some La Grange Business Association members and officers said it's something to think about and Village President Liz Asperger, in attendance at the auction, informally agreed.

It's an idea worth considering. Let us know what you think.

IT'S ABOUT TIME ... AND HISTORY

2009-09-03T12:07:00.018-05:00

Couldn't help but notice the vast improvement to downtown La Grange at the northwest corner of La Grange Road and Calendar Court of late: a beautiful addition to the burgeoning retail district, correcting what was long an eyesore and what some say truly belongs in its original location.

I am, of course, referring to the elegant La Grange State Bank four-sided clock, which has finally been refurbished by its current "owner," Chase. It has long been one of my favorite elements of the central business district and a piece of history many don't know much about.

Back when I was a senior staff writer for a community newspaper chain covering La Grange about a decade ago, downtown property owner Jerry Burjan of La Grange-based Burcor Properties converted a deteriorating three floor retail space into an architectural gem reminiscent of the turn of the (20th) century -- the way it looked back when La Grange Road was called Fifth Avenue.

The building, at the southeast corner of La Grange Road and Burlington Avenue, now houses Chipotle and Noodles & Company. But decades earlier, the red brick building with upstairs offices and a fancy staircase leading to a lower mezzanine, it was called the La Grange State Bank.

The bank's signature feature was a beautiful towering black steel clock outside its main entrance, the same four-sided Seth Thomas clock now in front of Chase. It's now where it is because when the original bank was taken over and eventually relocated across the street and south a block, the clock was moved with the institution.

But with the myriad of bank mergers and buyouts over the years which are so commonplace today, nobody apparently ever thought to move the clock back -- even when Burjan made a pitch to bring it back across the street when he purposely designed the front windows of the building with the black cast iron gates at their base to mirror the look of the original bank.

It seemed like a fitting tribute to Burjan's renovation efforts, especially given the fact that for years -- up until this week, that is -- the clock sported either the wrong time or sometimes four different times on its faces. In recent years, the clock face directed to the west had no hands on it and a fading La Grange State Bank logo.

A few months ago, I approached a bank manager and inquired about the condition of the clock and was informed a requisition was filed with the corporate folks to once and for all restore the clock's operation to its original grandeur.

Although it is not where I'd like it to be, it was refreshing to drive by the bank a few days ago and read the correct time, then pulling over to find all four clock faces sporting identical times.

The only difference is the original bank name is no longer there and neither is the current one. But the town's name is there along with its incorporation date of 1879. That, unfortunately, does not match the depiction of the timepiece on a bronze plaque right outside the main entrance of Chase on Calendar Court.

That date is 1899: the date of the founding of the bank which originally stood across the street.

Hat's off to the blue shirts at Chase. for returning the clock to its original condition.

WAKE UP, IDOT (AND LA GRANGE ... AND MC COOK ... AND BROOKFIELD)

2009-08-25T06:09:00.003-05:00

Now that La Grange has the attention of its local legislators and the Illinois Department of Transportation (which just reduced speed on 47th Street through La Grange), it's finally time to do something about the horrible, dangerous and potentially deadly four-way stop sign intersection of 47th Street and East/Eberly Avenue.

I, for one, travel through that cluster-you-know-what every day, sometimes 10 times a day. And everytime I do, I thank God I made it out alive. Many licensed drivers, I have come to learn, are crazy and simply don't care who they cut off or ignore as long as they get where they're going. Harumph!

SOMETHING needs to be done or sooner or later another Cari Cook- type tragedy will plague La Grange, Brookfield and McCook once again.

Congressional folks such as the father-son Lipinski tag team and some state lawmakers often express frustration passed on by constituents about negotiating one's way (safely) through the crossing, which is further complicated by a set of freight railroad tracks in both directions interrupting traffic flow on both roadways.

Suggestions have ranged from building an underpass or overpass, which would require massive amounts of funding, to putting up stoplights to control the intersection.

People traveling through 47th and East/Eberly (the name Brookfield calls it), especially during the morning and evening rush, either don't seem to remember or don't seem to care what they learned in Driver's Ed. or the last time they took a test on the Rules of the Road to renew their license. Like which lane of vehicles goes first.

Solutions have ranged from totally shutting down the intersection in all directions (by a onetime Brookfield mayor) to letting La Grange take over its stretch of 47th (which they are asking for), so it can reduce the lanes to one in each direction and a turn lane to soften the traffic flow and vastly improve safety for pedestrians and homeowners.

One of the ironies is that many people simply avoid the intersection. Parent and Village Board Trustee Bill Holder restricts his daughter from going near there until she is a more experienced driver. Moreover, most parents prohibit their kids to walk or bike to Sedgwick Park or the Park District of La Grange recreation center.

I like Trustee Mike Horvath's out-of-the-box suggestion, to shut down westbound and eastbound traffic on 47th by ending the road just west of East Avenue, allowing eastbound access to southbound East Avenue and emergency access through that same turn lane, but leaving westbound traffic to use East or Eberly and north and south bound traffic to keep going to get where they are going.

While that, too, seems like something that either would take years to accomplish or be a financial and logistical nightmare, I believe other, lower-cost, short-term solutions will give everyone the biggest bang for their buck.

First off, every community and entity involved needs to stop passing the buck, saying it's the state's decision or any one of the three municipalities' worry. They need to sit down and hammer out some ideas to improve safety NOW.

So, this is what I think (and I'd like to know your opinion, too):

1. Hold a public meeting at Sedgwick Park or in a neighboring parking lot to watch and monitor the traffic flow, to let everyone see what's wrong. Maybe driving education is best, but I doubt it.

2. Erect temporary traffic lights at the intersection, jointly funded by La Grange, McCook, Brooklfield, IDOT, some federal stimulus funds, the railroad, perhaps others like the nearby sports facility The Max in McCook or the Park District of Las Grange -- whose recreation center on East Avenue is isolated, landlocked, tough to get to except by car or bus.

3. Commission a traffic study on the effectiveness of the lights, whether people obey them like they don't do for the stop signs. Then make them permanent until an over- or under-pass is built, or take 'em down if they aren't doing any good.

Bicyclists beware, as there are no sidewalks south of 47th on East or on the north or south sides of 47th in McCook or west of 9th Avenue in La Grange. That's another problem, but I digress.

4. If traffic lights cannot be done, then put a traffic cop (again, jointly funded) right in the middle of the intersection, like old-timers say used to be posted at La Grange Road and Ogden Avenue back in the day. That small action could actually teach motorists the right way to drive, stop, proceed and let others go first.

5. Step up joint municipal enforcement there to ticket the hundreds if not thousands of drivers how to properly an legally operate a motor vehicle.

Just do something. Now instead of later.

JUST A QUICK THOUGHT OR TWO

2009-06-24T03:22:00.004-05:00

A few items in this past week's police blotter related to summer shenanigans of our youth (see The Cops) caught my eye and made me wonder for a moment how easily things could be done to improve the health and welfare of our young people.

We all know kids often complain "there's nothing to do" in Anytown, USA. But in La Grange, where kids lately have been "caught" red-handed skateboarding on the parking deck, taking a dip in the downtown fountain and -- OMG! -- playing night basketball under the lights in Sedgwick Park, opportunity abounds.

The village displayed a quick wit this week by promising to make safety improvements (see The Cops and The News) along 47th Street, just a month and a few days since a 30-year-old Countryside mother was killed as she pushed her baby stroller across the busy roadway at 8th Avenue.

Now, I believe, it's time for the Park District and Village Board to act swiftly to help out our kids in other ways:

First, let the kids play basketball at night in the parks, so long as there is some adult supervision. After midnight might be too late, but establish some reasonable times. Where else will they spend their summer nights, other than eating out and at the theatre but in the streets and neighborhoods with the potential to cause trouble?

Second and third, work to acquire the vacant parcel of land at the northwest corner of Harris and Ashland avenues, where a funeral home once was and what was going to be a condominium development that went under. Take a tip from other towns like, say Lombard in DuPage County, where along their St. Charles Road business district west of Main Street you will find a low-maintenance, low-cost to build splash park.

Maybe the remainder of the land can become a state-of-the-art skating park, designed in part by the kids who will later use it, and feature other park amenities taking advantage of the retirement home to the south, the senior center to the east, the elementary school to the southeast and ice cream shop across the street.

It'd be a great place for kids to spend time after school under the watchful eye of the nearby Police and Fire departments, businesses and senior population. With the barrier of the old Illinois Bell switching station next door and the intergenerational potential, it's a no-brainer.

A similar "park" could be erected in the side and back parking lot of the new recreation center on East Avenue, and would be a great selling point for that pedestrian underpass at Maple Avenue so many folks keep talking about.

I'll bet the state senator and reps serving La Grange would love to assist with legislative initiative grants, or a Kids Foundation could be formed to raise money to make it happen.

The first step, however, is to form a Youth Commission, so elected officials can begin to develop a better understanding of what kids and teens really want out of their village.

Let me know what you think.

TOO LITTLE, TOO LATE?

2009-06-19T03:31:00.006-05:00

I'd like to think if the La Grange police and fire department oficers and investigators I've come to know and trust over the years were given sole authority over the investigation of the May 19 vehicle vs. pedestrian death which claimed the life of a 30-year-old Countryside mom, they would have concluded their work weeks ago and maybe even issued actual criminal charges against the alleged offender.

It's uncanny it took so much time for state and county investigators -- only with the help of local police -- to piece together the tragic collision that left Cari Cook for dead and rendered her two children and family dog lucky survivors.

A little more than a week ago, the traffic violations of a Summit man who nearly escaped death himself when, in an admittedly almost sleepy state, he sheared off the front end of his vehicle and got pinned inside until firefighters could free him after crossing a double yellow line, were quickly determined. The case was evaluated by La Grange officers and a ticket was issued.

The 5-car crash June 11 was on the same stretch of state-controlled roadway -- the busy speed haven known as 47th Street -- as the crash that killed Cook, and less than two blocks away no less.

Maybe the involved parties in the Cook case weren't talking immediately, maybe it was hard to analyze a crash with no apparent witnesses with clear enough memories -- but maybe, just maybe -- part of the problem (i.e., the long delay) was because lead investigators were just not all that familiar with the road in question or the kinds of careless traffic activity that goes on there on an all-too-frequent, sometimes daily basis (See The Cops).

It is La Grange cops, and not state troopers or state's attorney investigators, who routinely patrol the high-accident corridor and figure out the final disposition of every other non-fatal crash on what really should be a local roadway under full local jurisdiction.

After all, local law enforcement typically know what's best and how to handle such matters both fairly and expeditiously.

Perhaps it truly did take everyone a full month to investigate the death, but it shouldn't have been La Grange Police Mike Holub who gave residents a very unrevealing update on the probe at the June 2 village safety meeting, with regular updates on what was going on with the investigation. Why not a state trooper and county prosecutor instead, with Holub at their side?

Instead of a press release issued by the local guys, perhaps someone should have hosted a press conference, if not midway through the probe, then at its culmination, so local web, print and broadcast reporters could have asked the kinds of questions that deserve answers; so the community could feel a little more at ease the wheels of government won't end up moving as slow as they seldom do on this burning issue.

Was the alleged offending driver believed to have been doing anything to possibly distract herself while crossing 8th Street? Speeding? Doing makeup? Talking or texting? Eating lunch? We may never know, but does anyone have proof if she was doing any of those things or not?

Was there excessive sunshine or dark shade affecting the vision of drivers at that hour of that day?

Why did the investigation take so long and why were criminal charges not justified in this case?

Easy questions, seemingly easy answers.

Instead we all get a statement, without all the facts and without answering many of the probing questions curious newshounds and understandably concerned neighbors and residents might have.

I have a feeling the many questions swirling around this case are from from over. Simply put, we all need to know more. And in a few days or a week. Not a month.

Why not let us know what you think???

A SILENT MEMORIAL SO CLEARLY HEARD

2009-06-09T19:19:00.005-05:00

It's difficult for just about everybody to talk about death, especially when it means the passing of someone so young and vibrant, with their entire life ahead of them.

When it comes to news reporters, it's something that comes with the territory. You are either emotionally affected every time an assignment to cover a murder, fatal accident, suicide or prominent death hits your desk or you grow immune to covering so much tragedy -- kind of like how police and firefighters are able to show up to work every day.

Although I have been at this craft for nearly 30 years and have covered some pretty grisly murders, accidental and intentional deaths, I have never been immune to every story I've done.

There was that guy whose girlfriend beat him to death with his own baseball bat, the two young kids who died after being stabbed and bound with duct tape by a guy their mom thought was a trusting babysitter, the child who was run over by her own school bus after being dropped off at her corner, the young teen with so much for which to live decided to run into a train's path and, most recently, the mom killed while crossing a busy 47th Street with her baby's stroller.

I've covered them all, and then some. And I always try and find out something, if not lots of things about these people to share with my readers.

Most of us in the media follow an unwritten policy that we don't talk about suicides except when they occur in public. And while I am going to share the latest such case to cross my desk, I am not going to violate that code. I don't need to know or tell who this kid was, but I am sure he had a lot of hopes and dreams and a good life story to tell.

He died at the end of the school year, so the impact on fellow students may not have been as dramatic had his death occurred in the middle of the year. But the impact felt by the extended neighborhood in which he lived is downright touching to say the least.

That neighborhood is directly across the street from La Grange's western border with Western Springs at Gilbert Avenue.

From Gilbert to Wolf Road and from 47th Street to Burlington Avenue, nearly every parkway tree is adorned this week with flowing thick white ribbons honoring the life of a young neighborhood kid whose life, for reasons we will never know, came to an abrupt halt in recent days.

There was no story about it, nor should there be, unless someone chooses to share what he meant to others.

I couldn't help but thinking what it was like for the family and friends of the boy to experience such a loss; but moreover what it felt like to be blessed with so much support and compassion largely from so many people they didn't even know.

I've seen ribbon "campaigns" to raise awareness of child abuse, to pass school building referenda and to mobilize a neighborhood opposed to overdevelopment of a vacant downtown lot where hundreds of condos now stand. I've seen resident groups stand tall for and against any number of causes. But I've never seen anything so simply overwhelming as this.

Sure, the ribbons, over time, will come down -- but the memory of this valiant silent memorial will live on, not just in me, but hopefully in others directly impacted by the loss of their son or brother, their classmate or teammate, their neighbor, their friend.

47TH STREET SAFETY HAZARDS NEED TO BE ADDRESSED -- AND MAY WELL BE

2009-05-20T14:25:00.005-05:00

A fatal accident involving a 30-year-old Countryside woman struck by a passing vehicle as she attempted to hoist her child's stroller onto a raised curb at 47th Street and 8th Avenue in La Grange May 19 underscores the need for a comprehensive traffic and pedestrian study NOW in all area communities.

However, kudos are in order for Village Manager Robert Pilipiszyn for calling a special meeting June 2 to talk to the neighborhood about safety concerns aloing 47th Street and for asking the state to not only reduce speed on the roadway throughout town but to also turn over the street to the village so it can reduce the number of lanes, adding lots more parkway, turn lanes and, we can only hope, a safer commute and pedestrian atmosphere to boot.

Not only is the nearby intersection of 47th and East/Eberly Avenue another example of a potential fatality just waiting to happen, but so, too, are many intersections like the one where Cari Cook was killed -- and that is in a residential neighborhood.

The conundrum over 47th and East/Eberly is an issue often bandied about as a "what to do" scenario, but nothing is ever advanced to improve either vehicular or pedestrian traffic through the quasi- industrial/recreational crossing bounded on two corners by La Grange and the other two corners by McCook and Brookfield.

Rather than waiting for state or federal dollars to magically come streaming into local villages, the town leaders must sit down with their own department heads and residents -- as well as with their municipal neighbors -- and put safety first.

It doesn't take a rocket scientist to know that many of the area sidewalks do not match up on either side of an intersection, that is where there are sidewalks.

And speaking as a disabled person who lately has been trying to master La Grange, Brookfield and Countryside streets, sidewalks and intersections often on crutches or via wheelchair, the task of getting around is a challenge to put it lightly.

In many areas, people who are disabled, pushing strollers or pulling wagons often find the supposed ADA-quality curb cuts to be anything but even.

And in the case of downtown La Grange, the mere task of visiting a store or restaurant located anywhere but the end of a block requires drivers to park in the middle of the block and pass behind sometimes a dozen other vehicles before being able to use a corner crosswalk to get onto the sidewalk.

As a result, curb cuts should not just be installed in the middle of downtown blocks, where convenient handicapped and "pregnant mom" spaces should also be available (like they are in the middle of the parking lot outside, say, JoAnn Fabrics in Countryside Plaza), but they should be routinely checked for settling and safety more frequently than they are.

The issue with Cari Cook may have something to do with speed or the indubitable rush motorists feel to beat the freight train congestion at 47th and East/Eberly, but then again it could be just a freak accident.

But it is clear it could have been avoided had the young mother not had to LIFT her baby's stroller onto the curb.

MOVE TO LEGALIZE VIDEO POKER? THINK TWICE

2009-05-13T00:12:00.008-05:00

Never mind using ex-governor Rod Blagojevich's stance against video poker legalization to justify public support of it -- even if a big Chicago daily chooses to point that out at the end of a story this week (May 11 Chicago Tribune) about a new push by leading Democrats to do so as a way to raise revenue.

Let's face it: video poker, Cherry Masters, whatever you want to call it, is already a big joke in this state AND just about every municipality outside La Grange.

Video poker, like some cigarette and billiards tables, are syndicate owned and operated.

Money made at these games is split between the business owner and the guys who furnish them -- religiously, by the way, days after the ones seized in well-publicized county police raids are trucked away then destroyed and sometimes burned by vice squads -- Guys, by the way, who just might want to break some legs if you cheat on your earnings statements. Guys that keep the local law enforcement and politicians (through regular campaign contributions, mind you) in line. How nice, huh?

Go to any bar or restaurant (or, say, the almost secret back room of Darcy Lynn's diner on Ogden Avenue in Lyons) and you will NOT see ANY video poker games at which full-grown adults are happily pumping twenty after fifty after one hundred dollar bills into, just to play poker, slots, other related games with half-naked cartoon women on the screens -- "FOR AMUSEMENT ONLY" -- according to unofficial handwritten signs slapped on them by sleazy business owners.

AND JUST FOR AMUSEMENT? HA!

If you stick around these places long enough, and are not obvious but observant, you will see illegal activity, illegal payouts to regular players just like it was a Vegas or Illinois riverboat casino or, say, a truck stop outside Baton Rouge. Money doesn't come out of the machine, but usually out of a cash box of some sort kept hidden behind the bar or in the proprietor's office. And the winnings are often sweet -- OH, AND BY THE WAY: tax-free! HOW 'bout that people??
But except for the occasional election year county sheriff's raid on a multitude of taverns
throughout the suburbs, most every municipal, county and state law enforcement agency ignores the problem. Local government could be making gobs of money busting these places for such payouts if they'd just take the time to do their jobs.

However, they can't, usually because the Liquor Commissioner (hmmm ... Who?), otherwise known as the Mayor overlooks, er, excuse me...... controls the disposition of all the licenses of liquor establishments that harbor the machines.

The "Commissioner" rarely, if ever, conducts disciplinary hearings on watering holes and pancake houses and VFW halls caught red-handed by other agencies. Occasionally they do and mete fines or minor suspensions against them. The toughest penalty I ever remember was carried out in the 1990's by then-Lyons Mayor David Visk, who shut down a tavern caught paying out winnings to video poker players and dealing drugs in the establishment. Another mayor in DuPage in the last decade ordered one bar owner closed on every major traditional drinking and partying holiday.

But local towns rarely crack down on video poker -- what I have long considered an expansion of illegal gambling that has flagrantly went on around these parts probably since the times illegal stills operated in local barns and garages during Prohibition. It's legalized in some states, but it's often very controversial.

So why should you care?

Well, folks, it seems our illustrious Democratic leaders in the House and Senate are solidly behind the legalization -- get this -- of the ILLEGAL payout portion of the otherwise boring and staid "amusement" device as a possible way to finance school construction projects and local government needs throughout the Land of Lincoln.

The measure -- backed by Senate President John Cullerton and House Speaker Michael Madigan, according to aides, in a May 11 published report -- was approved that day by a 9-2 vote of the Illinois House Executive Committee as legislators negotiated the go-ahead of a massive public works initiative before their scheduled May 31 adjournment in Springfield.

The idea is estimated to generate as much as $300 million annually through a proposed 25 percent tax on the now illegal payouts. WHICH makes me wonder: how do these trusty, clean-as-whistles lawmakers know how much is being made as a result of these games if the winnings are illegally paid out?

(I think I get it. Before we pass the law, let's all visit our friendly neighborhood watering hole or greasy spoon as the case may be, quaff a beer or coffee or two, then inquire oh so politely just how much they dole out in an average month to the regulars who amuse themselves at their video poker machines. Then times that by 12. I'm sure they won't mind filling us in.)

But wait a minute!

We really need money in this state, this town, this county and God knows we can't cut administrative fat or trips and conventions or pension contributions (forcing government workers to pay toward their own retirement like the rest of modern-day America does with 401K's and IR A's. O. M. G.!) or things like hiring relatives or building mini-golf courses nobody visits, laregly inaccessible parks or, for instance, $15 million village halls.

Might as well make recreational drugs and other narcotics legal as a way to pay for playgrounds and those worthless all-terrain assault boy-toys local SWAT teams have to protect them against the next terrorist attack in Bedford Park or Hodgkins. Guess what? People aren't just smoking, snorting and injecting drugs because they are having a good time. People make lots of money dealing this stuff! Maybe we could tax them, after all we know there are lots of illegal payoffs going on ... but we just largely ignore it.

Heck, those poor guys at just about any bar or diner can't blow smoke in nonsmoker's faces indoors anymore. We gotta give 'em a break; it's damn cold out there, or windy, or balmy, and they gotta stand the whole time. So let's finally recognize they're breaking the law and tax them for it. This is hypocrisy.

On the same note, why not legalize prostitution? We know people pay for it and those guys and gals sure do make some good money doing what they do.

Awww, we know it's illegal, taxpayers, but so is the ghost payrolling we overlook and the campaigning we do while we are supposed to be working on the government payroll and the contracts and jobs and appointments we give out to those fine people whom we twist arms and legs to fill up our campaign coffers.

And you know what? It's not just Blago who's into that kind of thing. It's a lot of other politicians, not just waiting for pensions and campaign fund payouts to kick in, who generally believe they are above the law. And, I guess, who believe the tavern owners and those good 'ol veterans and truckers are as well.

Gov. Pat Quinn, an advocate of a $26 billion construction program, has not said where he stands on the terrible idea.

But Democrat Frank Mautino of Spring Valley likes the idea and is looking for supporters. I can't wait to hear what has convinced them to rally behind it.

It's estimated there are about 65,000 of these machines in Illinois, many of which are licensed for a fee by the local municipality or county. But it's likely there are at least 65,000 more in the backrooms of warehouses and other storefronts and store 'fronts' all over the place. Heck, there's a place in Lyons, a big political contributor over the years, that houses scores of them.

The funny thing about Mautino's plan, IF it's going to be followed, is that wagering would be restricted to a max of 2 bucks a bet, with a max payout of 500 greenbacks. Heck I've often seen grown men with fistfulls of 20's and 50's childishly shoving them in the dollar slot one after another. TWO bucks?

Here's another good one: taverns would only be able to house three poker games, while truck stops, vet's halls and private or nonprofit social clubs could have up to five. (Excuse me, Mr. Speaker, just how many can we then keep running in the back room or the basement?!)

We're not yet sure how our local reps and senators feel about this stellar suggestion, but we'll update you when we know.

We are, however, happy to report that those two NO votes in committee came from a Mundelein Republican, Rep. Ed Sullivan -- who says if he was to vote for it, it'd have to pay for road repair before school upgrades -- and our friend Rep. Bob Biggins of nearby Elmhurst, who says there's enough gambling in Illinois already. Yay, Bob!

The whole thing makes me laugh and oh so suspicious of just who's giving whom how much, when and how. After all, while I am no supporter of Rod and all of his antics, it's funny that some of those criticizing him are willing to help mobsters and their minions (and probably more than a few mayors and cops ... OH, and our wonderful state, sorry) make money off of presently unenforced ILLEGAL criminal activity.

And they expect us all to sit back and accept this nonsense. We don't think so.

Speak up, Illinoisans. Don't let anyone shove this down your throats.

(please tell us what you think) Thanks.

ACCESS INABILITY

2009-04-02T09:34:00.003-05:00

Lyons Township High School District 204 is a fine institution with amazingly large -- and might I add: very clean and seemingly safe -- facilities, but the School Board and administration could go a long way toward doing a better job of welcoming visitors to nighttime events.

Face it, each campus is huge because of the need to accommodate so many students, classrooms and programs and the parking lots are just as huge, and, by the way, very well-maintained.

But we attended an event at South campus in Western Springs the other night (the Monday, March 30th candidate forum presented by the La Grange Area League of Women Voters) and found it rather confusing and frustrating just where to park and which entrance to go in. They are a least a block or two apart.

I admit that although I am temporarily wheelchair-bound (and did not call ahead to check on accommodations) and did not find any indoor or outdoor ramps or curb cuts unsafe, the parking spaces for the disabled are quite a distance from each entrance. I shudder to imagine being on crutches or a walker or being older and less able-bodied and having to walk that distance just to get inside or back to my vehicle.

But I, and the wife of a high school board candidate, arriving early (thank God), found it difficult at best where to enter. There were no signs anywhere to be found, nobody directing visitors in person and even night custodians had no clue the forum was being held let alone where it was.

Granted, I didn't do my homework. I just knew it was being held at South campus. But I also learned part of the problem was the lack of attention the local print media affords the La Grange Area League of Women Voters (who hosted the event and probably should have posted their own directional signs and maybe a few volunteer building guides inside and outside to help out).

The gymnasium doors were illuminated and open and it appeared volleyball practice was going on in there, there were night adult courses in progress in some classrooms and there was the forum. Not knowing which way to go, we chose one of the two obvious options (the wrong one, of course) and had to walk (and roll) the length of a few football fields to get to our destination and back. Glad it was a warmer than usual night (and yes, I could sure use the exercise).

That is something we at OnLaGrange.com plan to change. The League and its varied audiences can be assured we will carry detailed information about all of their forums and seminars from now on,most likely in The News or The Community blogs.

Even signs or knowledgeable staff would have helped (then again so could an electric scooter), but we learn from our mistakes, I guess.

I did, and I hope LT and the League will as well.

TWITTER LA DI, TWITTER LA DA

2009-03-14T20:43:00.006-05:00

I am not a Twitterer. In fact, I'm just starting to master this 'posting of meandering thoughts and other important stories on the website' thing.

But this, I guess, is my twitter -- yet I won't be boring you with entries like 'Jim is about to go to sleep now. He's had a long day going into a matinee at the La Grange Theatre and sneaking into as many other movies as possible in one day.' (although I do admit that's fun)

But I will try to amuse you with the kinds of things a newsman such as myself wonders about, things I just can't seem to pull together a whole darn column about. So here goes:

1. This is my biggest pet peeve about La Grange and I just realized in a chat with Mayor Liz Asperger over coffee last week that even she was unaware of this faux pas: take a drive over the Ogden Avenue bridge from Brookfield into La Grange and keep to the right lane heading west, preferably in the daytime. As you approach the left turn onto Burlington Avenue, keep an eye out for the yellow (road is approaching on your left) caution sign at the top of the bridge. Look closely or you might miss it. Just like I tell my favorite restaurant owners (yes, Steve, we still need to meet) about the glaring mistakes, grammar and spelling and punctuation errors on their menus, I feel obliged to repeat my rant about signs. Since this is an educated community, the local hot dog shop does not sell Hot Dog's or Taco's. and there is NOT a Jewel's in La Grange Park or a Kmart's over in Bridgeview. And, sign-makers, there is no such road as BurliGton Avenue.

2. I've been keeping a close eye on what retail is NOT coming in to the new La Grange Pointe senior housing complex at La Grange Road and Cossitt Avenue and stopped in my tracks the other day thinking something had changed. But it was the clever marketing genius of the folks over there who finally decided to fill those vacant windows with a more colorful artist rendition of the La Grange streetscape -- undoubtedly to attract more retail and residential tenants. Let's hope it works.

3. Glad to see Francesca's is finally open for business in the old Via Bella space to the immediate north of the new Pointe building. Still waiting on a permanent sign, the owners have plastered a red-on-black banner on the facade advertising they are 'Now Open' for business. Anyone wondering what happened to Via Bella? They are now selling pizza out of a small shop at Plainfield Road and 55th Street in neighboring Countryside.

4. If that new Chicago Sports t-shirt and baseball memorabilia shop tucked into a space just south of Starbucks has familiar-looking stock, that should be the case if you are a Cubs fan. They operate their business right next to the 7-Eleven on Addison Street in Wrigleyville every season. That's less than three weeks away!

5. I get angry when I do the drive-thru at any fast-food restaurant and I am asked to please 'wait over there.' Call me crazy, but I used to go on a rant about how the concept started eons ago with Jack-in-the-Box (which no kid at the window has ever even heard of) and how the whole idea was to order, drive thru and pick up your food. I always used to carry on about how their sign out front doesn't say 'Joe's Burgers Drive Thru And Wait Over There' DOES it??
'No sir,' they used to tell me, but 'you still need to park over there.' One girl even threatened to call the cops on me one day.
So I threw in the towel this year and as one of many goofy resolutions (like no more pretzels with peanut butter or read the instructions before using products I buy or receive from now on, especially cars and Blackberries) I make, promised myself, 'self, it's OK to park over there.' So I did.
Then comes last week, when the burger joint at La Grange and Ogden wants to charge me a quarter for a BBQ sauce. Because I asked for it with my fries and it only comes with Chicken Nuggets. Ask for ketchup and you'd think you just cashed in your lucrative stocks for that tomato farm you invested in a few years back. I mean a heaping handful.
So I had to ask: what's up with this? The manager informs me the nugget sauces cost the store 12 cents apiece, whereas the ketchup packets are only a penny or two. Why McDonald's doesn't carry Heinz is another story well worth Googling.
So, again, I adapted.
Then comes Free Coffee Mocha Mondays.
A couple weeks back, round about 9 p.m., I had a thirst for one. NOT available, I was told.
They ran out of lids. Harumph!

6. If there is ever another Spaghetti Dinner at First Baptist of La Grange Church, it is a must-attend event -- even though they delivered it to my car door in the parking lot when I couldn't get out my car. The best outside of any good pasta restaurant and better than some others!

7. I miss Beautiful Day.

8. The most popular places for the homeless used to be in the old library or in the vestibules of such popular hangouts as Fannie May Candies, Starbucks and benches outside 7-Eleven. But lately, it seems the downtrodden have found refuge in the new parking deck, where the lobby area is heated day and night. Police seem to be doing their best lately to keep the place free of such squatters. Next they'll be showering up in the fountain. Yikes.

9. When are the officials of La Grange, Brookfield and McCook finally going to get together and seriously discuss what to do to improve traffic and pedestrian safety at 47th and East/Eberly? The four-way stop, at any time of day or night, is a clear indication that NObody listens to the teacher in traffic school.

10. And will the guy with the Christmas lights STILL on his top-floor balcony overlooking the Police Department parking lot and Chase drive-thru facility finally realize the holiday season is over with? I know this sounds sooo suburban of me, but I think we need an ordinance setting fines or community service for decoration violators ... even for the stores that start displaying Easter stuff in February.

PAYING IT FORWARD: BACK AT 'CHA!

2009-01-15T01:08:00.007-06:00

By James Pluta

Welcome back! To you, that is, but mostly from me, after a brief hiatus due to a number of complications both medical (surgical that is) and mechanical (OK, my car and computer blew up, again) and letting the holiday madness take control -- proving that yes, even us dyed-in-the-wool 24/7 newshounds need to take a break sometimes.

Anyway, it's me, the big tall bearded guy, trying not to limp around, always ferreting out the latest "goooood staw-wee" (as the Sun Times' late great Harry Golden used to say every time he scooped his cigar-chomping City Hall pressroom peers). And this year is no different.

But with Barack taking office next week? Isn't He, as it were, the story of the week?

Maybe, if you're sick of hearing about Blago or are a fan of La Grange's own -- the locally famous -- Lawn Rangers, who prepped for their inaugural parade appearance Monday night at Palmer Place and deserve second-billing, top-of-the-fold coverage if I had a front page.

(Then I'd cover those endorsements we missed, the continued, disputed sale of a piece of Gordon Park and the continued undisputed existence of the still-standing empty Y, why we no longer see the lady in black or that Bible-thumpin' loud man at La Grange & Ogden, Cafe 36's national appearance on FOX-TV's "Kitchen Nightmares" tonight, even that great movie with Paul Rudd and the guy who played Stiffler still playing for $3.50 at the La Grange Theatre or why the clock that should have been given to Jerry Burjan rarely, if ever, sports the correct time.)

But THE HOTTEST La Grange political story this side of Harlem, Cicero or Austin, heck Fifth Avenue (La Grange Road for you young tykes and grandmas who don't remember), depending, of course, on where you hang your hat and where your Chicago border is (since that is where our beleaguered governor prefers to live and work and attend baseball games) involves a reform-minded politician being accused of requiring that some citizens to pay if they want to play.

I wish I was referring to that latest somebody who actually had the chutzpah to file petitions next week challenging the "recommended" caucus slate, especially after all that hoopla over purpose and bylaws and future, conflicts of interest, a whole 20-something delegates voting at times and why oh why the former Park Board prez was not endorsed. Oooh La La?

No thank you ma'am. Like a reader once wrote to me about the alarming news concerning prohibited first-floor retail swing dancing in downtown La Grange ('What next? Bendable straws?' Ha!) ... Oh my my, La Grange. Oh my my.

(SEE 'THE NEWS' BLOG TODAY AND WATCH THE TONGUES START WAGGIN' IN THAT OTHER BIG GUY'S COFFEE SHOP. THIS IS BIG NEWS!)

In my estimation, that means stick around, wander back to the main page, click on 'The Talk' blog and Read On, loyal readers. Then register on our site (if you aren't signed up already) and let us know what YOU think. Boy I love this competition thing.

LIGHT UP LA GRANGE!

2008-10-21T03:23:00.005-05:00

I witnessed a beautiful thing early this morning, on my way through downtown La Grange on the way home from a late-night shopping trip at the Jewel in Countryside. Don't ask me why, I'm just a night owl and I love cruising the aisles when nobody's there.

My brief visit downtown confirmed to me the holidays are just around the corner. As I passed La Grange Road on Cossitt Avenue, I slowed down and paused just for a few moments as Public Works crews took advantage of the dead of night to start lighting up the town like it had never been before.

These were the quaint white lights the La Grange Business Association had talked about late this summer: the canopy of decorative lights strung across the road to brighten up the sidewalks and buildings -- just in time for this Saturday's annual Halloween Walk.

Just before stepping out last night, I remembered receiving a quick indescript note from Public Works -- which I admit I didn't have time to post earlier -- announcing the closure of La Grange Road between Cossitt and Burlington avenues from 11:30 p.m. to 4:45 a.m. simply "for maintenance purposes." At first, I figured, just another quickie road project.

I thought nothing of it until I passed by the business district and recalled hearing something last week about how the light shipments from overseas were indefinitely delayed. But come this morning, I guess they finally arrived.

Voila!

CUBS OR SOX, WHOSE SIDE YOU ON?

2008-10-02T02:45:00.006-05:00

Today's column was supposed to be me bragging about the Chicago Cubs' first win in their first playoff game vs. the Los Angeles Dodgers (and something negative about the White Sox, just because), but we all know what happened by now.

So I will withhold my peanut gallery banter (until the Sox lose their first playoff game, haha).

What this is instead is the start of what will be a daily rundown of game facts, amusing stories and rambling thoughts and predictions (however outlandish) about our crosstown rivalries: the mutual like and dislike we all share in one way or another for ours and the other guy's teams.

For the next several days, maybe couple of weeks, we will use The Sports blog to share our feelings about the Cubs and Sox, and we'd like you to give us your feedback, too.

Register on the site (if you haven't already) and write away, anything that's on your mind about the playoffs, this past season and beyond. Do the Cubs suck? Do the Sox stink? We'll leave it up to you to decide.

In the meantime, Sox Guy and I (Cubs Guy, of course) will carry on, like Matthau and Lemmon, Hatfield and McCoy, heck, Ike and Tina for all I care. All we want you to do is to blog on our blog and we'll edit out the profanities.

IT seemed like clear sailing following DeRosa's two-run homer early in the game Wednesday, but once Loney belted the grand slam over the center-left field wall, it seemed downhill from there.

Sure, I am a huge die-hard Cub fan who was hoping for an eleventh-hour comeback, but I'm also a realist. Although I am never one to leave early or flip to another channel when the going gets tough, I was already thinking about Thursday night's game, er, victory.

One thing's for sure (in an ideal world): the Cubs are destined to go all the way, eventually beating (I hope) the South Side Hit Men in a nail-biting, down-to-the-wire World Series. I am sure some of you vehemently disagree.

That's where me and my publisher, Scott, differ -- in our Major League Baseball allegiance, which for the both of us have been lifelong commitments. While this relationship, passed down from my late mother, has sometimes (OK, often) let me down, it remains close to my heart. Yes, I bleed Cubbie blue. Some years much more than others (Thank you, Padres).

Upon running into Steve Palmer Wednesday evening just before the game (he runs Palmer Place Restaurant & Bier Garten on La Grange Road with his brother Phil and their mother Ruth), I asked him to share the story of his own Cubs upbringing.

While my Mom was not a fan of going to the games, she religiously kept the Cubs score every season as far back as I can remember, and I have the theme books filled with scoresheets and stats to prove it. We attended when we could, my brothers and I, but mostly gathered around the TV with friends for big games, whether at a bar or Mom's living room.

For Steve and Phil, their earliest intro to Cubdom consisted of weekly summertime trips to the Friendly Confines, where they would visit, with Mom, on Ladies Day -- which Steve recalls used to be a free day for women every Tuesday -- and they were free, too, cause kids under 12 also got in for nothing back then.

They'd park the Chevy Caprice over by the old convent just north of the Wrigleyville firehouse on Waveland, and walk down the alley to the left field entrance and into the park to get their scorecards and pencils, a stone's throw away from where they'd hang out after each game for autographs as players drove home.

"We'd each have handmade ham and cheese sandwiches on rye bread, Phil and I, some potato chips wrapped in cellophane and a can of soda wrapped in tin foil, all in a brown paper bag ... and that was our lunch at the ballpark," he reminisced. "Those were my first Cub memories."

Though Ruth was from Elwood, Ind., she came here in the 60s and quickly became a Cubs fan. Her team loyalty is evidenced by the club's decor throughout her restaurant -- on the walls, in the windows, in the hearts and souls of their best customers. When the White Sox made it to the Series in '05, Steve (always the diplomat) took out an ad in the local paper letting Sox fans know they, too, were welcome to cheer on their team at his establishment.

"As long as the Cubs win, everybody's happy," he said. "There are three seasons at Palmer's. There's Christmas, St. Patrick's Day and baseball and we change the pictures on our walls three times a year. Some of the mementos on the walls are antiques and quite collectible."

As Steve played family ombudsman at a business after-hours at Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory up the street (see The Business blog) just prior to Game 1, his manager Gus and crew were proudly hanging up "W" signs on walls and windows and Phil Palmer was at work directing staff to get ready for the big night -- customers gathering in the back room and garden to catch the first playoff game.

Although Steve was vague about what he might do when the Cubs win the National League pennant and make it to the World Series alongside the White Sox (a ham and cheese, chips and soda special, perhaps?), Rocky Mountain owner Jean Kuhn made a promise she intends to keep.

"I'm a Chicago fan," said Kuhn, who has other interests but who made sure to have the big stuffed bear out in front of her store dressed in Cubs gear this week. "How cool would that be?"She pondered for a moment, then announced (just to me, mind you): "I might make a Sox and Cubs caramel apple if that happens. Yes, that's what I'll do."

Now, I don't know how many sweet tooths are going to buy a black and white or blue and red candied apple, but it's the thought that counts.

Anyway, I digress.

This Cubs Guy (that's me) will be glued to the television or radio every step of the way and on Thursday, Cubs Guy will be viewing the Cubs' first win over L.A. with his brother from their not-so-cheap seats high above first base. And I'm sure Helen Pluta will be watching from above.

Steve, on the other hand, is staying in La Grange for the playoffs, tending to his customers. If his team makes it to the Series, he promises to be there with his mother and brother, if for just one game.

Now that's team spirit.

THE TRUTH ABOUT THE MAYOR AND TIF

2008-09-28T15:27:00.003-05:00

Sometimes we as writers listen to the wrong people for the information we use to build a story or a column and sometimes we don't do our proper homework with that data.

As someone new on the block (I actually have not been reporting on La Grange regularly since around 2001, not that that's an excuse), I really have been trying to get back up to speed lately on all the issues and positions. But in doing so, I made a mistake in my Sept. 16 column entry about the Citizens Council of La Grange, specifically involving incumbent Village President Liz Asperger.

Asperger, as many know, could not be a bigger proponent of Tax Increment Financing, as evidenced in part by her most recent Village Board comments about the request by the La Grange Theatre owners for TIF funds to help in their planned renovations. I thought I was told otherwise.

At the time, Asperger called the request "an appropriate TIF project" and referred to the downtown TIF District as "a phenomenal success" for which La Grange has "kind of become the poster child in Illinois" because of its "forward-thinking manner" regarding TIF funding.

Asperger will have the same opportunity to share her feelings about the TIF when La Grange Theatre funding options are formally presented to the Village Board during a special meeting scheduled for 7 p.m. Monday, Sept. 29, in Village Hall.

As to whether Asperger plans to seek the Council endorsement again this fall, she said she has not yet reeived an application but will likely do so.

We still do not know whether the forces who did not support her four years ago still remain in large enough numbers, but bet it's doubtful. She's done a lot to heal wounds, move forward and soften divisiveness in town since taking office in 2005.

IT'S THAT TIME OF YEAR AGAIN, VOTERS

2008-09-16T01:41:00.005-05:00

Newspaper men like the joke that there are two seasons in Illinois: winter and construction.

True that, but at least in the case of construction, you have a choice. You can take different roads. Yet that's not always the case with the biennial rite in every local municipality (and another exciting season): elections.

Those who support and comprise the establishment candidate endorsement organization called the Citizens' Council of La Grange strongly believe it is a system that works well for the community. It has rarely seen competition to its endorsees, who win most of the time.

But as in the case of the last two municipal elections in the village -- in particular the last contest for village president in 2005 -- things don't always go as planned.

Every election season, a new group of Council members, led by their own by-laws, gather monthly at Village Hall to vet, recruit, interview, research, endorse, then lobby for their choices for seats on the Village, Park District and Public Library boards.

Except, for the most part, the last two elections, "independent" candidates for public office in La Grange do not typically fare well at the polls. In other words, they rarely win.

Just ask onetime "independent" trustee hopeful Larry Gess, who was not endorsed the first time he sought Council backing -- for which he didn't get and ran anyway as an independent, losing his fight.

The former downtown candle shop owner only won a trustee seat when he was later endorsed and backed by the Council. Go figure.

Unlike its municipal counterparts in most neighboring communities throughout Cook and DuPage, La Grange does not boast an active two-party system, where one slate of endorsed candidates runs at election time vs. another slate of endorsed candidates (Or in the case of, say, Lyons or Willow Springs, three parties).

That's not the going way, the status quo, and hasn't been for more than 70 years in La Grange.

Rather, the 11-district Council vets all the candidates -- this year that means three Park Board, four Library Board a five Village Board vacancies -- and endorses those it feels best represent the village as a whole and "not in ny narrow sense represent any particular organization, business, social group or special interest," as per its bylaws.

Its delegates seem to be dedicated, hard-working people out for the town's best interests. But its numbers are severely lacking.

While the Council endorsees end up running, often as a political party, without opposition, that is by design, not happenstance. Its president, Orlando Coryell, puts it this way: They are but they aren't political.

The Council firmly believes its role is a fair and democratic one which its ever-changing members attest often takes the politics out of typically partisan contests so often dividing communities and those who govern them like nearby Brookfield, Countryside or La Grange Park.

Two years ago, the Council endorsed three for trustee, but couldn't get them to sign a unified statement about their candidacies, said Coryell. Signs sprouted up in town not just for those three, but for an "alternative" slate comprised of two of the three and another guy who failed to win the endorsement -- who later ended up losing the race.

But the real test of the Council occurred in '05, when its membership (in private, as usual, by the way), endorsed former trustee Theodore "Ted" Hadley for village president over challenger Liz Asperger, the current mayor.

Hadley, a close ally of state Sen. (and former village trustee) Christine Radogno, was an often outspoken official with a lot of great ideas who had his loyal backers, obviously.

But many of those in the business community and of the status quo in La Grange threw their support behind the successful Asperger instead.

The characteristically vitriolic relationship between Hadley and his onetime detractors was not more evident when, at the close of the latest Council meeting Sept. 10, one prominent businessman and new Council member came by to shake hands with fellow new member Hadley.

He was flatly denied, ignored more like it. So everyone on the Council doesn't get along. That's another factor that makes it so unique, its political(oops) and philosophical differences.

After all, as the adage goes, politics does make strange bedfellows.

Take Asperger, who has enjoyed a fairly positive first term as she helped usher in proposed new mixed-use developments on both ends of the downtown. One wonders how comfortable she will be in seeking the Council's endorsement this time around -- if she even bothers.

One of the biggest problems facing the Council this year, like many others, is apathy: not just among interested candidates for the seemingly less prestigious offices of Park Commissioner and Library trustee (which often don't have as many interested candidates as open spots without a little arm-twisting), but those wanting to be Council members.

The organization seems to be run well, like a finely oiled machine, but sometimes it acts like a family, with so many differing opinions.

Over time, some residents and political pundits have even viewed the Council's existence as unnatural, undemocratic perhaps, especially given that it, more frequently than not, is comprised of far less than the ideal maximum of 88 members.

This fall, for instance, the group boasts a grand total of 47 members. That's a fraction of 1 percent of the town's residents and not much more than 1 percent of those who voted in the last mayoral election in which Asperger won by a nearly 2-to-1 margin.

Coryell says the Council is seeking to expand its geographic diversity beyond members and candidates from the historical center of town. The council limits membership to eight delegates per district, but rarely has attracted that many. Plus, its leaders are not crazy about publicizing where it is lacking members, for some reason.

To become a delegate, an applicant must be a registered voter who has lived in the village for at least one year. You can't be a current canidate or married to one.

Another interesting factor this year is the fact that since the last election, Coryell has become a bigger name in town. The husband of a longtime Library Board trustee, he mounted a successful legal challenge to the Park Board's controversial decision to sell part of Gordon Park to a private developer.

Coryell says the council board was made aware of his efforts and was OK with his actions, and he doesn't think his very public position will affect any potential Park Board candidates -- even the incumbents who favor the land sale. Hmm.

Besides a protracted debate over whether to use flyers vs. email to attract new members, the Council spent a good part of the evening last week debating whether to accept more new members before slating takes place in November and December, whether to endorse for village president, clerk and three trustees sooner than later and whether holding another meeting in October will help or hurt the vetting process.

Council board secretary Rob Pierson repeatedly made it clear in rejecting Hadley's idea of holding a second meeting to grow the Council's ranks when he suggested that would only "open the door" to outright abuse by partisan factions.

Those factions, which he said have the "tendency and ability" to pack the Council with their allies "just to do slatemaking then disappear into the night" to assure their candidate is endorsed rather than someone who represents a broad spectrum of the village, is qualified and involved, has past experience and an open mind -- qualities the Council says it strives to atract.

If those same people were only encouraged to take a chance and run for office without feeling they had to appear before the Council first, voters could make an informed choice as to who they would like running their village.

Things, it seems, would be much more in the open. Transparent. And voters would have a clear choice.

After all, what would it be like if a specified group of U.S. citizens met and endorsed just one candidate for president, and when we went to the polls, he or she was the only one on the ballot?

My guess is that many voters would definitely have something to say about that. Ya think?

THUMBS UP FOR THE THEATRE?

2008-09-15T09:20:00.016-05:00

As the Village Board continues to debate the merits of giving a grant or loan to owners of the "historic" La Grange Theatre -- from either Tax Increment Financing or General funds -- one payback mechanism has emerged: a possible 50-cent "entertainment tax" added on to the existing $3.50 per person admission ticket.

The seat tax or user fee would be specifically designed for the theatre, for the village to recoup its investment over time.

Theater owners John Rot and David Rizner revealed the idea of a proposed user fee recently to the La Grange Business Association recently, 10 days after publicly addressing elected officials.

And they didn't get by easy, as one LGBA member questioned their motives, their plans and even inquiring why the $1.725 million request is so controversial.

Rot, in turn, put up a good case. They are not "looking for a profit" off La Grange just to get free money and they didn't ask for help for any reason other than to afford the estimated $3.4 million revitalization the 83-year-old movie house they contend needs to survive.

"You hear about a lot of negative stuff, but David and I never started this out to become a target," Rot told the crowd. "We do truly believe ... this is a community asset."

LGBA President and (theater neighbor/Roly Poly owner) Michael LaPidus told his peers the theater renovation and funding request was an easy decision to support.

He said La Grange Theatre brings more than 200,000 people here annually, noting downtown consultants consider a theater a natural asset to those lucky enough to still have one that's open.

"It's an economic engine that brings people to town," he said. "They are willing to keep it (operating as) a theater as long as it has community support."

I am not sure whether people really back the idea or really care one way or the other except to be assured the place will remain open. We might not know that until years from now.

But I have to agree with LaPidus. The theater owners have a vested interest in La Grange. They have been here for years operating the seemingly successful Horton's and they've already invested nearly 10 percent of the estimated "project cost" into updating the theater -- with promises of dropping another third of the total cost of renovations into the building.

So they want help from the village, kind of like a sports stadium or hotel (with its own special room taxes) that contributes to the local economy and creates jobs. Even though most of them are in other businesses.

While it seems Rot and the Village Board should be more publicly forthcoming about his business finances if he wants money from the public and they want to give it, one can also understand his desire to conduct his business in private. But he is asking for a lot from the town -- regardless of whether it will ever be reimbursed -- and the project deserves some public attention.

I've spent a lot of time in La Grange and see Rot and his staffers everywhere (just like his friend and retail neighbor Steve Palmer and Co.), but most importantly at civic functions, restaurants and most importantly, like any successful entrepreneur, around the businesses he owns and operates.

I believe him when he swears the subsidy is not being sought to bail them out of a bad business decision, that they are really just trying to save a community asset -- and that they don't want to turn the property over to another developer, especially if it only means more condos and vacant storefronts built by one of the two developers he says have expressed interest in the property.

But Something's Got to Give. And while the village may be that very entity, so should Rot and Rizner. We know the only way the CTA got the General Assembly to budge when it needed a cash infusion earlier this year was to give something back to the riding public -- and that turned out to be free rides for seniors.

Maybe the proposed developers of the old YMCA property should give something back to the community, other than a new mixed-use development, if they end up buying park land they desire. That gift could be another 2-3 acres they can buy elsewhere in town and give away to be used as park land. Perhaps on the East Side where there are more than a few available parcels.

But like I've said before, that's another story we'll discuss soon enough.

So back to the theater and its gift, other than new auditoriums, accessible ground floor rest rooms, a new concession stand, community room and modern marquee on the village's dime. Since the only thing missing since they upped ticket prices from the long-standing $2 appears to be seniors (and we don't mean LTs), bring 'em back. In droves. Let them reminisce and pay the old price for a flick, every weekend. Senior Sundays, or something like that. Then maybe the theater wouldn't be a target of critics and the village's gift might seem more palatable.

After all, Rot likens the theater to more like a public institution than an individual business, and such institutions do give back to the community quite a bit, in more ways than one.

It's nice to see the LGBA stepping up to raise money to help replace the marquee by more visible and nostalgic and even nicer to see Rot & Rizner's vow to update inside and out.

Whether the village recovers its investment is not as vital to a town that has handled its finances as well as La Grange, but it's an appropriate use of TIF funds which are typically used to bring business to town and help existing ones stay.

If they go with the entertainment tax instead, fine. Especially if raising ticket prices even more means better releases and a vastly improved environment. After all, they do it in Hodgkins and those flicks are $9.75 apiece.

Through its facade improvement program, the village has given out many loans to business and property owners who have improved entryways and window displays; they assembled Triangle properties to assist in the private development of Trader Joe's, Caribou Coffee, Pier One and Borders and they have improved streets and train depots with benches, lighting and kiosks.

It's already clear four of the seven Village Board members are in favor of some kind of subsidy for the theater, which seems to keep kids off the streets and surrounding businesses thriving.

Just think of the downtown without the theater. Ask the folks in Hinsdale or Lombard what it meant to them. In Lombard, the village bought the DuPage Theatre, then later demolished it.

The village appears in favor of the request, so what method of financing should they choose? Should they make it a loan? Seek a payback of some sort? Or just make it a gift?

Realtor Dean Rouso, who represents Classic Cinemas -- owner of the Lake in Oak Park, Tivoli in Downers Grove and the York in Elmhurst -- said in his view the theater is the "biggest" economic engine of downtown.

And, he told the LGBA, if La Grange loses it, they will never get it back. How true.

HISTORY NOT THE SAME FOR EVERYBODY

2008-09-10T10:55:00.005-05:00

When I first started covering La Grange for another publication a decade ago, some of the most intriguing folks I met resided in the neighborhood commonly known as the East Side, for it seemed as though many of them had lived two distinct lives.

Some of the residents I befriended came from the South, where living was easy but where they said racism was still running rampant in the 1950s of their youth.

As African Americans, they were used to the fact that in some people's eyes, slavery may have been long gone but still lived on in the way they were treated, all too often as second-rate citizens.

They were used to "white only" water fountains and "white only" public restrooms, and they felt if they came up north to start a new life, things would be different. After all, it was believed, folks up here had a different view of "colored" people.

But no sooner than they got off the bus -- the back of the bus, no doubt -- did they encounter the same kind of discrimination they were used to back home, without the signs, right here in La Grange.

Not only were blacks prohibited from patronizing the dress shops on the west side of Fifth Avenue (La Grange Road as it is known today), but they couldn't share seats alongside whites at the Walgreens lunch counter -- that is, as one longtime East Sider once recalled to me, until they staged a sit-in to force attitudes and policies to change.

Someone even told me once the name on the YMCA, Rich Port, only reminded them of times gone by. After all, Port headed up the state real estate association at a time when redlining (discrimination in housing) was stll a common practice.

Spurred to action by the likes of Rosa Parks -- who in 1955 refused to obey a bus driver's order that she give up her seat to make room for a white passenger -- the residents of La Grange's East Side embraced their civil rights and made many a stand, only sometimes with success on their side.

One of the biggest falacies perpetuated about the East Side is that the neighborhood is where the servants of area white families lived. But while that may be true, many old-timers also tell stories of how some of their homes were actually moved there from the West Side of town decades earlier. Some of those very homes still stand east of Bluff Avenue (and the tracks, ironically) to this day.

Another disputed fact is that the annual Pet Parade has always been held downtown. The parade, according to many longtime East Siders, started on the East Side, where it had its beginnings as a bicycle and dog march to the sound of pots and pans. I guess we'll never really know for sure.

And while blatant racism does not seem to be as prevalent nowadays, as children are even taught to embrace diversity in the classroom, we are still often reminded about our differences and should never forget those times.

Though some will attest how far we have come, we may not have come that far after all, especially given the attitudes of some folks regarding our Democratic nominee for president. You don't have to go that far from the city to find people who still vote for or against color and creed.

That's why the efforts of The CommUNITY Diversity Group of La Grange* are so vital in today's society: to teach everyone to not only embrace diversity, but to really understand what racism and discrimination is all about.

At 6 p.m. Friday, Sept. 12., the film "The Great Debaters" will be shown at the La Grange Public Library, 10 W. Cossitt Ave. The movie, a real eye-opener, portrays the struggles of a 1930s debate team from a historically black Texas college, and a discussion is to follow. It would benefit anyone to come by.
Then, 3 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 14, is the 17th Annual Race Unity Rally and Diversity Days outside La Grange Village Hall, 53 S. La Grange Road. The more the merrier.

The event will feature speakers and a musical tribute to La Grange native John Lewis, who directed the Modern Jazz Quartet, one of the longest running and most successful jazz ensembles of all time.

Performing selections of Lewis' music will be La Grange resident and composer and arranger Jack Gallagher and Tom Tallman, music professor and director of jazz ensembles at the College of Du Page in Glen Ellyn.

The theme to this year's rally, coordinated in part by event chairwman Linda Eastman,
is "Building a More Inclusive Community" and will focus on integration and housing.
The keynote will be by Rob Breymaier, executive director of the Oak Park Regional Housing Center, a national model for sustaining diverse communities.

A fair housing advocate, Breymaier is expected to discuss strategies that foster integration and examine what perpetuates segregation.
An annual achievement award will be presented to Debra Williams, pastor of Davis Memorial AME Church in La Grange, recognizing her commitment and support of diversity.
In addition, several teens are scheduled to speak on their experiences of diversity.

*An interesting footnote is that the CommUNITY Diversity Group had its roots in the aftermath of the 1991 videotaped beating of African-American taxicab driver Rodney King at the hands of Los Angeles police officers, after being chased for speeding.
The resulting public outrage after the King incident raised tensions between the black community and the LAPD, increased anger over police brutality and issues such as unemployment, racial tension, poverty and profiling. When the four officers accused of the beating were acquitted, the announcement sparked the 1992 Los Angeles riots, which of course had nothing to do with La Grange.

LOUNGING IN LA GRANGE

2008-09-05T10:41:00.006-05:00

With the Chicago Cubs likely headed for a division or league championship for the first time in years, all eyes were on the brightly colored Wrigley Field-themed Adirondack chair that graced the sidewalk in front of Palmer Place Restaurant & Biergarten this summer.

In fact, well before the sturdy weatherized chair -- designed by artists Steve Fuhrmann and Jim Siegel -- was sold to the highest bidder at the La Grange Business Association's "Lounging in La Grange" silent and live auction, Steve Palmer was busily taking orders for exact duplicates of the wooden wonder.

With Palmer out of town attending the Republican National Convention in St. Paul, Minn. to hear Arizona Sen. John McCain's acceptance speech Sept. 4, a few hundred loyal fans of the chairs that were displayed throughout the downtown business district this year braved the steady rain and thunder that evening to get in on the fun.

The auction of 88 chairs, led by James Drury of La Grange Park and staffed by LGBA volunteers and employees of Palmer Place and Horton's, was a virtual who's who of townsfolk: from Village President Liz Asperger, Police officer Marge Kielczynski and Community Development Director Pat Benjamin to Community Memorial Foundation President & CEO James Durkan, dry cleaning magnate Bob Breen and La Grange Theatre/Horton's owner John Rot.

The catered event was held in the parking lot of Horton's on La Grange Road.
Drury, who credited Hurricane Gustav "for blessing La Grange with a lot of rain" so everyone could enjoy the affair from under a tent, said proceeds from the auction would benefit Pets & Pals Charities, Save the Theatre Foundation and Operation Support Our Troops Illinois -- which sends care packages to U.S. troops in Iraq and Afghanistan.

When La Grange resident John Kunkle placed his $2,500 offer on the Cubs chair after some serious back-and-forth auctioneering, he likely didn't realize his would end up being one of the two highest bids of the night.

Kunkle, an Allstate investment broker, said he got the chair as a gift for his ailing boy, a 12-year-old student at Park Jr. High in La Grange Park who also attended Cossitt in La Grange.

"I got this for my son, Chad," said the proud papa. "He's had a tough year ... He's being treated for cancer (at University of Chicago Children's Hospital) right now."

The other highest bidder -- also a $2,500 investment -- came from a teary eyed Kate Rafferty of Wheaton, the aunt of the late John Wilson, who died of leukemia in July -- who took care of him since he was transferred for treatment to M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston last September.

She was so choked up about her nephew that she couldn't speak afterward, but her husband, Thomas, said the chair would be donated to Wilson's father. Her chair, an authentic-looking vintage Fender Stratocaster electric guitar designed by Lyons artist Jim Roth Jr., was kept inside a vacant storefront on La Grange Road all summer. Roth, 27, was the best friend of Wilson, who would have turned 26 in September.

"If I think about it now, the amount of time and detail he put into his music is about the same amount of time and detail I put into this chair," he said. "This chair really reflects what he did with his music."

Roth, said his father, Jim Roth Sr., put a couple hours a night into the guitar chair every night for five or six weeks, using kitchen sink parts for volume buttons and properly spacing the frets of the instrument in accordance with Wilson's favorite guitar.

"My son put his heart and soul into this thing and all of his artistic talent," he said. "It's such a unique thing ... It's a piece of art."

He said the guitar is something Wilson would have appreciated.

"John was a guy who could play any instrument and he never had any kind of instruction," said Roth Sr. "He could play everything, from a comb wrapped in waxed paper to any kind of guitar. He was self-taught."

Wilson's friend, fellow Westchester resident Tom Manno, said he was intrigued by the chair because it was meant to play more than sit in.

"You can tune the strings and play 'em," he said, recalling his days of playing in a band with Wilson. "It's awesome. It's John to a T. If this thing could only make you laugh, it (would be just like) John."

Roth Sr. said he was saddened the Wilson chair only fetched $2,500, considering a colorful elephant brought in nearly four times that amount last summer.

"I had a blank check from work and I was going to pay whatever it took," he said, "but when it came down to it, [this] was a personal endeavor amongst a couple of people who have been hanging together since they were in grade school. It wasn't about the (bid)."

Auction organizer Jean Kuhn said while she wished the bids came in higher than they ultimately did, she was satisfied with the outcome.

"We accomplished what we set out to do, to raise money for charities," she said. "I'm OK with whatever we did. I would have liked to have seen a little more, but I guess money is tight."

Rot himself bought a chair depicting a city skyline for $850 representing the H Foundation, the cancer research charity he chairs, and Asperger walked away with the chair sponsored by jazz and supper club SoTish for just $400. The next highest bidder bought the Bella Bacino's Ristorante chair for a mere $1,000.

Perhaps because times are tough, most of the chairs in the live auction went for just $200 or $500, where starting bids were reduced to $200 from $300 and even less in the silent auction, where bids started at $100.

The Prudential American Homes chair, for instance, was purchased for $450 by Len Sherwin, a Realtor with the Western Springs firm.

"I just said all along that I was going to buy that chair," said an excited Sherwin, who volunteered the event along with his wife. "It's gonna go right on my front porch."

Many people, it turned out, simply attended for the free food and refreshments and one probably of the last outdoor events of the summer.

Among them were Cynthia Reyes and her 11-year-old daughter, Emily Bastian, who were part of the legions of Cub fans who thought the Wrigley chair had their names on it.

"I think it's a great event and it would be nice to pick up one of these for our backyard," she said just before the auction began. "If not, oh well."

As it turns out, everyone in La Grange will forever enjoy one of the chairs -- the jumbo blue specimen that graced the sidewalk in front of the downtown fountain all summer.

That chair, said Kuhn, is being donated to the Park District of La Grange to be moved to one of its many parks.

AHHH... LA GRANGE!

2008-08-30T11:00:00.000-05:00

I wish I had that doctored Photoshop picture in my hands right now: the one of the front entrance and upstairs windows of La Grange Village Hall -- made to look like a bottle in all those smart Absolut Vodka advertisements.

When the photo was suspiciously circulated around town, I believe on a parade day around the time the so-called Triangle redevelopment project was getting underway earlier this decade, there were folks around town willing and ready to express their usually pointed opinions.

It was a typical response from the people who populate this great community which we consider our home away from home, where we eat, entertain friends and enjoy the nightlife -- where public banter, debate and discussion on just about everything is commonplace, a way of life you might say. It's probably your favorite place, cause it's where you come home at night.

Just this week, a standing-room-only crowd of 80 residents and downtown business and property owners crammed into the Village Hall to listen as trustees vociferously debated whether it was legal and appropriate for La Grange to help fund $1.725 million of an estimated $3.13 million proposed renovation of the 83-year-old La Grange Theatre.

And despite nearly three hours of discussion, the nay-sayers failed to overwhelmingly convince others that making the investment was not a good use of tax increment financing funds.

Theater owners John Rot and avid Rizner, arguing the movie house, long ago coverted into four separate auditoriums, has become rundown and less attractive in recent years. They bought it in May of 2004 in hopes of revitalizing it and have already invested $350,000 in upgrades.

The La Grange Business Association had pledged to raise $50,000 to fix the marquee and they say they will invest another $1 million if the village can come up with the rest.

Take the last time the La Grange Theatre hit the headlines. It had new suitors hoping to turn the longtime family establishment into a brew-and-view where moviegoers could quaff a beer while watching the latest second-run flick (that, too failed, but only because financing fell through).

We also remember not that long ago when the ice cream shop on Catherine started allowing its young clientel to push the tables and chairs aside and dance to swing music (Remember the newspaper letter writer proclaiming, 'What's next? Bendable straws?!').

We also recall when the cigar store was denied its civic right to have its customers actually smoke out on the sidewalk.

Now everybody's out there puffin' away, not just there but everywhere (another issue, another time).

Some lifelong East Siders I know recall the days when things like the lunch counter sit-in at the Fifth Avenue Walgreens ruffled local feathers, and the hullabaloo when -- yes, EVERYBODY! -- was able to don their swimsuits and take a dip at the new, albeit short-lived Cossitt School natatorium or when houses were actually moved east of Bluff Road from what some there playfully call La Grange's West Side.

That was then and this is now, but then and now and many times in between, the people of La Grange have spoken out and let their voices be heard and as a result many good things have happened over the years.

Not only when one proposes new development, but during elections when caucuses think they rule the roost do residents provide their input. They do it quietly when that guy recites Bible verses outside McDonalds at rush hour and they did it loudly when the Democrats seized control of Lyons Township and sold the Town Hall to La Grange more than 20 years ago.

For years, the forum for those kinds of opinions, stands and platforms has been newspapers and, thankfully, that still is the case. But the online community has spurned all kinds of debate, from writers calling themselves journalists and real journalists like us at www.OnLaGrange.com.

We really look forward to continuing to give you an objective, unbiased interpretation of the news and occasionally, as always, let you know what's on our mind. But mostly, we are hoping to hear from you.

With a combined experience in the field of more than 60 years, we believe we have a lot of integrity and a good rep. We know a lot of folks in town and they know our past work.

We plan to first and foremost be an accurate and dependable source of fresh news affecting your community. And we hope we will help frame the discussion and debate that surrounds many an issue in La Grange.

I am a 25-plus-year community journalist, got my start at a small weekly in the southwest suburbs and came back to become its editor 16 months ago, working for a variety of wire services, newspapers, magazines and broadcast outlets in between and loving it most of the time. (When I wasn't loving it, I was either at Palmer's, Caribou, Antonino's, In Kahoots or the Billy Goat drowning my sorrows).

At one time I edited the Cook and DuPage newspapers for The Suburban LIFE and for years I was the senior reporter whose primary beat was La Grange and its sister city, La Grange Park.

My partners in crime are former colleagues and in the case of our creator, former La Grange Doings photo editor Scott Hardesty, my competition, but we now have a lot to offer together -- and provide a new public forum for you -- with this, our first solo trip into cyberspace.

That's what makes me so excited about this new endeavor. It's my hope and that of my colleagues that www.OnLaGrange.com will be a new presence in the village on the tracks, a catalyst for lively, fair and frank discussion of the issues that affect and impact La Grange residents, workers, bartenders, business and property owners, movers and shakers and commoners like you and I.

If you agree, we want to hear from you. if you don't, we expect many of your repeated and threatening calls and emails (we're kidding, of course!). If you just don't care, waste your time and contact us anyway.

Most of our stories and entries on the web page will invite reaction and response. We just ask that you be fair and truthful and not use much profanity.

Whether I'm telling you about the La Grange Road entrepreneur's century-old residence with the jacuzzis and an elevator; sharing what people used to say about 'those' YMCA residents and what some of them have to say about you; how accessible downtown sidewalks really are to the disabled or whether a certain downtown store just needs to relocate once and for all, to somewhere else other than here, I expect to hear from you.

Sometimes, I may simply have good news to share, like the fact that a longtime Historic District homeowner, former La Grange Area Historical Society volunteer archivist Jeanne Hayden celebrated her 80th birthday with family and friends last week at her La Grange Road home.

If you know or knew Jeanne, drop her a line. Or, let us know how she's touched your life or benefited the community through her years of volunteerism.

She was one of the first women to work at the Community Nurse thrift shop under the tutelage of former Township Supervisor Ann Painter of the La Grange Highlands. And, I understand, one heck of bridge player and Pet Parade party hostess. Happy Birthday, Jeanne!

I look forward to this hopefully as much as you do. If you're not as involved in the community or neighborhood as you'd like, try us out. In a way, we're a new kind of newspaper in a new kinda town.

Ahhh, La Grange! We just can't wait for today's mail.