Harlem Avenue Construction, Property Tax Deadlines, Tour de Proviso, OPRF Business Spotlight Celebration and More!

Thursday, August 25, 2022

Dear River Forest residents,

While the official first day of fall isn’t until nearly a month from now, our community is especially picturesque at this time of year with all of its natural settings, trees, flowers and vegetation.

Sustainability is an ongoing initiative that is extremely important, not only to our planet, but to our community as a whole. I’m proud of the many ways we’ve promoted even simple steps to respect our environment. They’ve come in the form of our community solar program, an ongoing focus on encouraging residents to switch to reusable or nonperishable alternatives, and the Village’s acceleration of our Alley Reconstruction Project using permeable pavers so that water runs into the ground and not into our garages and backyards.

Trustee Lisa Gillis, Chair of the Sustainability Commission Eric Simon and myself have been meeting with neighboring communities to plan next year’s GreenTown event in Oak Park. Our Village will be a major sponsor and promoter for this exciting event. GreenTown is a summit designed to bring together elected officials, planners and advocates to discuss actionable steps to make communities healthier.

At our last board meeting the Trustees approved the final planned development for changes the River Forest Park District will be doing at Keystone Park this coming fall. Click here for more information about those changes. Also, the Trustees approved a minor amendment to Concordia University’s planned development to allow for the school to modernize their football scoreboard. Click here (page 284) for more information on that change.

Finally, this Saturday, August 27 is a great opportunity to enjoy two River Forest events. We have the Historical Society Walking Tour at 2 p.m. Then, take a walk to the Food Truck Rally, which starts at 4 p.m. The Food Truck Rally is our community’s premier festival and I hope to see you there!

Sincerely,

Cathy Adduci, Village President

Village of River Forest

Traffic Alert!! Harlem Avenue at Railroad Tracks

Closes for Construction

The Union Pacific Railroad will be replacing the handrail at Harlem Avenue on the north side of the railroad bridge in Oak Park, which will require the road to be closed on one side Tuesday, August 30 and Wednesday, August 31 between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. Flaggers will be out directing traffic, but motorists might consider leaving a tad early for their commute while this work is going on!

Back to School Sustainability

As children head back to school, remember to reduce, recycle and reuse! The EPA suggests sorting through on-hand school supplies and reusing or recycling notebooks, pens and pencils. These items can be reused or recycled by sharing books and other school supplies with friends, relatives or younger schoolchildren. More back to school sustainability tips can be found here.

Deadline for Property Tax Exemptions

The deadline to file for property tax exemptions is tomorrow, Friday, August 26. To see a list of available extensions from the Cook County Assessor, or to apply for an exemption online, click here.

Oak Park Farmers Market Baking Contest

Area residents are invited to participate in the fourth annual Pie Bake-Off at the Oak Park Farmers Market! This competition is open to amateur and professional bakers over the age of 16 and will take place on Saturday, September 17 starting at 9:30 a.m. Contest entry form submissions are being accepted now through Saturday, September 3. For more information or a submission form, click h ere.

Save the Dates!

Tour de Proviso

Save the date and join Village President Cathy Adduci for the annual Mayors' Tour de Proviso on Saturday, October 1, starting at 7:30 a.m. This year’s route will start and end at Guthrie Park in Riverside and will include parts of Brookfield Zoo. This free event is sponsored by the Mayors of Broadview, Bellwood, Maywood, Melrose Park, Oak Park, River Forest and Riverside. For more information or to participate in this community bike ride, click here.

OPRF Business Spotlight Celebration

Save the date for the Oak Park - River Forest (OPRF) Chamber of Commerce’s 2022 Business Spotlight Celebration, which will take place on Tuesday, October 11 at 5 p.m. This event celebrates the businesses that make our communities special. To learn more, click here. If you’re not yet a OPRF Chamber member, take advantage of the complimentary six month memberships - offered through a partnership with the Village - for local, small businesses and organizations by calling 708-613-0550.

Benefit From Solar and Save Money!

You can have it all - save 20% off the supply portion of your electricity bill and support clean energy generation in Illinois through River Forest’s Community Solar Program. A community solar project is a large solar farm shared by more than one household, which allows you to share the benefits of solar power without having to install your own system. Program participants benefit from renewable electricity generated by the community solar farm, reduced greenhouse gasses, and the lower costs of solar generation. For more information or to join the waitlist, click here.

River Forest Business Spotlight!

River Forest Chocolates & Confectionery is the perfect place to satisfy your chocolate cravings! Founded in 2010 with the belief that "chocolate makes life a little sweeter," River Forest Chocolates is ideal for anniversaries, birthdays, weddings, congratulations and holiday gatherings. Customers are able to place orders online 24/7 at rfchocolates.square.site/.

Please support local businesses whenever possible! You can find a listing of River Forest businesses on the Village’s website. If you’d like your business to be featured in the weekly Business Spotlight, please send us an email.

Did You Know?

Did you know the Village website provides many resources for residents? Residents can sign up for our E-newsletter, pay utility bills, apply for a permit, discover local businesses, view upcoming events and more! Visit the website here.