La Grange Today

LTHS homecoming parade marches on Sat., Oct. 11

Lyons Township High School will hold their annual homecoming parade on Saturday, Oct. 11, beginning at 10:00 a.m.

From the parking lot of the north campus, the parade will makes its way south on Blackstone Ave to Goodman Ave, then west to Clausen Ave in Western Springs, then south to 47th St, where it will march through the Garden Market shopping plaza and finish at the school's south campus on Circle Drive

Street parking will be prohibited along the route during the parade, which will likely end by 11:30 a.m.

Scooters, mopeds get own parking at Metra stations

Riders of scooters and mopeds now have their own parking spaces at the two Metra train stations in La Grange.

At the La Grange Rd station, permanently designated and secured parking has been established in the northwest corner of municipal lot #5, between Burlington and Calendar Aves, directly across from the station. Four striped spots have signage indicating "Moped Parking Only." A ribbon rack for securing motor-driven scooters also has been installed.

At the Stone Ave station, a temporary area for both mopeds and scooters has been established at the ribbon rack for bicycles, located on the south side of Hillgrove Ave immediately east of Brainard Ave. A permanent location has been identified on the north side of Burlington Ave, immediately west of the circular drive in front of the station. Signage and racks are expected to be in place sometime next week.

There is no charge for parking at these locations at this time, Village Manager Robert Pilipiszyn said. However, parking meters are being considered as a means of recovering costs and establishing equity with rates charged to drivers of other motorized vehicles who park near the stations, he said.

New water main along Gilbert Ave goes in this week

Construction of a new 12-inch water main along Gilbert Ave between 47th St and Elm Ave is scheduled to begin today, likely creating temporary traffic delays along that route.

Public works crews from the Village of La Grange will install about 2,088 lineal feet of pipe under the sidewalk on the east side of the thoroughfare.

When completed, the water main will improve delivery capacity and operating pressure to adjacent properties.

Anyone with questions about the project is invited to call the public works department at (708) 579-2328.

Cossitt and Madison intersection now a 4-way stop

The new stop signs that were erected this week on Cossitt Ave at Madison Ave will be approved Monday night by the Village Board of Trustees.

Although the intersection does not meet the Village’s standard criteria for a four-way stop, a traffic consultant hired by the Village, recommended they be installed based on a study it conducted of traffic circulation around Cossitt School.

The study resulted from a “think-through” by officials of the Village and School District 102 in response to concerns expressed by residents about traffic conflicts around the school, particularly during student drop-off and pickup times.

Village Manager Robert Pilipiszyn said the need for a four-way stop at the intersection was underscored by the anticipation of additional traffic that will generated when the new Public Library on Cossitt Ave opens just one block east of the school. 

The Village Board will approve the new stop signs under its omnibus agenda.

Ordinance targets loitering but protects rights

In an effort to better address the concerns of shopkeepers and visitors in downtown La Grange regarding loitering and disorderly conduct by young adults and other individuals, the Village Board of Trustees Monday night unanimously adopted an ordinance amending the Village Code with improved definitions of the offenses.

The ordinance also contains a provision described as a "mini-due process" procedure, requiring a police officer to first engage in a conversation with anyone suspected of loitering or disorderly conduct. Based on the outcome of that conversation, a police officer will make a determination whether or not a violation has occurred before deciding on an appropriate course of action.

Village Attorney Mark Burkland said that by requiring the conversation, in which an individual questioned by a police officer would have an opportunity to explain his or her reasons for their presence and behavior, the constitutional rights of the individual are protected.

In the ordinance, "loitering" is defined as being "in a place, at a time, or in a manner not usual for law-abiding individuals under circumstances that warrant alarm for the safety of persons or property in the vicinity."

"If  there is a group of six or eight or ten teenagers who have come downtown to buy something at Starbucks and then walk across the street and sit together to converse around the  fountain or on the benches, that isn't even loitering in the first place," Burkland said.

But if that same group obstructs the public sidewalk or acts in a way that would be perceived as threatening by passersby, then a police officer can respond and initiate a "mini-due process" conversation, Burkland said.

If, on the basis of that conversation, the police officer orders the group to move on and it fails to do so, Burkland said, "that constitutes the offense, which would be citable under the ordinance. So it is a multi-step process."

Kiosks direct shoppers to downtown destinations

Visitors to downtown La Grange will have an easier time finding local businesses and parking lots with the installation last week of several new "wayfinding" kiosks and directional signs.

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The five pedestrian kiosks feature a glass-enclosed map of downtown streets, blocks and building addresses, beneath which is a directory of stores, restaurants and other businesses. Each listing is keyed to the block on which it resides, in a fashion similar to directories found in shopping malls.

The directories will frequently updated, most likely on a quarterly basis, said Angela Mesaros, assistant director of community development for the Village.

Several directional signs point motorists to the parking structure behind Village Hall and other surface lots.

Designed by Schreiber/Anderson Associates of Madison, Wisconsin, the signs also are capped by a motif of prairie grass surrounding a replica of the official Village seal.

Waiting on downtown's first wayfinding sign

For a couple weeks now, a hole dug in the pavement on the corner of S La Grange Rd and E Harris Ave has piqued the curiosity of passersby.

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Could it be the first replacement of decorative brick pavers that have become misaligned through settling and now threaten to trip pedestrians on their downtown travels? The Village Board of Trustees last Monday approved funding to address that concern.

No, said a representative of the Village's community development department. The hole will soon hold the anchor of the first of several wayfinding kiosks and directional signs that will help motorists find parking lots, and walkers find points of interest, in the central business district.

The wayfinding program was approved by Village trustees nearly a year ago.

Streets, parking lots to close for Arts & Craft Fair

The closure of two Village streets to accommodate the annual Arts & Crafts Fair, scheduled to be held July 14-15, was approved Monday night by the La Grange Board of Trustees.

The streets affected are Harris Ave, west of La Grange Rd to Ashland Ave, and Harris Ave, south of Harris Ave to the entrance of the parking lot located at Harris and Madison Aves.

Also to be closed during the fair are two Village-owned parking lots adjoining either side of the Southwest Suburban Center on Aging, located at 111 W Harris Ave.

The closures will begin at midnight Friday, July 13, and and end sometime after the fair's completion at 7:00 p.m.  Sunday, July 15.

LG extends hours for last-minute license purchases

Extended hours for La Grange residents to purchase required licenses for vehicles and pets are being offered by the Village.

The reception counter in the lower level of the Village Hall will be open Saturday, April 28, from 9 a.m. until noon, and will remain open Monday, April 30, until 7:00 p.m. to accommodate last-minute license sales.

Vehicle licenses, which are stickers that adhere to the inside of the windshield, must be purchased  displayed by May 1. All vehicles housed or registered at a La Grange address must display a La Grange vehicle sticker.

The cost of a vehicle sticker for a passenger car is $20. An accurate license plate number must be provided for each vehicle registered. Senior citizens may obtain one sticker per household at the reduced rate of $5. 

The cost of an animal license is $10. Proof of a rabies shot is required.

East Ave roadwork surprises, delights Village officials

Cook County roadwork crews today unexpectedly began grinding and resurfacing portions of East Ave in La Grange, Village Manager Robert Pilipiszyn announced this evening at the regularly scheduled meeting of the Village Board of Trustees.

While La Grange Public Works Ken Watson has been hounding the County for two years with requests for a complete resurfacing of East Ave and other major thoroughfares in the Village, the presence of County work crews this morning took the Village by surprise, Pilipiszyn said.

"We apologize to everybody for the lack of advance notice ... but we're glad that they are out there and beginning to do the work," he said.

Because Cook County currently has limited funds for roadwork, the grinding and resurfacing will occur on East Ave only within 200 feet of four intersections: Odgen Ave, Lincoln Ave, Cossitt Ave and 47th St.

The roadwork will likely further complicate travel for East Ave motorists, who already face detours and delays this week at the Indian Harbor Belt Railroad crossing, where crews are replacing tracks, ties and panels.