North Avenue, the border between the north side of Oak Park and the Galewood neighborhood of Chicago, is relatively newer than many surrounding neighborhoods. While the buildings along North Avenue post date Frank Lloyd Wright, he golfed here with friends and clients. Many used the area as a place to get away and hide from the City.  It was one of the first automobile oriented commercial strips in the Chicago area. A favorite location for drive-in restaurants, the road west of Oak Park and Galewood – known as State Route 64 – was a renowned teen hangout for street races.

Architecturally, the area is rich in 1920’s storefronts with highly decorative terra cotta cladding and details. Later buildings were exuberantly mid-century modern.

Experience the world renowned architecture of our town, which is just a scant eight miles / twelve kilometres from another equally world renowned and architecturally significant place, the Chicago Loop.

And besides –North Avenue has lots of great restaurants, stores and cultural attractions to discover and enjoy once you’ve completed the North Avenue Architecture Photo Party.

Instructions:

All sites in this month’s scavenger hunt are located in the shaded area, and all sites are easily seen from public sidewalks, roads and right of ways.  None of the sites are private residences.

By walking along public sidewalks and right-of-ways contained within the shaded area of the Scavenger Hunt Map, locate these architectural features and details, noting their location.

Keep following this event at www.OakParkArchitectureParty.com

June 2010 North Avenue Architecture Photo Party is a production of:

• North Avenue Business Association
• Oak Park Architectural League
• US Bank

The North Avenue Architecture Photo Party has been made possible by:

• Visit Oak Park
• Oak Park River Forest Historical Foundation
• www.3planets.com / www.shopoakpark.com
• Heitzman Architects
• Babuk Presentations, Inc / www.TourAboutChicago.com

The North Avenue Business Association wishes to thank the following members for their promotional support of the North Avenue Architecture Photo Party:

• ABC Bank
• Charter One Bank
• Midwest Bank

DETAILS OF THE NORTH AVENUE ARCHITECTURE PHOTO PARTY HERE! (PDF)

We received this notice from the Village of Oak Park.

The Village, Elementary School District 97 and High School District 200 boards have scheduled a joint session at 7 p.m., Tues., June 1 in the Gwendolyn Brooks Middle School Commons, 325 S. Kenilworth Ave. The purpose of the meeting is to gauge the effectiveness of the 2003 intergovernmental agreement that extended the Downtown Tax Increment Finance District. For more information on Village Board meetings, visit www.oak-park.us/agendas.

Please note that this meeting is the day after Memorial Day!  We wonder how much their confab will end up costing the taxpayers…

There is a pretty clever scam going around that almost caught my Mom!  The scam goes something like this…

Your “Grandchild” calls you from Montreal and says that they’re in jail.  Your “grandchild” then goes on to say that they were with a couple of friends and that the trio was caught speeding and that drugs were found in the car.  Your grandchild tested negative for drugs (the little imp wouldn’t do drugs), but the other two tested positive.

“Please, Granny, send me $1,840 – and don’t tell Dad or Mom!”  Another, older person comes on the line and tells you that he’s the policeman and that unless you wire the money, there’s nothing that can be done and that your “grandchild” will be jailed for an indefinite time.  And one more thing – do not tell the money wire service why you’re transferring the money.

When my Mom commented that the voice on the other side of the line didn’t sound very much like her Grandson, the response was that the telephone line was in the jail and that the quality was very poor.

She almost fell for it!  The only thing that saved her was that the money-wire service representative caught the red-flags and wouldn’t allow my mother to make the transaction.  Her excuse was that it was very early in the morning, and that they caught her up in the emotion.

These frauds appear to be coming from Montreal, but could be worked from any location.  The Royal Canadian Mounted Police have been working very hard to close down these crooks.  Thousands of people have filed complaints with the RCMP and about 80 per cent had given money as requested.  The RCMP warns people against transferring money without knowing for sure who it is going to.

And if you’re in doubt, call your local law enforcement for assistance.

Offered by Todd H. Stroger, President, Cook County Board of Commissioners and the Cook County Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management
In partnership with Peter N. Silvestri, Cook County Commissioner and Elmwood Park Village President and the Board of Trustees

The grant program has 10.3 million for 2008 flood victims throughout the county.  Grant funds are available to help county residents with property repairs, mold remediation and other flood related issues.

Staff will explain the grant, discuss criteria to qualify and assist in the application process.

THURSDAY, MAY 27^th, 2010
6 pm Arrival
6:30 pm Presentation
7 pm Applications

To be held at the:
ELMWOOD PARK RECREATION CENTER,
2 CONTI PKWY. (In the Circle),
ELMWOOD PARK, ILLINOIS.

TO SCHEDULE A FAST TRACK APPLICATION PRE-REGISTER ONLINE AT: www.CookCountyDisasterGrant.org or call 312-603-7600.

For more information visit www.CookCountyDisasterGrant.org.

This is a free event.

Census takers have begun visiting households that failed to mail back their 2010 questionnaire. They will also be clarifying contradictory or ambiguous data on previously returned forms.

The Chicago Police Department and the U.S. Census Bureau want residents to be aware of potential scams and have provided the following tips:

• People should be aware that the Census doesn’t use e-mail to count people. Residents should not respond to any e-mail claiming to be from the Census Bureau.
• The Census Bureau never asks for Social Security numbers, credit card, bank card or other financial passwords and identification numbers. Do not share that information.
• If a census worker knocks on your door, he or she should have a badge and a second picture id. According to the bureau, a census worker never asks to enter your home.

Residents of Chicago: For assistance or to report fraud call 311.

To be counted over the phone Chicago residents can call 311 or the Census Bureau Telephone Questionnaire Assistance (TQA) – an operator will interview you over the phone in order to complete the Census questionnaire verbally. The service is available in six languages.

Telephone Questionnaire Assistance (TQA):

• English:1-866-872-6868
• Chinese:1-866-935-2010
• Korean:1-866-955-2010
• Russian:1-866-965-2010
• Spanish:1-866-928-2010
• Vietnamese:1-866-945-2010
• TDD (Telephone Display Device for the hearing impaired):1-866-783-2010