🌱 Elmwood Park Plans Underpass + OPRF Alumni Publish Book

Good morning! Let's get to the news for Dec. 21.

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First, today's weather: Intervals of clouds and sun. High: 40 Low: 21.

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Here are the top 5 stories in Oak Park-River Forest today:

1. At least six incidents of package theft were reported to Oak Park police last week, according to the latest department crime report. Estimated losses ranged from $10 to $170. (Paid source: Oak Leaves)

2. The Chicago Department of Public Health is considering new mitigations as COVID-19 cases, deaths and hospitalizations rise rapidly. Health officials continue to urge vaccinations and masking, while pondering whether businesses will be required to request proof of vaccination as in Los Angeles, New York and other cities. (Block Club)

3. A plan to dig an underpass beneath the Metra tracks in Elmwood Park is “continuing in its early stages.” More than $3 million from Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s Rebuild Illinois capital bill will go toward funding the years-long project. (Paid source: Elm Leaves)

4. Poetry from more than 100 Oak Park and River Forest High School alumni are featured in a new book being released by Penguin Random House in February. “Respect the Mic: Celebrating 20 Years of Poetry from a Chicagoland High School” examines the impact of OPRF’s spoken word program. (Wednesday Journal)

5. River Forest residents have until Jan. 4 to appeal their property taxes with the Cook County Board of Review. Appeals can be filed online, or assistance can be provided by Township Assessor Pamela Kende. (VRF)

Today's Oak Park-River Forest Daily is brought to you in part by our friends at Ring, the home security company. Ring does a lot more than doorbells: check out their full suite of smart home products at Ring.com. And thank you Ring for helping to make local news happen in Oak Park-River Forest!

Today in Oak Park-River Forest:

• “Winter Break-Out Adventure” is held in Thatcher Woods. (10 a.m.)
• OPRF Museum volunteer Frank FioRito discusses Christmas Day 1954 and what it meant to a group of rapturists led by an Oak Park resident. (11 a.m.)
• See “Spider-Man: No Way Home,” “West Side Story” or “House of Gucci” for $5 at Lake Theatre. (11 a.m.)
• Ovation Academy hosts performances of “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, Jr.” (3 p.m. and 7 p.m.)
• Join the Forest Preserves of Cook County for a “solstice bonfire, stories and dance” at Thatcher Woods. (6:30 p.m.)

From my notebook:

• It’s the final day to submit nominations for Villager of the Year to Wednesday Journal. (GCM)
• Oak Park and River Forest High School will undergo asbestos abatement in January. (OPRFHS)
• Riverside resident Maria Castro created the nonprofit Love Purse to benefit women in need across Chicagoland. (Landmark)
• A new Cuban restaurant is set to open on Harlem Avenue. (Landmark)

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That's all for today, OPRF! See you tomorrow for more local news.

— Georgi Presecky

About me: Georgi is a Chicago-based reporter with seven years of experience writing for entertainment-based publications. She represented FF2 Media for five years at film festivals across the U.S., from Sundance to Austin. Her feature articles have been recognized with awards from the Illinois Women's Press Association and National Federation of Press Women. As Editor-in-Chief of the Lewis University campus newspaper, she earned honors from The Associated Collegiate Press Association and American Scholastic Press Association. She began working for Patch in 2019.