🌱 Five COVID Deaths In Oak Park + 'Unrest' At Proviso

Happy Friday! Happy to bring you today's Oak Park-River Forest Daily.

First, today's weather: Breezy in the afternoon. High: 29 Low: 11.

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

1. Five more people in Oak Park died of COVID-19. According to the health department, 117 people tested positive for the virus this week. (VOP)

2. Proviso High School District 209 shifted to remote learning Thursday amid a teacher strike, protests and “unrest” at its three schools. Students lit fires inside school bathrooms and staged mass walkouts Wednesday at Proviso East and West high schools, while protesters picketed outside district headquarters on behalf of teachers. (Paid source: Tribune)

3. Oak Park and Forest Park police are now sharing local carjacking data with the Chicago Police Department, Police Supt. David Brown said this week. Chicagoland carjackings are down 20 percent since the start of the year but are still triple pre-pandemic levels. (NBC)

4. A new candy and ice cream shop is coming to Lake Street this April. Longtime Oak Park residents Patrick and Alycia Mason were inspired to open Candycopia after visiting vintage candy stores on Cape Cod. (Wednesday Journal)

5. Forty Acres Fresh Market won a $2.5 million Chicago Recovery Plan grant to “fill the gap in mid-size grocery stores” on the West Side. The Garfield Park Neighborhood Market also announced a grant this week in the wake of Aldi and Save-A-Lot closing. (Austin Weekly News)

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Today in Oak Park-River Forest:

• “Dog” opens at Lake Theatre. (Noon)
• Maplewood Distillery and Brewery hosts a whiskey tasting at Pleasant Home. (7 p.m.)
• See a “Valentine’s Hangover” comedy show at Madison Street Theater. (8 p.m.)

From my notebook:

• About 80 percent of Oak Park residents are now fully vaccinated, the health department reports. (VOP)
• Fenwick and Elmwood Park High Schools went remote Thursday due to weather. (FHS)
• The River Forest Park District is adjusting its rules for sports spectators as COVID-19 numbers improve. (Patch)
• It’s the final day to vote for Oak Park graphic designer Jeremiah Shalo’s entry in the Pabst Blue Ribbon Art Can Contest. (Wednesday Journal)
• A new juice bar called Smooth-Ish is now open on Madison Street. (Forest Park Review)

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That's all for today, OPRF. See you tomorrow for another Daily.

— Georgi Presecky

About me: Georgi is a Chicago-based newsletter writer and partner content curator. She spent five years on the entertainment beat for FF2 Media covering film festivals across the U.S. 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 newspaper, she and her staff earned honors from the Associated Collegiate Press and American Scholastic Press Associations. She began working for Patch in 2019.