🌱 Pace Plans Public Hearing + New Coffee Shop Opens + 'Spooky' Events

Good morning, Oak Park and River Forest! In this Friday edition of your Daily newsletter:

• A Roosevelt Road shop was robbed overnight
• OPRF High School renovation costs could nearly double due to inflation
• A new plaque will commemorate a piece of Black history in Oak Park

But first, today's weather: Mostly sunny and pleasant. High: 60 Low: 43.

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Here are the top 4 stories today in Oak Park-River Forest:

1. Three people robbed the Tobacco Zone store on Roosevelt Road early Wednesday morning, according to Oak Park police. The offenders used a brick to shatter the window and stole $4,300 in cash and merchandise. A fourth person acted as getaway driver. (OPPD)

2. Pace will hold a public budget hearing today at the Howard Mohr Community Center in Forest Park. The transit service plans to eliminate several routes that have been suspended since 2020 due to the pandemic, including one running through Oak Park and River Forest. (VOP)

3. A plan to renovate 20 classrooms at Oak Park and River Forest High School is causing frustration among district board members, the Wednesday Journal reports. Because of inflation, the initial estimate of about $1.5 million for the project is now closer to $2.8 million. (Wednesday Journal)

4. Kribi Coffee is now open in Oak Park after a year of construction delays. The Forest Park coffee shop opened a second location at 1033 South Blvd. (Review)

Oak Park-River Forest Picture of the Week

Thanks to Susan Battaglia for sharing this autumnal image of the Frank Lloyd Wright Home and Studio! Please feel free to share your Oak Park and River Forest photos with me and your fellow Patch subscribers at georgi.presecky@patch.com.

Today in Oak Park-River Forest:

• Head to Thatcher Woods for “Stars, Spooky Stories, & S ’mores.” (4 p.m.)
• The Park District of Oak Park hosts a Trunk-or-Treat event. (5:30 p.m.)
• Go for a “Spooky Skate” at Ridgeland Common Recreation Complex. (6:25 p.m.)
• A Halloween scavenger hunt is held at Austin Gardens. (7:30 p.m.)
• “The Government Inspector” is playing at the Theatre of Western Springs. (8 p.m.)
• Concordia University musicians perform a home concert on campus. (8 p.m.)
• Special Consensus performs at FitzGeralds. (8:30 p.m.)

From my notebook:

• River Forest Public Library is closed today for staff training. (Library)
• The Oak Park Department of Public Health will offer free COVID-19 testing at tonight’s Trunk-or-Treat event in Ridgeland Commons. (OPDPH)
• A plaque dedication ceremony will be held Saturday morning to commemorate the site of Mt. Carmel Baptist Church, which” served as the cornerstone of Oak Park’s aspiring African American community in the early 20th century.” (VOP)
• “Call Jane” opens tonight at Lake Theatre, telling the true story of the Chicago-area Jane Collective and its 1960s abortion hotline. Some of the group’s members lived in Oak Park at the time. (Daily Herald)
• The Hephzibah Oak Park Auxiliary will host its first-ever Halloween Fun Run/Walk Sunday in River Forest. (Hephzibah)

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You're all caught up for this Friday! See you tomorrow for another day of news.

— Georgi

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.

Have a news tip or suggestion for an upcoming Oak Park-River Forest Daily? Contact me at georgi.presecky@patch.com.