🌱 Randolph Street Burglary + COVID Test Event + Garage Revenue Down

Hello, Oak Park and River Forest! In today's Daily:

• A woman died in a South Austin car crash over the weekend
• Feedback is welcomed for River Forest's traffic improvements
• Holiday events are underway all week

But first, today's weather: Increasing amounts of sun. High: 35 Low: 23.

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

1. A woman died Saturday after a car crash in South Austin. Three others were injured in the crash near Lake and Laverne. (ABC)

2. A burglar broke into a home Saturday in the 1000 block of Randolph Street. According to the Oak Park Police Department, stolen items include a locked safe and other electronics valued at $5,000. (OPPD)

3. Free COVID-19 testing is available in Oak Park this week to ensure safety ahead of Christmas gatherings. The health department will provide testing today at Cheney Mansion and tomorrow at Lindberg Park. A special testing event is set for Thursday at North Humphrey and Lake Street. Post-Christmas testing will be available beginning Dec. 27 at Cheney Mansion. (VOP)

4. River Forest residents can provide feedback on the village’s Northeast Neighborhood traffic study conducted earlier this year. “Temporary measures to calm traffic” will be implemented across six locations. (VRF)

5. Revenue from parking garages in Oak Park is “significantly behind pre-pandemic levels,” Village Manager Kevin Jackson wrote in his weekly report. Though this year’s usage is up from 2021, parking structures generated $500,000 less than in 2019. (VOP)

Today in Oak Park-River Forest:

• KidCreate Studio hosts Christmas-themed crafts. (9:30 a.m.)
• OPRF Youth Services hosts Middle School Makers at River Forest Public Library. (3:30 p.m.)
• Fenwick High School varsity basketball takes on Bulls College Prep at home. (7 p.m.)
• Holiday Movie Trivia at Beer Shop. (7:30 p.m.)
• Club Pilates Oak Park is hosting “Five Days of Giveaways.” (Online)

From my notebook:

• St. Catherine-St. Lucy is planning to add a warm shelter to its rectory in the new year, according to this week’s church bulletin. Pastor Fr. Carl Morello wrote that the goal is to be open by Jan. 4. (St. Giles)
• Oak Park Temple will host an American Red Cross blood drive Dec. 28. (Temple)
• The OPRF Chamber of Commerce and several local sponsors are offering tips to “protect your peace” during the holiday season. (Chamber)
• Cecily Strong is using social media to reflect on her departure from “Saturday Night Live” after more than 10 seasons as a cast member. “I am ready to go, but I’ll always know home is here,” the Oak Park native wrote Sunday on Instagram along with a video of her final sketch. “I’ve had the time of my life working with the greatest people on earth.” (Instagram)

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You're all caught up for today. See you tomorrow for another update!

— 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.

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