Three Arrested In Shooting + Oak Park Continues Contact Tracing

Good morning, Oak Park and River Forest. Thanks for reading the Tuesday edition of the Oak Park Patch Daily!

In today’s Daily, read about a shooting on South Lombard Avenue, the Oak Park Health Department's urgent COVID0-19 reminder and how Chicagoland is celebrating Italian Beef Week.

First, today’s weather: Possible light rain overnight, with a high of 84 and low of 66.

Here are the top five stories in Oak Park today:

1. Oak Park police arrested three suspects in connection with a shooting in the 600 block of South Lombard Avenue shortly before 3 a.m. Sunday. Police responded to a report of multiple shots fired at a house being rented as an Airbnb. Village spokesman David Powers said one person was believed to be injured and the investigation is ongoing. (Oak Leaves)

2. It’s the final week of the state government’s legislative session. The Illinois State Senate is led by President Don Harmon of Oak Park, who has been vocal about a Chicago school board that is both elected and appointed. Other agenda items include pandemic relief, state budget and law enforcement reform. (Chicago Tribune)

3. The Oak Park Health Department is urging residents to answer important COVID-19 contact tracing calls. These help determine who had close contact with people who test positive for the virus. Calls from the health department will most often come from a phone number with the prefix 708.358.xxxx. (Village Facebook)

4. Oak Park Trustee Ravi Parakkat has proposed the idea of a sustainability incubator program to the Village Board. A feasibility study would determine if Oak Park could help train students in “fields that promote environmental sustainability,” Stacey Sheridan reports. (Wednesday Journal)

5. The Chicago Independent Media Alliance is asking for reader support to keep local news alive in the area. More than 60 local media outlets are part of a fundraising drive this month, including the group Growing Community Media, which publishes the Wednesday Journal of Oak Park and River Forest and the Forest Park Review. (Forest Park Review)

Today in Oak Park:

• Enjoy specials on food and margaritas for Taco Tuesday at Forest Park Tap Room. (6 p.m.)
• Chicago’s American Writers Museum presents an online discussion about the origins of Ray Bradbury’s “Fahrenheit 451.” (6:30 p.m.)
• A fundraising concert at FitzGerald’s will benefit Oak Park’s Thrive Counseling Center. (7 p.m.)
• The Oak Park Township board meeting will be streamed via Zoom. (7 p.m.)
• The Oak Park Elementary School District 97 board will also meet tonight in person, but the public can tune in virtually. (7 p.m.)
• The Chicago History Museum hosts “The Lincoln Park Ghost Hunt Tour.” (8 p.m.)

Oak Park Patch Notebook

• Oak Park pet owners Sonia Pathania and Rup Singh were featured in a recent article about transitioning pets from pandemic schedules to more normal routines. (Chicago Tribune)
• Portillo’s in Forest Park is celebrating National Italian Beef Week. (Portillo’s)
• Oak Park Public Library announced recent staff changes to focus more on technology and collections, with new roles for Elizabeth Marszalik, Leigh Tarullo and Kathleen Spale.
• The Main Library also announced upcoming building closures in June for staff workshop days and in recognition of the Juneteenth holiday. (OPPL)
• 10 Austin people graduated from ComEd’s CONSTRUCT Infrastructure Academy. The program trains minority candidates from the West Side for careers in local energy, with the help of Austin People’s Action Center.

You’re all caught up on what’s new in Oak Park and River Forest. Check back tomorrow for the Wednesday edition, and please feel free to email me at georgi.presecky@patch.com with thoughts, comments or just to say hello.

-Georgi

About me: I am a lifelong Illinois resident and Lewis University graduate with a passion for White Sox baseball, classic literature and local news.