Sky Zone Orland Park Business License Hearing Rescheduled

ORLAND PARK, IL — Sky Zone Trampoline Park's expected hearing before the Village Board of Trustees to keep its business license was rescheduled, after the Monday evening snow storm that hit much of Illinois.

The hearing to reverse its license removal will now take place on Feb. 22, at 6 p.m. The deliberation comes after Village Manager George Koczwara's Dec. 18 decision to revoke its license became final. The business had 10 days to file an appeal to the board, and did so on the tenth day, according to the village.

Sky Zone's legal team will appear before the board at the Village Hall, 14700 S. Ravinia Ave. It is unclear if witnesses who gave initial testimonies will be in attendance. The hearing will be open to the public with limited attendance allowed, to enable social distancing. If an overflow of people decide to come, they may watch in the lobby, according to the village.

On Sept. 12, a fight occurred inside the recreational facility, 66 Orland Square, Orland Park. Orland Park Mayor Keith Pekau told Patch 842 people, plus staff members were in the facility when police arrived. Many people inside were minors, and Sky Zone's maximum capacity is approximately 682 people.

The trampoline park was hosting a lock-in event, which Patch previously reported various Sky Zones across the country were no longer hosting due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Orland conducted private hearings to take a look at evidence and consider possibly revoking or suspending its license. The hearings took place on Sept. 30, Oct. 6 and Oct. 16, according to the village. Testimonies of 10 village-called witnesses and two witnesses called by Sky Zone were included. The village said that within the testimonies there were multiple and repetitive reports of concern regarding the safety and welfare of attendees at Sky Zone that night.

The village said Sky Zone's regional manager testified her opinion, saying the trampoline park and its employees "did everything correctly and followed the correct protocol to keep the patrons and the employees safe." Koczwara disagreed, saying the argument is "an alarming and dangerous corporate perspective."

Koczwara called the incident a nuisance and said the business disregarded the safety of the minors both inside and outside the facility. The village manager said the overcrowded park has a floor plan that has obstacles to egress in the event of an emergency — such as this one — that lead to children being evacuated late at night, without knowing each child got a ride home.

"An entertainment business whose sole business model is to attract children into its indoor park is particularly responsible because children at this young age are not able to protect themselves from harm," Koczwara said.

If the board votes to keep the business license revoked, Orland said Sky Zone can petition the village for reinstatement of its license, 90 days after the decision, and the license is officially revoked.

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