In accordance with Illinois Governor JB Pritzker’s five-phase plan to re-open Illinois, the Village of Park Forest is announcing significant changes to summer offerings for 2020. In a letter to Park Forest residents this week, Village Manager Tom Mick said this summer in Park Forest will “look very different from what residents have come to expect.”
Park Forest has cancelled the following programs and events previously scheduled for June and July:
· The Park Forest Aqua Center’s 2020 season
· The Park Forest Police Department’s 2020 P.A.A.C. program
· All Park Forest summer camp programming
· Park Forest’s Annual 4th of July Celebration
Several other community relations events will also be canceled and/or postponed, including the Resident Appreciation barbecue, a house music festival, and the Sunset Soiree.
Plans are moving forward for the opening of Park Forest’s farmers’ market – the Main Street Market – this season. The Main Street Market is set to open June 6 and will operate with a host of state-mandated safety measures in place. These measures include limiting attendance at the market to one person per family, a requirement of six feet of social distancing between patrons, no touching of products, no socializing, no eating at the market, and masks required for all patrons.
Park Forest is also considering a plan to move forward with the village’s annual outdoor concert series, Main Street Nights. Tentative plans call for a delayed start to the season – potentially in August – with social distancing requirements in place for all concert goers. Park Forest’s annual Growing Green Recycle Fest is also likely to be moved back, from July to September.
Official decisions on tentative summer offerings are expected in the coming months.
With Park Forest in stage two of Illinois’ five phase recovery plan, and with conventions, festivals and large events not permitted until phase five, COVID-19 cases would need to dramatically decrease for current restrictions on most summer offerings in Park Forest to be lifted.
"As the summer approaches, Park Forest officials will continue to follow the lead of the State of Illinois on how best to move forward,” Mick said.
“The Mayor, Board of Trustees and staff for the Village of Park Forest place paramount importance on the health and safety of our residents."
