Palos Heights native Kendall Coyne Schofield and her husband, Michael Schofield, are co-sponsoring a new park in town. (Photo by Jeff Vorva)
Planned park in Palos Heights will have Olympic theme
By Jeff Vorva
The Misty Meadows subdivision in Palos Heights is getting a new park and it will be partially funded by a pair of famous local athletes.
Plus, it will have an ice rink and an Olympic theme.
NFL player Michael Schofield and his Olympic hockey gold- and silver-medal-winning wife, Kendall Coyne Schofield, have a hand in developing the new park, according to Alderman Jack Clifford at Tuesday’s city council meeting. He said they are co-sponsoring the park.
After the meeting, Clifford said the park will have sports equipment and it might end up being a $500,000 endeavor. He added that the city could receive some grants to help build it.
“This is the neighborhood Kendall Coyne grew up in,” Clifford said. “There has never been a play lot or park of any sort there. We’re still finishing up the plans. We’re hoping the project starts in early to late spring. It will be nice thing.”
He pointed out at the meeting that Coyne Schofield is the captain of Team USA as the Olympics are beginning in China. Michael and Kendall are Sandburg graduates and Kendall is a Palos Heights native.
“We wish them all the best of luck,” Clifford said. “Especially because Kendall is a local resident, we wish them the best in bringing home the gold.”
Bringing home the masks
Mayor Bob Straz said that he was scheduled this week to head to Matteson and bring back 1,000 N95 masks courtesy of Cook County. He said he would work on a way to distribute them to residents.
These N95 masks are considered by some experts to be more effective than regular mask in protecting people from COVID-19.
Council members also said that up to three masks per person are available at Walgreen’s in town and at the Meijer store in Orland Park.
Business bits
Clifford said that Royalberry Waffle House is not closing despite some local chatter.
“They are open and there are a lot of rumors going on around there,” Clifford said. “It’s due to remodeling.”
Speaking of remodeling, Alderman Jeff Key said the Great American Bagel at 12774 S. Harlem Ave. is under new owners and has been rebuilt on the inside.
“Ceilings, floors, bathrooms, everything is brand new in there,” Key said.
Quality Plus Photo Service Inc. at 12244 S. Harlem Ave., expanded its business, Key said.
Key said Golf Haven’s indoor golf facility at 12317 S. Harlem Ave. is now open and Mexican restaurant Mysheko is close to opening at 7231 W. College Dr.
5 Comments
Local News
Building a bridge at Daley College
Spread the love‘After 22’ program to help adults with disabilities By Tim Hadac For Chicagoans with developmental disabilities, their 22nd birthday can feel like falling off a cliff. That’s when they become ineligible for the special education transition services they’ve received all their lives. That ineligibility can last for up to seven years, until they…
Society failed Melissa, Chuy says
Spread the loveCalls for more gov’t funds to fight violence From staff reports Hours after police announced the arrest of two suspects in the slaying of 8-year-old Melissa Ortega, U.S. Rep. Jesús “Chuy” García (D-4th) issued the following statement. “Since the tragic death of Melissa Ortega, we have seen the resilience and strength of Little…
Charge Brighton Pk. man with child’s murder
Spread the loveDrove getaway vehicle, police say By Tim Hadac A 27-year-old Brighton Park man and a 16-year-old boy have been charged with murder in the Jan. 22 slaying of 8-year-old Melissa Ortega in the Little Village neighborhood. Xavier Guzman, 27, of the 4600 block of South Fairfield, and the teen are in custody. Bond…
A ‘winner all his life’
Spread the loveJohn Travis, star athlete, coach and teacher By Tim Hadac John W. Travis was a man who helped guide the lives of thousands of high school boys and girls across the Southwest Side. A physical education teacher at Kelly College Prep for more than 30 years, Mr. Travis died Jan. 24 at age…
Think before you answer a Facebook quiz, BBB says
Spread the loveBy Better Business Bureau staff Social media is used as a fun distraction for some people, and taking a Facebook quiz may seem like a harmless way to pass the time. But are you giving away more information than you think? How the scam works A fun quiz pops up on your Facebook…
Thank you, Karen Sala
Spread the loveBy Joan Hadac GSWNH Columnist At-Large As we all know, longtime Gage Park correspondent Karen Sala has decided to conclude her time with this column. Like every Greater Southwest News-Herald correspondent, Karen made the neighborhoods she served a better place. Thank you, Karen! That said, the search now begins for a new Gage…
Crime prevention starts with each of us
Spread the loveBy Peggy Zabicki Your correspondent in West Lawn 3633 W. 60th Place • (773) 504-9327 Hi neighbors! Before I say another thing, I want to wish my fellow columnist Karen Sala well. As you know, she wrote her final column last week. I love Karen’s style of writing. It’s conversational and natural. I always felt like she…
Plenty to celebrate in February
Spread the loveBy Mary Stanek Your correspondent in Archer Heights and West Elsdon 3808 W. 57th Place • (773) 284-7394 “February is the month when days start to get long and gloomy nights to shrink.” –Anonymous. Thank goodness there are only 28 days this year. We are getting closer to March. But it’s silly to…
Obituaries Feb. 3, 2022
Spread the loveRONALD ADINT Ronald Adint, age 78, passed away December 17, 2021. Beloved husband of Cynthia, (nee Zalba) Adint; loving Father of Devin (Cynthia) Adint; dear grandfather of Rayna Adint, Nolan R. Adint, Micah D. Adint, and Kendra N. Adint; dearest brother of Nadia Adint, the late Victor Adint, and the late Leonard Adint.…
Worth’s Crossing Bar and Grill closed permanently after double homicide
Spread the loveBy Bob Bong The Crossing Bar and Grill in Worth, where two men were shot and killed the night of January 10, is permanently closed. The bar had been closed since the shootings. At a village board meeting after the shootings, a resident brought up her concerns about alleged disturbances that have taken…
Neighbors
Just weeks before Republican National Convention, Illinois GOP chair announces resignation
By HANNAH MEISEL Capitol News Illinois hmeisel@capitolnewsillinois.com Halfway through the 2024 election cycle and just a few weeks away from the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Illinois GOP Chair Don Tracy on Wednesday announced his resignation as head of the state Republican Party. Tracy, who’d held the job since February 2021, explained his resignation in…
As Illinois session ends, lawmakers’ attempt to reinstate wetland protections fails
by JENNIFER BAMBERG Investigate Midwest jennifer.bamberg@investigatemidwest.org In 2006, 19-year-old Jessica Whinston inherited 20 acres of land that her grandparents once farmed in Quincy, Illinois. The land had sat dormant since the 1980s and was overgrown, but Whinston and her husband Bradley worked to turn it into a productive farm. The couple were eventually able to…
Elections board dismisses illegal campaign coordination complaint, declines to clarify law
By HANNAH MEISEL Capitol News Illinois hmeisel@capitolnewsillinois.com CHICAGO – State elections officials on Tuesday indicated they were unlikely to step in to clarify what constitutes illegal campaign coordination after voting to dismiss a complaint alleging such coordination in the 2022 campaign for governor. At their monthly meeting in Chicago, Illinois State Board of Elections members…
Illinois’ ban on ‘bump stocks’ remains in place despite U.S. Supreme Court decision
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois phancock@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – An Illinois law banning the sale and use of “bump stocks” and other devices that increase the firing power of semiautomatic weapons remains in place, at least for now, despite a U.S. Supreme Court decision Friday striking down a federal ban on such items. “Illinois law…
Lawmakers pass on oversight vote for Pritzker’s prison closure, rebuild plan
By HANNAH MEISEL & DILPREET RAJU Capitol News Illinois news@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – For the last two decades, each time a governor has moved to close a large state-run facility like a prison or mental health center, a legislative oversight panel has voted on the plan. That changed on Friday – at least for now –…
‘We don’t really know what we’re voting on,’ top Dem says of Pritzker’s prison plan
By HANNAH MEISEL Capitol News Illinois hmeisel@capitolnewsillinois.com LINCOLN – On the eve of a scheduled vote to advise Gov. JB Pritzker’s administration on plans to close and rebuild a pair of dilapidated state prisons, hundreds filed into a junior high school gymnasium Thursday evening clad in matching green T-shirts. Printed on the shirts was a…
Illinois child tax credit: who gets it, how much is it?
By ANDREW ADAMS Capitol News Illinois aadams@capitolnewsillinois.com In the final hours of their spring legislative session, Illinois lawmakers approved a tax credit of up to about $300 for families with young children. The credit is available to Illinoisans with children under age 12 who qualify for the federal Earned Income Tax Credit, or EITC. Although…
Members of House speaker’s staff sue over ongoing unionization conflict
By HANNAH MEISEL Capitol News Illinois hmeisel@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – Members of a would-be union representing staffers in House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch’s office filed suit against their boss on Friday, asking a Cook County judge to force recognition of the union. The Illinois Legislative Staff Association, which formed in the fall of 2022, claims Welch’s…
Elections board urged to dismiss complaint that Bailey illegally coordinated in 2022 campaign
By HANNAH MEISEL Capitol News Illinois hmeisel@capitolnewsillinois.com A hearing officer is recommending the Illinois State Board of Elections dismiss a complaint that alleged conservative radio host and political operative Dan Proft illegally coordinated with former Republican state Sen. Darren Bailey during his 2022 campaign for governor. Proft, a one-time gubernatorial candidate himself, is behind an…
Communities, commission push Pritzker admin for more prison plan details
By DILPREET RAJU Capitol News Illinois news@capitolnewsillinois.com Jimmy Soto spent more than 42 years wrongfully imprisoned in Illinois Department of Corrections facilities. In 2020, he was moved to the “F-House” at Stateville Correctional Center in Joliet, a condemned unit, not because he was being punished, but because it was where the facility was housing individuals…
Why can’t palos heights clear the limited sidewalks of snow! Last year sidewalks on Harlem were improved with handicapped assessable walks! Yesterday walking down Harlem majority of sidewalks. Or cleared by businesses! What’s the point of having assessable sidewalks when they are covered with snow! The kids walk to schools in snow covered sidewalks! Other villages require businesses to clear the sidewalks or got fined! This is 2022! Can’t the mayor and council address this issue!
I’m sure the masks will be given out fairly! Lol
Is there a way to be part of the planning of the park? It would be wonderful to assist with creating an inclusive park as we don’t truly have one yet. Also, as the above commenter mentioned we need to do a better job clearing Sidewalks. We are not a very disabled friendly community.
Thanks Erin no we are not! Mayhave to get a petition going to to address this issue!
Valerie Duhig, As a Palos ccsd 118 school bus driver I’ve often had the same ideas. We lived in Hickory Hills prior to moving to Palos Heights 7 years ago.. Hickory Hills at least kept the walkways along 95th St and Kean Ave cleared all winter long. Seems like someone from the school district should have that responsibility for all main routes that student walkers must navigate- and for all the rest, perhaps a sidewalk snow clearing ordinance should be created and enforced?