Buena Park Neighbors

Buena Park Neighbors held its first free concert of the summer last Thursday evening at the Buena Circle Playlot. Although the weather was questionable over 150 people came out to hear the great jazz sounds of the Sam Sinclair Trio. The so-called “trio” consisted of two electric guitars, drums, base, xylophone, percussion, piano and sax. They started off with a few covers including a Stevie Wonder classic “In the City” and moved on to their own wonderful compositions. The audience appreciated the performance and demanded an encore. Thank you Sam Sinclair Trio! The neighborhood kids enjoyed the concert as well, blowing bubbles and running around wearing glow necklaces. BPN is proud to host events that are enjoyed by kids and adults alike! Buena Park Neighbors thanks the Chicago Cubs and Reside Living for sponsoring the event. Also, a special thanks to Bob Geraghty of the Chicago Parks District who graciously provided the space and electrical power, RCN for providing free popcorn and Awake Cafe for drinks and treats. Books were collected in support of our friends at the Brenneman School to aide with their summer reading program – thanks to all who donated. BPN will continue to take book donations throughout the summer. Please contact us if you would like to make a book donation. We hope to see you all on August 18th for the next free concert in the park!

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New Restaurant in the Neighborhood:

Buena Park Neighbors is calling a meeting TONIGHT at 7:00pm at Michael’s Pizzeria to get input on a proposal to open a new restaurant at the corner of Belle Plaine and Broadway. It will be an authentic Mexican restaurant that will also serve beer and wine. The owners are the same people who own and operate Michael’s Pizzeria. The plan is to renovate the existing building which is currently a cleaners. Alderman James Cappleman has asked for this meeting to uphold a campaign promise that he will get input from residents of the ward for any proposed economic development. If you have an opinion and cannot make the meeting, just fill out this short survey: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/NKF72LG

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Brenneman School is conducting a book drive to obtain new and used books for children in kindergarten through 8th grade. Buena Park Neighbors is pleased to support this effort. If you have any books that you would like to donate, please bring them to our free concert in the park on June 23rd or contact us at general@buenaparkneighbors.org and we will arrange to have someone pick them up. This is a great opportunity for our community to improve the education of our children and improve the educational process. Since this is going to be a summer long drive, expect to hear more about this in the future.

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Thursday, June 23 2011 Time: 7:00-9:00pm Location: Buena Circle Park (Buena and Kenmore) Featuring: Sam Sinclair Trio + bubbles for the kids. All neighbors are welcome at this family-friendly event, which is being hosted in conjunction with the Chicago Park District. Sam Sinclair Trio will perform a mix of Jazz, Funk, Groove and Hop. Many thanks to the Chicago Cubs (www.chicagocubs.com) and Reside Living (www.resideliving.com) for sponsoring BPN’s Summer FREE Concert in the Park Series.

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Just a reminder about the neighborhood meeting regarding the large development proposal for the vacant buildings belonging to the Maryville Sisters at Montrose and Clarendon. ARRIVE AT 6:30PM AND BRING A VALID PHOTO ID

The facts as we know them are as follows:

The total cost of the proposed project is $350,000,000.
A TIF (tax incremental financing) for $50,000,000 has been approved.
There will be three buildings 40+ stories high.
900+ new housing units are included in the plan.

Alderman James Cappleman has called for a neighborhood meeting to get input from the community before he decides what to do with this building proposal. The meeting is scheduled for Tuesday June 7th at 7:00pm in the Clarendon Field House (4501 N. Clarendon Ave.).

Per the Alderman, the meeting on Tuesday June 7 is your only opportunity to vote on Sedgwick’s proposal. No proxy votes, no early votes, no phone-in votes will be accepted. Residents in the Clarendon Park and Buena Park neighborhoods are allowed to vote on this proposal—you must show a PHOTO ID with your current address in these areas in order to vote.

This is a very big project that will have a significant impact on Buena Park. Buena Park Neighbors’ position is that any development of this magnitude needs to be well thought out and approved by the people most affected. With that in mind, we urge everyone to attend this meeting to learn what is going on and voice their opinion.

To help us understand the feelings of the residents of Buena Park please fill out the following survey: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/X525JRP

If you want more information, contact us at general@buenaparkneighbors.org

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On Tuesday, May 24 two volunteers from the Art Institute of Chicago’s Art Insight Program gave a very interesting presentation entitled “Art and the City” to residents of Buena Park’s Eden Supportive Living. Mary Petty (a Buena Park resident) and Lucy Sullivan led a discussion of paintings and photographs of New York and Chicago that chronicled the growth of urban life in America from 1870 to present. This project was initiated by Buena Park Neighbors as part of our outreach to the neighborhood. Eden Supportive Living is a residential community for disabled individuals ages 22 to 64. If you are interested in volunteering your time and/or expertise to this organization, e-mail us a general@buenaparkneighbors.org.

For more information about Eden Supportive Living, check them out at www.edensupportiveliving.com.

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New Restaurant in the Neighborhood:

Buena Park Neighbors is calling a meeting June 13th at 7:00pm at Michael’s Pizzeria to get input on a proposal to open a new restaurant at the corner of Belle Plaine and Broadway. It will be an authentic Mexican restaurant that will also serve beer and wine. The owners are the same people who own and operate Michael’s Pizzeria. The plan is to renovate the existing building which is currently a cleaners. Alderman James Cappleman has asked for this meeting to uphold a campaign promise that he will get input from residents of the ward for any proposed economic development. If you have an opinion and cannot make the meeting, just fill out this short survey: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/NKF72LG

Or email us at general@buenaparkneighbors.org if you have any questions.

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As you may or may not know, a large development has been proposed for the vacant buildings belonging to the Maryville Sisters at Montrose and Clarendon. The facts as we know them are as follows:

The total cost of the proposed project is $350,000,000.
A TIF (tax incremental financing) for $50,000,000 has been approved.
There will be three buildings 40+ stories high.
900+ new housing units are included in the plan.

Alderman James Cappleman has called for a neighborhood meeting to get input from the community before he decides what to do with this building proposal. The meeting is scheduled for Tuesday June 7th at 7:00pm in the Clarendon Field House (4501 N. Clarendon Ave.).

Per the Alderman, the meeting on Tuesday June 7 is your only opportunity to vote on Sedgwick’s proposal. No proxy votes, no early votes, no phone-in votes will be accepted. Residents in the Clarendon Park and Buena Park neighborhoods are allowed to vote on this proposal—you must show a PHOTO ID with your current address in these areas in order to vote.

This is a very big project that will have a significant impact on Buena Park. Buena Park Neighbors’ position is that any development of this magnitude needs to be well thought out and approved by the people most affected. With that in mind, we urge everyone to attend this meeting to learn what is going on and voice their opinion.

To help us understand the feelings of the residents of Buena Park please fill out the following survey: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/X525JRP

If you want more information, contact us at general@buenaparkneighbors.org

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