Latest news with #MichaelGlotz
CBS News
19-07-2025
- Entertainment
- CBS News
Tinley Park opens Harmony Square, new downtown plaza with concert venue, ice rink, rooftop bar
Thousands rocked out in Tinley Park Friday night as the village opened Harmony Square, a brand new multi-use plaza. Harmony Square is the result of 10 years of planning. Construction on the $38 million venue started a year ago. The plaza officially opened on Friday, and will be home to various events year-round in downtown Tinley Park. "It's going to be all year round, 250 days a year. In the winter, we're going to be have an ice rink," Mayor Michael Glotz said. "I'm really excited about Harmony Square and what Tinley has to offer; just the fun, the folks, the community in itself," visitor Samuel Thomas said. Harmony Square is equipped with a rooftop bar and Studio 67, a venue for private parties. Most events will be free at the plaza. Other events throughout the summer and fall this year will include yoga, kids' performances, movie nights, and seasonal light shows. In the winter, it will have an ice skating rink and curling lanes.
Yahoo
07-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
More than $1 million spent in Orland Park, Tinley Park mayoral campaigns
When he ran for a full term as Orland Park's village clerk in 1991, James Dodge figures he spent about $3,000. Flash forward to this past spring's mayoral election. In the months leading up to the April 1 election, Dodge and his political committees shelled out nearly $190,000, according to state campaign finance reports. He defeated Keith Pekau, who was seeking a third term and running with his own slate of candidates. Pekau, through two election committees, spent almost twice as much as Dodge, campaign filings for the first quarter show. And it wasn't just Orland Park with big election outlays. Tinley Park mayoral candidates Michael Glotz and Michael Maloney, spent more than $700,000 January through March, according to state finance filings. Voters and elections have gotten more complicated, with candidates competing for the attention of potential supporters through a variety of media and messages, Dodge said. 'You are competing with all the advertisements and messages everybody is exposed to every day,' Dodge said Thursday. 'You are trying to break through with your message.' That means ads on cable television, data acquisition to find out voter demographics, messages on social media across different platforms and the reliable standards of yard signs and mailers, Dodge said. 'The nature of campaigns nowadays is you are competing with everything, and there is a lot of competition for people's attention,' he said. 'You have to have enough communication to get through all of that.' It costs money and involves paid workers for things such as photography and media production, a monitored online presence responsive to voter question. Even the old standby mailer has gotten pricier over election cycles, Dodge said. 'Nowadays even an oversize post card costs about 70 cents each to deliver to each home,' including the cost of design and printing, he said. 'If you are sending it out to 10,000 homes you are looking at $70,000.' During that same first-quarter period, the candidates and their election campaigns in Orland Park took in contributions of more than $400,000, according to state campaign finance filings. Tinley Park also saw significant amounts of money spent, and earned, in the weeks prior to the election. Incumbent Mayor Michael Glotz and challenger Michael Maloney took in more than $200,000 during the sprint to Election Day, according to records. Glotz won a second term, defeating Michael Maloney April 1. Through his own mayoral election committee and the One Tinley Park committee, which fielded candidates for trustee and clerk, Glotz spent more than a half-million dollars in the January-March quarter, disclosure statements show. Glotz responded to text messages Wednesday and Thursdays to arrange an interview, but never did commit to a time to respond to questions. Tinley Together, which Michael Maloney headed as the mayoral challenger to Glotz, took in about $182,000 in the January-March quarter and spent $177,000, according to state filings. The mayor's Friends of Michael Glotz took in $20,100 in the first quarter, but spent $149,000, with contributions including $72,000 to the One Tinley Park committee. One Tinley Park fielded Glotz and candidates, and the committee took in more than $190,000 and spent close to $385,000, according to state electoral board filings showing first-quarter income and spending. Both mayors listed expenses for photography, signs, printing and campaign help. In Dolton, one-term Mayor Tiffany Henyard received a pittance in contributions during the home stretch of the campaign. Trustee Jason House easily ousted Henyard, locking up 88% of the vote in the village's Democratic primary. In the April 1 general election, he received more than 95% of the vote over Independent mayoral candidate Casundra Hopson-Jordan. During the first quarter, House's Friends of Jason House, recorded receipts of a bit more than $31,000 and spent a little more than $45,000, according to state finance reports. Spending included outlays for consulting, text blasts and mailings. He headed the Clean House ticket, which also featured candidates for trustee and clerk. State electoral board records did not show any filings for that committee. Henyard's Friends of Tiffany Henyard showed total receipts of $1,000 and no expenditures during the January-March quarter, according to the report filed by her Friends of Tiffany Henyard committee. Filings showed the committee ended the election with just under $90,000 on hand, although debts totaled $58,000. All of the debt is comprised of loans Henyard has made to her campaign dating to January 2021, with the most recent loan, for $25,000, coming last November, according to her committee's most recent report. In Orland Park, Dodge's Dodge for Mayor committee took in $55,200 in the first quarter, and spent more than $34,000 during that period for things such as research and marketing, according to the committee's recent state filing. He headed the Orland Park for All committee, which recorded first-quarter receipts of $119,000 and expenses over the same period of $138,000. The money went for things such as advertising on Google, printing, renting office space and mailings, according to the committee's quarterly filing. Pekau's Keith for Mayor committee recorded first-quarter intake of $46,600, and expenses of $165,500, according to state filings. The committee transferred $120,000 in February and March to the People Over Politics slate Pekau headed. People Over Politics saw total receipts in the first quarter of more than $187,000, and that included nearly $150,000 in transfers from Pekau's mayoral committee and money chipped in by candidates on the ticket. People Over Politics recorded expenses in the first quarter of a bit more than $230,000, with money going to things such as phone polling, printing, consulting, advertising and yard signs, according to its quarterly filing.
Yahoo
27-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Tinley Park, Park District pair up after spat on Fourth of July fireworks
After a two-year separation that saw Tinley Park hold its own July 4 fireworks shows, the village and Park District are collaborating this year on an Independence Day event. It will be held at the Park District's McCarthy Park, which had long been the site of the Park District's Fourth of July event and fireworks show until 2023. The last two years, Tinley Park had its own show at the 80th Avenue Metra commuter train station. There has been friction between the village and Park District over control of the former Tinley Park Mental Health Center, which the Park District bought from the state last year for $1 and has plans to redevelop for recreational uses. The village had also sought to acquire the 280-acre property, northwest of Harlem Avenue and 183rd Street, with plans to develop it for property and sale tax generating entertainment uses. The Village Board at a recent meeting approved a contract worth $50,000 for the upcoming fireworks show. The joint Independence Day event will take place from 4 to 10 p.m. on July 4 at McCarthy Park,16801 S. 80th Ave. The village said music by Five Guys Named Moe will start the day at 4 p.m. and food and beverages will be for sale from local vendors. Bingo, inflatables for kids, a magic show, gun salute and flag-raising ceremony as well as a 7 p.m. concert by Spoken Four, are part of the day's activities. The fireworks show set to patriotic music is set for 9:30 p.m. 'We're excited to be collaborating with the Park District to bring Tinley Park's iconic fireworks show back to McCarthy Park,' Tinley Park Mayor Michael Glotz said in a news release. 'We are thrilled to restore our annual fireworks show at McCarthy Park this July 4th,' Park Board President Lisa O'Donovan said in the release. 'This celebration has been a highlight of the summer in Tinley Park for over 40 years.' Tinley Park police Chief Tom Tilton said his officers are preparing for the event. 'We're utilizing new technologies and new techniques to provide a safe Fourth of July experience for everyone,' Tilton said in the news release. 'Residents can rest easy knowing we're taking every precaution.' In early 2023, Tinley Park opted to hold its own fireworks show, prompting the Park District to cancel the Independence Day event it had held at McCarthy Park. The village again, last year, held its own fireworks show at the 80th Avenue Metra station in conjunction with Ribfest. In 2023, Park Board members said the district was being retaliated against for its interest in the former mental health center. The Illinois General Assembly had cleared, and Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed, legislation that year clearing the path for the Park District to acquire the site. The state also earmarked $15 million for the Park District to use to clean up environmental problems and demolish buildings on the property. The Park District said in early 2023 it was denied a permit to hold its annual Running O' the Green 8k race March 5 of that year, the same day as the village's Irish Parade. The district said it had for many years held the race on the same day as the village parade but the race that year was rescheduled. The Park District also said it had to find other sources of fuel for district vehicles and de-icing salt for Park District properties after Tinley Park cut off long-standing supply agreements for both products. Park Board members, in a letter early in 2023 to village officials, said 'it is simply not feasible to work with you on any event when the village is engaged in this kind of behavior.' The district, in its letter, said the obstacles that had been thrown up were 'retaliation and punishment' for the district.
Chicago Tribune
27-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Chicago Tribune
Tinley Park, Park District pair up after spat on Fourth of July fireworks
After a two-year separation that saw Tinley Park hold its own July 4 fireworks shows, the village and Park District are collaborating this year on an Independence Day event. It will be held at the Park District's McCarthy Park, which had long been the site of the Park District's Fourth of July event and fireworks show until 2023. The last two years, Tinley Park had its own show at the 80th Avenue Metra commuter train station. There has been friction between the village and Park District over control of the former Tinley Park Mental Health Center, which the Park District bought from the state last year for $1 and has plans to redevelop for recreational uses. The village had also sought to acquire the 280-acre property, northwest of Harlem Avenue and 183rd Street, with plans to develop it for property and sale tax generating entertainment uses. The Village Board at a recent meeting approved a contract worth $50,000 for the upcoming fireworks show. The joint Independence Day event will take place from 4 to 10 p.m. on July 4 at McCarthy Park,16801 S. 80th Ave. The village said music by Five Guys Named Moe will start the day at 4 p.m. and food and beverages will be for sale from local vendors. Bingo, inflatables for kids, a magic show, gun salute and flag-raising ceremony as well as a 7 p.m. concert by Spoken Four, are part of the day's activities. The fireworks show set to patriotic music is set for 9:30 p.m. 'We're excited to be collaborating with the Park District to bring Tinley Park's iconic fireworks show back to McCarthy Park,' Tinley Park Mayor Michael Glotz said in a news release. 'We are thrilled to restore our annual fireworks show at McCarthy Park this July 4th,' Park Board President Lisa O'Donovan said in the release. 'This celebration has been a highlight of the summer in Tinley Park for over 40 years.' Tinley Park police Chief Tom Tilton said his officers are preparing for the event. 'We're utilizing new technologies and new techniques to provide a safe Fourth of July experience for everyone,' Tilton said in the news release. 'Residents can rest easy knowing we're taking every precaution.' In early 2023, Tinley Park opted to hold its own fireworks show, prompting the Park District to cancel the Independence Day event it had held at McCarthy Park. The village again, last year, held its own fireworks show at the 80th Avenue Metra station in conjunction with Ribfest. In 2023, Park Board members said the district was being retaliated against for its interest in the former mental health center. The Illinois General Assembly had cleared, and Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed, legislation that year clearing the path for the Park District to acquire the site. The state also earmarked $15 million for the Park District to use to clean up environmental problems and demolish buildings on the property. The Park District said in early 2023 it was denied a permit to hold its annual Running O' the Green 8k race March 5 of that year, the same day as the village's Irish Parade. The district said it had for many years held the race on the same day as the village parade but the race that year was rescheduled. The Park District also said it had to find other sources of fuel for district vehicles and de-icing salt for Park District properties after Tinley Park cut off long-standing supply agreements for both products. Park Board members, in a letter early in 2023 to village officials, said 'it is simply not feasible to work with you on any event when the village is engaged in this kind of behavior.' The district, in its letter, said the obstacles that had been thrown up were 'retaliation and punishment' for the district.
