New! Friday Night Flea Market

Beginning May 15th, the La Grange Park Antique Mall will be hosting the Friday Night Flea Market from
5:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. at the Mall, located at 800 East 31st Street, La Grange Park. Spaces are available to
the public for $20 a table. All are welcomed to participate. This event will take place rain or shine. For
more information, call 354-1700.

Run For the Roses - Saturday, May 16, 2009

Celebrate the 18th Anniversary of the “Run for the Roses” on Saturday May 16, 2009.
There will be a clown to entertain and a moonwalk for all to enjoy, and a D.J. for
music throughout the event. The start/finish line is in the 900 block of Forest Road,
in front of the school. Food and drink will be provided to all participants. Tee shirts
will be awarded to the first 500 registrants on a size availability basis. The race starts
at 8:00 a.m. Awards will be given to the top finishers for both runners and walkers.
All proceeds will benefit the Park District Scholarship Fund. Last year’s participants
will receive the form directly by mail. Packets will be available at our Recreation
Center, 1501 Barnsdale Road on Friday, May 15, from 9:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. On race
day, Saturday May 16, packets can be picked up at our start/finish line location,
Forest Road School, 901 Forest Road, La Grange Park. Registration will take place at
our main office, 1501 Barnsdale Road, La Grange Park on or before Friday, May 15. NOTE: Race day
registration will be held from 6:30 – 7:35 a.m. at Forest Road School, 901 Forest Road, La Grange Park.
Prior to May 14, 2009 Runners $16.00 Walkers $12.00. On or after May 14, 2009 Runners $20.00 Walkers
$16.00.

Stroke Prevention Screening at La Grange Park Village Hall

– Friday, May 22
Life Line Screening of America is sponsoring a special discounted health screening event on Friday, May
22nd in the Community Room at Village Hall, 447 N. Catherine Avenue. Stroke, Vascular Disease, and
Heart Rhythm testing is available at the discounted price of $139. Osteoporosis screening can be added for
an additional $10. Pre-registration is required for this service. Please call 800-324-1851 to register.

Mark Your Calendars for the Rose Show! – June 13

The Village is planning its 48th Annual Rose Show to be held on SATURDAY, JUNE 13
from 2 – 4:30 p.m. at Plymouth Place, 315 N. La Grange Rd. This year’s theme is
“The Days of Wine and Roses”, and will be ever-present at the show with a special wine
tasting event alongside the rose competitions. Residents are encouraged to attend this
special La Grange Park tradition and to get involved in advance of the event – details
below!
Children’s Coloring Contest
We are asking students/participants to use their imaginations – to draw and color a picture of a rose or group of
roses. There will be first, second, third and honorable mention prizes awarded for the following age divisions:
Ages 4 & under, Ages 5 – 7, Ages 8 – 11, Ages 12 & up. The local area schools have been contacted regarding
this contest but certainly any La Grange Park school age child can enter. To enter, go to the Village’s website
and download an entry form and turn it in with the drawing at Village Hall no later than June 8. Entry forms are
also available for pick up at Village Hall. Last year the Children’s Coloring Contest was re-instated and the
winner of that contest (pictured at top) is this year’s Village vehicle sticker – a new tradition that we hope to keep
building on.
Enter the Rose Contest – It’s Easy and Fun!
The show is open to all gardeners – there are two ways to enter:
1. Division I - Specimens. In this competition, you bring in your single rose or spray grown by you. This
rose is put into a particular classification and judged.
2. Division II – Artistic Design. In this creative competition you can purchase your roses and follow one
of the five themed classes: 1. Meadowland; 2. A Gift for the Hostess; 3. Sunshine and Roses; 4. Memories; and 5.
Like a Child At Play. For the details, please see the Village’s website at www.lagrangepark.org. To enter
this division, call Marilyn Pulaski of the La Grange Park Garden Club at 708-482-3921. She can also
answer questions you may have regarding your arrangement. (Please note: there is no need to register
for Division I – you simply show up with your rose.)

Community Volunteering Weekend – This April!

The Village of La Grange Park and the Youth Commission selected Saturday and Sunday, April 25th and 26th as the dates for the Volunteering Weekend. The Community Volunteering Weekend pairs up youth volunteers with residents who may need assistance completing outdoor tasks such as weeding, small painting jobs, cleaning gutters, clearing flower beds and more. To participate as a volunteer or recipient of services, please contact Julia Cedillo at 354-0225.

Fiesta de mayo 2009!

Get tickets at www.communitynurse.org

Helping Hand Parent Network Night - March 19

Parent Network Night includes a session led by Dr. Jennifer Rosinia on “Sensory Processing and the Theory of Sensory Integration.” Dr. Rosinia, will present the talk as part of the Parent Network Night series at Helping Hand Rehabilitation Center on March 19, 2009 from 7 - 8:30 p.m. Helping Hand Rehabilitation Center is located at 9649 W. 55th Street (corner of East Avenue and 55th) in Countryside, IL, 60525. The talk is free and open to the public. All parents with children with developmental delays and disabilities, and teachers, and other caregivers, are welcome. There will be time for question and answers, networking and light refreshments will be served. Dr. Rosinia's expertise is in neuroscience with an emphasis on sensory processing. She has over 25 years of experience in pediatrics. She is President of Kid Links Unlimited; the company's mission is to link theory and practice, parents to professionals, and kids to their optimal potential. Please RSVP to Carol Boyke at 708-352-3580 or carol.boyke@hhrehab.org by Tuesday, March 17, if you are planning to attend.

Tax Appeal Seminar at Village Hall

On Wednesday, March 11, 2009, Proviso Township Assessor Michael A. Corrigan will be hosting a Tax Appeal Seminar at the La Grange Park Village Hall at 7:00 p.m. This Tax Payer Out Reach meeting is a cooperative effort with the Village of La Grange Park and Cook county Board of Review Commissioner Brendan F. Houlihan. Information and forms will be available. Taxpayers are encouraged to bring their Tax Bill or Property Identification Number to the seminar in order to complete and submit forms.

CodeRED is Now Up and Running - Residents Urged to Sign Up Now

The Village of La Grange Park now offers residents "CodeRED" high-speed telephone emergency notification services. The system gives the Village the ability to deliver pre-recorded emergency telephone notification/information messages to targeted areas or the entire city at a rate of up to 60,000 calls per hour. The Village cautions residents that such systems are only as good as the telephone database supporting them. If your phone number is not in the database, you will not be called. The CodeRED system not only offers faster calling rates and improved message delivery, it gives individuals and businesses the ability to add their own phone numbers directly to the system's telephone database. The Village urges all individuals and businesses to log onto the Village’s website at www.lagrangepark.org and follow the link to the "CodeRED Residential and Business Data Collection" page.

Community Market Statistics for Single Family and Condo/townhomes

The following is info you should know!! Look up what is happening in your neighborhood!! The information is for most of Chicago and surrounding areas.

* Community Market Statistics December 2008 Attached
* Community Market Statistics December 2008 Detached
* 2008 4th Q Community Market Statistics Attached
* 2008 4th Q Community Market Statistics Detached
* 2008 Community Market Statistics Attached - Final
* 2008 Community Market Statistics Detached - Final
* December Trends Attached
* December Trends Detached
* 2008 Trends Attached
* 2008 Trends Detached

15,000 Homebuyer Tax Credit - Senator Isakson

$7,500 or $15,000 Tax Break - Buying a Home, 2009 Economic Stimulus

© Lena Gott Feb 4, 2009

Will a $15,000 tax credit for buying a home replace the $7,500 interest-free loan for first-time homebuyers? Economic stimulus must still pass for Isakson's tax breaks.

As Republicans and Democrats dissect and renegotiate Obama’s proposed economic stimulus details, senators on both sides are proposing amendments to the version of the plan that passed through the U.S. House of Representatives. Yahoo! News (via the Associated Press) reported this exciting development through an article titled “Senate OKs $15,000 tax break for homebuyers.” What does this mean for those in the U.S. and how does it relate to the previously authorized $7,500 tax credit?

$15,000 Homebuyer Tax Credit for Buying a Home: Not Just First-Time Homebuyers

Republican Senator Johnny Isakson from Georgia succeeded in proposing a measure that obtained unanimous approval on Wednesday, February 4, 2009. According to a press release on his website, Isakson's amendment to the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 would “provide a direct tax credit to any homebuyer who purchases any home…the tax credit would be $15,000 or 10 percent of the purchase price, whichever is less. Purchases must be made within one year of the legislation’s enactment, and the tax credit would not have to be repaid.”

According to the press release, taxpayers could claim the credit on a 2008 federal income tax return. The limitations appear to be that the purchase must be of a principle residence, and the credit would have to be recaptured (read: reversed) if the home is sold within two years of purchase. In other words, the home cannot be a second home like a vacation house or an investment property that isn’t the taxpayer’s primary residence.

How is the New Tax Break Related to the $7,500 First-Time Homebuyer Tax Credit?

Senator Isakson actually spearheaded the original $7,500 first-time homebuyer tax credit that is available to taxpayers who have bought homes since April 8, 2008. This tax break can be claimed on either a 2008 or 2009 tax return, depending on when the home was purchased, but the credit must eventually be repaid over a 15-year period.

The $15,000 tax credit provision in the proposed 2009 economic stimulus package would replace the $7,500 first-time homebuyer tax credit, with the key differences being the increased amount plus the fact that it would not have to be repaid.