Dear Members:
Happy New Year!!! May 2023 bring all the best to you and yours, and a return to oft taken for granted phrase of “business as usual.”
ECCI Civic HOF Public Memorial
A handful of the 33 inductees participated in the December 15 unveiling of the Elmhurst Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ECCI) Centennial Celebration NFP’s Civic Hall of Fame public memorial held at the Elmhurst Public Library.
The public memorial features a portable TouchPros Touch Wall interactive, touch-screen TV monitor (65 inches) on which users can view biographies, photographs and video clips of each of the inductees, and will “travel” around Elmhurst before finding its final home.
The Civic HOF website went live last September as part of ECCI’s Annual Chamber of Commerce Month celebrations. While not all inductee videos and photos are uploaded to date, our Chamber expects to accomplish that mission by next April.
Since its creation in 1992—then as part of the Opening Ceremonies at the Elmfest community festival—the Civic HOF has welcomed 33 businesspeople, community volunteers and elected officials. Since Elmfest’s finale in 2009, inductees have been honored at ECCI’s Annual Awards Gala in all but one of those years.
Civic HOF attendees included Willis Johnson (2002) of the York Theatre, Pete Cruger of the Elmhurst Independent (2012, pictured above), Ralph Pechanio (2015) of the Elmhurst Veterans Commission, Jack Island (2017) of the Silverado Grill and Scott Ahlgrim (2020) of Ahlgrim Funeral Home. Scott and wife Charity Ahlgrim, the first couple inducted into the Civic HOF, made a five-figure donation in 2022 to lift Civic HOF fundraising above its $50,000 goal.
The NFP has invested some $17,000 in the Civic HOF memorial’s hardware, software and related fees for installation, cloud hosting (five years), site creation (uploading of data, photos and video) and extended warranty (five years).
The Civic HOF fundraising is part of the NFP’s one-of-a-kind $250,000 Capital Campaign established for ECCI’s Centennial Celebration (100th Anniversary) in 2018. The campaign includes the $150,000 Ralph P. Pechanio Student Internship Endowment Fund at Elmhurst University and $50,000 Second Century Fund–both of which also have exceeded their goals.
Tax-deductible donations to the Civic HOF Fund, Second Century Fund or Pechanio Endowment Fund can be made by contacting Quigley by phone at 630-834-6060 or e-mail.
“State of Our City” Mayoral Address
Elmhurst Mayor Scott Levin will deliver the Annual “State of Our City” Mayoral Address at a Membership Breakfast hosted in the second-floor Hammersmith Community Room at Community Bank of Elmhurst on Thursday, January 19, from 7:30 to 9:30 a.m. Seating is limited to 125. Click HERE to register.
State of the County Address
Newly-elected DuPage County Board Chair Deb Conroy, former Illinois State Representative (D-46th District), will deliver her inaugural State of the County Address at an annual multi-chamber luncheon and business expo at the DoubleTree Hilton in Esplanade Lakes in Downers Grove on Wednesday, January 18, from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Click HERE to register.
2023 Elmhurst Community Directory
Our Chamber and the Elmhurst Suburban Life/Shaw Media have completed production work on the 2023 Elmhurst Community Directory, which will be Every Door Direct Mail (EDDM)-delivered to some 19,800 residential, business and Post Office Box addresses across Elmhurst starting in early January.
Since 2020, the Directory also can be viewed online in a pageable version at issuu.com, with a hyperlink available on the home page of our Chamber website.
Outdoor Dining Downtown
Following months of Elmhurst City Council Development, Planning and Zoning (DP&Z) Committee meeting discussions, the City Council at its December 19 meeting approved a compromise version of on-street parklet dining in downtown Elmhurst for 2023.
A total of 20 parking spaces will be made available to York Street restaurants and bars between Adelaide Avenue and Second Street, with a maximum of two spaces per establishment, from Memorial Day to Labor Day at a cost of $2,500.
Jim and Kristi Blessing of Cloud Nine Restaurants Group, which operates both 151 Kitchen / Bar and Pints, headed the restaurants in support of the expanded outdoor dining program and raised community-wide support through a social media campaign.
Economic Development Projects
The City of Elmhurst’s Zoning and Planning (Z&P) Commission at its December 13 meeting (rescheduled from December 20) heard the applicant’s final rebuttal to the Public Hearing complaints over a proposed Planned Unit Development (PUD) development to construct a 28-unit condominium at 200 North York Street.
The Z&P Commission will vote at its January 10, 2023, meeting (rescheduled from January 3) and forward its decision for review by the DP&Z Committee and then full City Council.
New Members
Our Chamber welcomed five new members in December as follows: Citizens for Jake Meding, HH Global, Krafted Burger Bar + Tap, Live Hydration Spa and Warm Coats for Cool Kids.
Happy Anniversary
Seven members are celebrating Chamber anniversaries in January as follows: 20 years—Liberty Village; 10 years—Courageous Bakery & Cafe; and 5 years—Bacci Pizzeria, Gem Car Wash, LOVE Christian Clearinghouse, Spinutech Web & Digital Marketing, and The E-town Low Down.
Dropped Members
The Chamber said goodbye to the following nine members in December: Duly Health and Care, King Construction, LifeStance Health, Money Mailer, Multi-Path Data, PeopleShare, Terra Vista of Oakbrook Terrace, The Key and Thryv.