Dear Members:
The Spring Road Business Association is participating in “Olmec Trails: Culture and Legacy,” an summer outdoor exhibit of 33 large, brightly colored and hand-painted renditions of iconic Mesoamerican sculptures along the Illinois Prairie Path across DuPage County through October.
The unique exhibit is the work of the Mexican Cultural Center DuPage (MCCD) and Meztli Mexico, in partnership with the College of DuPage Public Art Project and the DuPage Convention and Visitors Bureau.
The Olmec “stone” head on display at the northwest corner of Spring Road and the Prairie Path is sponsored by SRBA member The Schiller Team.
New Teachers Luncheon
For more than three decades, our Chamber has welcomed thousands of teachers new to Elmhurst Community Unit School District 205 at a luncheon as part of the rebranded New Educator Academy.
During the 34th Annual New Teachers Luncheon at York Community High School on August 6, ECCI members will network with their sponsored teachers before Chamber staffers hand out Explore Elmhurst greeter totes filled with goodies donated by members.
The annual demographic of new teachers regularly includes those who attended public school in Elmhurst, from kindergarten through elementary school, middle school and York, along with a number of Elmhurst University graduates, and even sons and daughters of Chamber members.
Elmhurst Lifelong Leaning
Fifty-year WXRT-FM radio personality and my fellow Elmhurst University WRSE-FM alumnus Terri Hemmert headlines the presenters at Community Bank of Elmhurst’s Second Annual Elmhurst Lifelong Learning Summer Institute—a three-evening Educational Adult Enrichment program focusing on relevant current topics—running from July 15-17.
Joining Hemmert as presenters are Classic Cinemas York Theatre CEO Chris Johnson and James Kulich, Professor and Director for the Master in Science Data Science Program at EU.
For more information or to register, contact CBE’s Nancy Brook via e-mail.
York Theatre’s 100th Anniversary
Yours truly is honored to be among a select group of individuals who participated in a video being compiled in celebration of York Theatre’s 100th Anniversary, a Classic Cinema that projected its first movie on Labor Day back in 1924.
The late Willis Johnson and his family-run Tivoli Enterprises purchased the York Theatre in 1984—when the facility and much of downtown Elmhurst was in disrepair—and kick started an economic redevelopment revival that continues to this day.
Vyne on Haven Grand Opening
On June 27, I joined Elmhurst Mayor Scott Levin and other dignitaries in celebrating the Grand Opening of Vyne on Haven, a 200-lus unit luxury apartment building located in downtown Elmhurst on the west side of Haven Road between First Street and Schiller Street.
May DuPage Hotel Stays Strong
Metrics on hotel stays in Elmhurst and across DuPage County in May showed that hotel revenue reached $39.3 million (up 4.4 percent from May of 2023), while occupancy increased by three percent Year Over Year (YOY) to 68.5 percent, average daily rate increased by 1.6 percent YOY to $116 and revenue per available room (RevPAR) increased to $80 (up 4.6 percent), according to data release by the DuPage Convention and Visitors Bureau.
Across the United States, hotel occupancy of 66 percent was the highest May rate since pre-pandemic 2019 and ADR hit a May record of $160 to push RevPAR to $105.
Buck-A-Duck Raffle
During 2024, a single Buck-A-Duck winner will split the pot collected at each of our Chamber’s monthly networking events and other selected events.
Connie Jean Catalano of Inspired Home Care won $25 at the June 5 Business After Hours co-hosted by the Knights of Columbus and Elmhurst Lions Club in the KOC’s rebranded Renaissance Room.
Happy Anniversary
Two members celebrated Chamber anniversaries in June as follows: 15 years—The Lily Garden Easter Seals; and 5 years—Weiss-Kunz& Oliver.
New Member
The following three businesses joined our Chamber in June: Fashioned Health, Physicians of Internal Medicine and Pediatrics, and Valley National Bank.
Dropped Members
The Chamber dropped four members in June as follows: Capital Telecom, Guardian Radon Mitigation and Electrical Services, Hinton Insurance Agency – Farmers Insurance and Pathway Community Church