As warm weather comes to the Chicago area, so too does block party season, that festive time when streets are blocked off and neighbors who barely grunt at each other most days will spend a portion of a weekend eating, drinking and playing games together.
Some areas and suburbs abound in block parties-Oak Park, for example, had more than 200 last year-while others don`t seem inclined to join in this form of public partying.
If you want to organize one of these galas, the obvious first step is to get your neighbors to go along with the concept; most suburbs want some evidence that it`s a popular idea on the block. Then you have to put all those party animals to work. There`s a tendency for the burden to fall on one or two people, says veteran block party worker Kris Rico of Oak Park, ”and you really need a lot of participation from different families.”
Rico, a mother of five with special block party expertise in the realm of children`s games, recommends having a single chairperson, but a number of different committees to organize games, food, entertainment, communications with the village, beer and any other necessities that occur to you. She recommends holding the party before Labor Day, while it`s still hot enough to enjoy water games.
Once your local committee decides when they want to hold the event-a right usually reserved for the people who actually show up and volunteer to do the work-the next step is to get permission.
Check out local laws
Because the rules and regulations differ from town to town, you`ll need to call your own local government offices to find out how to make the party legal. In Oak Park, for instance, a petition with the signatures of 10 adults is required; in Evanston, an application must be filled out, says assistant traffic engineer Tom Twigg. The applicant must show proof that he or she lives on the block (”We had trouble with people who didn`t live on a street organizing parties”), contacts everyone on the block to ensure that no one seriously objects and advises the city if beer is going to be served.
Mt. Prospect asks residents to make sure their neighbors are in agreement and then send the village manager`s office a letter requesting permission, says spokeswoman Roberta Wintercorn. ”We don`t even hesitate to send back permission letters to the 30 or 40 people who make the annual requests,” she says. ”We think it`s a great way for people to get to know each other.”
Naperville spokeswoman Sandi Franczyk says party organizers must fill out an application and get signed permission from all area residents. Both Naperville and Mt. Prospect charge deposits for street barricades, which are returned after the events.
Some communities, including Naperville, require permits for other aspects of the party, such as using outdoor amplifiers. Others, including Evanston, no longer issue amplifier permits because of past abuses.
The amount of notice your community requires may vary, but a good rule of thumb is ”the sooner the better.” In Oak Park, notes community relations honcho Sherlynn Reid, the village has to limit the number of block parties that can be held on certain popular weekends, ”just because we only have so many barricades.” The July 4 weekend is the heaviest, but Oak Park denizens are apt to encounter the barricades on any Saturday in July.
City ways
In Chicago, the procedure of getting permission for a block party is considerably more complicated than in the suburbs. Block party organizers must contact their local alderman`s office, where there`s usually an aide who helps steer constituents through the maze of related regulations.
The alderman then must introduce a City Council ordinance to gain permission for the event and to get a permit from the Department of Public Works to close the street.
”A block party is something to feel good about, and we encourage them,” says Ald. Edwin Eisendrath, whose 43rd Ward had 15 block parties last year, along with assorted neighborhood festivals, including the Old Town Art Fair and A Taste of Lincoln Avenue. ”It`s worth the extra work for neighbors to have something like this. It helps neighbors to get to know each other, and that makes the city safer.”
Some streets, of course, are too busy to have traffic cut off. In those cases, ”we encourage people in the next block over to invite their neighbors to join together with them,” says Reid of Oak Park.
It`s probably illegal-and certainly not smart-to block off a street entirely, so that no traffic can get through; it`s important to leave room for emergency vehicles.
Once you`ve got permission for your block party, you have to decide how to fill the time. Cooking, eating and drinking beer may be the major focuses, but they really occupy only a relatively small portion of the day. Often, you can get free help from your local government. Police and fire departments are usually happy to send out representatives in official vehicles-very impressive to most kids-to give talks or just to say hello. In Chicago, it`s even possible to get a visit by a police officer on horseback, a sure magnet for every child and animal lover within blocks.
Jumping for joy
If you live in Chicago, and you`re quick enough with your application, you can also arrange for a free visit by another great kiddie magnet: one of the city`s 25 ”Jumping Jacks.” A Jumping Jack ”is a vehicle that looks like the top half of a big egg,” according to Terry Levin of the Mayor`s Office of Special Events. ”Inside, it has a foamy floor; kids crawl inside, bounce around, fall, and don`t get hurt.”
Each Jumping Jack (sometimes known as a ”Moonwalker”) can visit up to five sites a day for up to 90 minutes per visit and can accommodate up to a dozen kids at a time. There`s no charge for the visits and the Jumping Jacks are available for any outdoor event, including block parties, neighborhood festivals, family reunions and other large gatherings.
The only catch is that the more than 80 city-sponsored events each summer have first priority. ”If you want one on a weekday, you can ask for it a month in advance,” says Levin. ”But if you want it on a Saturday, you`d better ask for it two months in advance.” A written request is required;
send your cards and letters to Kathy Osterman, director of the Mayor`s Office of Special Events at Chicago City Hall, Room 703, 121 N. LaSalle St., Chicago, Ill. 60602, and cross your fingers.
Don`t overlook other local resources; sometimes you may have to make some exploratory telephone calls. Oak Park has a brochure available for block party planners that includes petition forms; Oak Park`s local newspaper, the Wednesday Journal, will take pictures of block parties on request and run them in the next edition.
In Oak Park, says Reid, ”people really get into it. Some blocks have themes. And sometimes two blocks get together to put on a party. We definitely encourage it. It`s just a really great way for neighbors to get to know each other.”
