Orland Park Village Board members and staff said Monday they are working to stop reckless driving and aggravated speeding and seeking investment into Orland Square through a federal program.
The village debuted monthly safety updates with the goal of keeping the public informed on Police Department initiatives, reporting more than 2,200 traffic stops and 35 arrests for aggravated speeding in March.
“Each day, our patrol teams focus on traffic enforcement in areas where we receive community complaints and see ongoing issues,” police Sgt. Casey Wall said in a video. “We’re listening and actively addressing all of your concerns.”
Mayor Jim Dodge said the village wants to implement speed and noise cameras to increase enforcement, but state law prohibits municipalities outside Chicago from issuing citations from speed and noise camera data.
He said the village is lobbying for use of these cameras and is considering purchasing speed cameras to issue warnings to drivers.
“We do know at least one other suburb that uses speed cameras to issue warning notifications,” Village Manager George Koczwara said. “Because the warnings may go to their employer, or they might go to a parent, and those things can help.”
Koczwara said the village is also considering engineering solutions to preventing drag races and reckless driving on LaGrange Road as well as within subdivisions.
Several village trustees reported residents reaching out with frustrations about the noise caused by loud mufflers and safety issues from reckless driving.
Merve Yuksek, who lives on 140th Court, told the board she hasn’t been able to sleep due to the sound of drivers racing down LaGrange Road. She promoted a petition that as of Tuesday was signed by 215 people, according to Change.com.
“I wake up every single night, and I call the Police Department,” Yuksek said. “On Saturday night, there was a police car sitting on LaGrange Road for hours … they’re sitting there instead of maybe doing some other things. It makes me really upset as a resident. I don’t want my police officers to sit there just for this matter.”
The board did not approve any measures directly aimed at speeding and reckless driving, but approved the purchase of license plate reading cameras from public safety technology company Flock, costing about $30,000 per year for three years, to help police apprehend offenders. The village purchased four standard license plate readers and three additional long-range cameras, according to the village’s receipt.
Dodge said these cameras are already employed throughout the village, but the purchase of seven more will help fill out the area, creating “a sufficient grid, so to speak, to assist the police.”
Orland Square opportunity zone
The board also discussed a recently extended federal program designed to offer incentives for investment in qualifying communities. Those seeking to complete develop on the tract of land containing Orland Square could qualify for tax breaks if the property is chosen as an opportunity zone, Development Director Ed Lelo said.
While the program has existed since 2017, the Trump administration recently extended it to 2036 and changed some requirements, Lelo said. Until recently, the land was required to have a median family income of 80% compared to the entire metropolitan area, which was recently lowered to 70%, or have a poverty rate more than 20%.
Before land can be approved as an opportunity zone, the governor must recommend its designation, Lelo said. Chosen land tracts will be officially designated in January 2027.
Those looking to develop in Orland Square have sought financial support from the village, including a Dick’s Sporting Goods concept planned for the former Sears anchor space. Dodge said that could help “stack” incentives.
“Typically, you try to help developers get to a number that makes the project viable, and it’s largely due to the taxation rates in Cook County,” he said. “This gives you another option for the municipality to help spur development.”
ostevens@chicagotribune.com
