HS Board

By Steve Zalusky — April 9, 2020

Mount Prospect Mayor Arlene Juracek urged those ignoring the state’s stay-at-home order to “stop being knuckleheads out there” and practice social distancing guidelines during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Speaking at Tuesday night’s virtual village board meeting, Juracek noted that at the time there were 46 confirmed coronavirus infections in the village. That figured reached 49 on Wednesday.

“We’re trying to maintain our trust and our partnership with the community … not be seen as martial law,” Juracek said.

Police Chief John Koziol said officers are not stopping residents and asking why they’re out of their homes but are taking other measures to enforce the order. That includes patrolling parks and reminding people there to practice social distancing.

“The Mount Prospect Park District has made all basketball hoops and swings inoperable,” Koziol said, adding that caution tape has been placed around playground equipment. “I’m asking the parents in our community to help out here, too. These children don’t really realize they are doing anything wrong.”

The department also is notifying the village’s building inspection division when it receives complaints of nonessential businesses’ being open. Inspectors are contacting businesses to obtain compliance.

Officials say other village services continue to be delivered, even as village buildings are closed to the public until at least the end of the month.

The village staff is assisting residents with online services or, in some cases, by appointment. Residents can call, email or use the village’s online request portal to report a concern, request an inspection, pay a utility bill or submit a permit.

Village Manager Michael Cassady said water and sewer bills due March 15 have been extended to May 20. Refuse bills dated March 31 have been extended to May 20. In addition, the due date to buy and display vehicle stickers has been extended from April 30 to May 31.

Copyright 2022 Daily Herald (www.dailyherald.com)

by Steve Zalusky — March 30, 2020

The Eagle Scout motto, “Be prepared,” has particular relevance for one Mount Prospect business.

A little more than a year ago, Mount Prospect granted approval for two Eagle Scouts to open the village’s first distillery, dubbed Two Eagles Distillery, at 1852 S. Elmhurst Road.

But Two Eagles had to pivot in response to the coronavirus just as the business was getting poised to begin self-distribution. Now the distillery, as others, is devoting its energies to producing hand sanitizers.

“We had a bunch of vodka sitting here,” said Operations Manager Jesse Zien, one of the two Eagle Scouts.

In early March, however, Zien and his partner, Master Distiller Matthew Georgacakis-Nurre of Mount Prospect, sat down and decided to hold off on bottling it.

“We kind of had a feeling that there might be a need for hand sanitizer. We knew that we could make it,” Zien said.

Things then began falling into place. The federal government gave the go-ahead to manufacture the product, but only under a specific recipe calling for such ingredients as glycerin, isopropyl alcohol and hydrogen peroxide in addition to the high-proof spirits.

The company started a GoFundMe page and within hours, $2,000 in donations poured in. As of Saturday, the tally had reached $18,000.

Now, the company is rolling out four-ounce bottles and giving it away to first-responders, as well as restaurants, public works facilities and anyone performing essential services. Zien said gallon bottles are on order.

On Monday, Ten Ninety Brewing Co. in Glenview, which has 10 times the capacity of Two Eagles for making fermented spirits, will start fermenting grain and shipping it to the Mount Prospect distillery.

“It’s going to give us the ability to really start pumping this stuff out,” Zien said.

The manufacturing crew includes the two partners, plus their legal counsel, Agostino Filippone, who also sits on Mount Prospect’s planning and zoning commission.

“We are donating all our time to do this and we are making hand sanitizers as fast as we can,” Zien said. “Everyone is pitching in. Many hands make light work.”

Recipients include Aurora, Des Plaines, Mount Prospect and Wheeling first responders, local restaurants and a home health care provider. Requests have been received from plumbers, sanitation workers and construction workers.

Copyright 2022 Daily Herald (www.dailyherald.com)

By Steve Zalusky — April 24, 2020

Mount Prospect Mayor Arlene Juracek updated the village board this week on the village’s COVID-19 statistics.

She said Mount Prospect as of Tuesday had 142 diagnosed cases, 100 more than two weeks ago, and one fatality, a 57-year-old man.

“It’s very unfortunate to have any deaths. On the other hand, these statistics do say that we do have some effective social distancing going on,” she said.

She said she has seen good compliance when visiting grocery stores, the gas station and the post office. A few residents, however, have pointed out that people are depositing gloves in parking lots.

“This is disgusting. I blame the people who are doing it more than I blame the stores,” she said.

Juracek said the village staff has alerted stores about their concerns. She advised residents to take gloves off when they get to their cars and put them in a bag.

Copyright 2022 Daily Herald (www.dailyherald.com)