I’ve joined the exodus of empty-nest retirees from Oak Park to the wilds of Forest Park. What a culture shock. The typical parking restriction sign has no more than five words and the restriction is uniform for the entire block. How can a town generate meaningful parking ticket revenue from a simple, understandable and intuitive scheme like that?
Real estate taxes are a joke. I told my attorney the “monthly” taxes on our new place looked a little high. He informed me that was the annual, not monthly, tax. You can’t build a palatial student natatorium with chump change. I tried to buy trash stickers at the hardware store. The clerk told me they don’t use stickers; you just put your mattress or couch in the alley and the waste hauler takes it. Talk about leaving money on the table! And don’t even get me started on auto stickers: $10 a year for seniors, probably doesn’t even cover the printing and processing cost.
I think about visiting Oak Park occasionally, but I’ve forgotten how to parallel park in tight spaces now that I live in a town with ample free parking, and I’m too tech-ignorant to use whatever parking app is in vogue.
Bob Stigger
Forest Park