Vicki Scaman, Oak Park's first term village clerk, will run for village president in April 2021. She has registered her candidacy for the 2021 race. This makes her Oak Park's second elected official to enter the race. Village Trustee Simone Boutet announced her intention late last year.

In the wake of civil unrest and anger over systemic racism in law enforcement, the nation now demands more public oversight in policing and detail on how departments operate. In Oak Park there are two citizen commissions designated to oversee different aspects of the police department – the Board of Fire and Police Commissioners and the Citizens Police Oversight Committee (CPOC).  Layered into review of police discipline matters is a process involving a third-party arbiter as dictated by the contract between the village and the local Fraternal Order of Police union lodge.

In a rare moment of efficiency and foregoing the usual angry discourse characteristic of this particular group of elected officials, the Oak Park village board of trustees moved forward on several agenda items during a July 7 remote meeting, including deciding to delay further Lake Street construction in the Hemingway District until after Labor Day to provide extended time for outdoor restaurant dining.

As the village starts to reopen and businesses try to recover from the unexpected COVID-19 closure, Oak Park Village Engineer Bill McKenna met last week with Hemingway District stakeholders to discuss three scheduling options to carry out the planned improvements on Lake Street from Oak Park Avenue to Euclid Avenue.

Now that phase four of Governor J.B. Pritzker's Restore Illinois plan has started allowing for larger gatherings of people, Oak Park Public Health Director Mike Charley has announced neighbors can host block parties – offering a semblance of summer normalcy during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Kids in the 200 block of South Harvey Avenue have been drawing rainbows on sidewalks in support of the LGBTQ community after the block had a string of six pride flag thefts – all of which were reported to the police.