Hair Salon Approved, Again; Outdoor Drinking for Chipotle: Meeting Recap

Homewood Receives Status as Centennial Municipality

Homewood’s master historian Elaine Egdorf came bearing good news last Tuesday night. According to her, the Illinois State Historical Society (ISHS) recently opened up accreditation for municipalities over 100 years old. Egdorf said she applied for the award with the village's permission and it was dedicated last Saturday at the governor's mansion in Springfield. Homewood was the only village in the state to be honored with this award along with downstate Madison County, according to Egdorf.

Washington Park Racetrack Historical Landmark

Egdorf also announced that, at 2 p.m. on Oct. 28, ISHS members will gather at 17800 Hasted Street for the dedication of an Illinois State Historical Society Historic Marker honoring the former Washington Park Racetrack. The once well-known racetrack was a destination in Homewood until it burned down in the late 1970s.

"There's a little tiny grassy triangle there, by Best Buy," Egdorf said of the marker's future location. "Everyone is invited."

Chipotle Receives Outdoor Drinking Permit

Homewood's newest restaurant will now be allowed to serve alcoholic beverages to patrons who are dining outdoors as well as those dining inside. The vote passed 5-1, with Tom Kataras casting the only "no." Kataras said he voted against the permit because of previous inconsistencies in the liquor license requests by Chipotle representatives in their dealings with the village.

"They don't seem have the organizational abilities to figure out what the right hand is telling the left hand to do." Kataras said. "Last time they were here, their representative was not aware that they had even said that they (formerly) said they didn't want a liquor license—and she was up here asking for a liquor license. This seems to be a lot of miscommunication."

Heavenly Hands Hair Salon Approved, Again

Several months ago, . While the board voted 3-2 in favor of allowing Heavenly Hands to come into town, it was later discovered by Village Attorney Chris Cummings (who was not present at the prior meeting) that this type of vote requires at least four “yes” votes to pass. Trustee Tom Kataras was left with the deciding vote as Trustees Barbara Dawkins and Lisa Purcell maintained their “no” vote while trustees Anne Colton, Jay Heiferman and Ray Robertson stuck with “yes.” After a brief recap of the last meeting’s discussion on the potential new business, Kataras voted in favor of allowing the hair salon to open up. The final vote was 4-2.