Jolene Maguire of Clarendon Hills had mixed feelings when she saw the rubber alligator on her front porch.
The alligator signaled which family would organize the annual block party the next year. Whoever runs the block party on the 400 block of Ridge Avenue gets to choose their successor.
Rather than a face-to-face conversation, the alligator just appears on your front steps, Maguire said.
The mother of five did not relish the extra work of planning the party, but she also said, “I feel we have been let off the hook in the past.”
Maguire, her husband and their family have lived on the block for 10 years. The idea is to give everyone a chance, she said.
“The nice thing about organizing it is you can try things that haven’t been done in the past, as well as do the favorite things people like,” she said.
Traditional favorites for the children are water balloons and the bike races down the street, Maguire said.
At this year’s party, scheduled for Sept. 14, “We are going to try and do a scavenger hunt, where the kids have to find someone who lives in the house with the blue door, or find someone with red shoes, and other things like that,” Maguire said.
For the first time last year, the residents of the 300 block of Ridge joined the party, so it was a two block get-together, which worked well, she said. It also opens up the pool of homeowners who could organize the party next year.
The block party, which Maguire thinks has been going on for at least 20 years, is not extravagant.
“Ours is a mix and mingle and eat and drink,” she said.
In the years 2015 to 2018, the number of block parties in Clarendon Hills has ranged from 22 to 27 each year. The village allows only three block parties per weekend.
The town is so small, to have more could hinder emergency vehicles or be cumbersome for the residents, said Vicki Pries, Clarendon Hills executive assistant.
The maximum of three have been scheduled for the Aug. 23-25 weekend and the first three weekends in September.
September is the most popular month for block parties in Hinsdale and La Grange.
From 2016 to 2018, Hinsdale has had between 30 and 35 parties a year, with about half held in September.
Maguire said they plan theirs for September to avoid the hottest weather. Residents of other blocks may prefer September, because earlier in the summer neighbors with children may be out of town on vacation.
After several years of cool or rainy weather at their September block parties on the 100 block of Hiawatha in Clarendon Hills, Abby Ferguson said they changed the date to Aug. 10 this year.
Ferguson, who has lived on the block four years, ran the party solo for the first time, as an older neighbor decided to pass the reins to someone from the younger generation.
The food is all potluck, plus grills filled with hamburgers and hot dogs.
The musicians who play at the Hiawatha block party are friends of one of the residents.
More Top Picks Can Adults Develop Irlen Syndrome Later In Life
“We just pass the hat for them,” Ferguson said.
Whatever work it was to organize the party was well worth it, Ferguson said.
“Everyone is so thankful afterwards,” she said. “It’s the best opportunity to come and get to know each other better and enjoy good food and good company.”
Villages require residents apply for permits for block parties so the police and fire departments can be notified of their locations. Village workers also drop off the barricades or cones that are placed at each end of the block. Many towns will send a fire truck or police car to the block party for the children to see and explore.
In most towns there is no charge to hold a block party, although Western Springs requires a $50 deposit.
Hinsdale and Burr Ridge require a form signed by at least 75 percent of the people on the block, but not all towns require proof that neighbors have been notified.
Clarendon Hills officials ask residents to inform everyone on the block as a courtesy.
Block parties are not popular in all communities. Burr Ridge received only four requests in each of 2017 and 2018, and only two so far this year.
La Grange, on the other hand, had 116 block parties in 2017, 122 in 2018 and at least 50 so far this year.
On its website, the village encourages block parties as a way to meet neighbors, build community spirit and have fun.
La Grange residents on the 500 block of Madison did all that at their block party Saturday. Cheryl Brown and Elizabeth Hamilton, who have run the event for the past six or seven years, offer a wide range of activities, including a dunk tank, an inflatable water slide, a tie dye station, face painting, bike decorating and live music. Both a fire truck and a police squad car visited the block.
A man arrives with a grill and all the supplies he needs to cook tacos right on the block and the residents pay a set amount per person, Brown said. She also schedules an ice cream truck to come later in the evening.
The residents supply the rest of the food. The even number addresses are asked to bring a dessert, the odd numbers a side dish, and they switch it the next year, Brown said.
They invite far more people than just those who live on their block, including relatives and former neighbors. Brown’s son invited his whole third-grade class.
“They do it up here,” said Patrick White, whose sister lives on the block, while he lives elsewhere in La Grange.
“Liz and I have a great time,” Brown said, and the kids and neighbors love it. “As long as they like it, we’ll keep doing it.”
