Glencoe officials are continuing to plan for two concerts and a fireworks show Labor Day weekend, while at the same time the village president is expressing frustration with the town’s vaccination rate.
On Friday, Sept. 3, visitors are set to arrive at Lakefront Park for a program titled Summer’s Last Blast, hosted by the Glencoe Park District. Activities are set to begin at 6 p.m. with a musical performance from rock band Empty Pockets.
The concert will lead into a fireworks show around 9 p.m. Earlier this year, there was joint decision by the Park District and the village to shift the fireworks from the traditional July 4 date to Labor Day weekend due to COVID-19 restrictions.
Since Summer’s Last Blast is outdoors and spread out, masks are being recommended but not required. Guests will not have to provide proof of a COVID-19 vaccination.
Glencoe Park District officials said they hope guests will maintain social distancing and are not ruling out the enactment of additional precautions.
“We will watch the numbers and we might install more stringent safety measures closer to the concert,” Park District spokeswoman Erin Classen said.
The night after Summer’s Last Blast, approximately 3,000 people are set to come to downtown Glencoe’s Temple Court parking lot for the inaugural Glencoe Live concert with the rock band O.A.R. headlining the musical performers.
Village Manager Phil Kiraly said at the Aug. 19 board meeting that after consulting with event organizers, who also ran the recent Lollapalooza festival in Chicago, he was confident the concert could take place safely.
“If they can do it Lollapalooza which hosted over 400,000 people, we have no doubt they can do it here in Glencoe with 3,000,” Kiraly said.
However, Kiraly cautioned unlike Summer’s Last Blast, attendees of Glencoe Live would be required to submit proof of vaccination or proof of negative COVD-19 test within 24 hours in order to enter, similar to Lollapalooza.
“The concert venue is much more enclosed as there is one way in and one way out and there may not be as much of an opportunity to spread out as Lakefront Park, which utilizes a larger overall footprint,” Kiraly said.
The festivities remain in place despite Glencoe trailing other neighboring communities in terms of vaccination rate.
As of Aug. 24, 61.8% of Glencoe residents are fully vaccinated and 73.9% have received at least one dose, according to data from the Cook County Department of Public Health.
Glencoe’s numbers trail those of neighboring communities like Wilmette, Wilmette and Northbrook. A fact that troubled Village President Howard Roin.
“We can and we must do better than we have done,” Roin said at the board meeting. “This is not a question of freedom. Our freedoms are always limited by responsibility and I am asking everyone to be responsible.”
In a subsequent interview, Roin could not explain the lagging rate in Glencoe.
“I don’t detect anything in Glencoe’s culture but it is reported by Cook County and if it is true, it should be fixed. We want everyone who lives, works or comes to Glencoe to be safe,” he said.
Roin said he supported the Cook County’s enactment of an indoor mask mandate for everyone over the age of two that went into effect Aug. 23.
In another sign of growing concern regarding safety, after meeting in person in July for the first time since the onset of the pandemic, all Glencoe Village Board and commission meetings have reverted to a remote format.
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It is not known when in person meetings will resume, according to spokeswoman Jordan Lester.
Daniel I. Dorfman is a freelance reporter.