Latest news with #GiffordParkAssociation
Chicago Tribune
22-07-2025
- General
- Chicago Tribune
When siding comes off, ‘true Italianate beauty' of historic Elgin house exposed
On a recent weekend earlier this month, 20 volunteers helped strip the aluminum siding that covered a 137-year-old home at 27 Rugby Place in Elgin's Gifford Park neighborhood. 'What we uncovered left us speechless — beautiful original details and brackets that had been hidden for over 50 years,' said owner Christen Sundquist, who's also the city of Elgin's historic preservation planner. 'It's a true Italianate beauty, and we're ready to bring it back to life with care and accuracy.' Sundquist is undertaking the monumental task with her husband, architect Matt Martin. The couple moved into the home in December 2021 and live there with their two young children. To help pay for the exterior renovations, the couple received a $5,000 matching grant from a Gifford Park Association program that assists Elgin Historic District property owners in covering the cost of aluminum siding removal so the original facade and missing architectural features can be restored. Association board member Paul Bednar said the money the nonprofit provides for such projects comes from funds it raises with its annual Historic Elgin House Tour, which this year will be held Sept. 6 and 7. According to association President Dan Miller, the nonprofit has awarded grant money for such work to 22 homeowners. Another 20 have done it without their financial help. Prior to the Rugby Place project, the last 'great unveiling' — as the they call such projects — took place more than three years ago on North Porter Street, he said. 'In the spirit of an old-fashioned barn raising, we typically get all the siding off before noon and then have lunch together,' Miller said. The association also recently used $5,000 in money from its house tour to pay a contractor to plant 11 magnolia trees at seven different locations on city-owned park land in the district. Magnolia trees are the variety residents commonly planted when the old neighborhoods were being built in the mid- to late-1800s, Bednar said. 'That's the start of a program to try to entice homeowners to add them into their yards as well,' Bednar said. Sundquist noted there's still a lot of work to be done to the exterior of the house, which was built in 1888 for William Kerber, cofounder of Kerber's Meat Packing Co. in Elgin. 'The aluminum removal was the easy part,' she said. 'The hard but most rewarding part will be removing the paint down to bare wood, sanding, priming and painting. We also have 30 brackets to make and crown molding and trim details to do. But the wood clapboard siding is in impeccable condition.' The cost of the exterior project, from siding removal to prepping, painting and recreation of missing features, could be between $20,000 and $40,000, depending on how much work is done by contractors, Sundquist said. Bednar said Sundquist's and Martin's home might also qualify for another $3,000 in association program funding to help pay for recreation of the original porch balcony balustrade. 'That's the next project, as we have a door that leads out to the porch, which would be another wonderful spot to entertain guests and drink a cup of coffee in the morning,' Sundquist said. Elgin has a Historic Rehabilitation Grant program that provides up to $20,000 in matching grant money for qualifying work on historic district and landmark properties but because Sundquist oversees the program, she is not eligible to apply for what it offers, she said. The Rugby Place house has been a project for the couple, who have installed central air conditioning, buried the electrical line into the property, added an upstairs laundry room, removed carpeting, sanded the wood floors, restored plaster, refinished the dining room, added first-floor casement windows and restored the front and side doors, Sundquist said. 'And way down the line, likely when our kids are in college, we hope to rebuild the belvedere on top of the roof as we found a recent historic photograph that showed that we had one,' she said.
Chicago Tribune
26-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Chicago Tribune
Elgin News Digest: Carpentersville Independence Day parade, fireworks Saturday; Gifford Park Association picnic set for Saturday at square
Carpentersville will hold its Independence Day parade at 10 a.m. Saturday, June 28, in Old Town followed that evening by a festival and fireworks from 6 to 10 in Meadowdale Park. According to the village's website, the parade will begin at Lincoln Avenue and Main Street and will travel east on Main before heading south on Washington Avenue, east on Spring Street, north on Lord Avenue and east on Maple Avenue. It ends at Carpenter Park. Dundee Township Park District will host the community fest from 6 to 9 p.m. in Meadowdale Park, 1201 LW Besinger Drive, according to the park district's website. The gathering will feature entertainment, food vendors and community organization booths. The fireworks show is set to start at 9:30 p.m. The Gifford Park Association will hold its annual summer picnic from 4 to 7 p.m. Saturday, June 28, in Gifford Park, 355 DuPage St., Elgin. Lawn games, food and other activities will be part of the event, according to the association's website. Gifford Park is the city's oldest public square. It was deeded to Elgin in 1858 by city founder James Gifford. The neighborhood park has a playground, a gazebo for performing events and a flower garden. For more information, email info@ Eight Elgin-area residents will debut as drag performers as part of 'The Power of Drag' show being presented from 6 to 9 p.m. Saturday, June 28, at The Hemmens Cultural Center, 45 Symphony Way, Elgin. The amateur drag queens will compete in a lip-sync contest, according to a social media post for the event. The show is also being billed as 'a tribute to the rich history of drag and its powerful role in the LGBTQ+ movement.' Tickets are $25 and $30. For tickets, go to Elgin History Museum will hold a summer picnic fundraiser at 11 a.m. Sunday, June 29, at the John Duerr Forest Preserve, 35W003 Route 31, South Elgin. The event will begin with lunch, followed by lawn games and live music from The Jammers, according to the museum's website. At 1 p.m., guests will take a private ride on one of the Fox River Trolley Museum trolleys, which will include a special history program. Tickets are $25 for museum members, $30 for nonmembers. For tickets and information, go to
Chicago Tribune
22-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Chicago Tribune
Elgin News Digest: Play about Gabby Giffords shooting to be staged at ECC; ‘512: The Selena Experience' to be presented at the Hemmens
Play about Gabby Giffords shooting to be staged at ECC Elgin Community College Theatre's production of 'That Day in Tucson,' a drama about the mass shooting that critically injured U.S. Rep. Gabby Giffords, will be staged this weekend and next at the SecondSpace Theatre at the ECC Arts Center. Written by Guillermo Reyes, the play tells the story of Daniel Hernandez Jr., the intern who helped save the Giffornd's life during a 2011 shooting in a grocery store parking lot in Tucson, according to a news release. The shooter killed six people that morning and severely injured 13 others, including Giffords. 'The play addresses a serious and painful event, and it brings the issue of gun violence to the forefront, something that remains deeply relevant today,' production director Susan Robinson said in the release. 'But it's also a story about hope, family, perseverance and what we can accomplish when we work together for a better world.' Performances are scheduled for at 7:30 p.m. April 25-26 and May 2-3 and 3 p.m. April 27 and May 3. Tickets are $14 for adults, $12 for seniors and free for ECC students. An American Sign Language interpreter will be at the May 3 show. For more information and tickets, go to 'Glass on the Cutting Edge' presentation at the Elgin library Author Don Quant will speak about 'Glass on the Cutting Edge' and the history of the cut glass industry at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, April 24, at the Gail Borden Public Library, 270 N. Grove Ave., Elgin. Quant's program will put a special focus on Edward J. Koch, who started making cut glass in Chicago in 1899 and moved his factory to Elgin in 1911, according to the library's website. How Koch made his glass, where it was sold and how the people who operated the Elgin factory worked and lived will be discussed. There also will be examples of Koch cut glass. Quant's book on cut glass will be available for sale, the site post said. '512: The Selena Experience' will be presented Friday night at The Hemmens Cultural Center in Elgin. (512: The Selena Experience) '512: The Selena Experience' to be presented at the Hemmens '512: The Selena Experience,' a tribute to singer Selena Quintanilla-Pérez, will be held at 7:30 p.m. Friday, April 25, at The Hemmens Cultural Center in Elgin. The production has been has performed at venues across the United States, at a Chicago Bulls game and for U.S. Marine Corps members serving in Okinawa, Japan, according to the Hemmens website. The band will perform Selena's hits including 'Como La Flor,' 'Amor Prohibido,', 'Si Una Vez' and 'Bidi Bidi Bom Bom.' Tickets range from $35 to $54. They are available at the Hemmens box office, by phone at 847-931-5900 or online at Gifford Park Association holding neighborhood cleanup Saturday The Gifford Park Association is holding a neighborhood cleanup starting at 10 a.m. Saturday, April 26, in the parking lot at St. Mary's Catholic School, 103 S. Gifford St., Elgin. Open to all volunteers, the city of Elgin will provide trash grabbers, trash bags and buckets, according to the association's website. Participants need to bring their own gloves. Organizers will divide up the neighborhood, allowing volunteers to work at their own pace. Refreshments will be served. Everyone who participates can enter a raffle for a magnolia tree. For more information, go to or email info@ PADS of Elgin holding Home Run 5K walk/run Saturday PADS of Elgin will hold its second annual Home Run 5K walk and run Saturday, April 26, starting in the parking lot of the Gail Borden Public Library, 270 N. Grove Ave., Elgin. Packet are to be picked up from 7 to 8 a.m. with walk/run starting at 8:30 a.m., organizers said. The race route is through Elgin's northeast side. Proceeds will assist PADS in its mission of assisting people and families who are in need of housing by offering shelter, services and professional guidance, according to the event's website. The entry fee is $50 for anyone over the age of 12 and $25 for those 12 and younger. For more information, go to
