Orland Park Votes To Seek Legal Options Over Reopening

ORLAND PARK, IL — Trustees in Orland Park on Monday voted in favor of seeking legal possible legal options against the state of Illinois if reopening guidelines aren't loosened by June 1. The board voted 6-1 in favor of allowing the village attorney to seek legal recourse in this matter.

Mayor Keith Pekau said in an email the board action "authorized staff to research and present all of our legal options at the next meeting." A lawsuit against the state has not begun, he said.

Monday night's vote was to approve a resolution, of which Section 3 indicates would grant "the commencement of legal proceedings by the Village Attorney in the event that the General Assembly does not act to provide for the reopening of businesses and civic life, with reasonable and specifically targeted public health guidelines, or otherwise act to address the COVID-19 pandemic."

Public comments were largely against the village taking this action, however. Comments that were emailed in for the virtual meeting were read aloud. The common theme of the comments was that by taking this action to seek to open early the village is putting the interest of corporations before the health and safety of residents, employees and shoppers.

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Trustee Cynthia Katsenes said that many of the comments were from activists who do not live in Orland Park and who have opposed the village decisions on earlier, unrelated issues.

But Trustee Dan Calandriello pointed out that of the 13 Orland Park residents who did comment on the village's reopening plan and possible lawsuit, 12 were against it. Calandriello was the lone trustee to vote against the resolution.

Pekau said the goal of the village is to reopen "with common sense and good social distancing," adding his notion that a number of the comments came from people who did not read the village's reopening plan and were instead "guessing" on what it says.

Before the meeting, a group of activists staged a drive-by protest around Village Hall to oppose the trustees' plan to seek a lawsuit. A counter protest of a few people who are for the reopening also took place.

Hannah McCorry, an Orland Park resident who organized the protest, said it was done to "ensure that people who work at the mall and other retail stores, and the shoppers in Orland, are safe."

"Instead of phasing in a plan to open all businesses right away, the mayor should instead be focused on putting forth plans to get these workers paid time off," she said.

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This article originally appeared on the Orland Park Patch