One way or another, Park Forest will benefit from nearly $600,000 in grants aimed at creating a clean energy training center for electric vehicles and making much-needed improvements to local roads.
If you're thinking about taking a new type of job and pursuing a career in electric vehicles because you want a greener planet, Park Forest OAI will soon be developing a clean energy demonstration site north of Illinois thanks to a $100,000 check. . Community Initiatives, a Nicor Gas Foundation dedicated to improving underserved communities.
Mayor Joe Woods praised the work of the OAI and its "exemplary" experience of more than 10 years in vocational training.
"Jobs," Woods said, "become solid incomes and careers."
Woods said training for careers in installing electric vehicle charging stations is the next frontier of OAI's good work.
"It's one thing to provide technical training," Woods said. "Another is to provide advice and mentoring on employee expectations in the workplace. »
Contributions from the Village of Park Forest, Cook County Office of Economic Development and United Way will be used to build the clean energy demonstration site, which will be used as a hands-on electric vehicle training center with charging stations. OAI will use US Department of Energy funding to develop a major electric vehicle training center, allowing the group and its partners to train a new wave of technicians in this booming sector.
According to Amanda Allen, executive director of the OAI, the opening of a clean energy demonstration site and training space will "increase the visibility of clean energy careers."
Pothole parade
If you've ever tried to navigate the craters on what's left of Forest and Norwood boulevards in Park Forest, you'll be relieved to learn that Cook County is giving the village $480,000 through its Invest in Cook grant program to repair these impacts. . busy streets.
It's part of an $8 million overall program targeting 35 projects in low- and middle-income communities , fellow writer Mike Nolan reported last week .
In his remarks, Woods drew attention to the heavy rail traffic on Western Avenue, which he said is often blocked by more than 32 trains per day, resulting in detours from Forest and Norwood for fire engines and ambulances.
"A project like this is never cheap," Woods said, noting that the entire project "will cost millions of dollars." That's why, Woods said, the village relies on outside funding "to help meet the needs of the community."
When Canadian National bought the railway 16 years ago, we wrote that a main road blocked by a train could delay vital services.
With money from Cook County and "ample funds" from other sources to subsidize the work, Woods said the project went from a vision "to a reality."
personal note
We recently spent nine days with our daughter and her family from Colorado. We travel by car. Interstate 80 is an old friend. In most of Nebraska and parts of Colorado the speed limit is 75, and we "crawl" at 77 in the right "slow" lane.
Smoke from some mountain fires obscured our view of the Rocky Mountains for a few days, but by last Wednesday the mountain peaks were just a jagged edge against a cloudless blue sky.
Along the way, we spoke to a driver in Wisconsin whose car had a large rooftop speaker. He said it sounded like a locomotive explosion. His father is a train buff, that's why he did it.
We are not calling for a demonstration.
Jerry Shnay, at jerryshnay@gmail.com, is a freelance columnist for the Daily Southtown.
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