If you attended the Historical Society of Forest Park’s garden walk earlier this month, then you’ve seen the inside of the updated 7410 Madison St. The building used to house the cigar lounge Casa de Puros, but will soon be home to the Forest Park Chamber of Commerce and available to host village-related and community events for those who request it — like the Historical Society.
At the last village council meeting on July 14, Kristen Lyons gave public comment. The Forest Park resident, who’s on the board of directors of the Historical Society, thanked the village for letting the organization use 7410 Madison St. as a check-in location for those participating in the garden walk on July 12.
“We had so much foot traffic, people asking about the Historical Society, what we do, and we had this beautiful space to do it in,” Lyons said during her public comment.
Lyons said the Historical Society used to do garden walk check-ins at Centuries & Sleuths, which closed last summer, and it was helpful to use another Madison Street location. She said the Historical Society put posters detailing the village’s history in the building’s windows and suggested that the village could allow organizations to do the same, requesting placement of advertisements or announcements for local events.
“I saw how many people saw that as a giant billboard,” Lyons said. She added that such a display would “show that the space has movement and life to it while you’re planning the next phase of what goes into that beautiful space.”
At the end of the July 14 council meeting, Commissioner Michelle Melin-Rogovin said she volunteered with the Historical Society at the garden walk. She said she spent part of the day at 7410 Madison St., where she sold tickets to Forest Park residents and people from surrounding communities.
“We had a lot of walk-in traffic, and residents who weren’t ready to go on the garden walk yet looked at the displays and found out about other events,” Melin-Rogovin said. “It was a wonderful day to see how organizations and residents from other communities came to gawk at how much we knew about our own community, and how well we worked together to support and promote our community.”
According to Village Administrator Rachell Entler, the village is working with the Forest Park Chamber of Commerce to create a use agreement before the organization fully moves in.
The Chamber previously had a Madison Street office, but when rent doubled, the organization moved to the basement of Forest Park Bank at 7331 Roosevelt Rd. That is where Executive Director Laurie Kokenes and a part-time staff member of the chamber work. But they will soon move back to Madison Street.
“Our downtown business district showcases the unique mix of independent shops and paints a picture of Forest Park’s small-town charm. It’s a place where people gather and connections are made,” Kokenes previously told the Review. “Madison Street is the perfect place for the village to meet with prospective business owners or investors.”
“We should have a presence in the middle of Madison,” Steve Glinke, director of public health and safety, previously told the Review. He called the donated property “a legacy move for the village.”
The previous owners of 7410 Madison St. donated the 1,800-square-foot first-floor space to the village last year, and the village closed on the property in December. The village has cleaned the ductwork and HVAC system of what used to be the cigar lounge and has mentioned the need to install alarms, cameras and new awnings.
“The village isn’t going to be doing any renovations to the space,” Entler said in an email. “A few things need to be fixed, and we do need to get internet in there, but other than that, the space is usable as-is.”
