The Village of Oak Park | 123 Madison St. Oak Park, IL 60302 | village@oak-park.us
Oak Park offers a variety of services that can be accessed online from a computer, tablet or smart phone. Some of the services are managed directly by the Village, while others are third-party vendors authorized by the Village to conduct transactions.
The Village of Oak Park provides a wide range of services, from public safety programs like fire and police protection to support for housing, historic preservation and neighborhood relations. Don't see what you are looking for? Use the search feature at the top of the page.
Oak Park operates under the village manager form of government. A part-time, elected legislative body of a president and six trustees hires a professional manager to oversee the day-to-day administration of government programs and services.
Oak Park boasts excellent schools, world class architecture, shopping, dining and an extensive public transportation network. But Oak Park is more than a place – it also is a way of life. Use the links in this menu to learn more about our community and the many services available to residents and visitors alike.
Oak Park offers a variety of services that can be accessed online from a computer, tablet or smart phone. Some of the services are managed directly by the Village, while others are third-party vendors authorized by the Village to conduct transactions.
The Village of Oak Park provides a wide range of services, from public safety programs like fire and police protection to support for housing, historic preservation and neighborhood relations. Don't see what you are looking for? Use the search feature at the top of the page.
Oak Park operates under the village manager form of government. A part-time, elected legislative body of a president and six trustees hires a professional manager to oversee the day-to-day administration of government programs and services.
Oak Park boasts excellent schools, world class architecture, shopping, dining and an extensive public transportation network. But Oak Park is more than a place – it also is a way of life. Use the links in this menu to learn more about our community and the many services available to residents and visitors alike.
Here are links to some of the most popular items on the Village web site.
Here are links to some of the most popular items on the Village web site.
July 15, 2016 – The Village of Oak Park is seeking the public’s help to craft a comprehensive sign program that will make it easier for residents and visitors to find their way to the many attractions and services the community has to offer.
Representatives of Sasaki Associates, Inc., the planning and design firm chosen through competitive bid to lead the effort, will hit the streets of Oak Park next week to ask residents and visitors about their needs, ideas and hopes. Sasaki will greet attendees at the July 21 Thursday Night Out dining event downtown and the July 23 Oak Park Farmers’ Market.
By simply taking a brief survey on electronic tablets, willing individuals will have a quick and entertaining way to help the Sasaki team gain insights into the attitudes, views and demographics of those participating in these two very different, but popular Village activities.
The goal of the process, says Sasaki’s F. Philip Barash, is to empower people with the vocabulary and technology to contribute their insights to the design process.
“To be successful, design has to take place in a public arena,” Barash said. “Intense scrutiny, big ideas, surprising discoveries – these all make the end result better.”
Gathering public input is the initial step necessary to design a comprehensive wayfinding sign strategy, the first such far-reaching undertaking in Oak Park in more than a decade. Other steps include inventorying current signs, reviewing comparable markets, documenting typical travel patterns and key community destinations, and gathering input from stakeholders such as local business operators and tourism officials.
Information gathered through public outreach, observation and other research will allow Sasaki to establish clear objectives and create options for a new signage strategy, including graphic design standards, concepts and messages that will be uniform and consistent across the community. Potential sign locations also will be identified.
Additional community input into the initial concepts will lead to a final design approach and implementation plan that will include sign prototypes for market testing, as well as budgeting, production and maintenance plans.
The Village last updated its wayfinding sign system in 2003. The system has since grown to more than 300 free-standing signs, light pole signs and maps. A comprehensive review and update to the system is important now, Village officials say, because of the significant increase in residential development that is bringing new residents and visitors to the community, particularly in the downtown business districts.
The Village also has many regulatory signs that are not considered part of the wayfinding system. However, officials say a new wayfinding approach also may help guide changes in these signs as well.
Sasaki Associates, Inc. was chosen from 19 companies that responded to a request for proposals issued in February. Based in Watertown, Mass., the Sasaki project team members have extensive experience in civic space design and public wayfinding programs, including projects in Potomac, Md., Alexandria, Va., Baton Rouge, La., Walnut Creek, Calif., and current work at the Chicago Riverwalk.
The project – from needs analysis and recommendations to the final design and implementation plan – is expected to take about four months. The Village’s Community Design Commission is managing the project, with input from the Public Art, Historic Preservation and Transportation commissions.
More information on the project will be available at www.oak-park.us/wayfinding.
Sasaki's Oak Park Project team
