Naperville council finalizes plan to add local grocery tax
It’s official: Naperville will implement a 1% local grocery tax to replace the income lost by the state grocery tax ending Jan. 1.
The final decision comes after the Naperville City Council ping-ponged between going with the grocery tax or increasing the city’s home rule sales tax to fill a projected $6.5 million shortfall created by the loss of the state tax. The council voted 5-4 Tuesday night to adopt the grocery tax.
Mayor Scott Wehrli and council members Josh McBroom, Benny White, Nate Wilson and Supna Jain voted in favor of the grocery tax. Consistent with prior meetings, council members Ashfaq Syed, Ian Holzhauer, Mary Gibson and Patrick Kelly voted no.
Naperville joins a long line of municipalities establishing local grocery taxes as communities weigh their options on how to fill the financial gap left with the end of the 25-year-old state tax. As of Sept. 10, more than 500 municipalities have adopted local grocery taxes, according to the Illinois Municipal League.
Food Network chef Jeff Mauro to speak at COD
Celebrity chef and Food Network star Jeff Mauro will speak at 7 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 9, at the College of DuPage’s McAninch Arts Center, 425 Fawell Blvd., Glen Ellyn.
The presentation will include a question-and-answer session and a photo opportunity, a news release from the college said.
While supplies last, guests will also receive a food product from Mauro’s company, Mauro Provisions, which specializes in craft giardiniera, seasonings and sandwich kits.
Mauro rose to fame after winning Season 7 of “Food Network Star,” which led to his Emmy-nominated series “Sandwich King,” the release said. He is currently a co-host of “The Kitchen” and a regular on primetime shows, including “Worst Cooks in America” and “Holiday Wars.”
He is the author of “Come on Over” and co-host of the “Come on Over” podcast.
Tickets are $10 and free for College of DuPage students. For more information, go to www.cod.edu/cod-presents.
Oswald’s celebrating 150 years with event on Sept. 26
Oswald’s Pharmacy’s is holding a public 150th birthday celebration from 11 a.m. to noon Friday, Sept. 26, at its 88 W. Gartner Road star.
Founded in 1875, it’s the second oldest business in Naperville and the oldest continually-owned family pharmacy in the Midwest, a news release said.
The celebration will include a display of the pharmacy’s historic artifacts to be donated to Naper Settlement and proclamations from Naperville Mayor Scott Wehrli, state Sen. Laura Ellman and state Rep. Janet Yang Rohr.
Oswald’s invites the community to submit items for a time capsule that documents life in Naperville in 2025, the release said. The capsule will be sealed this fall inside the original Oswald’s building on Jefferson Avenue, which is currently Gordon Ramsay’s Kitchen, where it operated from 1875 to 2004.
The celebration continues Saturday, Sept. 27 with a customer appreciation event. The first 150 customers will receive goodie bags. Giveaways, raffle prizes and sales will happen all day long, the news release said.
Dedication ceremony set for new skate park murals
Naperville Park District and Max’s Mission will dedicate four new murals at a ceremony at 5 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 1, at the Rothermel Family Skate Facility, next to Centennial Beach, 500 W. Jackson Ave.
The murals were painted by Naperville artist Peter Thaddeus as part of a partnership between the park district and Max’s Mission.
Max’s Mission is a nonprofit organization established by Jill and Ray Wijangco to honor the life of their son Max Wijangco, an avid skateboarder, and to help survivors of suicide loss.
Max’s Mission donated the murals to add beauty to the park, showcase the diversity and creativity of the skate community, and serve as a message of hope for those struggling with their mental health or a loss by suicide, a news release said.
Two concrete walls, measuring 20-feet-by-5-feet and 24-feet-by-4-feet, were poured in July at the skate park and were painted on all four sides.
For more information, go to www.maxs-mission.org.