HR0422 LRB096 12968 GRL 27042 r

1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2     WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of
3 Representatives are pleased to congratulate Frank M. Paris on
4 the occasion of his retirement from the Village of River
5 Forest; and
 
6     WHEREAS, Frank M. Paris is a lifelong resident of River
7 Forest and a graduate of Oak Park and River Forest High School;
8 and
 
9     WHEREAS, Frank M. Paris served with the Village of River
10 Forest for 20 years; he served for 4 years as a trustee from
11 1989 to 1993 and 16 years as Village President from 1993 to
12 2009; and
 
13     WHEREAS, Frank M. Paris aided the development of the
14 Village of River Forest by streamlining the development process
15 through the creation of the Development Review Board; and
 
16     WHEREAS, Frank M. Paris pushed for development of the River
17 Forest Town Center, which opened in the mid-1990s, and for the
18 second phase of the Town Center, which opened in the early
19 2000s; these developments benefited both River Forest and Oak
20 Park; and
 

 

 

HR0422 - 2 - LRB096 12968 GRL 27042 r

1     WHEREAS, Frank M. Paris advocated for a Tax Increment
2 Financing District to aid development of the Town Center; he
3 later advocated for keeping excess dollars in the TIF funds
4 locally by entering into inter-governmental agreements with
5 the River Forest School District #90 and OPRF #200 to transfer
6 some of the excess funds to help the schools; and
 
7     WHEREAS, Frank M. Paris worked for inter-governmental
8 cooperation at all levels of government, particularly with the
9 Village of Oak Park and the Cook County Forest Preserve
10 District, through various inter-governmental agreements and
11 the creation of the Consolidated Dispatch Center, which serves
12 River Forest, Oak Park, and Elmwood Park with medically trained
13 dispatchers; and
 
14     WHEREAS, Frank M. Paris worked consistently with Concordia
15 University and Dominican University to assist the schools with
16 development efforts to improve their campuses with new
17 facilities; and
 
18     WHEREAS, Frank M. Paris worked to bring new businesses to
19 River Forest and to make the designs of their developments
20 compatible with the neighborhoods they were located in; and
 
21     WHEREAS, Frank M. Paris worked to improve the quality of
22 new housing stock, particularly multi-family housing, in River

 

 

HR0422 - 3 - LRB096 12968 GRL 27042 r

1 Forest while attempting to maintain the open, residential
2 character of the Village; and
 
3     WHEREAS, Frank M. Paris was instrumental in assisting the
4 Park District with the development of Priory Park and the new
5 homes along the edge of the park; and
 
6     WHEREAS, Frank M. Paris worked hard to keep the government
7 of River Forest lean and keep property tax assessments as low
8 as possible to benefit the residents of River Forest;
9 therefore, be it
 
10     RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
11 NINETY-SIXTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we
12 congratulate Frank M. Paris on the occasion of his retirement
13 from the Village of River Forest and wish him happiness and
14 success in his future endeavors; and be it further
 
15     RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
16 presented to Frank M. Paris as a symbol of our esteem and
17 respect.