Park District Of Oak Park Pauses Services Due To Coronavirus

OAK PARK, IL — As the number of coronavirus cases continues to rise across the region, the Park District of Oak Park has decided to pause services to prevent further spread of the disease.

From now through Thursday, Dec. 3, the park district will take a three-week pause from all recreation programs.

According to the park district, the move comes out of an abundance of caution and in alignment with safety recommendations from the Illinois Department of Public Health and the Village of Oak Park Health Department.

"Safety is at the center of everything we do, including our path forward as we navigate the ever changing COVID-19 environment," park district officials said in a message on their website. "We feel these recommendations, while not officially mandated, are essential to ensuring the safety of the Oak Park community."

Residents currently enrolled in a program will be contacted by a program supervisor in the near future with the make-up schedule for all classes postponed, the park district announced.

The only PDOP programs that will take place during this time period are all-day childcare programs in partnership with District 97 at Lincoln and Whittier schools and our School Day Out programs on Nov. 25 at Ridgeland Common and Longfellow Center.

Parks, playgrounds and dog parks will remain open at this time, according to the park district.

State health officials on Monday reported 11,632 new cases of the coronavirus and 37 more deaths from COVID-19, the respiratory illness caused by the virus. That's a few thousand shy of the 15,415 new case record set last week, but still higher than the previous peak in May.

Altogether, more than half a million Illinoisans have now caught the virus, more than 10,000 have died, and hospitalizations have rocketed to all-time highs.

In Cook County, there have been 119,292 cases and 2,620 deaths to date.

SEE ALSO:

• Illinois Coronavirus Update Nov. 16: 11,632 New Cases, 37 Deaths