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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of
3Representatives wish to congratulate the City of Fairview
4Heights on the occasion of its 50th anniversary; and
 
5    WHEREAS, Germans and other European immigrants established
6farms in the Fairview Heights area, then known as Ridge
7Prairie, by the mid 1800s; early pioneers included Irishman
8William Kinsella, great-grandfather of Marilyn Kinsella, a
9storyteller, retired educator, and member of the 50th
10anniversary committee; his two-story, hand-hewn log cabin,
11which was built in 1854, still stands in Pleasant Ridge Park;
12and
 
13    WHEREAS, One of the community's early hubs was the
14intersection of what is now Bunkum Road and Lincoln Trail,
15where there was a brickyard, a farmhouse that served as an inn,
16and the original one-room Grant School; the tavern and trading
17post operated by Henry Becherer, later known as the Ridge
18Prairie Saloon, was another center of activity; and
 
19    WHEREAS, The first of seven coal mines opened in 1903; the
20name Fairview was first used in an advertisement by a land
21developer after the streetcar was extended to the area in an
22effort to appeal to people living in St. Louis; Raymond

 

 

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1Fairbrother, a resident from East St. Louis, platted the first
2residential subdivisions in 1906; posters described the
3subdivision as a place "where life is worth living"; and
 
4    WHEREAS, In 1914, local residents formed the Fairview
5Improvement Association and raised money for sidewalks and
6roads; a mercantile store, owned by the Shively family and
7later the Gaidos, opened in 1916; East St. Louis Light and
8Power Company began delivering electricity in 1924; the
9association bought a used fire truck in 1933, leading to the
10organization of a volunteer fire department; throughout the
111940s and 1950s, subdivisions, stores, and restaurants were
12developed; and
 
13    WHEREAS, One of the most notable landmarks, St. Albert the
14Great Catholic Parish's round church, was built in 1967; by the
15mid 1960s, local residents began asking for a post office; a
16referendum was held to decide whether to call the area Ridge
17Prairie, Lincoln Heights, or Fairview Heights; the later won by
18a three-to-one margin; residents voted to incorporate in a
19special election on September 27, 1969; and
 
20    WHEREAS, Warren Baker was appointed as temporary city clerk
21and helped to plan the first Fairview Heights Election on
22December 16, 1969; voters elected Everett Moody as Mayor and
23Les Klein as City Clerk; Charles Baricevic, father of former

 

 

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1St. Clair County Board Chairman and Chief Circuit Judge John
2Baricevic, was an original alderman; the City bought its first
3fleet of four police cars at the Oliver Dee Joseph dealership
4in Belleville; Longacre Park, later renamed Moody Park, was
5dedicated in 1976; a year later, the old Pleasant View
6tuberculosis sanitorium was purchased and converted into City
7Hall; and
 
8    WHEREAS, Fairview Heights saw the construction of its first
9large discount store, Venture, in 1969; Macy's opened in 1973,
10and St. Clair Square, a two-level shopping mall, opened a year
11later; the metro-east section of Interstate 64, which traced
12U.S. 50 and improved access for shoppers throughout the region,
13opened in 1975; commercial growth continued in the 1990s with
14the construction of the Stonewolf Golf Club, the Four Points by
15Sheraton Conference Center, and the 280,000-square-foot
16Fairview Heights Shopping Center; a MetroLink stop opened in
172001; and
 
18    WHEREAS, Today, the City of Fairview Heights has evolved
19into a shopping mecca that attracts people from all over the
20region; it issues nearly 1,000 licenses to stores, restaurants,
21hotels, and other businesses annually; it is one of the few
22municipalities that does not levy property taxes, and most
23government programs and services are funded by sales tax
24revenue; the population is just over 17,000; because of the

 

 

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1shopping, dining, and other commerce, including the people who
2work in the City, the population swells to 50,000 by day and
3can go up to 70,000 during the peak holiday season; the City
4employs 42 police officers; and
 
5    WHEREAS, A committee has planned eight public events to
6celebrate the City's anniversary, including the early-May
7opening of The Rec, Heritage Day, a concert at Moody Park, a
8cake decorating contest, a time capsule burial, a parade and
9Party in the Park, an open house at City Hall, and an
10Anniversary Ball; therefore, be it
 
11    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE
12HUNDRED FIRST GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
13we congratulate the City of Fairview Heights on the occasion of
14its 50th anniversary and wish the City many more successful
15years; and be it further
 
16    RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
17presented to Mayor Mark Kupsky as an expression of our esteem
18and respect.