100,000 expected at Maryville for Our Lady of Guadalupe feast day
Des Plaines police are warning drivers to avoid Central Road near Maryville Academy in Des Plaines on Tuesday and Wednesday night since the street will be closed for a Catholic vigil that is expected to draw 100,000 people.
The faithful, many on foot, are expected to be streaming into Maryville's Our Lady of Guadalupe Chapel, which celebrates the vision of the Virgin Mary by St. Juan Diego in 1531 in Mexico City.
Thousands of people, many of Mexican descent, will be marking the occasion at some point during the 24 hours, said Maryville's Father Manuel Dorantes. The forecast calls for highs in the low 30s and lows around 20 with snow possible.
In Mexico, the day is marked with great reverence as millions make the journey to Mexico City to worship there in a similar shrine, he said.
Last year, the event in Des Plaines, which has grown every year since it began in the 1980s, drew so many people that police decided to close streets this time, said Des Plaines Police Commander Tim Veit.
Central Road from East River Road to Wolf Road will be closed from about 4 p.m. Tuesday to 5:30 a.m. Wednesday. It'll be open during the day Wednesday, and then closed again from 4:30 p.m. to midnight.
The small number of homes and businesses along this stretch have alternate routes by which to come and go, so Central Road can be avoided without a burden on those living and working along the road, Veit said.
For those who are going, it's important to note changes in parking procedures. For the first time, parking will not be available at Maryville, but seven nearby lots have been set aside. Shuttle buses will take people from the lots to the shrine and back again.
The offsite parking locations are:
• Northwest Assembly of God, 900 N. Wolf Road in Mount Prospect;
• St. Paul Chong Korean Mission, 675 Dureursey Lane in Des Plaines;
• Harper College, 1375 S. Wolf Road in Prospect Heights;
• La Rosita Restaurant, 1902 S. Wolf Road in Wheeling;
• Photo Plaza, 1700 E. Kensington Road in Mount Prospect;
• Walgreens, 1701 E. Kensington Road in Mount Prospect;
• Randhurst Shopping Center, in the east parking lot off of Kensington Road in Mount Prospect.