Woodfield jewelry store heist, Ribfest’s demise among top stories of 2024
A shuttered strip club, a religious group facing public opposition in its bid for open space, and a team of brazen jewel thieves were among the top suburban newsmakers of 2024.
So were restaurants that served their last meals, landmarks that met the wrecking ball and high school students responsible for a controversial yearbook entry.
Here are some of the year’s most captivating Daily Herald stories.
Woodfield heist
More than $1 million in merchandise reportedly was stolen out of a Woodfield Mall jewelry store in August by burglars who broke through two walls to get inside.
The heist occurred at Marquise Jewelers after it closed for the day. The thieves got into the mall through the back door of a Sbarro restaurant. From there they went through a wall into a vacant unit, and then through another wall into the jewelry store.
Investigators believe six people were involved, based on surveillance footage and witness statements.
No arrests have been made. The store only recently reopened.
Ribfest no more
Barbecue lovers mourned the demise of Ribfest in DuPage County this summer.
Held for decades in Naperville before shifting to Wheaton in 2022, Ribfest was a crown jewel of the suburban festival circuit, attracting talented food vendors and top-notch musicians. But like so many things, the party went on temporary hiatus during the COVID-19 pandemic and never really recovered.
No Ribfest was held this summer, and in late July the group behind the event — the Exchange Club of Naperville — announced the gathering and the organization itself were done for good.
“We were not able to generate enough income to be profitable,” organizers said in a statement posted on Facebook.
Yearbook controversy
Trouble erupted in May when people discovered the latest Glenbrook South High School yearbook, the Etruscan, contained a quote from a Palestinian-American student who appeared to be supporting the October 2023 terrorist attacks against Israel, the deadliest massacre of Jews since the Holocaust.
A subsequent investigation revealed neither the quoted student nor the teen interviewing her mentioned the attacks during their conversation, and that yearbook adviser Brenda Field was aware of the quote before the yearbook was published.
Field subsequently was removed as yearbook adviser, suspended without pay and forbidden from participating in future student instruction. The online District 225 staff directory now identifies Field as a “Teacher on a Special Assignment.”
South Barrington land saga
In late February, a group called Area N Development LLC successfully won an auction for 34 acres of undeveloped South Barrington Park District land at Bartlett Road and Route 59.
The land, known as Area N, had been the focal point of a quarrel between nearby residents and a religious group that’s owned and operated by a suburban congregation of the Plymouth Brethren Christian Church. The residents opposed the congregation’s plans to build a church and school there, leading the park district in 2023 to halt a planned sale of the land to the group.
Following the February auction, the park district board unanimously approved the sale of the property to Area N Development for $2.3 million. It was only after that sale was final that representatives of Fourth Avenue Gospel publicly acknowledged they were responsible for the winning bid and were the new owners of the property.
A legal fight ensued and hasn’t yet been resolved, leaving the redevelopment plan in limbo.
Fourth Avenue Gospel members in October announced they’ve grown tired of the delay and want the property excised from the village, a maneuver they believe will allow them to complete their project.
Closing time
Unfortunately for loyal customers, a number of suburban restaurants served their last meals in 2024.
They included Munchies Pizza & Bar in Elk Grove Village, which was forced to shut down after the village bought the plaza in which it was located with an eye toward redevelopment. It had served pies since 1983.
Also shutting down were Gigio’s Pizzeria in Des Plaines, Park Tavern Rosemont, Lalo’s in Schaumburg, Bangkok Café in Arlington Heights, Billy’s Pancake House in Palatine and Michael Jordan’s Steakhouse in Oak Brook, among others.
But there were bright spots on the suburban restaurant scene. New eateries included Giostra, the Greggory Hearth & Tavern, Higgy’s Bar and Grill and Tangled Roots Brewing Company, all in South Barrington; Nostimo in Arlington Heights; First Watch in Des Plaines; and Chicago Ramen in Mundelein.
Goodbye, landmarks
Several suburban landmarks were reduced to rubble in 2024.
The year’s most significant demolition job surely was at the former Sears headquarters on Beverly Road in Hoffman Estates. The 2.4 million-square-foot complex started coming down in August.
Five data centers eventually will be built on the 273-acre site, which now is owned by Dallas-based Compass Datacenters.
Demolition crews also were at work at the former Pheasant Run Resort in St. Charles; at the southeast corner of Arlington Heights and Algonquin roads in Arlington Heights, where office and commercial buildings were razed to make way for a retail and apartment complex; and at International Plaza on Golf Road in Arlington Heights.
Last dance
One of the Chicago area’s few strip clubs shut down in June and soon will be demolished to make way for redevelopment.
Heavenly Bodies, which operated for decades on the southwest corner of Higgins and Elmhurst roads just outside Elk Grove Village, was purchased by the village as part of a $6.15 million deal that also included a shuttered Burger King and other property.
Village leaders haven’t announced plans for the sites.
Goodlow shooting
Carol Stream resident Isaac Goodlow III, 30, was fatally shot in his apartment by police responding to a domestic dispute Feb. 3.
Video from body-worn cameras revealed officers identified themselves and went inside; then shots were fired.
Goodlow was pronounced dead at Central DuPage Hospital in Winfield.
In June, DuPage County State’s Attorney Robert Berlin announced he would not prosecute the officer who shot Goodlow.
Goodlow’s sisters have filed a federal lawsuit against the village and the six officers who entered the apartment.
Lisle police chief steps down
Lisle Police Chief Kevin Licko was placed on leave in February after an employee who hasn’t been publicly identified filed an undisclosed complaint against him. Village officials declined to comment on the complaint or the investigation that followed.
In May, Licko agreed to step down as chief and serve the remainder of his time with the department as a sergeant. He retired in October.
Licko had been with the department since 2004 and had been chief since 2022.
James Kruger, who over the course of a long career led the police departments in Oak Brook, Roselle, Winfield and East Dundee, is serving as acting chief. A permanent replacement hasn’t been chosen.
Mall overhauls
Prompted by retail trends, suburban shopping malls continued evolving his year.
Bloomingdale’s Stratford Square Mall closed for good in April after years of declining activity. Bloomingdale, which had been buying vacant storefronts for years, purchased the remainder of the 43-year-old mall in January for $8.75 million. Officials hope to redevelop the property with restaurants, entertainment venues, retail outlets, housing and pedestrian-friendly green spaces.
Similar action occurred this year in West Dundee. The village in June spent $7 million to complete its purchase of the Spring Hill Mall, which closed in March after 44 years in business. The village earlier had spent more than $3 million to buy the former Macy’s and Sears spaces there. Officials plan to demolish the 500,000-square-foot structure and redevelop the land.
And last month in Vernon Hills, real estate developers proposed building a 48-unit townhouse development on the northeast side of the Hawthorn Mall property. The land is a parking lot near now the Domaine at Hawthorn Row apartment complex and AMC Theatres. The Domaine opened last year with 313 apartments, and more are planned.