Palatine Sister Cities donates gift for sesquicentennial

The Sister Cities Association of Palatine marked Palatine's 150th year with a gift of four granite picnic tables, now located on the natural island in Parking Lot 1 of the Metra Station, 137 W. Wood St., in downtown Palatine. The area around the tables has also been newly landscaped.

The park-like setting was dedicated during a short ceremony held just before the Downtown Palatine Street Fest opened for the day Saturday, Aug. 27.

Palatine District 6 Councilman Brad Helms attended the dedication, along with representatives from Sister Cities. All Palatine residents were invited to attend.

"In 2013, Sister Cities began managing the farmers market and noticed the need for shaded seating in the farmers market area," said Marg Duer, the founder of Sister Cities and manager of the Palatine Farmers Market.

"It has been a long-term goal of Sister Cities to provide permanent picnic tables to support the already vibrant downtown Palatine area."

The organization raised more than $10,000 to purchase the tables, and chose the sesquicentennial year to present the village with this gift.

Since 1990, Sister Cities has promoted Palatine as a real American hometown, hosting visitors from Sister City Fontenay-le-Comte, France, and elsewhere. For information, visit www.palatinesistercities.org.

The Palatine Farmers Market is held year-round. The Summer Market is from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturdays, from early May to the end of October, in the Metra Station Parking Lot 1, and the Winter Market is from 8 to until noon the first and third Saturdays, November through April, inside the Metra Station. The Palatine Farmers Market is celebrating its 26th season in 2016.

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