Stop the Plaza. The recently proposed plaza plan in Clarendon Hills, IL, threatens to close the efficient traffic triangle roundabout—a vital feature of our beloved village. This roundabout currently provides much-needed and proven traffic relief, allowing for smoother vehicular movement and reducing congestion in our main commerce district. Removing it, along with its essential turn-off lane, could lead to nightmarish traffic jams, putting residents, commuters, and the 176 daily train services at risk. Residents who must cross the tracks in vehicles and on foot for work and school will find their daily routines severely disrupted.

Our small businesses will face additional pressures. Storefront parking, a backbone of the convenient park-and-go shopping experience unique to Clarendon Hills, is slated to be moved away from our charming storefronts, further alienating potential customers. This could result in a significant loss of revenue, threatening the livelihoods of business owners who have invested so much into our community. The plan also moves parking to Park Avenue, creates diagonal parking on both sides and removes a key crosswalk, putting pedestrians at much greater risk.

Moreover, the utilization of tax incentive funds designated to enhance revenue growth for this plaza is questionable. The increased congestion could deter visitors from exploring our commercial district, directly contradicting the intended purpose of these taxpayer-supported incentives. It is absurd to risk community safety, efficient transportation, and economic viability for a project that seems to benefit so few.

Our daily lives will be disrupted, affecting not just our commute but the safety and accessibility for our children and families going to school. The village board must abandon this plaza plan.

 Please join us in urging the Clarendon Hills Village Board to halt this proposal immediately. Let’s preserve the functional traffic systems that serve our needs and protect the economic health of our small businesses. Sign our petition to keep Clarendon Hills thriving and safe for all.   UPDATE July 2026: Did you know that attendance at Village meetings, correspondence and resident survey results all indicate that a significant majority of CH residents are opposed to this unsafe, reckless plaza plan? Then WHY does Village leadership keep pushing the downtown plaza? WHY is it still on the table?  The traffic study originally said no safety countermeasures were needed in 2023. Our traffic and pedestrian patterns were already safe. Last May's one-week "Pilot Test Closure," concluded that there were "vehicles backed up almost to the railroad tracks" when they tested the closure of our safe and proven right-turn-fork-escape-lane. Interviews with our merchants also indicate a measurable loss in sales and foot traffic during the week of the test closure in May, 2025. So a permanent closure will crush our small businesses. Opposed residents have packed Village Board meetings all year long and we will continue to do so. What will it take to get the Village leadership in Clarendon Hills to set this unfeasible, dangerous idea aside for good and stop gambling with our safe and proven roadway? 1) More Petition signatures. SHARE. 2) More informed neighbors on your street. 3) More emails to the Trustees asking them to STOP this dangerous plan. VillageBoard@ClarendonHills.us Let's Stop the Plaza once and for all by doing all three of the above now. Or we will be cleaning this mess up for the next two decades like Burr Ridge, LaGrange, Decatur, Springfield, and Chicago all had to do when their pedestrian plazas FAILED. Please, if you are a Clarendon Hills resident, Sign and Share NOW! https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/07/01/clarendon-hills-plaza-pushback/​ https://patch.com/illinois/hinsdale/safety-issues-clarendon-hills-plaza-plan​ https://patch.com/illinois/hinsdale/clarendon-hills-plaza-plan-draws-foes