ForestParkReview.com Vol. 109, No. 9
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F O R E S T PA R K
REVIEW
Special section inside PAGE 11
MARCH 4, 2026
Play It Again dedicates batting cages to Eddie Sitzman
Jackson Blvd. water main, alley updates continue in ‘26
The Oak Park resident died last year and touched many communities in the western suburbs
Christopher B. Burke Engineering is also designing a new water reservoir to replace the one under the community center
By JESSICA MORDACQ Staff Reporter
The batting cages in the back of Play It Again Sports on Madison Street in Forest Park are now named after Eddie Sitzman, a beloved employee and community member in Oak Park and River Forest. On Feb. 25, Play It Again dedicated its batting cages to Sitzman, an Oak Park resident who died last year at 21. Sitzman worked at Play It Again for over four years and loved hitting baseballs in the back of the store. Erich Krumrei, owner of Play It Again Sports, said it wasn’t easy when Sitzman, who had Down syndrome, started working at the sports gear store, and he had a lot of conversations with his parents. But Sitzman soon became a vital part of the culture at Play It Again, See EDDIE on page 17
By JESSICA MORDACQ Staff Reporter
JESSICA MORDACQ
Eddie Sitzman’s parents, Mark Sitzman and Cathy Morgan, with Play It Again staff, Oak Park firefighters, Opportunity Knocks participants, and other neighbors and friends
In 2026, Forest Park will see Jackson Boulevard under construction to replace the water main underneath it, plus new alleyways throughout the village. The village’s engineering consultant, Christopher B. Burke Engineering, presented plans for infrastructure projects throughout Forest Park this year at a Feb. 23 council meeting. This summer, Forest Park will see Jackson See BURKE on page 10
Alan Brouilette:
Classified . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
A look back in time: News from Harlem, February 1899
Events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
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PAGE 23
IN Crime . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8 THIS ISSUE Opinion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Florida man