ForestParkReview.com Vol. 109, No. 15
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F O R E S T PA R K
REVIEW
Special section
Health
Spring 2026
A Special Advertising Section
Wellness and
Guide
INSIDE
APRIL 15, 2026
Garden posts planted at Constitution Court Forest Park Arts Alliance organizes installation by 19 artists; some share their inspiration and process
By JESSICA MORDACQ Staff Reporters
Constitution Court has a new public art installation, as the Forest Park Arts Alliance welcomed 19 garden posts that will adorn Madison Street through May 22. Most of the garden posts are no taller than 5 feet and are either 4-inch squares or 3-inch PVC pipes, secured by a metal spike submerged in the ground. When the installation is removed, artists can choose to auction off their post or display it during the Historical Society of Forest Park’s annual garden walk in July. The Review spoke with some of the artists who created garden posts for Constitution Court to discover the inspiration behind their work and the materials they used.
German Fest cancelled as Opportunity Knocks plants garden
After hosting event since the 1970s, organizer says there’s a 50-50 chance it could return By JESSICA MORDACQ Staff Reporters
What started as a local Oktoberfest celebration in the 1970s, German Fest has been cancelled this year. It is unclear if the tradition will be reinstated next June. The cancellation comes after village staff told Harlem Männer und Damenchor — the choir and cultural group that organizes German Fest — that they could likely no longer host the event on the village-owned Grove at the Altenheim property, as
“Fly Away Home” Steve Metro created a garden post inspired by a nursery rhyme involving lady bugs. To start his sculpture, the River Forest resident, retired engineer and lifelong woodworker routed channels into the wooden post, filled them with black epoxy, then added small painted wooden lady See GARDEN POSTS on page 10
TODD BANNOR
IN Crime . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 THIS ISSUE Opinion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 Classified . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 Events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
See GERMAN FEST on page 6
A look back in time:
Tom Holmes:
A post from the past
West of the river
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