Downtown Auroran fall/winter 2011

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fall/winter 2011

tim burns

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L O C A L C U L T U R E

miss lee’s lounge

history

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Downtown Auroran

Downtown Auroran

www.downtownauroran.com

Marissa AmoniPublisher and Editor

Dave Sobotka at Kelmscott CommunicationsGraphic Design

Max BaldingProofreading

Jennifer TrudoKatie CoanContributors

Advertising and Submissions:E-mail [email protected]/Spring issue deadline is January 6, 2012.

On the Cover:Photo collage. Miss Lee’s Lounge Photos by Jennifer Trudo.

Downtown Auroran (DTA) is a local independent operation. We are focused on the downtown and its success – especially the burgeoning arts and culture movement. Opinions are encouraged and expressed, but they are not necessarily those of DTA.

Downtown Auroran is published three times a year, and 2,000 copies are distributed free of charge throughout downtown and select locations in the Aurora area. One copy of DTA per person, please. Share it and recycle it.

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Copyrighted 2011

With Aurora’s upcoming demisemiseptcentennial, or 175th anniversary, I’ve been thinking about how Downtown Auroran Magazine could highlight some of downtown Aurora’s great history.

Interesting people and beloved businesses have come and gone throughout the years in downtown Aurora with many only surviving through photographs, stories and, most recently, as Facebook posts.

When Vicki Moore, former owner of Just Because basket shop - previously on Downer, posted a black and white photo on Facebook of a bearded man standing next to a bicycle in downtown Aurora, I was intrigued. The older gentleman with long white hair stands on the sidewalk in an overcoat and fedora, next to his Schwinn bicycle with metal baskets on the front and back.

The photograph solicited comments from old timers who remember the man named Chester Loomis. People reminisced about seeing Loomis downtown with books in hand or riding his bicycle. Loomis was a downtown staple that is no longer. He died in 1980.

The photo of Loomis made me pause and reflect on the life and energy that went into the downtown Aurora of yesteryear.

In this issue’s Historical Notes on pg. 15, I write about Aurora Cycle and Hobby Shop, a popular bicycle and hobby store that operated on Broadway Avenue during the ‘60s and ‘70s.

Our cover story is dedicated to Miss Lee’s Lounge, a downtown business that has spanned 25 years in the same location at 215 E. Galena Blvd.

In the Locust Report on pg. 5, we note the closing of 7 West Studio at 7 W. Downer. The small art gallery and gift shop was open for less than a year, but it will still be a side note in the history books of downtown Aurora.

Will we be talking about Miss Lee’s Lounge, 7 West Studio and other frequented and beloved places like River’s Edge Café or Backthird Audio in another 100 plus years? Will photos of downtown regulars Francis Laity and Frank Patterson show up on the Internet in future decades?

In order to understand downtown and to move forward, we should always be looking back and revisiting history and the people and places that once made downtown Aurora tick. Those faces and places that were once so familiar should never completely fade away.

With the assistance of former Beacon-News reporter Lyle Rolfe, John Jaros with the Aurora Historical Society, Vicki Moore and others, I hope to celebrate 175 years by bringing you more stories of downtown Aurora’s thriving past in the next year.

As for your part, please continue to support downtown businesses, museums and attractions. Check out our new Museum Roll Call on pg. 13.

See you downtown!

2 Downtown Auroran Fall 2011

Fall 2009 Downtown Auroran 13

Artist Profile DTA profile: Maureen Gasek

Maureen Gasek uses color like it’s her best friend. She knows what makes red work, blue shine and orange light up. And Gasek, 46, can become so intimate with color that a canvas might blush.

“Color is my thing,” she says. “You have to know color theory to know how color works.”

So orange is never just straight orange – it’s a mixture of yellow and red. “You get vibrancy when you mix colors,” said Gasek in her unique half-round house on Aurora’s northeast side.

“I really want to get people to look at my art. Everybody looks and nobody sees anymore. I want people to really look at things. It is such a hectic world. We are inundated with so much stuff. People can relate to color, shape, movement – that is my goal – to have them use their imagination,” she said.

Gasek says she has always had her “hand in art.” She sold her first piece – a collage of her hands – for a quarter when she was in first grade. When she was only 13 years old, Gasek taught plaster classes to adults at the plaster studio that her brother and uncle owned in Wisconsin, where she grew up. She taught them how to paint; stain and varnish the miniature plaster statues that were popular at the time.

Gasek has worked with clay and metals in the past and now focuses on mostly acrylics. She teaches acrylic painting as well as a jewelry-making class at Water Street Studios in Batavia.

She’s involved in the local art scene, is a member of the Aurora Art League and serves on the Cultural Creatives committee in downtown Aurora. She assisted in the selection of artists for the Aurora ArtWalk this fall.

Gasek paints her stunning, expressive pieces in a converted back room of the home she shares with her handy husband – carpenter and sculptor, Scott Robertson. She dove into painting full time about three years ago and still runs her graphic design business, Epsilon Design and Consulting. She says that balancing both professions gives both the left and right side of her brain a workout.

She paints her canvases on a spinning easel, a gift from her husband. And she signs each piece on the back so it can be turned on the wall to suit the viewer.

“I have a real organic style,” Gasek says of her paintings. Some people see planetary or landscape themes in her work; others see dragons, fish, monsters and faces. Whether the viewer feels they are in space or under water when staring at Gasek’s imaginative paintings, they are transported to a different reality.

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T a b l e o f C o n t e n t s

Auroran Words

f e a t u r e s

ind

ex

Miss Lee’s LoungeBy Marissa Amoni

cover story

DTA profile: Timothy C. Burns

Aurora Cycle and Hobby Shop

1962 - 1975

page 4

Artist Prof i lepage 11

Historical Notes page 15

4 auroran words5 locust report6 cover story 9 citizen voices10 downtown voices

11 artist profile12 recipe13 culture shock15 historical notes

page 6

Not Another Vampire Story Part I

By Amy Perry

SplinterBy Michelle Slaughter

Matt the FishyBy Rosa Nevarez

Phot

o by

Jenn

ifer T

rudo


A u r o r a n W o r d sNot Another Vampire Story Part IBy Amy Perry

“Where and when am I meeting Anna?” Jo asked her boss.“Nice to see you too,” he replied.“Jim, I don’t have time for this!” Jim had a habit of looking down on his desk when speaking to Jo. He was always search-ing for a piece of paper or a pen and slapping his chest pocket. Not once had anyone ever seen a pen in there.“I’m running late. I was supposed to be home an hour ago.” Jo was agitated. She needed to sleep.Jim handed her a note. He had a habit of giving her notes. She had a habit of ignoring them. She rolled her eyes. “Jim! I refuse to open this. Just tell me.” “Such is life,” Jim retorted. He never once looked up at her.She folded the piece of paper, stuck it in her pocket and off she went. She pretended not to care but she was anxious. She got in her car and opened the note.“Meet Anna at the Axe. 10 p.m.”

Lots of StakesThe Axe. Dark. Dreary. Deadbeat drunks. Anna. Blond hair. Blue eyes. Pale skin. Red lips. Jo often daydreamed about her. She couldn’t have been any old-er than Jo, but she had an old soul. Jim was fond of Anna too, but he distanced himself. They all had to distance themselves. It was in the contract.“Jo!” exclaimed Anna. Anna was glad to see her. They’d been partners for some time.Anna tossed her drink back, grabbed their gear, and off they went. For the first time, Jo panicked. She felt ill. She was shak-ing. Anna took one look at her. SLAP.“Get it together!” yelled Anna. The sting from her smack left Jo awake. She could feel her heart beating.“I’m afraid,” she quivered.“Don’t be. I’m with ya. We’ve got this one. I will not let anything happen to you.” Anna reassured Jo that everything would be okay. She opened their bag of tricks. Stakes. All stakes. Antique. Packed tightly in an array of styles: gold, silver, wood, large, dull, sharp. They were kept tidy with easy access.Anna held her hand up like a school crossing guard guiding the young. Jo would then receive another quick tutorial on how to stab a vampire in ten seconds or less. Cause that’s all they had. Seconds. Anna motioned and whispered, “Get it together.” Jo was feeling dizzy. She wanted Anna to hurry.Anna walked closer to the room. The door was slightly open.“Still afraid?” she asked.

Amy Perry is a witty mom who lives on an idyllic street in Aurora with her husband, Derrick McCurdy, and their four young children. Perry maintains the blog Eyes Cream for Vinyl and is an avid daytime Facebooker.

SplinterBy Michelle Slaughter

While cleaning yesterday,I thought of you. The splinter in my fingerHad your name written on it –The splinter of my soul. It took a long whileTo dig that splinterOut. I thought I could do itBy myself.I couldn’t.I had to use a safety pin.(How ironic: That whichHolds me together.) But you know what?Even after I got ridOf that splinter It still hurt. It even hurts today. But I have to remind myself.What is a splinter?Nothing, really.But an unimportant, indescript, tiny pieceOf wood.

Michelle “Slaughterhouse” Slaughter is married to North Aurora, but Aurora is her mistress. When not being a slave to the grind, she dabbles in word-smithery and recently, in photography. Someday, she hopes to get paid for her hobby and make that elusive move from “writer” to “author.”

Matt the FishyBy Rosa Nevarez

• Great films are coming to Copley Theatre this fall. Copley Cinémathèque is a new film venue that will show critically acclaimed, mostly independent movies with the assistance of City Cineastes, a film society headed by Jeanne Norris. Paramount Theatre under director Tim Rater is opening up Copley Theatre at North Island Center, 8 E. Galena, for the movies. Join City Cineastes on Facebook or e-mail [email protected] for more information. See Culture Shock on pg. 13 for dates and movie titles.

• Keep your eye out for Citizen in the Temple, a film that was shot locally and on location in the tunnel below River’s Edge Café. The movie is the work of Aurora director Jason Huls. Find both on Facebook.

• Andrea Dawn, our favorite downtown musician, has been working hard on her new full-length album. Dawn recorded all the basic tracks at Backthird Audio in downtown Aurora and tracked the vocals at Gallery of Carpet Recording Studio in Villa Park. She is now in the overdubbing process: laying down keyboards, guitars, strings, horns and other random instruments at her apartment studio in downtown Aurora. Dawn hopes to release the record independently early in the New Year. Happily, Dawn has decided to stick around town, for the time being, and says, “My heart belongs to Aurora.” Find Andrea Dawn on Facebook.

• Parking meters update: The city did not remove the parking meters.

• Broadway is now at Paramount Theatre. It’s really there. “My Fair Lady” knocked the socks off the town when it ran in September. “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat” kicks off on Nov. 2. If you want to see amazing, energetic, top-notch shows with stellar casts, go catch the remaining three Broadway musicals at the Paramount.

• Local realist artist Lisa Gloria closed 7 West Studio, her quaint artsy boutique at 7 W. Downer, in July on the heels of her announcement that she would grow the studio into the vacated insurance shop two doors west. Gloria cited financial reasons for the closure, noting on the 7 West Studio website that “the financial support for an arts studio isn’t yet here in downtown Aurora, even though the intellectual support is strong.” Gloria is keeping busy with art (she’s having a solo show in November at Chef Amaury’s) and her recent singer/songwriter ventures. Look for KharmaDoll on Facebook.

• Have you seen small, bare clay figures peeking out from hidden corners and alcoves in downtown Aurora? In late July, four local artists strategically placed more than 30 of the unbaked clay sculptures around downtown. The anonymous Clay Figures Project grew out of the artists’ shared frustration that there is no artist enclave in Aurora, like the Bemis Center for Contemporary Arts in Omaha or Water Street Studios in Batavia. They hope to create dialog and raise public awareness of art by creating art and putting it out there for others to see;


The Locust ReportReporting the News and Gossip in Downtown Aurora

they’d like other local artists to follow their lead and break out of traditional arenas of showing art, such as galleries and fairs. The clay pieces will slowly decay from wind, rain and changing temperatures, leaving no trace of their existence.

• Parking meters update revisited: The city intended to remove the downtown meters this summer; it didn’t happen. Instead, the city got tied up in the financial feasibility of removing the meters, which currently cost the city nearly $200,000 annually. That amount is purported to double if the meters are removed. The Aurora Downtown organization recommended the removal of the meters and is still working with the city on various meter-free proposals (see Shirley Flaherty’s letter on pg. 10). It is rumored that the city will not replace the meters on Downer Place after the bridges are rebuilt, yet others will stay put and could go up to 50 cents an hour. Are we all just pawns in the game of downtown parking?

• Made in Aurora Volume II: City of Lights – the Christmas Album is in production at Backthird Audio in downtown Aurora. Producers Benjie Hughes and Steve Warrenfeltz brought the crew plus some extras (Funktional Family, Peter Hix, Lisa Gloria and Mary Lou Fischer O’Brien) to the studio in September to record their second offering. After the success of the first Made in Aurora project, we’ll be eagerly awaiting the release of the seasonal album featuring locals Jeremy Keen, Ben Thomas, Empty Can Band, Greg Boerner and others on Nov. 25 (“Black Vinyl Friday”) at Kiss the Sky Records in Geneva. As with the first compilation, the second volume will be released on vinyl with an accompanying compact disc. Visit Made in Aurora on Facebook for holiday concert announcements.

• Rejoice! River’s Edge Café is now open from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturdays. Thanks Dianne and Dean!

• Downer Place is not only getting new bridges soon, but also a new look. A spiffed up Downer courtesy of a $90,000 grant will include pedestrian-friendly curb bump-outs at Stolp and Downer. The intersection might also get a two-way stop instead of a stoplight at Stolp and do away with one of its dedicated left turn lanes.

An unfired clay sculpture sits on a ledge outside of Chef Amaury at 33 West on New York Street in downtown Aurora. A group of anonymous artists placed more than 30 clay figures around downtown that have their eyes, ears or mouths cov-ered. They don’t see, hear or speak. Become aware of them, so you don’t become one of them. www.artmindzone.us

There is an oft-overlooked treasure up the hill on the east side of Broadway Avenue in downtown Aurora; it is full of friendly people and has a back door opening to a lush oasis that is a welcoming beer garden.

Miss Lee’s Lounge at 215 E. Galena Blvd. has been quietly serving blue-collar workers for 25 years. As thousands of cars drive by daily without much notice of the neighbor-hood bar shaded by a long red awning, years of work have gone into making what Miss Lee’s is today: a clean bar with a good crowd.The downtown bar is aptly named after its hard working and no nonsense owner, Lee Goblet, who lives upstairs from the bar in the circa 1907 building. In 1986, Goblet took her re-tirement from Aurora Steel Products, where she worked as a machine operator, and bought the building. “Everything I made, I put back in here,” said Goblet, who knocked down walls and changed the bar’s layout. She said that the place was a horrible mess when she bought it. “It was just a run down building.”In the late ‘60s and ‘70s, the building was known as the Labor Temple with a bar downstairs where labor unions would meet. “It was just a little rinky dink place,” Goblet said. The man who owned it was an ironworker. At the time, Goblet was married to an ironworker and she acted as a union represen-

tative for steel workers, so she knew the establishment well. When she went to former Mayor David Pierce for a liquor license, he kindly frowned upon it since the Labor Temple had such a bad reputation. “It was a rough place,” she recalls.

Mayor Pierce asked if Goblet would rename the bar. He suggested “Miss Lee’s,” Goblet said.

Miss Lee’s RulesWhen Lee Goblet moved in to the downtown neighborhood, it was admittedly sketchy and there were problems with both prostitution and drugs. With the help of the police, Goblet says she worked hard to clean up the area. Goblet would stand outside with a cordless phone and threaten to call the police on any suspicious activity – much supplied by the prostitutes and drug addicts living in the building next door. She quickly came up with her own set of rules for her business that she still enforces. “If you swing a fist, you are done,” she said. She added that she is also very hard on drugs and will testify against


Story by Marissa Amoni

Photography by Jennifer Trudo

Miss Lee’s


drug felons in a court of law. “I always support the police department,” she said.“The neighborhood is getting better,” she noted. The presence of bicycle officers helps, said Goblet, who has also hired her own security to patrol the bar entrance when needed.

A neighborhood barMiss Lee’s Lounge has always been a neighborhood bar for laborers, roofers, electricians, construction workers and the like, Goblet said. The Ironworkers’ Hall used to be next door to the lounge and Goblet would have coffee for them every morning. The bar was always packed back then and Goblet

was busy working, cleaning and stocking the shelves.She’s still known to have soup and food out for patrons and some-times barbecue on Sundays. “I love to cook also,” she said.Lately, Miss Lee’s has been enjoying a little bit of a revival since she started welcoming local blues musicians on Sunday nights for an open mic jam. It turned into a party one Sunday evening in July when members of Jefferson Starship showed up to jam with Blue Smoke Funk and Carrie Lyn “that Violynist.” Miss Lee’s has karaoke on Friday and Saturday nights and free pool on Tuesdays. She recently started having DJs on Monday nights.

Miss LeeLee Goblet moved to Illinois from Mississippi with her parents when she was 15 years old. They came to the area so her dad could manage Exposition Hotel at Exposition Park in North Aurora. Her mother got a job working at Clairestat and Campbells, a resistor company in town. Goblet started attending West Aurora High School, but didn’t last long. “I quit and went to night school,” she said. To Goblet, the high school experience was very different here than in the south where she was able to play basketball on a school team. “Up here, they didn’t have that,” she said. Her new school also wanted to move her down a grade, which Goblet wasn’t having. Goblet quickly got a job at her father’s behest and started working with her mom at Clairestat and Campbells. Her work ethic hasn’t stopped and at age 70, Goblet is out of

retirement and working again running the bar. Her eldest son, J.C., ran Miss Lee’s Lounge for 17 years until he died in 2005. Goblet lives with Ron Tinsley, a friend of 22 years, and her grown daughter. Over the years, Tinsley has helped Goblet in various ways with the bar to make it what it is today. In the late ‘80s, Tinsley’s brother cleared out the rear of the building with a Bobcat tractor in order to convert it into a multi-tiered beer garden alive with greenery. With a lot of work and help from others, the bar has become Goblet’s paradise and a welcoming second home for many others, as photo collages hanging on the wall show. “I really love the business. I’m getting a little tired,” she said. “I’d like to see some of the country. I haven’t been hardly anywhere.”Goblet has had the building up for sale for over a year, but hasn’t had any serious offers. “I love Aurora. I’ve seen the good times and the bad times. I think it’s coming back, but I see a lot of empty buildings and it scares me,” Goblet said. “I hope I live long enough to see Aurora come back.” n


630.896.6666ParamountAurora.com

SHOW RUNSNOVEMBER 2 - 22, 2011

GO,GO,GO,GO!

PRESENTS

Lyrics by Tim Rice • Music by Andrew Lloyd Webber

Smile more.

aurorapubliclibrary.org

We have a new look and a new web address: www.aurorapubliclibrary.org


Cit izen VoicesWhat vacant building in downtown Aurora

would you like to see revitalized?By Katie Coan, downtown Aurora

Erica Potter, Chicago“The storefront (at the northeast corner) of Stolp and Downer. It used to be a

steel manufacturer. I actually want to revitalize it though and open a coffee shop there for local artists. Instead of commercial art being sold, local artists could have a place for their art to turnover quickly. Also on the second floor a music venue and on the third would hopefully be my apartment,” said Potter, who grew up in Aurora and recently graduated from Aurora University, about her dream starring downtown Aurora.

Mike Mancuso, Aurora Artist and co-creator of The Yetee, a web business that sells artist-designed

t-shirts for $11 for one week. “I don’t have a particular building, but I would like to see more art studios down here. I know a lot of people have been trying to do it but it would be great if we could have a whole art community. Where local artists could have a place to work, be together, show their art and have a first Friday - where everyone could come. There is plenty of room and plenty of buildings. The people are here. Someone just needs to step up and do it,” said Mancuso, who participated in both the last Aurora ArtWalk and Alley Art Festival in downtown Aurora. Mancuso curated Molded Heroes, an art print show, in a rented space on LaSalle Street last spring.

Chris Hodge, North AuroraArtist at Water Street Studios in Batavia“I would love to see the Fox

Valley Blueprint turned into another art store. We used to always go there and get our art supplies when I was attending West Aurora High school and college. The place sort of disappeared. So, not only just a place to show art but have a place to buy supplies,” Hodge said while displaying his intricate ink drawings at Alley Art Festival in August.

Nate Miller, Oswego Triple Threat Mentoring Art Director“I think the old train station

on Broadway just south of the train tracks, it would be a great community center if it was restored. It has a great outside and spacious inside environment as well.”

Daniel Dominguez, Aurora“The building I would like to see revitalized is the old Fox

Theater. It’s actually on East Galena Boulevard in Aurora. I know now it is used as a print shop, but I think it would be much better used as a movie theater. I know movie theaters don’t make money, but I saw pictures of what it used to look like back in the ‘30s and it looks freakin’ awesome.”

Jeff Paetzold, AuroraTattoo artist at Insight Studios in Chicago“The Hobbs building. I

would like to see that building turned into lofts. Maybe a gallery downstairs, that would be awesome.”

Madelyn Medina, 9“I think they should fix the bridge because there are too many spider

webs, and then people can come see the beautiful water.”

14 W. Downer Pl., Suite A (upstairs)Aurora, Illinois 60506

630-234-4928


The Meter GameGuest column by Shirley Flaherty

We presently have a fine structure that takes in less money than the cost to operate it. First ticket is free. (That was a recommendation of our committee as a way to be “friendly” and also as an educational tool.) The ticket would have the fine schedule printed on it as a gentle reminder. The second through fifth ticket is now $5. And six or more tickets are at $20. For some, that is not enough to keep them from abusing the system - it is the cost of doing business.The city tells us that we cannot afford to remove the meters, as the expenditures are about $300,000 more than the revenue. We are no longer talking about meters as a “control.” We are now finding that the new obstacle is loss of money. What the Aurora Downtown parking committee has proposed is to remove the meters, install signage and increase violation fines in a way that would still be friendly to the occasional violator but hit the abusers hard. We are now considering the following fine schedule: First violation is free, second is $5, third is $10, fourth is $15, fifth is $20 and six and up are $50. The schedule would be on an annual basis and roll back each January.If someone has six tickets in a year, they need an “incentive” to change their behavior.The business community has spoken. We now need to hear from the community and encourage e-mails to the mayor and the aldermen on the city council.

Once again the parking committee of the Aurora Downtown Board is having discussions with the city of Aurora about the removal of the downtown parking meters. I say “once again” because as a board member, committee member, past co-chair and presently chairman of the committee, I have been meeting over this issue for at least 10 years. Our very first recommendation was to remove the meters and increase the fines to make up for loss of revenue. We have made the same recommendation every year since. We thought we had the city convinced but they now have decided to incrementally remove some meters and increase fees on others. If meters are removed in one area (as the city is proposing), and not in another, that would act as a magnet and cause confusion and abuse. It would be destined to fail and therefore have the city say they tried but it didn’t work. The Aurora Downtown Board of business and property owners are against that approach and voted to remove all the meters.The meters have been imposed on us as a control issue, a way to keep employees, merchants, students, casino patrons and commuters from taking up all the spaces that should be for the use of customers and clients. When we studied other towns such a Elgin, Batavia, Joliet, North Aurora, etc., we found that they have been successful in getting rid of meters and allowing free parking in garages, lots and streets. The way to control the parking is with time zone signs and fines for violations.

Downtown Voices


Artist Profi le

Timothy Burns is not landscapes and still lifes – he’s not even paper. Burns, of Aurora, is mixed media art on aluminum. Art on aluminum is synonymous with Burns locally and even in some parts of Europe where Burns shows his work and is well received.Burns, a printmaker, has

been running sheets of aluminum through a printer and then painting on them for the past seven years – ever since he took an alternative printmaking class in New Mexico. “I started rethinking what I was doing,” said Burns, who worked in photography and cinematography before getting his Master of Fine Arts and then falling in love with printmaking.It was in New Mexico that Burns learned to rethink how printmaking could be done. Traditional printmaking using paper and acid is a toxic process and after many years of practicing the art, Burns was concerned about its affect on his health. After taking the class, he decided to spend a year figuring out the process of making art on aluminum – a non-toxic alternative to paper printmaking.B u r n s c o n c l u d e d his year in transition with a gallery show at Northern I l l i n o i s U n i v e r s i t y and has never looked back. It can be tough to work with a l u m i n u m since it is thin and bends; it is less forgiving than paper. However the ease of cleanup, nontoxicity and freedom from traditional framing are all benefits of the material. Burns’ process starts with hand sanding the opposite, or ball grained, side of the aluminum before painting it with layers of Gesso, a surface primer. He runs the aluminum through a large printer to lay down one of his digital images, he then adds layers of acrylic paint and sometimes ink. Burns has no reservations about using a Sharpie pen to darken lines, or layering on paint with a palette knife.

DTA profile: Timothy C. BurnsThe end result is a heavy duty, archival quality piece of art. Burns typically frames his works without glass. He leaves a border of sanded aluminum around the image to act as a border. His recent works depict people who are floating or swimming with titles like “Skinny Dipping,” “She Floats” and “From the Bottom.” Burns uses titles to clue in

the viewer to the meaning of his surreal and abstract works, but he’s not beyond creating a guessing game for the viewer, he says.During the last year, Burns has been creating work out of his new studio at the southeast corner of River Street and Downer Place. He said the wonderful light flooding through the windows inspired the bright, primary colors of his latest series. “I finally found the perfect studio,” Burns said. Burns has lived in Aurora for about 15 years, but is uncertain of his future here; he’d like to eventually return to New Mexico. Burns is certain about his art. It’s what he does now. He said a lot of it is about breaking down the barriers of traditional art and exposing the public to other forms of expression. “It’s not paper. It’s not canvas. It’s not photography,” he said. “It’s contemporary art.”

Burns currently has more than a dozen works on aluminum hanging at the Paramount Theatre’s second floor Grand Gallery; some will travel to Sweden next for a show. He lives with his wife, Susan Buchanan across from the Riddle Highlands neighborhood in Aurora. Visit his website at www.timburns-art.com.

From the Bottom - in progress detail

She FloatsA Whitewater Park in Downtown Aurora Guest column by Charlie Zine

It has been almost three years since a group of local kayakers brought former Olympic kayaker Scott Shipley to Aurora to seek his help in re-designing the Aurora canoe chute so that it actually works as intended.

The initial goal was just to fix the canoe chute, but Shipley was struck by the opportunity to modify both of downtown Aurora’s dams into world-class whitewater parks. During the same visit, Shipley saw that bypass channels around the North Aurora and Montgomery dams could also be created. These projects, plus the state of the art by-pass channel currently being constructed in Yorkville, could create the world’s first ‚Whitewater Park Water Trail!‛

Any whitewater park is a regional attraction. But these four whitewater features in a 15-mile stretch of the Fox River (so close to O’Hare & Chicago) would create a world-class attraction, and downtown Aurora could be the center of it all. Aurora’s two dams could be modified into two levels of whitewater parks. In the east channel, an international level competitive kayak venue could host major events. The west channel would be a safe ‚play course‛ where whitewater kayakers could do tricks, such as, flips, jumps, Eskimo rolls and ‚surf‛ the stationary waves made by the drop structures. Families in rafts and swimmers in tubes could, with the proper protective gear, join in on the fun. And even spectators would find it a fascinating show.

To help promote these projects, gather support and seek funding, we have created a non-profit organization called Fox River Water Sports (FRWS). FRWS will work with local governments and state agencies to coordinate efforts to apply for grants and build the venues. Our vision is to turn the Fox River into a true public park that is safe and accessible to the general public, and provides real economic and cultural benefits in addition to recreation.

Last fall, FRWS hired Gary Mechanic as executive director to develop the funding and support for these projects. Mechanic has a 20-year track record of developing paddling infrastructure and successful on-the-water events in Northern Illinois. Mechanic moved to Aurora last summer and has already obtained our first grant from the National Park Service (NPS).

The NPS grant will bring two NPS staffers to Aurora to conduct a number of public meetings between the city of Aurora, Scott Shipley and the local stakeholders to redesign the canoe chute. The product of these meetings will be a ‚locally preferred‛ plan for the redesign of the canoe chute along with a grant request, which will be submitted to the Illinois Department of Natural Resources to fund the reconstruction.

Reconstruction of the current dysfunctional canoe chute into a safe by-pass channel will bring an immediate benefit to downtown Aurora businesses as it will allow paddlers to not just pass through, but for the first time, enter the downtown area and enjoy the local food and cultural attractions. Events like the Mid-America Canoe and Kayak Race could pass through, or even end in the downtown area.

The Aurora City Council recently approved construction plans for the riverfront at Waubonsee Community College (WCC) which include a loading zone where boaters can load and unload boats form cars and trailers, a boat launch where canoes and kayaks can access and exit the river and places to lock boats so paddlers can visit downtown.

Once the Aurora By-Pass Channel and the WCC improvements are in place, perhaps other businesses will be able to put piers and docks in the river so boaters can exit directly to their businesses.

Aurora can be unique in the Fox River Valley, and once again a leader in innovative urban design, by creating the infrastructure that both encourages and invites river users, even in large numbers, to paddle, raft, tube and float the Fox River to downtown Aurora to enjoy the variety of restaurants, bars, coffeehouses, museums and free festivals - and some day soon, a world-class Whitewater Park.

10 Downtown Auroran Summer 2010

Downtown Voices

1026 Prairie Aurora, IL 60506

BRIAN J. HIPP HIPP LAW OFFICE

Attorney at Law

Phone 630-844-1234 630-631-5192

Fax 630-859-0205 Email [email protected]


Fried Green Tomato Tots with Cilantro-Tomatillo SauceContributed by Kate Purl – west of downtown

Small, sweet tomatoes give rise to these tiny bites of deliciousness. I used an heirloom green grape tomato for this recipe, but any grape or cherry tomato should work nicely.

Plumbing Specialist

[email protected]

Servicing the Fox River Valley & More

Receive $30 off any service call

expires January 30, 2012

Get dazzled!

The 5th Annual Aurora Festival of Lights isNov. 26 - Dec. 26 at Phillips Park in Aurora

Drive through one of the largest outdoor holiday light displays in Chicagoland!Sunday - Thursday: 5-9 p.m.Friday & Saturday: 5-10 p.m.

Admission to the event is free. Donations accepted at the exit to benefit local youth charities. Sponsored by the Rotary Club of Aurora and the City of Aurora.

Tomato ingredients:• 16-20 tiny green tomatoes (grape or cherry) cut in 1/4 inch slices. • Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper• 3/4 c. flour, mixed with 1 tbsp. garlic powder• 2 eggs, lightly beaten with 2 tbsp. milk• 1 1/2 c. Panko breadcrumbs mixed with 2 tsp. chili powder• Canola oil Method:Heat about 1/2 inch of canola oil in a large pan. Sprinkle tomato slices with salt and pepper; allow to set for 10 minutes. Dredge in flour mixture, coat in egg mixture and then press in panko mixture. When the oil gently sizzles when something is dropped in it, fry the tomatoes in batches until golden brown (about three minutes per side). Remove to a platter lined with paper towels and keep warm. Serve with tomatillo sauce below. Sauce:In a food processor, puree half-pound tomatillos (cleaned and roughly chopped), 3-5 jalapeno pepper slices, 1 green onion (chopped) and 1/2 tsp. fresh lime juice. Melt 1/2 tbsp. of butter in a medium saucepan. Add tomatillo puree. Cook over medium heat until the puree stops foaming, about 10 minutes. In a separate bowl, combine 1/3 c. vegetable broth with 1/2 tsp. cornstarch, a pinch of kosher salt, a pinch of freshly ground black pepper and a pinch of garlic powder. Add to the tomatillo mix, bring to a boil, and then simmer over low heat until the sauce thickens, stirring constantly. Remove from heat, stir in 1 tbsp. sour cream and serve. Plate the tomatillos and draw a design with the sauce using a squeeze bottle.


Culture ShockOCTOBERCOPLEY CINEMATHEQUETue Oct 11 Doors open at 6:30 Local film society City Cineastes with the support of Paramount Theatre screens Theremin: An Electronic Odyssey. $5/members, $8/non-members. Copley Theatre in North Island Center, 8 E. Galena Blvd. [email protected]: THE OTHER SIDE OF THE TRACKSFri Oct 14 from 7 to 11 The fall ArtWalk is here and it will highlight historic LaSalle Street “Auto Row” between Downer and Benton. Free. www.auroraartwalk.com.STORYTIME AT THE CAFEMon Oct 17 at 11 The Aurora Public Library hosts an off-site storytime for children with books, dancing and fun, plus a free treat. Free. River’s Edge Cafe, 18 W. Downer. No reg. needed. www.aurorapubliclibrary.org.CIVIL WAR STORYTIMETue Oct 25 at 4 The Aurora Public Library hosts an off-site storytime for school aged children in conjunction with Fox Valley Reads. Free. David L. Pierce Art & History Center, 20 E.Downer. (630) 264-4123. www.aurorapubliclibrary.org.

NOVEMBERCOPLEY CINEMATHEQUETue Nov 8 at 6:30 Local film society City Cineastes with the support of Paramount Theatre screens Murderball, a 2005 movie about quadriplegic rugby athletes. $5/members, $8/non-members. Copley Theatre in North Island Center, 8 E. Galena Blvd. [email protected]’S DAY PARADEFri Nov 11 at 10:15 Step off at Benton and Water streets. Ceremony at 10:30. GAR Building, 23 E. Downer Place. www.aurora-il.org.STORYTIME AT THE CAFEMon Nov 14 at 11 The Aurora Public Library hosts an off-site storytime for children with books, dancing and fun, plus a free treat. Free. River’s Edge Cafe, 18 W. Downer. No reg. needed. www.aurorapubliclibrary.org.FAMILY READING NIGHTThur Nov 17 at 6:30 Celebrate family reading night for an hour at the Aurora Regional Fire Museum hosted by Aurora Public Library. Free. 53 N. Broadway Ave. (630) 264-4123. www.aurorapubliclibrary.org.

CITY TREE LIGHTINGWed Nov 23 from 6-7 Get your holiday spirit on in downtown Aurora! Submit homemade ornaments for the tree. North Island Center, 8 E. Galena Blvd. www.aurora-il.org.GINGERBREAD FIREHOUSE CONTEST AND EXHIBITSat Nov 26 from 1 to 4 thru Dec 22 Grab the sugar, grab the spice and stop, drop and roll for the annual fire-themed gingerbread building contest. Aurora Regional Fire Museum, 53 N. Broadway Ave. www.auroraregionalfiremuseum.org.

DECEMBER100 YEARS OF GIRL SCOUTINGOpens Fri Dec 9 from 5 to 8 Girl Scout memorabilia and local stories; curated by Aurora Historical Society and the Girl Scouts of Northern Illinois. Open Wed-Fri, noon to 4. Free. David L. Pierce Art & History Center, 20 E.Downer. (630) 906-0650. www.aurorahistory.net.COPLEY CINEMATHEQUETue Dec 13 at 6:30 Local film society City Cineastes with the support of Paramount Theatre screens With a Friend Like Harry, a 2000 French thriller ala Hitchcock. $5/members, $8/non-members. Copley Theatre in North Island Center, 8 E. Galena Blvd. [email protected] GARDEN OF YOUTHOpens Fri Dec 16 from 5 to 7 An annual exhibit of works of art by Aurora students in grades K through 12. Open Wed-Sun, noon to 4. Free. Aurora Public Art Commission at the David L. Pierce Art & History Center, 20 E. Downer Place. 630-906-0654. www.aurora-il.org.

LIMITED RUNS & SHOWINGS“THREE ARTISTS ENTWINED” ART EXHIBITThru Nov 18 Anton Witek, Priscilla Humay and Helen Balun Humay on display. Free. Aurora Public Art Commission at the David L. Pierce Center, 20 E. Downer Place. (630) 256-3340. aurora-il.org

CREATING MEXICAN AMERICAN IDENTITIES: MULTIPLE VOICES, SHARED DREAMSThru Oct 14 The Aurora Historical Society hosts the exhibit courtesy of the West Chicago City Museum with many Aurora images and stories. Open Wed-Fri, noon to 4. Free. David L. Pierce Art & History Center, 20 E.Downer. (630) 906-0650. www.aurorahistory.net.ART AT CITY HALL: THE COMMON THREADThru Feb 3 2-D works from a group of suburban artists hung on all five floors of city hall. Open Mon-Fri, 8-5. City Hall, 44 E. Downer Place. www.aurora-il.orgRIVERFRONT PLAYHOUSEOct 21 to Dec 3 Fat Bill’s Roadside Café, Dec 9 to 18 A Christmas Carol. Call for times. Riverfront Playhouse, 11-13 Water Street Mall, is a 90 seat, not-for-profit theatre located next to City Hall on the Water Street Mall in downtown Aurora. $12-$15. 630-897-9496. www.riverfrontplayhouse.com. Reservations recommended for most shows.

MONTHLY EVENTSDAAM!First Thursday evenings at 7:30 Join artists of all kinds at informal Downtown Aurora Arts Mixers. Chef Amaury at 33 West, 33 W. New York St. Everyone is welcome. Find Downtown Auroran on Facebook for more information.

MUSEUM ROLL CALLDavid L. Pierce Art & History Center20 E. Downer PlaceAurora Regional Fire Museum53 N. Broadway AvenueSciTech Hands On Museum18 W. Benton StreetGrand Army of the Republic Museum23 E. Downer Place

Triceratops by Ashley Bonner, downtown Aurora


More than a cup of coffee...a place for minds to meet!Homemade soups,

sandwiches and baked goods

18 W. Downer Pl.between River

and Stolp

630.897.3343 • theriversedgecafe.com

River’s Edge Café

Live Right. Eat Well.in Downtown AurorA

33 w. new York St.630.375.0426

www.chefamaury.com

Chef AmAurY At 33 weSt

Steering

Committee

Co-ChairSKatie Arko

Margie IsaacsonBeth Sullivan

Hilary BrennanJoanne Diederich

Lynn FloresMary Ann GeeKathi Limoges

Deborah PawlakTherese ReynoldsAndrea Siracusano

Marilyn WeisnerExecutive Director

Celebrating 30 years of service . . . 1981-2011Aurora Area Interfaith Food Pantry is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to assisting individuals and families in need in a humanitarian and compassionate

manner with emergency food and nutritional assistance.

THANKSGIVING Saturday, november 5, 2011

5:30 - 11:00 PmPiPerS banquetS, aurora

$75 Per PerSon; $750 for table of ten

To purchase Tickets, Sponsorships, and Program Book Ads, or to download and print

Event Sponsorship, Auction Item Donation, and Program Book Ad Order forms, visit our website at: www.aurorafoodpantry.org

or call the Pantry at 630-897-2127

This ad is compliments of . . .Downtown Auroran Magazine, Orchard Community Church, Samantha

Oulavong, Jo Fredell Higgins, and Rebecca Walker and family.

Thank you from the Pantry!

3OTH ANNIVERSARY

On the corner of New York and Lake Street in downtown Aurora

$5.99 hot

and fresh

large pizza!

Try our

Italian Ice!

River BreezeLEASE THE BEST

IN DOWNTOWN AURORAResidential | Commercial

Dan Hites | (630) 624-7369

[email protected]

#45By Gideon Haynes IV, Aurora

When Fred Bell and Bob Buckley opened their bicycle and hobby shop in the early 1960s, they created a hangout in downtown Aurora – a place to meet people and have a good time.

The old Benbro HotelIn the fall of 1962, friends and co-workers Fred Bell and Bob Buckley opened up a bicycle and hobby shop in downtown Aurora. Their multifaceted shop, called Aurora Cycle and Hobby Shop, was located at 86 S. Broadway in the old Benbro Hotel building. Bell and Buckley sold and repaired Schwinn bicycles along with model airplanes and other hobby craft kits and models. The big attraction of the shop in the ‘60s became the small-motorized slot cars; small models of actual automobiles regulated by hand controllers, which ran on a car track in the basement.When they first started out, they primarily worked as locksmiths and made keys for many of the private clubs in town, like the Italian American Club. They sold about 30 bicycles their first year in business, which later increased to about 500 during what Bell calls the “bike boom” of the early 1970s. The shop was located across the street from a savings and loan and a Chinese restaurant, Bell remembers. He said that hotel rooms were up above and various other stores were adjacent. “Everything was downtown. Every building was full. Everything was booming,” Bell recalls.The four-story Benbro Hotel building, once the Milner Hotel, at 66-74 S. Broadway was demolished in 2000 after more than a decade of vacancy.

Fred and BobFred Bell and Bob Buckley clicked as partners, said Bell, who is now 70. The two started the business in their early twenties while working at the streets department for the city of Aurora. They would snowplow in the wintertime and clean up tree branches in the summer, Bell said.“Bob is really a good fellow,” said Bell of Buckley, who lives in Big Rock. Bell returned to his home state of South Carolina after they shuttered the shop in 1975. Bell said he met Buckley while working together for the city. “We hit it off,” he said. “We were young and had a lot of energy and interests.”


Aurora Cycle and Hobby Shop 68 S. Broadway Ave. (1962 – 1975)

A real good atmosphereAurora Cycle and Hobby quickly became a home away from home for many locals. With its 55-foot-long drag strip for slot cars, they would hold races on Friday nights. They held the National races there in the mid-1960s. “We had people come from all over,” said Bell, who remembers

having between 50 and 60 race entrants on a typical Friday night to race the 1:24 scale slot cars. Local guys with their flattop haircuts, wearing t-shirts and blue jeans with white socks and loafers would hang out at the shop drinking Pepsi and seeing what new models they could build. It could get pretty competitive, Bell said. A lot of talented machinists spent time at the shop. John Richmond was one of them. “It was astounding the kinds of cars they can build,” Bell said.A lot of dads brought their sons down and many got involved with the racing. Some kids would stop by after school and stay until the shop closed at 9 p.m. “At the time, if you didn’t know about us, there was something wrong with you,” said Bell, who originally moved to Aurora in order to attend Aurora College (now Aurora University), but started working instead. “It was a once in a lifetime deal. We had a collection of the best people you could meet,” said Bell, whose wife, Judy, and young son, Jeff, were also part of the gang. “It was just a hangout place. It was a real good atmosphere,” he said.

Bell and his wife now run an auto parts store in Walterboro, S.C. “It was just good old fun. When you think about it, you just have to smile,” Bell said.

Fred Bell works behind the counter on a busy day at Aurora Cycle and Hobby at 68 S. Broadway in downtown Aurora.

Editor’s note: In the next several issues of Downtown Auroran Maga-zine, Historical Notes will be dedicated to remembering notable people and businesses that once spent time in downtown Aurora.

Fred Bell, in winter coat, stands in the middle of the gang outside of Aurora Cycle and Hobby. His son, Jeff, is on his left in a black coat. John Richmond stand three left from Bell in the back.

Fred Bell, second from left, poses with a group at Aurora Cycle and Hobby.

Historical Notes

• Advocacy for the downtown community• Street planters, hanging baskets, trees

and landscaping• Sponsorship of events, including

Blues on the Fox, Downtown Alive!, Aurora ArtWalk and many others

• Holiday street decorations

• Lobbying to remove downtown parking meters

• Homeless assistance• Award-winning cell phone tour detailing

the history of our neighborhood• Sharing all of the exciting news about

our downtown

If you’re reading this magazine, you know as well as we do that a lot is happening in downtown Aurora. Founded in 1975, Aurora Downtown is an association of approximately 250 property owners within the neighborhood. We are a Special Service Area governed by a 24-member board of directors. Aurora Downtown contributes to the success of the neighborhood through numerous initiatives such as:

Contact Bob Reuland for more information at (630) 336-1310 or [email protected]. Check us out online at www.auroradowntown.org.

Come join us! Meetings are open to the public and take place the third Thursday of every month at 8 a.m. in the fifth floor conference room of City Hall.

Documents

Downtown Auroran fall/winter 2011