Orland Park, Illinois

Orland Park is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States, with a small portion in Will County. It is a suburb of Chicago. Per the 2020 census, Orland Park had a population of 58,703. Located 25 miles (40 km) southwest of Chicago, Orland Park is close to several interstate highways, with the I-80 east-west coast connector as its southern border. The Metra commuter rail system links it to the Chicago Loop and from there to O'Hare and Midway airports.

History
Orland Park was first settled as "Orland" in 1834, with Henry Taylor being the area's first settler. Other original settlers include Ichabod and William Myrick, Jacob and Bernard Hostert, Thomas Cooper and John Humphrey. The Hostert brothers built log cabins for their families, which became some of the first homes built in Orland Park. In 1879 the railroad was extended to Orland Park, leading way for the towns first train station, "Sedgwick Station." This development took the town from an agrarian society to a commercial hub that provides shipping services to local farms. The village was incorporated on May 31, 1892.

Orland Park’s growth since the mid-20th century has been largely driven by waves of white flight from Chicago’s South Side and inner-ring suburbs. Orland Square Mall opened in 1976.

Geography
According to the 2021 census gazetteer files, Orland Park has a total area of 22.31 sqmi, of which 22.03 sqmi (or 98.72%) is land and 0.29 sqmi (or 1.28%) is water.

The main bodies of water in Orland are two lakes: Lake Sedgewick and McGinnis Slough.

Communities bordering Orland Park include Homer Glen (in Will County) to the west, Orland Hills and Mokena (also in Will County but Orland Hills is in Cook County) to the south, Tinley Park to the southeast, Oak Forest to the east, and Palos Park and Palos Heights to the north.

Demographics
As of the 2020 census there were 58,703 people, 22,487 households, and 15,952 families residing in the village. The population density was 2,630.89 PD/sqmi. There were 23,746 housing units at an average density of 1,064.22 /sqmi. The racial makeup of the village was 82.54% White, 3.42% African American, 0.21% Native American, 5.36% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 2.47% from other races, and 5.98% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race were 7.94% of the population.

There were 22,487 households, out of which 28.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.33% were married couples living together, 7.96% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.06% were non-families. 26.62% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.34% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.15 and the average family size was 2.57.

The village's age distribution consisted of 20.9% under the age of 18, 6.3% from 18 to 24, 21.2% from 25 to 44, 28.8% from 45 to 64, and 23.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 46.1 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.9 males.

The median income for a household in the village was $84,676, and the median income for a family was $104,343. Males had a median income of $60,998 versus $41,224 for females. The per capita income for the village was $42,900. About 4.5% of families and 4.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.8% of those under age 18 and 7.2% of those age 65 or over.

Orland Park has the 5th-highest Palestinian-American population in the United States.

Economy
Orland Park's businesses and jobs include finance, retail, services and healthcare. Shopping complexes include Orland Park Crossing and Orland Square Mall.

, Orland Park planned to develop a new district, the Orland Park Downtown, previously called the Main Street Triangle, as well as the I-80 Business District.

Top employers
According to Orland Park's 2012 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, the city's top employers were:

Parks and recreation
Orland Park has a large Recreation and Parks Department. The village has over 60 parks, with plenty of options for recreation, from sports complexes to nature trails.

The Centennial Park Aquatic Center is a 192 acre park with a public pool. With six water slides, two large pools, and a children's play area, it is one of the largest public pools in the area. Since its debut in 1992, the Aquatic center has gone through multiple renovations. There have been several add-ons, including two new water slides, and two outdoor sand volleyball courts.

Just south of the Centennial Park Aquatic Center is the 95 acre Lake Segdewick. It has hiking paths, nature trails, boardwalks, boat ramps, and pedal boats and kayaks for rent. Fishing is allowed.

The Winter Wonderland Ice Rink is also in Centennial Park. Open from November to March, this outdoor ice rink is free of charge. There is a small warming hut where you can rent ice skates.

The Sportsplex, on 159th Street, is Orland Park's largest indoor recreational facility. It has three full-sized basketball courts, an indoor soccer field, and a full weight room with free weights, plenty of cardio options, and a ¼-mile indoor track. Personal trainers are available, along with fitness classes, including Pilates, yoga, cycling, and Zumba. The Sportsplex also has a 35 ft rock wall with six different routes for all skill levels.

The Recreation and Parks Department also helps organize many public events. Centennial Park hosts charity events and seasonal events, including the Orland Park Turkey Trot, a 5K run held on Thanksgiving morning at the John Humphrey Complex. These events are heavily advertised and supported by students of Carl Sandburg High School.

Orland Park is the touted "World's Golf Center". According to village lore, someone counted 1,089 golf holes within a 15-mile radius of the village, said Jodi Marneris, Orland Park's spokeswoman in 1996. The "World's Golf Center" concept was then proudly plastered on the village flag and painted on the town's seven water towers.

Government
Orland Park is contained in the Illinois's 6th congressional district, which is currently represented by Sean Casten (D).

The village maintained an Aa2 bond rating from Moody's and an AA+ rating from Standard and Poor's. These are among the best bond ratings in the Chicago suburbs.(Page 12)

The elected Board of Trustees makes local legislation for the village. The elected officials include the village president (who also serves as mayor), village clerk, and six village trustees, each of whom is elected at large to a four-year term.

Politics
Both main US political parties are competitive on the local level with Keith Pekau defeating longtime mayor Dan Mclaughlin (D) in 2017. In recent years, the GOP has been able to flip the village board and other elected positions in the village.

Covid-19 pandemic
Orland Park and its mayor, Keith Pekau, were defiant against state and county mandates during the COVID-19 pandemic. When Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker ordered a lockdown of businesses and social activities, Pekau led the village in a lawsuit against Pritzker in federal court. Although the court ruled in favor of Pritzker's orders, leading Pekau to drop the lawsuit, Pekau and his fellow village trustees remained opposed to mask mandates. When Cook County passed a mandate requiring restaurants, gyms, and other businesses to verify the vaccination status of customers, the board passed a resolution opposing the mandate and refusing to enforce it in Orland Park.

Education
Orland Park is served by four grammar school districts, Orland School District #135 (7 primary schools, 3 middle schools: Century Junior High, Jerling Junior High, and Orland Junior High), Community Consolidated School District #146 (4 primary schools, and Central Middle School), Palos School District #118 (2 primary schools, and Palos South Middle School), and Kirby School District #140 (5 primary schools, 2 middle schools: Prairie View Middle School, and Virgil I Grissom Middle School). A majority of Orland Park is within Orland School District #135.

St. Michael School is in Orland Park. A number of other parochial schools in the region provide bus service for Orland Park students.

Orland Park's major high schools are Carl Sandburg High School, Victor J. Andrew High School and Amos Alonzo Stagg High School. CSHS has a little less than 4,000 students. Sandburg has won several Regional, Sectional, and State sports titles over the years. Sandburg's ACT composite score for 2007-08 was 22.7 with SAT scores averaging 635, 644 and 630 for Critical Reading, Math and Writing, respectively.

A number of higher education facilities are in the village. St. Xavier University operates a satellite campus in Orland Park, as did the ITT Technical Institute until its closing in September 2016. Robert Morris University (Illinois) has both an Orland Park campus as well as a second facility in the village, the culinary arts school. Community college education is offered at Moraine Valley Community College, in nearby Palos Hills.

Sixty percent of Orland Park households have someone with at least a bachelor's degree, with a significant number of residents having completed postgraduate work.

Media
Local cable television channel Orland Park TV can be viewed on AT&T UVerse Channel 99 and Comcast Channel 4.

Transportation
Orland Park has three stops on Metra's SouthWest Service, which provides weekday and weekend rail service between Manhattan, Illinois, and Chicago Union Station): 143rd Street, 153rd Street, and 179th Street.

Pace provides bus service on multiple routes connecting Orland Park to destinations throughout the Southland.

Major highway transportation corridors are:


 * southern border of Orland Park
 * major north–south thoroughfare
 * near the eastern border of Orland Park
 * major east-west thoroughfare
 * another major north-south thoroughfare
 * (167th Street) located entirely in Orland Park.

Notable people

 * Alex Broadhurst, professional hockey player
 * John Cangelosi, outfielder for seven Major League Baseball teams
 * David Gust, right-wing for the Rockford Icehogs
 * Connor Carrick, defenseman for the New Jersey Devils
 * Pat Fitzgerald, former head football coach for Northwestern University
 * Buddy Guy, blues singer and guitarist
 * Dan Hampton, defensive end and tackle for Chicago Bears; Super Bowl champion (XX)
 * Justin Hartley, actor (Passions, Smallville, This Is Us)
 * Sarah Kustok, sports reporter for the YES Network and Fox Sports
 * Steve Martinson, right-wing for the Detroit Red Wings, Montreal Canadiens, and Minnesota North Stars
 * Tim McCarthy, Orland Park police chief; Secret Service agent, took bullet meant for Ronald Reagan during assassination attempt on March 30, 1981
 * Michael McDermott (musician), folk/rock singer/songwriter, guitarist
 * Mary Therese McDonnell, defender for the Republic of Ireland women's national football team
 * Shannon McDonnell, midfielder for the Republic of Ireland women's national football team
 * Hemant Mehta, atheist and author (I Sold My Soul on eBay) 
 * Bill Rancic, winner of The Apprentice season 1
 * Ken Rutkowski, syndicated radio talk show host, Business Rockstars
 * Michael Schofield, offensive tackle for Los Angeles Chargers and Super Bowl champion Denver Broncos
 * Robin Tunney, actress (The Mentalist, The Craft, Vertical Limit, Prison Break)
 * Lukas Verzbicas, long-distance runner and triathlete; first runner to win both FLCC and NXN in the same year; alum of Carl Sandburg High School (2011)