Big changes are coming to the courtyard behind the Brookfield Shops retail incubator at Progress Park off Eight Corners.
With the help of the Cook County Creative Placemaking Grant, awarded by the county and the Local Initiatives Support Corporation, Brookfield is set to upgrade the courtyard with art created by the community, an elevated stage complete with equipment for theatrical performances and improved infrastructure to increase accessibility, said Libby Popovic, the village’s community development director.
“This was a perfect spot that we thought to be able to bring the creative arts and performing arts into the courtyard with the community and with the vendors that are there,” she told the Landmark. “We want to redo the courtyard and make it accessible to do outdoor theater.”
Some of the improvements include the addition of pavers in the courtyard and an overhead canopy to block out the sun and new work on the front of the vendors’ sheds to increase protection against the elements.
Popovic said the village partnered with the Brookfield Theater Corp, which submitted the request for the grant and became one of 14 recipients, as well as the Chamber of Commerce for the upgrades. She said Brookfield is ready to make progress on the project as soon as Sept. 1, when the grant funding goes into effect.
She named John Dumas, who last year proposed turning the village-owned Theater Building on Grand Boulevard into a community theater, as the leader of the entity. Dumas, who is also the executive administrator for the Share Food Share Love food pantry, was not available for comment by the time of publication. Brookfield officials have since made plans to demolish the Theater Building to make way for a new, private development.
“[Dumas has] been very interested in bringing more performing arts and theater to Brookfield,” Popovic said.
When the opportunity for the grant appeared in April, Brookfield went to him.
“We were trying to think creatively: How can we make this underutilized space work for not just the retail shops but also bring some creativity and art into Eight Corners?” she said. “Eight Corners is really Brookfield’s uptown, where there are small businesses. We’re right next to the Compassion [Factory Art] Gallery, and it’s a little bit of an art community there.”
Through Sept. 5, Brookfield is accepting pitches from local artists for original artwork to be featured on a 3-foot-by-4-foot or 4-foot-by-8-foot panel as part of the upgrades to the courtyard. Applicants are asked to submit concept art or a rendering to show what they envision for space, and those whose pitches are chosen will receive a stipend and materials for their pieces.
“We’re encouraging everyone [to apply]. Anyone who’s part of an art collective who individually wanted to try their hand at painting or sculptures. Anyone who has any artistic ability and ideas,” Popovic said. “The goal is really to bring more art and performing arts, specifically, into the courtyard.”
While the new stage will primarily be for theater shows, Popovic said the village will make use of it for other kinds of entertainment, like concerts. To test out the stage, she said two of the vendors, New Book Joy and The Shop Salon & Style House, came together to plan a fashion show for Sept. 20.
“We’re going to do a little test run, closing off the street and seeing how that goes. The whole point is having the community involved and being able to use the space, and that’s what I’m excited about,” Popovic said. “The goal of the whole space is bringing retail together with performing arts and small businesses. We want all the businesses to be able to profit from more foot traffic there.”
