Politics & Government

Open for Business

Most government offices are closed for the Martin Luther King holiday, but Village Hall isn't among them.

It's been a almost 30 years since the Martin Luther King holiday was signed into law by President Ronald Reagan, and 25 since it was first observed on the Jan. 20, 1986.

It took considerably longer for all 50 states to get on board, with South Carolina becoming the last to recognize the holiday in 2000.  

While MLK day is now entrenched as a holiday in Illinois, with federal and state offices closed, as well as schools and some businesses, the Village of Downers Grove has never closed on the third Monday of January. And even the use of mayoral proclamations to call attention to the man behind the holiday has fallen off in recent years.

Find out what's happening in Downers Grovewith free, real-time updates from Patch.

A check of the village website reveals that village employees get relatively few paid holidays, which may warm taxpayers' hearts. The holiday schedule for 2011 is as follows:

Memorial Day: Monday, May 30
Independence Day: Monday, July 4
Labor Day: Monday, Sept. 5
Thanksgiving: Thursday, Nov. 24 and Friday, Nov. 25
Christmas: Friday, Dec. 23 and Monday, Dec. 26

Find out what's happening in Downers Grovewith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Even these holidays aren't universally observed by village staff, said Doug Kozlowski, communications director. Public Works crews are called out for heavy snows during major holidays and "the public safety operation never closes."


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here