Southtown Star from Tinley Park, Illinois • 41

The Star Thursday, April 26, 2007 All End of the line Evergreen Parks Snackville Junction to close after 60 years Mike Malone and his ton Mickey watch a toy Santa Fe train travel past them at Snackville Junction In Evergreen Park. File photo A West JHbS Ave, has held an annual free Thanksgiving Day dinner, and students with good report cards could count on a special treat The eatery, with its motto of Chow on the Choo Choo, has mesmerized children of all ages for decades. The Silhans put the restaurant and building up for sale about a year ago. There has been a lot of interest but no buyer yet He said he had some problems with an employee who stole money from him, and he has been devoting more time to the Musichorale in Oak Lawn, where he is director. My heart wasnt in it Silhan said.

But the decision to dose was easier for him after two of his cooks found new jobs on a cruise ship. They were supposed to leave in May, Silhan said. They left yesterday. This last week is kind of piecemeal. I didnt want to hire new people." Silhan said he hopes whoever buys the restaurant will keep it as By Stephanie Gehring, special to'The Star The train will leave Snackville 'Junction for the last time this 'weekend The popular Evergreen Park restaurant known for delivering its hamburgers, hot dogs and fries to customers by train will close Sunday after a decade in the village and a total of 60 years in business.

Owners Jeff Silhan, a retired Chicago firefighter and paramedic, and his wife, Linda Silhan, a kindergarten teacher, have owned the business for 21 years. As the news spreads that the restaurant will close, Jeff Silhan said he has been surprised by customers reactions. Its been melancholy, he said. They say, I came here as a kid and I brought my kids. I kind of feel for them.

There arent a lot of places like Snackville around. Its mostly fast food and in a hurry. You cant be in a hurry with that train. The restaurant, 9144 S. Kedzie to go there as kids, and when they moved to Evergreen, that was awesome.

Now Im able to share the experience with my little cousins its awesome. Whatever happens, the restaurant will live on in literature. Author Joe Meno, a native of Evergreen Park and a Brother Rice High School graduate, names the restaurant in his novel Hairstyles of the Damned. Silhan said he will miss the kids the most. No matter what kind of mood youre in when you come to Snackville Junction and that trains comes out, you have to smile, he said.

You smile at the kids or the train itself. Ill miss the kids. While he expects to be in the kitchen on Sunday, Silhan said he also will be shaking hands and thanking all of the customers from noon to 5 p.m. There is a light at the end of the tunnel, Silhan said. Next Monday at this time I hope to be reading a book.

Sun-Times News Group and maybe I should buy it, he said. At the time, I thought it would be a great little side job. Twenty-one years later, I still have it Kelly Kuzlik, of Evergreen Park, grew up going to the eatery when it was located on Western Avenue in Chicagos Beverly community. The 23-year-old woman now makes an annual pilgrimage to her old haunt when her relatives from England come to visit. Its a great place.

The kids love it, Kuzlik said. It was so exciting for me and my brothers Snackville Junction. I cant guarantee anything, he said. One guy wanted to turn it into a sports bar, so I dont know. Evergreen Park Mayor James Sexton, who visits the eatery with his grandson, said the Silhans will be missed.

He loves it, Sexton said of his granc bythi a Choo Choo burger. The Silhans bought the restaurant in 1986 and moved it to Evergreen Park in 1996. I thought it was kind of cute, Are Section 8 fans too rowdy? CLINICAL EXCELLENCE fefflflOjy Mis Mrns i I I Jl Jl I I The concept of security personnel searching supposed members of a group, because of a perceived threat, walks a dangerous line. He added, If this is a sound decision, then why dont airlines search the ethnic group who has committed more hijackings than other ethnic groups? Fire spokesman Daniel Jankowski confirmed there was a meeting a couple of hours before the game and it was decided to use measures weve used successfully in the past Beer bottles smuggled past security and dangerous, toxic spent flares had been found in Section 8s area after previous games, he said, adding, The main tiling is that Toyota Park is a safe place for people to come and enjoy themselves. Section 8 chairman Ben Burton said Landek was successful in halting the searches before most fans entered the stadium.

The mayor joined Section 8 fans behind the goal at the north end of the stadium during the first half of Saturdays 2-1 victory, Burton said, adding He said he had a good time. We know it is normal to be searched when entering any big event a concert, ball game or whatever but the issue was Why are we being searched and nobody else is? Landeks support was key in luring the Fire to Bridgeview, but in its first season at Toyota Park, the team barely managed to attract an average attendance of 14,000 the figure Landek said the village was banking on to make payments on the $149 million stadium. Section 8 fans have supported the Fire and this stadium project from the beginning, Landek noted in his e-mail. Landek did not return calls seeking comment Monday. By Kim Janssen, special to The Star A crackdown on rowdy soccer fans was halted at the last moment Saturday after Bridgeview Mayor Steve Landek compared attempts to single out hard-core Chicago Fire supporters for security checks with the profiling of Arabs at airports.

Toyota Park security bosses unhappy that smoke bombs and flares were thrown at the Fires last home game last season and home opener this season planned to frisk 500 members of the Fires Section 8 supporters association before the game Saturday against the Kansas City Wizards. But Section 8 members, who model their vociferous displays of support on European and South American soccer fans, were furious Fire bosses wanted to force them to enter through a single turnstile and submit to searches while thousands of other supporters entered the stadium relatively unimpeded. They also argue Major League Soccer has sent mixed messages about pyrotechnics by using images of flares in advertisements. The fractious relationship between Section" 8 and stadium security last year saw a fan charged with assaulting a security guard and the guard dismissed after he allegedly took revenge in a stadium lockup. Fearing a further deterioration, Landek intervened Saturday morning, writing to Toyota Park chiefs Mike Madison and Jay Cooper to warn them fans civil rights would be harmed by the search plan.

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