Residents can take a closer look at the machinery Flossmoor Public Works employees use to get their work done during the village’s first ever Touch A Truck event Saturday. The free event features demonstrations of public works equipment and vehicles, such as a garbage truck, backhoe, snowplow, bucket truck and stump grinder.
Residents can take a closer look at the machinery Flossmoor Public Works employees use to get their work done during the village’s first ever Touch A Truck event Saturday.
The free event is from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Flossmoor Public Works Service Center, 1700 Central Park Ave., and features demonstrations of public works equipment and vehicles, such as a garbage truck, backhoe, snowplow, bucket truck and stump grinder.
Members of the village police and fire departments will also be on hand to show off a fire truck and police cruiser for guests to explore.
The Public Works Service Center will be open for tours, and guests can enjoy free snow cones, popcorn, inflatables, games and giveaways.
Assistant Public Works Director Dan Milovanovic said the idea to host the event came from employees within the department who wanted to educate residents on what they do around the village.
“You know what the police department does. You know what the fire department does. If you look into our village, you can assume what the finance (department) does, but public works is something where outside people aren’t quite sure,” he said.
“They know it’s got something to do with construction, something to do with roads, but I would say the average resident isn’t 100 percent sure on all the things we take care of.”
Milovanovic said one of the planned demonstrations would show an example of what a broken water main pipe looks like and the equipment used to repair it.
“When (people) see all of the things that we do, I think they’re pretty blown away by it,” he said. “It’s a big ol’ list, and we’re excited to put it out there and have some fun with the people while we try to inform them as well.”
The department will also take the opportunity to explain things they are commonly asked about, such as what different colored flags in the ground mean and why they are placed there for excavation work.
In the event of rain, the demonstrations will be moved inside. A quiet area will be available for children with sensory issues or those who might need a break from the activities.
Goodie bags will be distributed that include hearing protection for those sensitive to loud noises, he added.
If all goes well, they are hoping to make the event an annual tradition, he said.
“There’s always new equipment coming in, old equipment leaving; we’ve got things on rotation,” Milovanovic said. “So there’s definitely an opportunity there to keep people posted on what we’re up to and what we’ve got in our shops.”