Beautiful up to date facility with so many amenities! Pool, gym, community spaces galore. There's a…read morebig early childhood program and the kids were absolutely adorable. Constantly up-to-date with world events - walls are plastered with meaningful, interactive messages that engages

HORRIBLE place! Very dirty and security is aweful! Rich is not nice at all. Terrible facility.read more

Mount Prospect PL continues to knock it out of the park with their programming…read more They have some signature programs, I'd call them, that take place throughout the year apparently, in cooperation with the MPPL Foundation. The first of these that we attended was the Teddy Bear Walk. Apparently this is a program that has been happening for something like 60 years and it's become a family tradition--grandparents are now coming with their children and grandchildren to the event. We were running late this day so we missed the "walk" part of the program--not sure what that entails. But the children are encouraged to bring a teddy bear and there are some great activities: times tickets to visit Santa; craft stations in the children's section; rotating story times; costumes characters outside, in this case a bear and the MPPL mascot, a duck; and a children's music drop-in session. I was so pleased with the event b it I didn't realize it was just one of many. Most recently we went to the Lunar New Year celebration they host. Again, many fun activities, with the craft tables again (making a sparkle dragon and a Lunar New Year sign), a dragon set-up in one of the program rooms for photos, a scavenger hunt, and the pièce de résistance: the lion dancers. This was a timed entry ticket, and we were amongst the first people to arrive at the library for the LNY celebration (score one for putting the start time for this in my calendar 15 minutes earlier than it actually began) so we were able to get in. Whilst waiting for the performance to begin, they gave us little tissue paper rings and said to wait until we were told to use them. To prepare the crowd--particularly the large number of small children--the librarian led us in a a song or two, including a fun call-and-response, and explained a bit about the pillars of Lunar New Year. And at the end, just before the dancers began, she told us to rip open our tissue paper rings to let out the "fireworks" inside. I feel like I must be a child myself because I was gleeful at that myself, though the room did erupt in oooh's and aahhh's so I wasn't alone there. (And you can guarantee I'm going to find and order some of those paper confetti pouches.) The company they hired to do this performance was phenomenal. I have never seen the lion dance in person and I was enchanted. My daughter was fascinated too, and I was actually worried she might be frightened. The performers did most of their dance up near the front but did wander through the audience for a bit, during which a lion stopped in front of my daughter, who promptly plucked an orange from its open mouth. I later learned that means good fortune in the year ahead. I left this event in such high spirits, having had so much fun, I couldn't stop talking about it to friends and took tons of photos. Their events just keep getting better. Never change, Mount Prospect Public Library!

Overall a nice library with kind and helpful staff. Be mindful of where the entrance is before you…read morestart walking (if you drove for the first time like me). I was in the area and needed access to Microsoft office suite and a printer- so incredibly thankful for our public libraries and free resources! At first I was told I could access the computer using my park ridge library card and PIN but I couldn't recall my PIN for the life of me. They provided me with a guest pass that allowed me to use the computer for 1h45m. That's 45 more min than PR guest which is a plus. Color copies cost .25 and B&W .10. I got what I needed and was in and out in less than an hour. Only one less star because as others have stated, it's a really loud library. Babies crying, people whispering, slamming keyboards lol, etc. But it seems the staff works hard to manage it between their work and borderline ridiculous calls- they do it all! Again, very grateful and only first world problem complaints.

Uptown is a neighborhood in Chicago. My husband and I have been there many times. On a recent trip…read morethere we went to Stan's Donuts Uptown for donuts and coffee. Stan's Donuts Uptown was a great place to go. We parked two blocks away and walked to the restaurant. Parking was easy as paying for parking. I felt safe the whole time I was there.

I live in the section of Ravenswood where one asks: Is it Lincoln Square? Is this Uptown? Are we in…read moreEdgewater? We're the little section of Ravenswood that's Uptown due to a location just east of the UPN Metra. Uptown has its challenges, but like many places in Chicago there's more than meets the eye. Edgewater, which is the newest of Chicago's 77 community areas, was created out of Uptown in 1980 so was once much larger. Uptown was once even more an entertainment hub than it is today. Perhaps one of the coolest bits of history related to Uptown is that it was the home of Essanay Studios, which was owned by Charlie Chaplin during his brief stint in Chicago in the early 20th century. Today there's the Aragon and Riviera as the major entertainment attractions, with the Green Mill down the block from both. The Uptown Theatre, a Balaban and Katz masterpiece, has been sitting quietly for decades until it can finally undergo repair (I truly hope this happens). Uptown Art Week is also a nice celebration of the neighborhood and it's great fun to walk along Broadway to watch folks working en plein air. There's also the Clifton Avenue Street Art Gallery with some interesting and beautiful works celebrating the area, or whatever the artist was moved to create. Downstate Donuts is in Uptown along Wilson and you need to stop here. If you've heard of them, you'll know that they are the place that makes donuts out of potatoes. I'm not exactly sure how it works but whatever it is, it's deeeeeelicious. They're super creative with their flavors; I have to say that the miso honey butter is my favorite flavor. Terrace (once called Hearthstone & Terrace) is a cool shop a few blocks west on Wilson. They specialize in home furnishings and also have a large collection of plants (houseplants and otherwise). The owners are cool as are the other employees. I've bought some lovely plants here and some great photo frames. Uptown is pretty cool and I thought that even before I realized we actually live within the boundaries of the neighborhood. You'll find something to do or somewhere to shop if you visit.

This library is not too far from home and has been a great place for me to work when I just need a…read moredifferent environment to be in every now and then. With a huge field outside and a playground a lot of the kids play out there in the summer. But when you walk inside there are 2 floors with large windows making it bright with natural lights, plenty of seating and computers for folks to use if they need. The staff is incredibly kind and willing to help if you need it. They also have tons of activities for families.

For now I will be rating this library 3 stars because of the noise level on the second floor. I…read morehave been going to this library at least 2x a week on the weekends since August and had interesting experiences. My husband loves the collection of DVDs and books this location offers. It also seems like a great library for children. The playground next door looks amazing and there seems to be many activities offered. It's nice that there's also ample parking. I will be sharing about two specific experiences in this review. First, I had a situation where I was sitting at one of the booths and was approached by a stranger. At first I was trying to be friendly and allowed them to say hello. After they passed by they suddenly sat next to me and touched my feet. I was so upset and alarmed that I immediately got upset, yelled at him and then went to the librarian to report what happened. I appreciated her help and soon after on the following weeks I noticed there was an employee that patrolled around the second floor. Now today, I was at the library between 12pm-2pm. There was a man near the copiers who was on his phone with the speakerphone on. Even with my noise canceling headphones on I wasn't able to hear my lectures online with his phone blasting and him talking. After 30min of continuous phone usage, I went to the librarian and asked her if she could ask the man to take his phone off speakerphone and take his call outside. When I meant outside I meant just not the second floor where right behind him there were many people studying. Couldn't he be asked to go downstairs at least? I was told that this is a "social library" and that if I needed quiet that I should move to the back corner of the library or get a room. Or if I need earplugs they can provide some. I'm sorry but when did it become acceptable to have long phone conversations on speakerphone inside a library? And what's a social library? I expect the first floor to be louder because there's many children activities that go on throughout the day. But why can't the second floor be a space respected for people who want to get some quiet reading or studying done? What if I don't want to go to the back of the library where it's not as brightly lit or don't want to be secluded in a room? The noise on the second floor has been complained about from previous reviewers and I wish this library can really hear us out. It's understandable that certain parts of the floor have different voice levels but if someone's behavior is being bothersome to others around then please do something about it. I don't feel like it was appropriate to tell me to move or wear earplugs when I specifically went to the study section at the booths. I go to the library making sure my actions don't bother others. I walk, use a whisper level if I am with someone else, use headphones, respect the space I'm in and I take my phone calls downstairs by the front entrance or outside. Why can't I expect the same from others as well especially in a library environment?

The community center is attached to Middlefork Elementary school, the gym is a really good size…read more Bathrooms were spectacular, modern, clean and smelled good :). Plenty of parking available in the lot. There is a picnic shelter, baseball diamonds, playground. Came here for the Boo-Bash! It was a good time interacting with the community. There were many carnival games suited for young children. The staff and volunteers (mainly Jr Higher's from Sunset Ridge) were all wonderful and welcoming. well done event - crafts, balloon artist, cookie decorating, indoor games (really good since it was quite cold), candy prizes, and a great PG rated play-list.

The New Building is a major upgrade from the old one. I love using the library and the running…read moretrack in the building, and the field is the best place to play soccer with the kids! The community events they host are a lot of fun too. My children have loved the video game days, the Bollywood dance event, arts and crafts and library scavenger hunts! The Junteenth celebrations, and the Nutcracker shows are great every year, and the World Cup Watch Party was a blast!

If you remember what this look like over 10 years ago and Now. This building got a whole new…read moremakeover! Big, different and different. Yes it still is an ice rink like before. But now it has a library, and safe place for kids. Yes there is a park.

Come for the books, come back for the free fax service er um... well it's much more than that…read more This is a gorgeous library with a friendly staff and a genuine commitment to community-building. The bulletin boards feature truly useful programs and updates.

My husband and I attended a board game meet up at the Des Plaines Public Library. They were using a…read moremeeting room to hold the event. The area was big enough for the group. There were a wide variety of games to choose from and the people were warned and inviting. The library also provided snacks and drinks for the gathering. We had a great time at the event. I highly recommend the Des Plaines Public Library!

Mill Creek Park is a nice mix of open space, playground, and sports courts for public use. Around…read morethe parking lot, there's a nice view of Mill Creek and a playground. In addition to the playground and open space (which stretches back to the CLC campus), there are two soccer fields and a large, manicured field. This is a great park for giving your kids enough to do to burn off some excess energy.