UPDATED Oct. 1: Spooky witches, glowing jack-o-lanterns, scary ghosts and more October-appropriate artistic efforts should soon be visible as local residents decorate 55 designated storefront windows of some two dozen Arlington Heights-area businesses.
The paint date was from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 1; the rain date is from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 2. As to the weather, Janet O'Riordan wrote Sept. 30, "We are moving forward and will have the painters pick up their paints tomorrow [Saturday] at 9 a.m., but they can paint when they would like because of the dicey weather. 55 windows are all marked and ready to be painted. Weather is so unpredictable."
Participants may paint a window solo or with relatives or friends. All window painting must have a family-friendly Halloween theme. Painters younger than age 12 must be accompanied by an adult.
Painters were selected via applications submitted online on a first-come, first-served registration process completed earlier this month, and all have been informed of their assigned locations, according to an email received Sept. 27 from Janet O'Riordan of the Arlington Heights Community Association. All available windows were spoken for, she said, and, as in the past, most participants will be families with children in middle school or younger.
The $25 registration fee pays for everything needed for window painting, including the assortment of paint brushes and seven acrylic paints in a preselected color palette made available to painters on the day of the event.
After the registration closing date but well before the paint date, registered painters were emailed a wealth of information: their window assignment/location, the project's rules, a general information flier, a list of all supplies to be provided the day of the event and tips on painting effectively on windows.
Remain on display in October; part of Holiday Stroll
The paintings are to remain on display throughout October and will be part of the Arlington Chamber of Commerce-sponsored Annual Heights Halloween Stroll from 3 to 5 p.m. Friday, Oct. 28.
This project is organized annually by the Arlington Heights Community Association or AHCA, the Arlington Chamber of Commerce and the Arlington Commission for Arts and Culture.
The AHCA is a group of Arlington Heights business owners, nonprofit organizations and residents who meet monthly to address local issues and concerns, support beautification projects and organize public events. Meetings of the AHCA typically take place on the third Thursday of every month. For more information,
Registration opened Sept. 10 and was to continue through Sept. 24 -- or close earlier if necessary -- with space guaranteed only to the first 55 entrants. Registration was accepted online only via this website.
Oct. 1, 2021: Halloween Heights' 41 windows shown
This news announcement was published Sunday, Sept. 4, 2022, with information supplied by Janet O’Riordan, a volunteer with the Arlington Heights Community Association who helps organize the window-painting events of the AHCA, and updated Sept. 30.
