City of Darien officials on Aug. 26 asked Hinsdale Township High School District 86 to consider Hinsdale South as an alternate site for DarienFest 2026 while Westwood Park undergoes a $1.2 million redevelopment.

Mayor Joseph “Joe” Marques and April Padalik, executive director of Darien business groups, described a plan that would place carnival rides in the student parking lot, vendor booths and a performance stage on Clarendon Hills Road, and district parking and staging areas adjacent to campus. The city proposed closing Clarendon Hills Road for the event and would include Hinsdale District 86 as an additional insured on vendor insurance certificates.

Mayor Marques said, “If you don’t know what DarienFest is, DarienFest is a combination of a carnival as well as street vendors, business vendors, business expo, entertainment, a stage with bands each day of the event.” He added the carnival can be broken down quickly and that Darien would provide police and security and arrange vendor insurance to include the district.

The presentation highlighted a related summer internship that placed Hinsdale South students in Darien city departments. Three students — Shamira Ali, Monica Alexadis (presented in transcript as Monica Alexonis) and Stephanie Acosta — summarized a six‑week capstone that analyzed Chestnut Court, proposed landscape and signage improvements, and offered marketing and financing ideas to attract businesses. Mayor Marques and city staff praised the students’ work and said the city would consider scholarship funding for interns tied to festival revenue.

Board members broadly supported exploring the site change and asked administration to develop details. Superintendent’s staff asked Carrie Parento and administrative staff to work with the city to draft an intergovernmental agreement and logistics plan and return to the board, with members suggesting a September meeting for final consideration. No formal vote to host DarienFest at the high school was taken on Aug. 26; the board’s direction was to continue planning and bring back a proposed agreement.