Palos Township, Cook County, Illinois

Palos Township
Township

Location in Cook County

Cook County's location in Illinois
Coordinates: 41°41′05″N 87°51′11″W / 41.68472°N 87.85306°W / 41.68472; -87.85306Coordinates: 41°41′05″N 87°51′11″W / 41.68472°N 87.85306°W / 41.68472; -87.85306
Country United States
State Illinois
County Cook
Area
 • Total 35.37 sq mi (91.62 km2)
 • Land 33.91 sq mi (87.83 km2)
 • Water 1.46 sq mi (3.79 km2)  4.14%
Elevation 604 ft (184 m)
Population (2010)
 • Total 54,615
 • Density 1,610/sq mi (621.8/km2)
Time zone CST (UTC-6)
 • Summer (DST) CDT (UTC-5)
ZIP codes 60457, 60462, 60463, 60464, 60465, 60480, 60482
GNIS feature ID 0429523
Website www.palostownship.org

Palos Township is one of 29 townships in Cook County, Illinois, USA. As of the 2010 census, its population was 54,615.[1] In 1850 the small town of Trenton, Illinois, changed its name to Palos. This recommendation was made by M.S. Powell, the local postmaster, whose ancestor supposedly sailed with Christopher Columbus from Palos de la Frontera. When it incorporated as a Village in 1914, Palos officially became Palos Park. The neighboring communities of Palos Hills and Palos Heights incorporated at later points. All three municipalities lie within Palos Township.

Township Duties

According to Illinois law, Townships are responsible for the maintenance of Township roadways, the governance of the General Assistance program and the assessment of real property. In Cook County, Townships are not responsible for assessing real property as the Cook County Assessor performs that function.

Some Townships have adopted other duties including the provision of health services. Palos Township runs a Health Clinic providing low or no cost physical examinations, sick visits, cholesterol tests and screenings, pregnancy tests, blood pressure screening, immunizations and other services.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, Palos Township covers an area of 35.37 square miles (91.6 km2); of this, 33.91 square miles (87.8 km2) (95.86 percent) is land and 1.46 square miles (3.8 km2) (4.14 percent) is water.

Boundaries

Palos Township is bordered by Harlem Avenue (Illinois Route 43) on the east, 135th Street on the south, Will-Cook Road on the west and 87th Street on the north. The northwest border with DuPage County is along the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal (managed by the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago) which connects Lake Michigan with the Mississippi River.

Cities, towns, villages

Governance

Palos Township is governed by a Township Board of Trustees sometimes called the Township Board or Town Board. The Town Board consists of five voting members and includes the elected Township Supervisor and four elected Township Trustees.

The Town Board is responsible for providing a budget and taxes sufficient to run the operations of the Township Government each year. The Supervisor is a voting member of the Town Board but is also the Chief Executive Officer and the Chief Financial Officer of the Township.

The Township Clerk, Assessor and Highway Commissioner are elected officials, however they do not have a vote on the Town Board.

Duties and Powers of the Supervisor

The Township Supervisor is the Chief Executive Officer of the Township and is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the Township along with the following other duties:


Current Township Elected Officials

Adjacent townships

Cemeteries

The township contains these three cemeteries: Fairmount, Oak Hill and Sacred Heart Catholic.

Major highways

Airports and landing strips

Lakes

Landmarks

These Cook County Forest Preserves woods:

Education

Political districts

References

  1. ↑ "Geographic Identifiers: 2010 Demographic Profile Data (DP-1): Palos township, Cook County, Illinois". U.S. Census Bureau, American Factfinder. Retrieved March 21, 2013.
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