Barricades come down, residents return to scene for first time since Highland Park parade massacre
HIGHLAND PARK, Ill. (CBS) -- Barricades were removed in downtown Highland Park on Saturday, allowing residents to return to the scene of Monday's parade massacre for the first time.
As CBS 2's Sabrina Franza reported, people were seen opening up their downtown shops for the first time in days. They were starting to board up windows that were damaged during the mass shooting, and cleaning up what was inside.
But families were also seen taking their first steps downtown since the massacre that killed seven people and injured dozens more during the Highland Park July 4th parade.
The once-vibrant downtown was eerie and quiet, and everything felt heavy. People were seen just standing or sitting on the sidewalk with tears in their eyes watching as a street sweeper passed by.
Franza and her crew stopped Saturday afternoon at Sweet Home Gelato, 617 Central Ave. Owner Janice Bruksch had not been inside since Monday, when everything changed.
"I hope that they find the strength to come back just as strong as they were, which I'm pretty sure they're going to," she said.
Sweet Home Gelato was actually closed on Monday, but Franza walked in with the owner as she was just getting inside.
At the Highland Park Sweet Home Gelato, they manufacture gelato for multiple locations - and so very quickly, they started running out of product.
"Fridge is full of gelato and milk and things like that, that need refrigeration," Bruksch said.
They lost thousands of dollars in the process.
"Especially a day like today would be a maybe five to $8,000 day," Bruksch said.
The temporary closure of the Highland Park location meant problems for Sweet Home Gelato's Chicago Riverwalk and Libertyville locations, both of which the Highland Park location supplies.
"Chicago Riverwalk we had to shut down yesterday and today," Bruksch said.
But Bruksch said that price was nothing to pay for the investigation to be done right so the suspected gunman can be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.
"You know, yeah, it stinks. We lost money. But I'd much rather have them do a thorough investigation and be able to do as many charges as they can, you know, and get justice for the people who were harmed and lost their lives – and businesses even getting their justice against him," Bruksch said. "I hope they got all that they need."
For all Sweet Home Gelato lost, they still plan to host first responders and kids for a scoop soon – on the house.
"Just to bring some kind of happiness in any way - so a little kid comes in here and get a free gelato, smiles and walks out, and doesn't think about that day," Bruksch said. "That's great."
Sweet Home Gelato says they hope to reopen Tuesday at noon. The businesses in the crime scene area are allowed to reopen ats early as 6:30 a.m. Sunday, but some others also do not plan to reopen quite that soon.
Some business owners said they plan to reopen as soon as their staff is ready to prove to Highland Park that love wins.
