Fall On the Green 2015 Survival Guide

Oak Lawn’s Fall On the Green Festival celebrates its 20th anniversary of bringing autumnal joy to the south suburbs on the village’s bucolic green at 95th Street and Cook Avenue.

Fall On the Green has grown into the one of the biggest and most popular outdoor festivals in the Southland, traditionally falling on the first weekend after Labor Day in September.

The 2015 edition runs Friday through Sunday, Sept. 11, 12 and 13. Admission and rides are entirely free. (Sorry, no pets allowed.)

We’ve got your band and food court lineups, ATM locations and other tips to make Fall On the Green 2015 more enjoyable without ending up in the Patch police blotter.

Da Rundown

• Times: 6 p.m. to midnight Friday, Sept. 11; 11 a.m. to midnight, Saturday, Sept. 12; and 11 a.m. to 8:30 p.m., Sunday, Sept. 13.

• Parking/shuttle bus: Free parking is available at the Oak Lawn Metra Station parking tower at 95th Street and Museum Drive. A free shuttle bus courtesy of the Village of Oak Lawn will leave every quarter hour beginning at 6 p.m. Friday, 4 p.m. Saturday and 1 p.m. Sunday. Board the bus next to the train station parking tower.

• Food: Bring your appetite to Fall on the Green’s Hawk Ford Food Court featuring a wide selection of fair food including hamburgers, hot dogs, Italian sausage, Italian Beef, Polish sausage, pizza, Chinese specialties, boneless rib sandwiches, gyros, shish kabobs, ice cream and desserts. What fest would be complete without cotton candy, nachos, corndogs and elephant ears. Soft drinks also are available.

• Adult beverages: Stop by the Lakeshore Beverage Beer Tent (Budweiser) for your favorite domestic, microbrews and wine. Watch the games on big screen TVs, buy raffle tickets and enjoy live music.
• Arts and Crafts: Get in some early holiday shopping in the Mancari’s Oak Lawn Arts and Crafts area held from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday and Sunday at its new location near the Masonic Temple. The show features some of the finest crafters and artisans in the Midwest.

• Children’s Activities: Kids won’t get bored when the see the array of children’s activities in the Advocate Christ Medical Center Children’s area, including games, inflatable rides, face painting and tattoo parlor, next to the Robin Realty playground..

• Teen Activities: The Republic Services teen area features a climbing wall, wrecking ball and Eurobungy -- perfect for working out teen angst. NEW THIS YEAR: DJ and karaoke, sure to drive the old folks crazy.
• Business tent: Learn why it’s best to shop in Oak Lawn by visiting the Business Tent featuring many of the village’s vibrant small businesses and other fine area vendors.

• Entertainment: The music is non-stop at Fall On the Green’s in the Lakeshore/Budweiser Beer Garden, Gazebo and the Oak Lawn Bank and Trust Main Stage. There is a genre for every musical taste in your family, from alternative rock and country, to rock covers and Celtic rock.
• Shameless plugs: We want these fine sponsors to keep Fall On the Green free and going for another 20 years: Oak Lawn Bank and Trust, Hawk Ford, Advocate Children’s Hospital, Total Parking Solutions, Republic Services Inc., Progressive Energy Group, Standard Bank and Trust, Advocate Christ Medical Center, Robin Realty, CDM, Al Warren Oil Co., Mancari’s of Oak Lawn and Stony Creek Promenade.

Da Bands

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 11

• Hillbilly Rockstarz, 6 to 745 p.m., Beer Tent (country rock)
• Sixteen Candles, 8 to 10 p.m., Main Stage (‘80s to present)
• Rendition, 10 p.m. to midnight, Beer Tent (rock, alternative)

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 12

• The Cousins, 11 a.m. to noon, Beer Test (acoustic)
• Timing’s Everything, Noon to 1:30 p.m., Beer Test (‘80s to present)
• Whiskey Fist, 1:30 to 3 p.m., Main Stage (country rock)
• Tung, 3 to 4:30 p.m., Beer Tent (rock)
• Red Rebel Country, 4:30 to 6 p.m., Main Stage (Celtic rock)
• Scarlett Drive, 6 to 8 p.m., Beer Tent (country rock)
• Beyond, 8 to 10 p.m. Main Stage (classic rock)
• Slippery When Wet, 10 p.m. to midnight, Beer Tent (rock and covers)

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 13

• Neighborhood Blues Band, noon to 2 p.m., Main Stage (blues and rock)
• Badmouth Billy, 2 to 3:30 p.m., Beer Tent (‘70s and ‘80s, covers)
• Blackwater, 3:30 to 5:45 p.m., Main Stage (country rock)
• The Walk-Ins, 6 to 8:30 p.m., Beer Tent (party music)