RESOLUTION
WHEREAS, Thomas Craig Senesac was born in Kankakee on March 31, 1951 and moved to Chicago in his early 20s where he lived ever since; and
WHEREAS, In the early 1980s he acquired Acme Prop Rental which at the time was a small business in the West Loop. He moved the business to Bucktown and expanded it; and
WHEREAS, His business has been described as a whimsical place full of imagination and oddities that were featured in many television shows; and
WHEREAS, In 2004 he was named Artistic Director at Botanicals, Inc. Chicago's leading special event floral company and thus he began a joyful second act surrounded by the world's most beautiful flowers; and
WHEREAS, Tom Senesac met his partner Bob Hoagland in 1977 and eventually moved to Wicker Park together; and
WHEREAS, Tom Senesac and Bob Hoagland renovated an uninhabited two-flat on the 2000 block of Crystal Street and renovated it into a single family home which has been featured on the Wicker Park Greening, a tour designed to promote Wicker Park to live in, twice; and
WHEREAS, Tom Senesac and Bob Hoagland became the block's unofficial welcome wagon, and they were the first to personally greet new neighbors; and
WHEREAS, Tom Senesac and Bob Hoagland held annual block parties for their neighbors in the summer and a "Cookies and Eggnog" party in the winter; and
WHEREAS, Tom Senesac was involved in the original Old Wicker Park Committee; and
WHEREAS, Tom Senesac and Bob Hoagland also volunteered their time at Pritzker Elementary School because of their strong passion for public education; and
WHEREAS, Tom Senesac's efforts in turning Wicker Park into a desirable place to live matched his love for the area; and
WHEREAS, Thomas Senesac, died July 19, 2014 after having battled stomach cancer for a year and a half with grace, determination and his own special brand of humor; and
WHEREAS, Tom Senesac was the son of the late Joseph E. and Narda Gennaro Senesac, and is survived by his beloved partner of thirty-seven years, Bob Hoagland, and his sister, Dr. Pamela M. Senesac; and
WHEREAS, For almost three decades, Thomas Senesac made the ward a better place. His legacy will live on long after he is gone, and he will always be remembered as a man with a huge heart and beautiful soul; and therefore
BE IT RESOLVED, That we, the Mayor and members of the City Council of the City of Chicago, assembled this Eighteenth of May, 2016 do hereby pay tribute with esteem and appreciation to
Tom Senesac, and we honor the valuable contributions of Tom Senesac and Bob Hoagland to the Wicker Park community by erecting an honorary street-name sign on West Crystal Avenue, at Damen Avenue, west corner [2000-2100 block], as "Thomas Senesac & Bob Hoagland Way".
Proco Joe Moreno Alderman, 1st Ward
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that suitable copies of this Resolution be presented in the memory of Tom Senesac to Bob Hoagland as a token of our appreciation for their lasting legacy and contribution to the Wicker Park community.
