Cue the DeLorean.
Flossmoor will have its own “Back to the Future” moment next weekend when new timepieces are unveiled at the downtown clock tower.
Mayor Paul Braun said the new clocks will make their debut during opening ceremonies for Flossmoor Fest on Sept. 9.
“They are supposed to be installed in the next few days,” Braun said Thursday.
“Back to the Future” fans recall that a downtown clock tower plays a notable role in the film. Scorched by a 1955 lighting strike, the tower’s clock is still out of service 30 years later.
The story of Flossmoor’s clock tower is not nearly as dramatic. It caps two stories of businesses and apartments across the street from the village’s Metra station. The timepieces, on the north and east sides, stopped working long ago and round wooden inserts are in place where clocks should be located.
Braun said many longtime residents remember working clocks overlooking downtown Flossmoor. This spring, a group of area residents came together and formed a clock tower restoration committee.
“This moved along pretty quickly,” Braun said. “We had our first meeting in May.” The committee planned from the start to have the new clocks in place by Flossmoor Fest.
The eight-member committee held two fundraisers at Flossmoor Station Restaurant & Brewery and collected donations from other interested persons in the community.
“The response was phenomenal,” Braun said.
According to the original estimate, the two new clocks and their installation would cost about $10,000. Braun said the actual cost will be slightly less than the estimate, but that any leftover money will be used to restore the sign on the northeast corner of the building at Sterling Avenue and Center Drive.
The restored sign will not be ready in time for Flossmoor Fest, Braun said. When finished, it will proclaim the “Flossmoor Historic District” and will be bordered by a neon light.
Braun said the new clocks will be unveiled at about 11:30 a.m., the starting time for next Saturday’s Flossmoor Fest.