A phone freeze in a hot summer

By David Kolata
Executive Director, Citizens Utility Board

The best calling plans in the Land of Lincoln just got better thanks to consumer advocates in Springfield — and that could save AT&T customers nearly $200 a year.

During the recent rewrite of Illinois’ Telecommunications Act, phone-industry lobbyists pushed for the eventual elimination of AT&T’s low-cost Consumer’s Choice plans, which were created by the Citizens Utility Board under a legal settlement back in 2006. But CUB, the Attorney General’s Office and AARP-Illinois fought to save the plans and freeze their low prices through at least June of 2013, when lawmakers revisit the act.

As we hold phone clinics across Illinois, one thing is certain: A lot of people are chained to bloated calling plans. In fact, a CUB study last year estimated that Illinois consumers were overpaying by more than $1 billion a year on their local, long-distance and cell-phone service.

AT&T customers could cut those costs roughly in half, the study found, by switching to AT&T’s standard pay-per-call rates or the Consumer’s Choice plans for local calls (to places within about 15 miles from home). CUB designed those plans to fit the needs of the average caller.

• Consumer’s Choice Basic, ranging from $3.05 a month in downtown Chicago to $9.50 per month in the rest of Illinois, includes AT&T’s Line Charge and 30 local phone calls. Local calls beyond the first 30 are billed at 6 cents per call.
• Consumer’s Choice Extra costs $9 to $15 per month and includes unlimited local calls. It’s best for someone who doesn’t want extra features, but makes roughly 100 local calls or more per month.
• Consumer’s Choice Plus, costing $16 to $19.70 per month, is popular because it includes two calling features, such as Caller ID or Voice Mail, along with unlimited local calls.

So what plan’s best for you? Call CUB at 1-800-669-5556, for a free phone-bill analysis. Or, visit the online Phone Savings Center, at http://www.citizensutilityboard.org/. There, AT&T customers can use the Local Phone Cost-cutter to find out the best local option based on their calling habits. The online tool has shown 40,000 customers how to save a total of $7.8 million a year, or $194 per customer.

The Phone Savings Center also has the details on extremely low long-distance rates, sweetened with an automatic $10 credit. Of course, a lot of people don’t have landlines. That’s why the center features the CUB Cellphone Saver, which has shown people how to cut costs by $300 a year on up.

There are few household costs that are as easy to cut as your phone bill, and that’s good news in any economy. So, pick up your phone bill and call CUB.

Entree Ale House now open in Frankfort

By Bob Bong
Southland Savvy

Ryan Tosh is looking forward to a long run as owner of the Entrée Ale House and Eatery at 695 N. LaGrange Road in Frankfort.

Tosh, 30, who owned Scott Patrick’s Grill and two breakfast restaurants in Crete, opened Entrée on June 24 in the former Kosta’s restaurant. Before that, the building was longtime home to Mary Todd’s Café.

“At first, I was looking to open a new place in Indiana, but nothing caught my eye,” Tosh says. “So, I looked west instead. Found Kosta’s was available and fell in love with the place and bought it.”

Tosh says Entrée is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner and features American family dining. The restaurant is open from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Saturday, with the bar staying open until 1 a.m.

Sunday hours at present are 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. with the bar closing at 11 p.m. “We may tweak the Sunday hours,” says Tosh.

The patio is open but Tosh hopes to redevelop it in late summer or early fall.

Entrée also has a room suitable for banquets and private parties. “I’ve booked quite a few parties already,” he says.

Tosh has plans for live bands, karaoke, comedy shows and open mic nights. “We just had a band last week and I plan to bring in Brasago, which was the house band when I owned Scott Patrick’s.”

Also coming are daily breakfast specials and Friday night fish frys. “We’re going to do cod and lake perch with my special breading.”

Tosh says he has carryouts and will deliver catering jobs.

For more information, call Entrée at 815-469-9922 or fax to 815-469-0599.

A website is under construction and will be up soon at http://www.entreefrankfort.com/.

Coming soon
A Spirit Halloween store is set to open in the next month at Westfield Chicago Ridge Mall in Chicago Ridge.

A CVS pharmacy is under construction at College Drive and Southwest Highway in Palos Heights.

Stanley Cup deal
Blackhawks No. 36 Dave Bolland will be signing copies of the 2010 Stanley Cup DVD at the new Meijer store at 15701 S. 71st Court in Orland Park from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday.

South Holland Motors wins back Dodge franchise in arbitration

By Bob Bong
Southland Savvy

South Holland Motors won its arbitration against Chrysler last week and will be reinstated as a Dodge dealership.

The dealership, which was founded in 1984 as South Holland Dodge, was forced to change its name when Chrysler stripped the dealership of its Dodge franchise as part of a massive reorganization last year when the automaker told hundreds of dealerships they would lose their Dodge and Chrysler franchises.

“We thought we would win,” says owner Pat Fitzgibbon. “We wanted it back; it shouldn’t have been taken away in the first place.”

Fitzgibbon said he believes he is the first Dodge dealer in the Chicago area to win its arbitration case.

Fitzgibbon said new Dodge models will start showing up on the lot at 113 W. 159th St. in the coming weeks.

Besides winning back its Dodge franchise, South Holland Motors has also added Mitsubishi to its product line.

“We started selling the full line of Mitsubishi products on July 1,” says Fitzgibbon. “We are a full serve Mitsubishi dealership. We have sales, service, parts and a collision center.”

For more information, call 708-333-1060 or visit their website at http://www.southhollandmotors.com/.

Cork and Kerry at the Park
Missed getting this out sooner, but the Cork and Kerry at the Park opened last month at 33rd Street and Princeton Avenue in the former Jimbo's. It's the second location for the longtime Beverly/Mount Greenwood watering hole at 106th Street and Western Avenue. For more information, visit their website at http://www.corkandkerrychicago.com/.
 
Easy Go scoots to Blue Island
Easy Go Motor Scooters made the trek from Chicago's North Side to Blue Island recently and opened a shop at 12832 S. Western Ave. The store is a TN'G dealer, which sells 50cc and 150cc scooters made in China. The store will also service most Asian-brand motor scooters. For more information, call 708-371-5300 or visit their website at http://www.easygoscooters.com/.
 
Deal of the week
IHOP will give you three free meals just by going to Facebook, entering Pancake Revolution and following the links. Anyone who signs up will get a free meal for signing up, another one on their birthday and a third on the first anniversary of their signing up.