Obama Foundation draws high-dollar, international donations
April 16, 2019
Former President Barack Obama's foundation collected contributions of more than $1 million from 11 firms and individuals in the first three months of 2019, records show. The Obama Foundation's donor list, which is updated quarterly, included the AT&T Foundation and the W.K. Kellogg Foundation...
Chicago prosecutor to start erasing pot convictions soon
April 15, 2019
A top Chicago prosecutor says she hopes to begin expunging minor cannabis convictions in the coming months but acknowledges it won't be easy to implement her plan and that her office is still figuring out its scope. Cook County State's Attorney Kim Foxx told the Chicago Sun-Times last week that she wants to enlist the help of San Francisco-based nonprofit...
Living off campus in Chicago can mean contending with faulty heaters, carbon monoxide leaks and bad landlords
Meredith Melland, Dylan Van Sickle, Mikayla Rose Price and Maria Barragan, Contributing Writers
April 15, 2019
Filed under Metro, News, Showcase
Living off campus in Chicago signals a new phase of adulthood for many students. That idyllic Lakeview four-bedroom, five-roommate unit with “vintage charm” now has your name to add to the lease. It’s as if nothing can go wrong — that is, until something does, serving you, the tenant, with a stark ...
Report takes issue with error-prone Chicago gang database
Michael Tarm, Associated Press
April 12, 2019
A poorly managed police database of 130,000 purported street-gang members in Chicago is rife with errors and offers no practical way for those wrongly entered into it to purge their names, the city's inspector general office says in a sharply critical report released Thursday. Inclusion in the database...
Chicago aldermen OK $2.4M in tax subsidies for developers of Lincoln Yards, ‘The 78’
April 10, 2019
The Chicago City Council has approved $2.4 billion in tax subsidies for two major developments after Mayor-elect Lori Lightfoot said she would drop her opposition. Aldermen voted Wednesday morning on the packages. An earlier vote was delayed when Lightfoot said she wanted to review the tax packages....
Mayor Emanuel to delay vote on $2B tax deals for developers of Lincoln Yards, ‘The 78’
April 8, 2019
Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel has agreed at the request of incoming mayor Lori Lightfoot to delay votes on tax packages worth about $2 billion for a pair of development projects. “In our first meeting, as well as in subsequent conversations, I made it very clear to the mayor-elect that I would not...
How the minimum wage increase will affect DePaul student employees
Doug Klain, Opinions Editor
April 8, 2019
When DePaul University junior Breya Jones heard that Illinois was raising the minimum wage to $15 per hour, she felt like it was a validation that her work is valued by the community. Like many studying at DePaul, she’s a student employee at the university. “It makes me feel like even though I’m a...
Chicago to sue Jussie Smollett for costs of investigation
Michael Tarm, Associated Press
April 5, 2019
Jussie Smollett has refused to pay more than $130,000 to reimburse Chicago investigative costs and the city said Thursday it will sue the "Empire" actor for the money as reimbursement for investigating what officials say was a phony racist, anti-gay attack that Smollett staged. Mayor Rahm Emanuel's la...
Lightfoot becomes first African American woman to lead Chicago
Benjamin Conboy, Editor in Chief
April 2, 2019
Filed under 2019 Mayoral Race, Metro, News
Lori Lightfoot will be the first African American woman to be the mayor of the city of Chicago, defeating political heavyweight Toni Preckwinkle in a historic landslide election. Lightfoot won the election with 73.6 percent of the vote to Preckwinkle’s 26.3 percent, the largest margin of victory i...
CTA to use ride-sharing tax to upgrade security
Brian Pearlman, Copy Editor
March 12, 2018
The CTA is getting a new set of security upgrades funded in part from the city’s ride-hailing service fee, according to an announcement made Feb. 27. The $33 million worth of improvements include upgrading more than 3,800 older security cameras to new high-definition versions, as well as adding 1,00...
Private security guards hired to patrol State Street
Timothy Duke, Staff Writer
March 12, 2018
In response to panhandling, graffiti and shoplifting in the Loop, the Chicago Loop Alliance (CLA) has hired two private armed security guards to assist in the prevention and catching of such crimes and their perpetrators. Retail workers along State Street are glad to have additional assistance in dea...
Candidates for Governor still slinging mud
Jonathan Ballew, Assistant News Editor
March 5, 2018
As the clock winds down on the gubernatorial primary, the candidates came out swinging on Thursday at the University of Chicago. The Democratic gubernatorial forum was sponsored by WBEZ, Politico and the University of Chicago’s Institute of Politics. Although six candidates were on stage, three have emerged as ...