Local News
By Jeff Vorva Staff Writer The boss got it right. Before the Consolidated High School District 230 Board of Education Meeting on Aug. 25, Stagg Principal Eric Olsen talked to a news reporter about the coming football season. Olsen said the Chargers would soon snap their 23-game losing streak dating back to Week 2 of…
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By Randy Whalen Correspondent Kamryn Lee-Caracci is going to keep hitting. When she connects, watch out. Lee-Caracci clubbed a match-high 12 kills and had 15 digs and added a pair of aces as Lyons opened its season by rallying for an 18-25, 27-25, 25-16 victory over host Lockport on Aug. 24. The match was played…
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Beginning Monday, night, a traffic shift is scheduled on the northbound Central Tri-State Tollway between the 83rd Street Toll Plaza and the Mile Long Bridge, including removal of the current counterflow configuration. Four lanes will remain open. Overnight August 15, on northbound I-294 between the 83rd Street Toll Plaza and the Mile Long Bridge overnight lane closures will be scheduled, with traffic reduced to a single lane…
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By Steve Metsch It doesn’t happen often, but voters in the newly drawn 6th Congressional District have an unusual choice in the Democratic primary. Because of redistricting, two sitting members of Congress are going toe-to-toe for the nomination in the June 28 primary. The district covers the Midway Airport area, Chicago’s Beverly neighborhood and the…
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By Steve Metsch The race for Republican Committeeperson in Lyons Township is between the current office holder and a mayor eager to replace her. Incumbent Katie Justak, who is in her first election, was appointed to the position in December by Cook County Commissioner Sean Morrison(17th), chairman of the Cook County Republican party. Her challenger…
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By Carol McGowan A crowd estimated at more than 150 packed Lyonsville Congregational Church in Indian Head Park last week to hear about plans to widen Wolf Road. The plans have been in the works since 2020 and call for Cook County to widen Wolf Road from 79th Street to Plainfield Road. Most of the…
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Temporary, overnight lane closures are scheduled next week on Wolf Road and Joliet Road at the Tri-State Tollway to accommodate bridge beam removal for the reconstruction of the I-294 bridges over Joliet Road and Wolf Road in Indian Head Park. On Wolf Road, scheduled overnight lane closures will include intermittent full closures, each lasting 15…
Read More From staff reports Temporary, overnight lane closures are scheduled next week on Wolf Road at the Tri-State Tollway (I-294) to accommodate bridge beam removal for the reconstruction of the I-294 bridge over Wolf Road in Indian Head Park. This work is part improvements in the I-55 Interchange area to accommodate reconstruction and widening of the…
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By Carol McGowan Michael Kurinec is the new Chief of Police in Indian Head Park. He recently moved into the position when Steven Stelter accepted the Chief of Police Position in Forest View. Kurinec isn’t new to the village as he was the first officer hired by the newly formed Indian Head Park Police &…
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By Carol McGowan The Village of Forest View has a new police chief. Steven Stelter was sworn in by Clerk Laura McGuffey at the February 22 village board meeting. Stelter comes with an extensive career in law enforcement. After being honorably discharged from the Army in 1979, where he was in the military police, Stelter…
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Positive reviews for new Oak Lawn Fall Music Fest
By Dermot Connolly A little rain on Sunday afternoon was the only damper on Oak Lawn’s three-day annual festival, which was renamed Oak Lawn Fall Musical Festival this year. Fifteen of the top local bands, from American English to Radio Ga-Ga, played a variety of music genres on three stages over the three days from…
Evergreen Park mayor praises Labor Day celebration
By Joe Boyle Evergreen Park Mayor Kelly Burke said activities marking this year’s Labor Day holiday were impressive and memorable. “I want to thank everybody for the wonderful concert and fireworks show we had on Labor Day,” said Burke during the Evergreen Park Village Board meeting on Sept. 6. “It was a huge success. It…
Arrenello’s Pizza celebrates 50 years
By Bob Bong Fifty years ago, Rich Matokar had to choose between buying a house or opening a business. He chose to quit his job at U.S. Steel South Works and open Arrenello’s Pizza in Glenwood and the rest, as they say, is history. “I did it on a whim,” he said. “A friend was…
Palos Park to offer online payment system for residents
By Jeff Vorva Palos Park Commissioner G. Darryl Reed introduced a resolution upgrading an enterprise resource planning system at Monday’s village council meeting. He said the last upgrade came in 2013 and the system is outdated. “We want the dinosaurs out of here and make room for the Jetsons,” he said. So, the council is…
Orland trustee back on call after horrific accident
By Jeff Vorva Orland Park Trustee Joni Radaszewski phoned it in on Sept. 6. And the rest of her teammates on the board couldn’t be happier. Radaszewski was seriously injured during an accident in Homer Glen on June 21 which killed her parents, Adrian Spaargaren and Kathleen Repsis, who were passengers in the car. The…
Dog rescue sponsors adoptions at Palos Heights Library
By Kelly White Traveling Tails Dog Rescue has one mission – to find dogs forever homes. The organization is non-profit volunteer-based dog rescue addressed in Palos Heights that is dedicated to being an active voice for abandoned, abused and neglected dogs. It was founded in January 2019 by Shepard High School teacher and Palos Heights…
Shepard cadets pay homage to fallen heroes
By Kelly White Shepard High School students took time to remember fallen heroes during a 9-11 Remembrance Ceremony last week. For the seventh year in a row, the U.S. Air Force Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps held the ceremony at the school, 13049 S. Ridgeland Ave., Palos Heights, on September 9. The school has been…
Illinois News
In visit to Illinois, VP Harris rallies voters around abortion rights
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois [email protected] SPRINGFIELD – Vice President Kamala Harris came to Chicago Friday to rally voters who support abortion rights and urge them to turn out in the upcoming midterm elections. Speaking at a roundtable discussion on reproductive rights at the University of Illinois Chicago, Harris said the recent U.S. Supreme…
What happens when cash bail ends?
By JERRY NOWICKI Capitol News Illinois [email protected] SPRINGFIELD – Beginning Jan. 1, 2023, cash bail will be abolished in Illinois. The measure that will eliminate it has been on the books since early 2021, giving the justice system two years to plan for the major overhaul of the state’s pretrial detention system. It’s also given…
National Guard to assist migrant welcoming effort as Pritzker declares disaster
By JERRY NOWICKI Capitol News Illinois [email protected] SPRINGFIELD – Gov. JB Pritzker said Wednesday that Illinois will continue to welcome migrants bused here from Texas as he blasted that state’s governor for relocating them to other cities without sharing information or providing resources. Pritzker said Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and his agencies have been providing…
At a remote mental health facility, a culture of cruelty persists despite decades of warnings
By MOLLY PARKER Lee Enterprises Midwest BETH HUNDSDORFER Capitol News Illinois This article was produced for ProPublica’s Local Reporting Network in partnership with Capitol News Illinois and Lee Enterprises. Over a year ago, the security chief at Choate Mental Health and Developmental Center in southern Illinois sent an email to the head of the state…
Chief Justice Anne Burke to retire from Illinois Supreme Court in November
By JERRY NOWICKI Capitol News Illinois [email protected] SPRINGFIELD – Illinois Supreme Court Chief Justice Anne M. Burke announced Monday she will retire from the bench effective Nov. 30. She has served on the state’s high court since 2006 and has been chief justice since 2019. “The decision to retire was not an easy one,” Burke,…
Tax rebate checks begin going out this week
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois [email protected] SPRINGFIELD – Gov. JB Pritzker announced Monday that Illinois taxpayers will soon start receiving rebates of their income and property taxes, either in the mail or by direct bank deposits. Speaking at a news conference in Chicago where he was flanked by other state officials and Democratic leaders…
Ahead of amendment vote, union membership grows in Illinois
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois [email protected] SPRINGFIELD – As voters in Illinois prepare to decide on a state constitutional amendment that would guarantee workers the right to organize, a new study shows union membership in the state grew last year for the first time in four years. The study also showed, however, that the…
Ahead of amendment vote, union membership grows in Illinois
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois [email protected] SPRINGFIELD – As voters in Illinois prepare to decide on a state constitutional amendment that would guarantee workers the right to organize, a new study shows union membership in the state grew last year for the first time in four years. The study also showed, however, that the…
CAPITOL RECAP: Gun rights group suing Highland Park
By CAPITOL NEWS ILLINOIS SPRINGFIELD – A gun rights group is challenging the city of Highland Park’s ban on assault weapons and high-capacity magazines like the ones used in a mass shooting there on July 4. The National Association for Gun Rights, based in Loveland, Colorado, filed the lawsuit Wednesday in federal district court in…
Gun rights group sues Highland Park
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois [email protected] SPRINGFIELD – A gun rights group is challenging the city of Highland Park’s ban on assault weapons and high-capacity magazines like the ones used in a mass shooting there on July 4. The National Association for Gun Rights, based in Loveland, Colorado, filed the lawsuit Wednesday in federal…
