Local News

Pro Soccer Report: Red Stars’ Pugh, Waves’ Morgan headline battle at Soldier Field
By Jeff Vorva Staff writer Two of the three best goal-scorers in the NWSL were teammates for most of July as members of the United States Women’s National Team. Now they are back in the league after leading their country to a Summer Olympics bid, and will face each other right off the bat in…

Area Sports Roundup: Marist and R-B alums caught up in the draft
By Jeff Vorva Staff writer Marist and Riverside-Brookfield baseball fans were likely beaming with pride during this year’s Major League Baseball draft, which concluded July 19. Both schools had a pair of ex-players drafted. A look at who went where for the RedHawks and Bulldogs: — R-B’s Owen Murphy, who wrapped up his senior season…

New workshop yields old friendship
By Kathy Headley Your correspondent in Chicago Lawn and Marquette Manor 6610 S. Francisco • (773) 776-7778 Last week I mentioned a new weekly workshop for kids that would be coming to the neighborhood on Wednesdays when Original Creations by Yaya visits the Monarca Event Rom, 3300 W. 63rd St. Kayla and I went over…

Thank you, Ald. Silvana Tabares
By Peggy Zabicki Your correspondent in West Lawn 3633 W. 60th Place • (773) 504-9327 As a resident of the 23rd Ward, I often feel a bit isolated. Most people in the 23rd Ward live in the Garfield Ridge and Clearing neighborhoods, north and west of the airport. It was that way for decades, until just…

New art brightens old viaducts
By Mary Stanek Your correspondent in Archer Heights and West Elsdon 3808 W. 57th Place • (773) 284-7394 I read an article (actually several) on how artwork can help stimulate our brains. Viewing art can create emotions and make positive impacts. As some of you know, I was involved in the start-up plans for the…

Driving a bus not magical
But it feels that way, I learned By Steve Metsch En route to my debut driving a school bus, I got psyched up listening to “Magic Bus” by The Who. “I don’t want to cause no fuss,” Roger Daltrey sang, “but can I buy your magic bus?” I didn’t have $100,000 to buy a new…

‘Me? A school bus driver?’
Yes you, First Student says By Tim Hadac In a world where “Help Wanted” signs now outnumber “Wear a Mask” signs by about a thousand to one (or so it seems), employers across the board are scrambling to compete for prospective employees like never before. Having a leg up on the competition are companies already…

City giving away bicycles
From staff reports A new program that will provide 5,000 free bikes, as well as maintenance and safety equipment, to Chicagoans by 2026, began earlier this week. Called Bike Chicago, the effort will see at least 500 bikes distributed to age and income-eligible Chicagoans throughout the program’s first year. Over the next four years, the Chicago…

Veterans and families enjoy a banner day on Orland Park
By Jeff Vorva When former Stagg teacher Diane Gurnea looks up and sees the banner displayed on Ravinia Avenue and 143rd Street in Orland Park, she can’t help but to be proud. Her father, John Langevin, and uncle, Robert Langevin, share a banner that was recently erected. The Village of Orland Park held its Hometown…

Patriot’s Day Parade a success
Red, white and blue were the colors of the day, as several thousand men, women and children lined Archer Avenue late last month to enjoy the Garfield Ridge Chamber of Commerce’s annual Patriot’s Day Parade. The GRCC’s next large public event is its Back to School Extravaganza, set for August. Details are coming in the…

Quinn touts ‘get tough’ ordinance on reckless drivers
New law gives CPD authority to seize, impound vehicles By Tim Hadac Thirteenth Ward Ald. Marty Quinn and a number of his City Council colleagues this week fired the latest salvo in the ongoing battle against those who use vehicles to engage in drag racing, drifting and other car stunts that create a public nuisance…

Pro Soccer Report: Houston’s hat trick too much for Red Stars; Bezerra hat trick not enough for Fire II
By Jeff Vorva Staff Writer Bad things came in threes for the Chicago Red Stars. Houston’s Ebony Salmon scored three goals against the Red Stars’ defense and Chicago lost by three, 4-1, in an NWSL match July 16 at PNC Stadium. It snapped the Red Stars nine-game unbeaten streak. The loss dropped the Red Stars…

IHSA releases 2022 football schedule
By Jeff Vorva Staff Writer It’s that time of year. The IHSA has released the 2022 football schedule. So, from now until Aug. 26, one can go on the IHSA website, look at the schedules and see all of the blanks where the results and scores will be. It’s a clean sheet for all, and…

Retro video game expo coming to Clearing
By Tim Hadac The community is invited to discover (or re-discover, as the case may be) video games of yesteryear at an event coming up later this month at the Clearing Branch Library, 6423 W. 63rd Place. The Retro Video Game Expo is set for 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Saturday, July 30 and 1…

Ballet performance coming to Clearing
Boitsov students, guest artists to perform By Joan Hadac The community is invited to enjoy a live ballet performance by students of the Boitsov Classical Ballet School, set for 1 to 2:30 p.m. Saturday, July 23 at the Clearing Branch Library, 6423 W. 63rd Place. The school, currently located in a storefront studio at 6102…
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Illinois News

Regulatory work behind 1 million EV push in full swing in Illinois
By JERRY NOWICKI Capitol News Illinois [email protected] SPRINGFIELD – Ten months after Illinois lawmakers passed the Climate and Equitable Jobs Act which set a goal of putting 1 million electric vehicles on state roads by the end of the decade, state agencies are engaged in a flurry of regulatory planning aimed at meeting those goals.…

10-day sales tax reduction on clothing, school supplies begins Friday
By JERRY NOWICKI Capitol News Illinois [email protected] SPRINGFIELD – Beginning Friday and lasting through Aug. 14, the state will reduce its sales tax rate from 6.25 percent to 1.25 percent for certain clothing items costing less than $125 and school supplies. The “tax holiday” was included in Gov. JB Pritzker’s “family relief plan,” one prong…

Pritzker highlights Rebuild Illinois funding for Cahokia Heights sewers, Rend Lake Resort
By JERRY NOWICKI Capitol News Illinoi [email protected] SPRINGFIELD – When state lawmakers voted on bipartisan lines in 2019 to double Illinois’ motor fuel tax and raise several driving-related fees, it laid the groundwork for a $45 billion infrastructure plan, the largest in Illinois’ history and the first in nearly a decade. The plan, spanning six…

CAPITOL RECAP: Democrats choose Hernandez as new party chair
By CAPITOL NEWS ILLINOIS SPRINGFIELD – The vote for state Rep. Elizabeth “Lisa” Hernandez as the Democratic Party of Illinois’ first Latino chairwoman was unanimous and uneventful Saturday morning – the drama had occurred in the days prior in a power struggle of some of the state’s most prominent Democrats. Hernandez was backed Gov. JB…

Pritzker: Monkeypox disaster declaration will aid in vaccine distribution
By JERRY NOWICKI Capitol News Illinois [email protected] SPRINGFIELD – Gov. JB Pritzker issued a public health emergency declaration and declared Illinois a disaster area in response to the monkeypox virus Monday, a move his office said would help mobilize resources. The governor’s office said the proclamation will aid in moving vaccines to the most impacted…

Dems seek unity as new, former chair take no questions from media after party vote
By JERRY NOWICKI Capitol News Illinois [email protected] SPRINGFIELD – The vote for state Rep. Elizabeth “Lisa” Hernandez as the Democratic Party of Illinois’ first Latino chairwoman was unanimous and uneventful Saturday morning – the drama had occurred in the days prior in a power struggle of some of the state’s most prominent Democrats. Hernandez was…

Democratic Party chair bows out in re-election bid, paving way for state Rep. Lisa Hernandez
By JERRY NOWICKI Capitol News Illinois [email protected] SPRINGFIELD – A contentious race for leadership of the state’s Democratic Party appears to be down to a single candidate ahead of a Saturday morning vote after the party’s current chair pulled herself from the running Friday. State Rep. Lisa Hernandez, backed by Gov. JB Pritzker and House…