Local News
LaGrange Road ramps to Tri-State Tollway to be closed next week
The ramp connecting southbound LaGrange Road to the southbound Tri-State Tollway (I-294) is scheduled to close for two nights next week for utility and pavement work. Overnight Monday, November 15, ramp and lane closures are needed to accommodate overhead cable work as part of Archer Avenue Interchange improvements related to the reconstruction of the Central Tri-State Tollway. Beginning at 8 p.m.,…
Planet Fitness opens in Bridgeview
By Steve Metsch Calling it “a great addition to our community,” Bridgeview Mayor Steve Landek and village trustees recently celebrated the grand opening of Planet Fitness. The state-of-the-art fitness center opened on Oct. 27 at 8741-51 S. Harlem Ave. “Planet Fitness’s decision to invest in this facility shows their strong commitment and belief in the economic stability and vitality…
Stagg High School’s Fall Craft Show Returns Nov. 13-14
By Melinda Moore Live music performances will steal the show at the Stagg Music Boosters’ annual fall craft fair, which is scheduled for 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 13, and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 14, at Stagg High School, 8015 W. 111th St. in Palos Hills. Madrigals will perform from…
McGovern angry over mess left after water project
By Jeff Vorva Jerry McGovern was mad about it in the summer. He is madder about it in the fall. The Palos Height alderman (4th Ward) said he knows its important for sewer and water projects to be done in his area, but he is disgusted with having to wait so long for post-construction repairs…
Worth Veterans Day Observance recalls 9/11 sacrifices
By Joe Boyle Sunny skies and warmer temperatures were a welcome sight for the annual Veterans Day Observance on Sunday morning in Worth. Worth Mayor Mary Werner reminded a large crowd that attended the event at the Eternal Flame Memorial at 111th Street and Harlem Avenue that the day should be remembered for a lot…
Stagg’s Math in Construction program has bright future
By Jeff Vorva Pardon the pun, but Stagg could be on the ground floor of something big. The Math in Construction course, headed up by the tag team of applied tech teacher Eric Malone and math teacher John Daniels has been getting some attention and the course was highlighted at the Consolidated High School District…
Palos Heights Christmas Parade returns for a second season
By Jeff Vorva There will be another Santa Parade thru Olde Palos event this year. Last year, Heather Begley and Sharon Courtney hastily put a parade together in Palos Heights on short notice because they wanted people who were shut in during the pandemic to get out and watch a small parade in a socially…
Resident asks Orland Park to allow backyard chickens
By Jeff Vorva When it comes to chickens in Orland Park, Heine McCarthy is a known name because of a catering business that has been in the village since the late 1970s. There is another McCarthy, who said he was not affiliated or related to that business, who wants to make an impact in Orland…
Palos Park council delays gaming machine vote
By Jeff Vorva Palos Park Commissioner G. Darryl Reed couldn’t make up his mind about bringing gaming machines to town. Other members of the village council also didn’t appear overly eager to make a decision so the issue will be continued at the Nov. 22 meeting. At the previous board meeting on Oct. 25, Mayor…
Boys Cross Country State Final: Sandburg computes with 3A title; Marist’s Jake Phillips takes fourth in 2A
By Jeff Vorva Correspondent Some exhaustive research combined with a little computer wizardry came up with the prediction that Sandburg would win the IHSA Class 3A title by 106 points. A simulation created by Illinois XC Speed Ratings used each state qualifier’s “previous four rated performances and season rating 1,000 times,” then took the average…
High School Football Class 8A Playoffs: Marist stops Storm, advances to quarterfinals
By Steve Millar Correspondent Marist Senior defensive end Jayson Harris-Woodard and the rest of the RedHawks defense were excited for a new kind of challenge against South Elgin. Coming into Saturday’s Class 8A second-round game, the undefeated Storm was averaging 45 points a game with its triple-option attack. “We don’t usually get to see…
High School Football Class 7A Playoffs: Mount Carmel moves on with batty win over Batavia
By Jeff Vorva Correspondent Dennis Furlong had three choices. The Mount Carmel wide receiver took a handoff from quarterback Blainey Dowling on an untimed down with a Class 7A second-round playoff game on the line and the Caravan down by four points to No. 1-seeded Batavia. His first two choices were to catch the Bulldogs’…
Pro Soccer Report: Red Stars blank Gotham, advance to NWSL semifinals
By Jeff Vorva Correspondent Mallory Pugh and the Chicago Red Stars gave their fans a going-away gift. Playing in Chicago’s final home game of 2021, Pugh scored in the 61st minute and the defense made it stick as the Red Stars beat Gotham, 1-0, in the opening round of the NWSL playoffs Nov. 7 in…
Oak Lawn wins push tax fight
Village could see $1 million from video gaming levy By Dermot Connolly The Illinois Legislature handed Oak Lawn a preliminary victory in its battle against the video gaming industry with its Oct. 28 passage of a video gaming bill that allows the village to impose a “push tax” that could be worth an estimated $1…
Palos Heights Library hosts dog adoption event
By Kelly White Having a piece of her heart devoted to rescue breeds, Karen Skocik always hoped to hold a dog adoption event at the Palos Heights Public Library. “Through the years, my husband and I have adopted four rescues,” Skocik, Head of Circulation at the Palos Heights Public Library, said. “Right now, we have two. It’s very…
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Hundsdorfer brings investigative experience to Capitol News Illinois reporting team
By CAPITOL NEWS ILLINOIS SPRINGFIELD – Capitol News Illinois on Monday welcomed Beth Hundsdorfer to its full-time reporting staff. Hundsdorfer is a veteran investigative reporter who spent nearly 20 years at the Belleville News-Democrat, 13 of which were spent on the investigative beat. She also covered cops and courts. Her investigative journalism included work on…
Democrats deny racial gerrymandering in legislative maps
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois [email protected] SPRINGFIELD – Lawyers for the General Assembly’s Democratic leaders filed documents in federal court Wednesday denying that newly drawn state legislative district maps amount to racial gerrymandering, instead accusing the plaintiffs in the three lawsuits of trying to use race to redraw districts for their own purposes. Wednesday’s…
House Democratic Leader Greg Harris announces retirement plans
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois [email protected] SPRINGFIELD – Illinois House Democratic Leader Greg Harris said Monday he will not seek reelection in 2022 and will step down from the General Assembly after eight terms in office. Harris, 66, of Chicago, is the first openly LGBTQ legislative leader in Illinois history who spent much of…
Niemerg says he wants to ‘speak up’ for downstate Illinois
By ANDREW ADAMS For Capitol News Illinois SPRINGFIELD – Republican state Rep. Adam Niemerg grew up in a family that cared about politics, so it felt like a natural step for him when he ran his first campaign to get a seat in the House of Representatives in 2020. “There’s a lot of things that…
Niemerg says he wants to ‘speak up’ for downstate Illinois
By ANDREW ADAMS For Capitol News Illinois SPRINGFIELD – Republican state Rep. Adam Niemerg grew up in a family that cared about politics, so it felt like a natural step for him when he ran his first campaign to get a seat in the House of Representatives in 2020. “There’s a lot of things that…
Freshman legislator Pacione-Zayas focuses on ‘solutioning’
By MARIA GARDNER For Capitol News Illinois State Sen. Cristina Pacione-Zayas’ friends tease her for changing the meaning of words. “Solution” becomes a verb when she says “I’m about solutioning.” Pacione-Zayas, 43, D-Chicago, has been actively “solutioning” since she took office in December when then-state Sen. Iris Martinez stepped down to become Clerk of the…
Freshman legislator Pacione-Zayas focuses on ‘solutioning’
By MARIA GARDNER For Capitol News Illinois State Sen. Cristina Pacione-Zayas’ friends tease her for changing the meaning of words. “Solution” becomes a verb when she says “I’m about solutioning.” Pacione-Zayas, 43, D-Chicago, has been actively “solutioning” since she took office in December when then-state Sen. Iris Martinez stepped down to become Clerk of the…
State Rep. Dave Vella continues in grandfather’s footsteps
By TAYLOR AVERY For Capitol News Illinois SPRINGFIELD – Behind a window with a “Save the Byron Nuclear Plant” sign taped to the glass, Ricardo Montoya Picazo listened to a father of three wonder aloud if he would still be able to support his children in a few weeks. “If I lose this, the only…
State Rep. Dave Vella continues in grandfather’s footsteps
By TAYLOR AVERY For Capitol News Illinois SPRINGFIELD – Behind a window with a “Save the Byron Nuclear Plant” sign taped to the glass, Ricardo Montoya Picazo listened to a father of three wonder aloud if he would still be able to support his children in a few weeks. “If I lose this, the only…
CAPITOL RECAP: In court documents, Democrats deny racial gerrymandering claims
By CAPITOL NEWS ILLINOIS SPRINGFIELD – Lawyers for the General Assembly’s Democratic leaders filed documents in federal court Wednesday, Nov. 24, denying that newly drawn state legislative district maps amount to racial gerrymandering, instead accusing the plaintiffs in the three lawsuits of trying to use race to redraw districts for their own purposes. Among other…
