Local News
By Bob Bong Brookfield Zoo has been attracting visitors for 90 years. To celebrate the anniversary, the zoo has opened a new attraction that has nothing to do with animals. Last Friday, the zoo opened its Anniversary Ferris Wheel. The towering 110-foot Ferris wheel offers guests unique bird’s-eye views of the park’s gardens, animal habitats, and…
Read More
By Bob Bong The holiday season also marks the beginning of the 2024 election cycle in Illinois as candidates in the March 19 primary have already filed their petitions to run. The 2022 primary was moved to June, but next year’s primary is moving back to its traditional third Tuesday in March date. The biggest…
Read More
George Bailey is coming to Brookfield for the Beds Plus third annual “It’s a Wonderful Life” pop-up bar. Come and get your wings from Nick to help those in need of “a couple of decent rooms and a bath.” Beds Plus works to reduce and end homelessness in your community. The pop-up event is set…
Read More
By Nuha Abdessalam About 50 recruits undergoing Boot Camp at the Great Lakes Naval Base in North Chicago had plenty to be thankful for this Thanksgiving. “This has been so challenging,” said Seaman recruit Cazja Andrades. “These nine weeks have been so hard but such a gift.” “Everyone here has been such a godsend,” said…
Read More
State Senator Mike Porfirio (D-11th) announced that 12 school districts across the area will receive over $6.2 million in additional funding to help address the financial challenges of recent years. “Evidence-based funding supports educational opportunities that contribute to the long-term success of our students,” said Porfirio. “Through this funding formula, we can ensure that a…
Read More
From staff reports A 29-year-old Brookfield man is facing child pornography felonies and an aggravated criminal sexual abuse of a minor charge following an investigation by the Cook County Sheriff’s Police Internet Crimes Against Children Unit, Sheriff Thomas J. Dart announced last week. Sheriff’s police arrested Miguel Montesinos Jr., of the 3400 block of Vernon…
Read More
By Isabella Schreck Many residents will be able to meet their local police officers and police canines, while enjoying food and fun activities at local National Night Out Against Crime events coming up on Tuesday, Aug. 1. The national event, which has occurred every year on the first Tuesday of August for the past four…
Read More
By Isabella Schreck The southwest suburbs are bringing the red, white and blue spirit to the area with festivals, fireworks and fun this Fourth of July. Evergreen Park and Lyons host the earliest Independence Day events. This year’s five-day Lyons Fest begins Friday, June 30, and Evergreen Park’s parade marches the same day. Here’s a…
Read More
By Bob Bong Police departments across the south suburbs are gearing up for another high-flying fundraiser for Special Olympics Illinois. Police will be hanging out at more than 325 Dunkin’ Donut coffee shops across Illinois starting at 5 a.m. Friday, May 19, for another edition of Cop on a Rooftop. They will be collecting donations…
Read More
By Steve Metsch A Brookfield man has been charged with battery in what La Grange officials are calling “an altercation” at Lyons Township High School that left one youth with “severe injuries.” La Grange Police on Friday arrested James Hernandez Jr., and charged him with battery in relation to a May 1 fight at the high…
Read More
Billions of cicadas get ready to raise a racket
By Kelly White If you haven’t heard the buzz yet, you will soon. With 2024 marking a big year for periodical cicadas in Illinois, billions of the red-eyed buggers will soon be making an appearance. Periodical cicada broods XIII and XIX will be emerging throughout much of the state at the same time. Although exact…
Softball | Jocelyn Hovanec scores two runs, Ks 12 in Chicago Christian win
By Xavier Sanchez Correspondent Chicago Christian is working to find its footing in the inaugural season of the Chicagoland Christian Conference. The Knights entered this week 6-8 overall and 4-6 in the CCC, putting them in fifth place with just two conference games to play among their final seven regular-season contests. The Knights have had…
Boys Volleyball | Chicago Christian finishes April strong, takes second at Ridgewood Invitational
By Xavier Sanchez Correspondent A busy and largely successful final seven days of April saw Chicago Christian briefly climb back to the .500 mark after a tough first month of the season. The Knights (11-12, 4-4 Chicagoland Christian Conference) have won seven of their past 10 matches, all of which were played over a seven-day…
Boys Volleyball | Marist hands Glenbard West first loss of season
By Jeff Vorva Correspondent Marist was scary good in the first set. The RedHawks won it 25-12. Even by Marist standards, that’s pretty impressive. Complete dominance. What’s even more stunning is that it came against the second-ranked team in the nation. The RedHawks, who came into the match ranked sixth in the country in the…
Sophia Smith’s brace sinks Red Stars
By Jeff Vorva Correspondent Home has not been that sweet lately for the Chicago Red Stars. The team lost its second straight game at SeatGeek Stadium with a 2-0 setback to Portland in front of an announced crowd of 4,443 on April 27. Portland star Sophia Smith scored in the 10th and 26th minutes, then…
Nazareth Academy celebrates ‘special talent’ J.J. McCarthy in NFL Draft
By Steve Metsch Dennis Moran has no doubts that J.J. McCarthy – the former Nazareth Academy quarterback who is now with the Minnesota Vikings – will succeed in the National Football League. Moran was among about 60 or so Nazareth Academy fans, friends and coaches who gathered Thursday night at The Stadium Club in McCook…
Brother Rice names Al Perez next soccer coach
By Jeff Vorva Correspondent A few new coaches are dotting the area high school athletic scene. One of the more notable hires was Brother Rice bringing Al Perez aboard as the soccer coach. Perez led Chicago Public League power Washington to a Class 2A state championship in 2013, a fourth-place finish in 2015 and a…
Illinois News
As state continues to inventory lead pipes, full replacement deadlines are decades away
By COLE LONGCOR Capitol News Illinois Clongcor@capitolnewsillinois.com Lead pipes in public water systems and drinking fixtures have been banned in new construction since 1986, when Congress amended the Safe Drinking Water Act, but they are still in use across the U.S. and in Illinois. The presence of lead pipes has persisted due in part to…
Capitol Briefs: Bill creating new early childhood agency among 244 to advance
By ALEX ABBEDUTO HANNAH MEISEL & COLE LONGCOR Capitol News Illinois news@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – Gov. JB Pritzker’s plan to create a new state agency to oversee Illinois’ various early childhood programs moved forward on Friday after the state Senate’s unanimous approval. It was one of 244 bills that cleared the Senate this week. Early childhood…
INVESTIGATE MIDWEST: Farmers have clamored for the Right to Repair for years. It’s getting little traction in John Deere’s home state
By Jennifer Bamberg, Investigate Midwest Originally published April 10, 2024 During the 2023 harvest season, one of Jake Lieb’s tractors quit working. A week later, his combine stopped working, too. Both were new — and he was locked out from making any repairs himself because of software restrictions embedded in the machines. Instead, a technician…
Capitol Briefs: Pritzker appoints first-ever Prisoner Review Board director; Chicago advances migrant funding
By JERRY NOWICKI & DILPREET RAJU Capitol News Illinois news@capitolnewsillinois.com Weeks after two high-profile resignations at the Illinois Prisoner Review Board, Gov. JB Pritzker on Monday appointed the first-ever executive director to help lead the beleaguered agency. To fill the newly created position, the governor tapped Jim Montgomery, who most recently served as director of…
Advocates renew push to tighten firearm laws aimed at protecting domestic violence victims
By COLE LONGCOR Capitol News Illinois Clongcor@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – Advocates for stricter gun laws rallied at the state Capitol Tuesday for a measure aimed at protecting domestic violence victims and two other criminal justice reforms. The bills are backed by organizations such as Moms Demand Action and One Aim Illinois among others. “These policies support…
Education leaders seek added state funding to help districts accommodate influx of migrants
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois phancock@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – The recent surge of international migrants arriving in Illinois has brought with it a host of new challenges for state and local officials. Those range from filling their most basic needs like emergency food, clothing and shelter, to more complex issues like lining them up with…
Solar investments take center stage as questions loom on state’s renewable future
By ANDREW ADAMS Capitol News Illinois aadams@capitolnewsillinois.com BOLINGBROOK – A manufacturer in the southwest suburbs of Chicago received $2.6 million from electric utility Commonwealth Edison this week as part of a state program for generating its own electricity using solar panels and storing it in one of the largest batteries in the country. But even…
Capitol Briefs: Lawmakers, advocates again call for affordable housing tax credit
By DILPREET RAJU Capitol News Illinois draju@capitolnewsillinois.com Housing advocates are renewing a push to fund a $20 million state affordable housing tax credit in the upcoming state budget. Supporters of the “Build Illinois Homes Tax Credit Act,” modeled after a federal tax credit program, claimed it would result in over 1,000 affordable housing units being…
State Senate advances bill to ban food additives linked to health problems
By COLE LONGCOR Capitol News Illinois clongcor@capitolnewsillinois.com The Illinois Senate passed a bill Thursday that would ban four food additives that are found in common products including candy, soda and baked goods. Senate Bill 2637, known as the Illinois Food Safety Act, passed on a 37-15 bipartisan vote and will head to the House for…
State Senate advances bill to ban food additives linked to health problems
By COLE LONGCOR Capitol News Illinois clongcor@capitolnewsillinois.com The Illinois Senate passed a bill Thursday that would ban four food additives that are found in common products including candy, soda and baked goods. Senate Bill 2637, known as the Illinois Food Safety Act, passed on a 37-15 bipartisan vote and will head to the House for…