Local News

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Man shot in La Grange; suspect arrested in Stickney

By Steve Metsch / June 13, 2024 /

By Steve Metsch A man was shot Tuesday afternoon in La Grange, according to a news release received Wednesday from the police department. A suspect has been apprehended, the release said. The shooting victim remains in stable condition at a local hospital, the release said. La Grange Police, working with the Major Case Assistance Team,…

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Folks urged to enter costume contest for La Grange Pet Parade

By Steve Metsch / May 27, 2024 / Comments Off on Folks urged to enter costume contest for La Grange Pet Parade

By Steve Metsch About 40,000 people are expected along the streets of downtown La Grange on Saturday morning June 1, with some of them dressing in costumes for the 78th annual La Grange Pet Parade. A costume contest has long been part of the parade, Molly Price, the parade’s executive director, said on May 23.…

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Nazareth Academy celebrates ‘special talent’ J.J. McCarthy in NFL Draft

By Steve Metsch / April 28, 2024 / Comments Off on 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…

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La Grange cancels Endless Summerfest over higher costs

By Steve Metsch / April 12, 2024 / Comments Off on La Grange cancels Endless Summerfest over higher costs

By Steve Metsch It turns out the summer is not endless, at least not in La Grange. Endless Summerfest, a three-day event held the first weekend in August at Gordon Park for many years, will not be held this year. The cancelation was announced Tuesday in a joint new release from the La Grange Business…

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Cardinal Cupich celebrates Mass on ‘a special day’ at St. Cletus

By Steve Metsch / April 9, 2024 / Comments Off on Cardinal Cupich celebrates Mass on ‘a special day’ at St. Cletus

By Steve Metsch After waiting patiently in line, Indian Head Park resident Tim Kyzivat enjoyed a rare chance to visit with Cardinal Blase J. Cupich. Kyzivat, 77, was among several hundred people who attended the 11 a.m. Mass said by the Archbishop of Chicago at St. Cletus Roman Catholic Church in La Grange on Sunday.…

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Campaign 2024: Rashid to seek re-election in 21st District 

By Bob Bong / December 15, 2023 / Comments Off on Campaign 2024: Rashid to seek re-election in 21st District 

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…

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News from Springfield: 12 school districts to receive an additional $6.2 million 

By Bob Bong / September 2, 2023 /

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…

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La Grange tennis courts will soon re-open after settlement

By Steve Metsch / July 10, 2023 / Comments Off on La Grange tennis courts will soon re-open after settlement

By Steve Metsch Tennis balls will soon again be flying at La Grange courts that have been closed for more than a year. Thanks to an agreement between La Grange School District 105 and the La Grange Park District, three courts at the northwest corner of 53rd Street and Catherine Avenue will again be open…

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LTHS names Nava to fill board of education vacancy

By Bob Bong / July 10, 2023 / Comments Off on LTHS names Nava to fill board of education vacancy

From staff reports The Lyons Township High School District 204 Board of Education announced last week that Elvia Nava, of LaGrange Park, had been appointed to the board, effective July 5. Nava fills the vacancy created by the recent resignation of Julie Swinehart. She will serve until the April 2025 consolidated election. Nava works in the construction…

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Nazareth retires Julian Love’s No. 20, inducts him into Roadrunners Hall of Fame

By Steve Metsch / July 9, 2023 /

By Steve Metsch Julian Love was not happy when he fell short of making the Nazareth varsity football team as a freshman. During the summer before bis sophomore year, he worked out every day, improved his skills and earn a varsity spot. And he did not disappoint, helping the Roadrunners to back-to-back state championships in…

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Riot Fest abandons Chicago park for SeatGeek Stadium

By Bob Bong Last year, Lyrical Lemonade moved its Summer Smash hip-hop music festival from Chicago’s Douglass Park to Bridgeview’s SeatGeek Stadium. Thousands of fans poured into the stadium at 7100 S. Harlem Ave. over the course of three days and, by most accounts, enjoyed the experience. Summer Smash returned to SeatGeek this weekend for…

dvn 6-13-24 township repair cafe for 6-15

Repair Cafe this Saturday at Township of Lyons HQ

By Steve Metsch Repair cafes have become quite the thing for the Township of Lyons. So much so that another repair cafe will be offered from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. this Saturday, June 15, at the township office, 6404 Joliet Road in Countryside. A repair café held in May was a smashing success, Township…

Father’s Day will be especially hard for Jonathan and Kayla, children of the late Arturo Cantu, one of his sisters said. (Supplied photo)

‘They didn’t have to kill my brother’ – sister of slain Bridgeview man

By Steve Metsch Arturo Cantu should be celebrating two big events this weekend. He would have celebrated his 40th birthday on June 14. And, a sister said, he would have enjoyed Father’s Day on Sunday, spending time with family and his two young children. Instead, 10 family members and friends gathered in a Bridgeview courtroom…

Sisto Brito

‘You just learn to live with the pain’

Status hearing in July for McCook murder By Steve Metsch The attorney representing a Chicago man charged with murdering a Blue Island man in McCook in February told a judge Wednesday there’s been “a significant and outstanding discovery in this matter.” Attorney Damon Cheronis made his comment before Cook County Circuit Court Judge John “Terry…

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Man shot in La Grange; suspect arrested in Stickney

By Steve Metsch A man was shot Tuesday afternoon in La Grange, according to a news release received Wednesday from the police department. A suspect has been apprehended, the release said. The shooting victim remains in stable condition at a local hospital, the release said. La Grange Police, working with the Major Case Assistance Team,…

Softball stock

Softball | Marist will play for state title for fourth straight season

By Randy Whalen Correspondent Marist returned to the state title game for the fourth straight season with a 7-1 victory over Mundelein in the semifinals, held June 7 at Louisville Slugger Sports Complex in Peoria. The Mustangs (36-2) were making their first appearance at state since 1996. “We have a core group of returners,” Marist coach…

Terrence Hickey is retiring at the end of June after working 18 years as a building inspector for the village of McCook. (Photo by Steve Metsch) 

McCook building inspector retires after 18 years

By Steve Metsch After 18 years of inspecting buildings, be it a modest bi-level house or a sprawling multi-million-dollar warehouse, Terrence Hickey is retiring from the village of McCook. His retirement takes effect June 28, Mayor Terrance Carr said during the June 3 meeting of the village board. “I’m jealous,” Carr said. “(He’s worked on)…

Illinois News

Pritzker signs rental assistance bill, says he will ‘phase out’ eviction moratorium by August

Pritzker signs rental assistance bill, says he will ‘phase out’ eviction moratorium by August

By TIM KIRSININKAS Capitol News Illinoistkirsininkas@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – Gov. JB Pritzker announced Monday the state will plan to “phase out” its moratorium on pandemic-related evictions by August and launched a new program to provide assistance to renters and homeowners financially impacted by COVID-19. The announcement regarding the planned end of the eviction moratorium came as…

Senate passes expansion of maternal care coverage

Senate passes expansion of maternal care coverage

By RAYMON TRONCOSO Capitol News Illinoisrtroncoso@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois Senate passed legislation Wednesday expanding maternal and postpartum care in Illinois, as well as changing existing statutes to be more inclusive of different gender identities. Senate Bill 967, sponsored by Elgin Democratic Sen. Cristina Castro, passed the Senate floor Wednesday on a 58-0 vote. It…

State takes action against academy that serves children with disabilities

State takes action against academy that serves children with disabilities

By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinoisphancock@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – Officials from multiple state agencies said Friday that they are cutting ties with a residential school that serves children in state care with mental and developmental disabilities after an independent review documented reports of mistreatment of youth at the facility. Northern Illinois Academy, in Aurora, is an…

Former LaSalle home administrators misled Pritzker administration, officials claim

Former LaSalle home administrators misled Pritzker administration, officials claim

By SARAH MANSUR Capitol News Illinois smansur@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD — Top officials from Gov. JB Pritzker’s administration claimed Thursday that they were misled by leadership at the state Department of Veterans’ Affairs regarding a deadly COVID-19 outbreak at the state-run LaSalle Veterans’ Home. Deputy Gov. Sol Flores and Illinois Department of Public Health Director Ngozi Ezike…

CAPITOL RECAP: State revenue picture improves by hundreds of millions

CAPITOL RECAP: State revenue picture improves by hundreds of millions

By Capitol News Illinois SPRINGFIELD – Illinois budget officials said Thursday that revenues are flowing into state coffers at a faster pace than previously estimated, meaning lawmakers will have more money to work with as they try to finalize a new budget for the fiscal year that begins July 1. The Governor’s Office of Management…

House advances firearm restraining order expansion

House advances firearm restraining order expansion

By RAYMON TRONCOSO Capitol News Illinoisrtroncoso@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois House on Wednesday passed a bill that would expand the scope of the Firearms Restraining Order Act and spread awareness of the law in law enforcement and the general public. Skokie Democratic Rep. Denyse Stoneback, a freshman legislator, introduced House Bill 1092 last month in…

State’s revenue picture improves as economy recovers

State’s revenue picture improves as economy recovers

By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinoisphancock@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – Illinois budget officials said Thursday that revenues are flowing into state coffers at a faster pace than previously estimated, meaning lawmakers will have more money to work with as they try to finalize a new budget for the fiscal year that begins July 1. The Governor’s Office…

Lawmakers consider lowering trailer license fee

Lawmakers consider lowering trailer license fee

By GRACE BARBIC Capitol News Illinoisgbarbic@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – In 2019, the fee for licensing a small trailer in Illinois jumped from $18 to $118. Lawmakers are now looking for a solution to lower that fee without causing major drops in infrastructure funding. The $100 fee increase was included in Gov. JB Pritzker’s 2019 Rebuild Illinois…

COVID-19 Update: ‘Bridge’ phase to begin Friday as state seeks to incentivize vaccination

COVID-19 Update: ‘Bridge’ phase to begin Friday as state seeks to incentivize vaccination

By JERRY NOWICKI Capitol News IllinoisJnowicki@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – The state is opening vaccinations to Illinoisans age 12-15, and a major theme park operator is offering 50,000 free admission tickets in an effort to encourage vaccination in that age group. That news came as the governor’s office confirmed the state will enter the “bridge” phase of…

CAPITOL RECAP: State leaders plan to talk to Treasury about stimulus spending

CAPITOL RECAP: State leaders plan to talk to Treasury about stimulus spending

By Capitol News Illinois SPRINGFIELD – State officials said Wednesday, May 12, they would petition the U.S. Treasury to use federal stimulus funding to repay borrowing from the Federal Reserve that was undertaken amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The state borrowed $3.2 billion from the Federal Reserve during the pandemic, plus another $400 million borrowed from…