Local News
Hills Chamber to bring back Business and Community Expo on Saturday
From staff reports The Hills Chamber of Commerce will once again host the Business and Community Expo from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, March 19, at Conrady Junior High School, 7950 W. 97th St., Hickory Hills. The expo returns after a two-year absence due to the pandemic. Over 50 exhibitors are scheduled to take part in the expo. Local businesses, direct sales…
Lake Katherine goes green for St. Patrick’s Day
By Kelly White The Chicago River wasn’t the only body of water to take on a shade of green this St. Patrick’s Day. To celebrate the annual day of the Irish, Lake Katherine Nature Center & Botanical Gardens, 7402 W. Lake Katherine Dr., Palos Height, created a little holiday magic as volunteers and staff dyed…
Palos Park police warn drivers to stay safe on St. Patrick’s Day
From staff reports Help us to keep Palos Park’s roads the safest in the nation by planning ahead to stay safe on March 17. Palos Park police are encouraging folks to plan ahead for a safe ride home and urge everyone to have a plan this St. Patrick’s Day. If you plan on drinking, designate…
Orland teen charged in Oak Lawn shooting
By Bob Bong A 16-year-old Orland Park youth has been charged as an adult in the shooting last week of an 18-year-old Oak Lawn youth. Police arrested the Orland teen just hours after the shooting. He was charged with aggravated battery with a deadly weapon and attempted first-degree murder. Gerald Vetter, Division Chief of Investigations,…
Palos Heights police charge second man in armed robbery
From staff reports A second man, who police say was the brother of the first man arrested, has been charged for his role in an armed robbery that took place at a gas station on December 28. Marlon Triplett, 32, was picked up after police in Indiana were able to obtain a nationwide arrest warrant…
Ukraine brings out emotions from Palos Heights council
By Jeff Vorva There was a mixture of gratitude, sadness and anger at Tuesday night’s Palos Heights council meeting regarding Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. First, the gratitude. Alderman Jerry McGovern thanked several of the other aldermen for “running around half this city and other suburbs donating and collecting everything under the sun so they could…
Bald is beautiful
Most Holy Redeemer resumes St. Baldrick’s shaving By Kelly White When 6-year-old Luke Sullivan heard about Most Holy Redeemer’s St. Baldrick’s event to take a stand against cancer, he knew immediately that he wanted to be a part. Not only did he do that, he also raised more money than anyone else for the effort.…
EPCHS art department gets $1,000 grant from credit union
From staff reports The art department at Evergreen Park Community High School will benefit from winning the 2022 grant award from the Evergreen Park Schools Federal Credit Union. The $1,000 grant will allow two EPCHS art classes to provide students with the opportunity to go above and beyond the basics in the art curriculum. Art…
Oak Lawn-Hometown Middle School shares the love
By Kelly White Oak Lawn-Hometown Middle School students shared the love in February. The school, 5345 W. 99th St. in Oak Lawn, held a Hershey Heartwarming Project, where students used green screen technology to make videos of picture book read aloud and activities for pediatric patients at Hope Children’s Hospital. “Reading books can take you…
Bridgeview buys new digital radio system for police
By Steve Metsch Bridgeview is spending $250,000 for a state-of-the-art radio system that Police Chief Ricardo Mancha said will be a vast improvement for the department. The village board at its March 2 meeting unanimously approved the purchase of 45 portable digital radios and accessories from Motorola Solutions. “Doing this is going to save us…
Forest View trades K-9 officer to Stickney
By Carol McGowan After working with the Forest View Police Department, Ali, a 5-year-old male German shepherd, has a new home with the neighboring Stickney Police Department. Forest View Village Administrator Michael Dropka said it worked out well for all involved. “The idea came about because of our great relationship with the Village of Stickney,”…
Lyons hits jackpot with gaming machine fee hike
By Steve Metsch The village of Lyons stands to benefit greatly from a new state law that allows non-home rule communities to charge higher annual fees for the gaming terminal licensing fee. The state previously had a cap of $25 on the fee, Mayor Christopher Getty said. That’s been boosted to $250. At its March…
Beloved Attorney, David C. Dineff, passes away
By Carol McGowan David C. Dineff, a well-known and longtime area attorney, passed away unexpectedly on March 8. He was 73. To know David, was to love David. To his family and friends, he was the most special person. To his clients, which are too many to count over the years, he was caring and genuine.…
Lifelong area resident, Betty Brady, passes away at 94
By Carol McGowan Betty Brady, a lifelong area resident of Summit and Bedford Park, and the mother of Bedford Park Mayor David Brady, passed away on February 26 at the age of 94. She was born in Summit on November 3, 1927. Mrs. Brady graduated from Zion Lutheran School in Summit in 1941, and from…
Palos Heights officials hear from both sides on video gaming
By Jeff Vorva Palos Heights officials took the temperature of the community about video gaming Monday night. It was very warm for both sides. More than 80 people showed up at the Palos Heights Recreation Center’s Orchard Room for special meeting of the License, Permits and Franchise Committee for a chance to air their opinions.…
Rossberg takes over Argo football program
By Carol McGowan Phillip Rossberg may be the new head football coach at Argo High School, but he’s been a familiar face on the sidelines and in the classroom at the school for the last seven years. He started working at the school in 2015, and along with being the new head football coach, he’s…
Roberts Road, 87th Street overnight closures start March 14
From staff reports Overnight road closures with detours will be scheduled on Roberts Road and 87th Street during the next two weeks to accommodate mainline bridge beam placement on the Central Tri-State Tollway (I-294) Project. Overnight lane closures will also be scheduled in both directions on I-294 during this time to complete the work. The temporary closures are necessary to…
Joliet Road reduced to one lane in Indian Head Park thru the summer
From staff reports The Illinois Tollway is scheduled to begin a long-term lane closure starting March 14 on Joliet Road under the Tri-State Tollway (I-294) in Indian Head Park as work resumes to rebuild the I-294 bridge over Joliet Road. Reconstruction of bridges and ramps in the I-55 Interchange area is necessary to accommodate the…
Feds bust Madigan
Neighbors vent disgust with former political powerhouse By Tim Hadac (Editor’s note: this story is a companion piece to this Capitol News Illinois story: https://www.southwestregionalpublishing.com/capitol-news-post/the-madigan-enterprise-inside-the-federal-indictment-of-the-states-former-speaker/) Southwest Siders reacted largely with disgust, cynicism and even a bit of resignation to the news that former longtime political powerhouse Michael J. Madigan has been indicted by a federal…
St. Patrick’s Day Parade coming
Families decked out in green are expected to line Archer Avenue this Saturday, March 12 for Garfield Ridge’s annual St. Patrick’s Day Parade. The festive event, enjoyed by the Irish and the “Irish for a day,” is organized and hosted by the Clear-Ridge Men’s Social Athletic Club (SAC) and the International Union of Operating Engineers Local…
Illinois News
House GOP advances 2 human trafficking victim protection bills as others remain in limbo
By COLE LONGCOR Capitol News Illinois clongcor@capitolnewsillinois.com After Illinois received another failing grade from a national advocacy group, state House Republicans have introduced legislation aimed at further protecting victims and prosecuting perpetrators of human trafficking. Shared Hope International, an advocacy organization that works to prevent sex trafficking, said in its 2023 Illinois report card that…
Hundreds of bills pass, including changes to state’s biometric data privacy law
By HANNAH MEISEL COLE LONGCOR & ALEX ABEDDUTO Capitol News Illinois news@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – Lawmakers passed more than 200 bills this week ahead of their scheduled May 24 adjournment. Many of the measures will soon head to Gov. JB Pritzker, including a bill that changes how damages accrue under Illinois’ first-in-the-nation biometric data privacy law.…
Pritzker pledges to expand access to mental health care in Illinois
By DILPREET RAJU Capitol News Illinois draju@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – In the middle of Mental Health Awareness Month, Gov. JB Pritzker and Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton hosted a panel in Springfield this week at which he pledged to expand the state’s behavioral health services. With several dozen services providers from around the state in attendance, Pritzker…
With 1 week left in session, Pritzker admin says all revenue options remain on the table
By JERRY NOWICKI Capitol News Illinois jnowicki@capitolnewsillinois.com While the governor’s office instructed its agency directors to prepare for $800 million in potential budget cuts last week, all facets of his plan to raise $1.1 billion in revenue to avoid those cuts remain under consideration. Read more: ANALYSIS: ‘Significant enough’ opposition to Pritzker’s revenue plan leads to…
Illinois launches summer food assistance program
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois phancock@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – The state is launching a new program to provide food assistance during the summer for families with children who qualify for free or reduced-price meals at school. Gov. JB Pritzker joined other state officials and the U.S. Department of Agriculture Thursday to announce that Illinois will…
Lawmakers consider tax break for news publishers, state-sponsored journalism scholarships
By ALEX ABBEDUTO & ANDREW ADAMS Capitol News Illinois news@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – A new measure being debated in the Illinois General Assembly would create a tax credit for certain news publishers based on the number of reporters they employ. The proposal from Sen. Steve Stadelman, D-Rockford, is part of a package of policies that he…
House gives OK to new state agency focused on early childhood programs
By PETER HANCOCK Capitol News Illinois phancock@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois House gave final passage Thursday to a bill establishing a new cabinet-level state agency whose mission will be to provide a kind of one-stop shop for services focusing on early childhood development and education. By the time it’s fully operational in 2026, the new…
As vacated Centralia funeral home prepares for new tenant, owner makes a startling find
By BETH HUNDSDORFER Capitol News Illinois bhundsdorfer@capitolnewsillinois.com In the basement of a Centralia funeral home in a dark hallway off the embalming room, tucked inside a nook behind two steel plates and a door, a visitor found three disembodied, neatly wrapped human legs, two of them marked with names and dated to the 1960s. The…
Illinois Supreme Court considers expectation of privacy in hospitals
By DILPREET RAJU & ANDREW ADAMS Capitol News Illinois news@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – While Cortez Turner was in a hospital room being treated for a gunshot wound to his leg in 2016, police took his clothes. Now, the Illinois Supreme Court is weighing whether that action violated Turner’s expectation of privacy under the Fourth Amendment. The…
Capitol Briefs: House OKs program for student teacher stipends – but not the funding for it
By PETER HANCOCK & ANDREW CAMPBELL Capitol News Illinois news@capitolnewsillinois.com SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois House approved a bill Tuesday to allow student teachers to receive stipends while earning their education degree, even though the money needed to fund those stipends is unlikely to be included in next year’s budget. House Bill 4652, by Rep. Barbara…