Since the outbreak of COVID-19 in Illinois, more than half of the families the social service agency works with are now facing unemployment or underemployment. We speak with the group’s director of Latino and youth services. 

Ridership on city bus and train lines is down, but the CTA is still operating its regular schedule. What the agency is – and is not – doing to protect riders and operators during the pandemic.

The North Shore community is home to dozens of restaurants and bars, but since the COVID-19 outbreak and ensuing stay-at-home order in Illinois, the city’s businesses have had to make some major changes. 

Many animal shelters are temporarily closed to the public under the state’s stay-at-home order, but they’re still offering essential services — and they’re bracing for an uptick in need as pet owners get sick and lose paychecks.

How much food should you be buying per trip? How to draw the line between hoarding and stocking up? A Chicago dietitian shares her advice for grocery shopping during the pandemic.

The city’s buses and trains are largely empty these days, as many Chicagoans heed calls from Mayor Lori Lightfoot and Gov. J.B. Pritzker to stay home.

All Chicago neighborhoods have been hit hard by shutdowns related to the coronavirus, but lower-income communities that rely on social service organizations are facing a unique set of challenges.

Breakthrough Fresh Market food pantry in Chicago’s East Garfield Park neighborhood usually provides groceries to about 70 people a day, three times a week. But in recent weeks, the pantry has seen its numbers spike at least 25%.

In just the past month, Illinois unemployment claims ballooned to more than 133,000 as people lost their jobs in the midst of the pandemic – and it could be just the beginning. Is a rent freeze the right answer?

It’s the first of the month, and everybody knows the rent’s due. For millions of Americans, Wednesday is the first time the landlord is knocking on the door since the coronavirus outbreak turned the economy upside down.

How is the coronavirus impacting residents and businesses in Chicago’s Uptown neighborhood? We ask 46th Ward Ald. James Cappleman, who represents much of the North Side neighborhood.

With the announcement of an extended stay-at-home order, an already difficult situation becomes more challenging. We report from Uptown, one of the city’s most diverse neighborhoods, both by income and ethnicity. 

We speak with Martin Sorge of Uptown United, the neighborhood’s chamber of commerce, to see how area businesses and local nonprofits are making ends meet during the pandemic.

Grocery stores remain one of the few places in Chicago where large numbers of people are still able to mingle, and that — rightfully — has put both employees and customers on edge.

Beverly and surrounding communities have been hit hard with business closures and worker furloughs. But the area is infused with a spirit of collaboration, especially when it comes to helping those most vulnerable to the virus.

Small business owners are awaiting help from the $2 trillion rescue package signed into law Friday. But with bills fast coming due, no end to business closings and an economy that’s all but shut down, owners are worried about survival.