Stories by Heather Cherone

Illinois will close five large juvenile detention centers as part of a plan unveiled Friday by Gov. J.B. Pritzker in an effort to “transform” the current system, which Pritzker called “too punitive and too ineffective.”

“Our small businesses play a large role in contributing to the vibrancy of our city which is why it is essential that we continue to offer them assistance during what may be the most difficult time that many of them face,” said Mayor Lori Lightfoot in a statement.

Aldermen raked officials from Commonwealth Edison over the coals Thursday, demanding answers about the firm’s admission that it engaged in a yearslong bribery scheme even as officials warned the city would have no choice but to extend the utility’s lucrative city contract.

The three firms will scatter 10,000 scooters across much of the city — four times as many allowed during the summer of 2019 — but the scooters will not be allowed downtown or along the Lakefront or 606 trails, according to the city’s rules.

After nearly 100 days at the helm of the Chicago Police Department, the superintendent’s tenure has been anything but average, as he faces an ongoing pandemic, protests and a surge in gun violence. 

Mayor Lori Lightfoot delivered a full-throated defense of American democracy Wednesday before urging Chicagoans to safeguard the freedoms enshrined in the Bill of Rights by responding to the 2020 census.

Illinois and Chicago officials disagree on how to calculate the single most important benchmark for tracking the spread of the coronavirus, even as the number of confirmed cases of the virus continues to rise statewide.

Visitors to Chicago from Wisconsin, Missouri, North Dakota and Nebraska will be required to quarantine for two weeks starting Friday in an effort to stop the spread of the coronavirus, city officials announced Tuesday.

Mayor Lori Lightfoot warned Commonwealth Edison officials Monday that the utility would have to make significant changes if it wants to keep its lucrative city contract following a yearslong bribery scheme.

Visitors from Wisconsin to Chicago will soon be required to quarantine for two weeks in an effort to stop the spread of the coronavirus, Mayor Lori Lightfoot said Monday.

Chicagoans who lost their jobs or found their paychecks scaled back because of the coronavirus pandemic can apply for a second round of grants of up to $3,000 to help them pay their rent or mortgages.

City officials fined five businesses and shut down a Beverly bar for violating rules designed to slow the spread of the coronavirus, officials said Monday.

While some aldermen praised Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s decision to take down the statues of Christopher Columbus, others said Friday she should not have acted unilaterally in the middle of the night.

Even though the Obama Presidential Center has yet to receive final approval to break ground, Woodlawn’s real estate market is already bubbling, with the median sale price for single-family homes rising 90% from 2010 to 2019.

The three-week reprieve ordered by Gov. J.B. Pritzker allows state officials time to set up a program to distribute more than $300 million in help to landlords and tenants struggling to make ends meet during the coronavirus pandemic.

President Donald Trump will send “more than 100” federal agents to crack down on surging crime in Chicago — but will not order a Portland-style paramilitary strike force to patrol the city.

Mayor Lori Lightfoot has repeatedly said 30 days’ notice is not nearly enough time for a single person, let alone a family, to find a new place to live and move. Now, long-term renters will get more notice of an eviction without cause.

The Chicago Police Department can no longer impound cars that may have been used to commit a crime following a unanimous vote Wednesday to rein in the program in an effort to ease the debt burden imposed on low-income residents.

An effort by Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s administration to settle a lawsuit that sought to force the Chicago Police Department to turn over nearly five decades’ worth of secret files stalled Wednesday amid opposition from progressive aldermen.

Mayor Lori Lightfoot sought to calm fears Tuesday that the president plans to send 150 unidentified, secret federal agents to Chicago, saying she has been told it will not be a “Portland-style” deployment. “We do not welcome dictatorship,” she said. 

For the second week in a row, Mayor Lori Lightfoot expanded the city’s quarantine order. Starting Friday, visitors from Kansas will be required to quarantine for two weeks in effort to stop the spread of the coronavirus. 

Mayor Lori Lightfoot says President Donald Trump’s plan to send 150 federal agents to Chicago would do much more harm than good, warning the president in a letter Monday that agents would “foment a wave massive wave of opposition.”

Chicago voters will get a chance to weigh in on three issues of citywide concern during the Nov. 3 election — but they will not get a chance to have their say on the hot-button issues of police accountability or the sale of e-cigarettes.

Aldermen agreed on Monday to settle a class-action lawsuit that claimed the city’s impound program was unconstitutional, and made it impossible for Chicagoans to get their cars back after they were towed away.

Aldermen on Monday advanced an agreement to settle a lawsuit that sought to force the Chicago Police Department to turn over nearly five decades’ worth of secret files detailing allegations of misconduct by officers.

Chicago bars will no longer be able to serve customers indoors starting Friday as part of a rollback ordered by Mayor Lori Lightfoot following an increase in the number of coronavirus cases.