Stories by Kristen Thometz

Join Chicagoans and their pooches across the city each night at 8 p.m. to show your support for health care workers, first responders and essential employees by howling.

The United Nations created World Bee Day to raise awareness of these pollinators and the threats they face. The honey bee may get all the glory, but there are 400-500 species of bees native to Illinois. 

Oprah Winfrey is giving grants to the cities she’s called home through her $12 million coronavirus relief fund. After speaking with Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot and other leaders, Winfrey decided to give $5 million to Live Healthy Chicago.

More people died in traffic crashes in Illinois during the first quarter of this year compared to last year, according to an analysis released Wednesday by the National Safety Council.

A Cook County judge has rejected a push to overturn a temporary ban that has prevented children in foster care from having supervised visits with their parents and siblings during the COVID-19 pandemic.

For the first time since the coronavirus pandemic hit, Illinois lawmakers will return to Springfield on Wednesday for a special session. It’s sure to be special in more ways than one.

We check out the Extreme Protection Suits created by Chicago-based artist and art teacher Claire Ashley, who says she was interested in “using humor as a way to deal with trauma.”

It’s said laughter is the best medicine, and while that might not be part of the CDC’s official guidelines, comedians everywhere are reaching out to audiences online, hoping for some connection and a lot of laughter.

Logan Square has seen just over 1,000 cases of COVID-19. We speak about the pandemic with the 35th Ward alderman who represents part of the neighborhood in the City Council.

The Northwest Side neighborhood has been transformed by development in recent years, yielding dozens of trendy businesses and new homes. But the influx of wealthier residents has led to significant displacement of longtime residents.

Wednesday marks one year in office for Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot, who began her tenure as a political outsider determined to uproot the old system of aldermanic control. But that all changed two months ago. 

Facing the gravest U.S. economic crisis in decades, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell offered Congress contrasting views Tuesday of what the government’s most urgent priority should be.

Barbershops, salons, offices and manufacturing could reopen in just 10 days if the state moves into the next phase of Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s Restore Illinois plan. What that phase looks like.

Chicago officials have ordered General Iron to cease operations while Monday’s explosion is investigated, but residents, who have been fighting for a shutdown of the facility, say the action doesn’t go far enough.

Aldermen on Tuesday advanced a proposal to build what could become the second-tallest building in Chicago — and the third tallest in the U.S. — on what is now a parking lot next to the Tribune Tower on Michigan Avenue.

For the third year in a row, Chicago has set a new record for the most precipitation in May. But as rainy as it’s been, it will take an epic deluge to rival the city’s wettest month of all time.

The city says what’s left of the Crawford Coal Plant needs to be demolished out of safety concerns. But this time, officials promise ample water will be on site to guard against a repeat of April’s botched implosion.

Aamir Mohammed, 30, was ordered held on $5,000 bond during a hearing Tuesday, four days after a confrontation outside Ms. T’s Southern Fried Chicken in Lakeview left a 24-year-old woman with multiple serious injuries.

Watch the May 19, 2020 full episode of “Chicago Tonight.”

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said Tuesday that the Fed’s lending programs for medium-sized businesses and state and local governments would begin operating by the end of this month.

The village of Skokie is home to just one of seven state-certified municipal health departments in Illinois, and it has taken a proactive role in addressing the coronavirus. But how are retail businesses and restaurants faring?

A proposal to build a 100-unit affordable apartment complex in Logan Square is one step away from final approval after years on the drawing board.

Skokie, just 15 miles northwest of Chicago’s Loop, is home to the Illinois Holocaust Museum, the state’s only synagogue for the deaf and Old Orchard Mall — each of which have had to close during the pandemic.

Millions of shuttered businesses nationwide have turned to their insurers to help recoup their losses following state-mandated closures, which combined may exceed $300 billion a month. But insurers have widely rejected the claims.

Last November, a yellow brick road appeared in the Humboldt Park neighborhood to honor the late author L. Frank Baum. Recently, another installation was added to the historic corner, and we were there for its unveiling.

Businesses across the state are preparing for an eventual reopening under the governor’s Restore Illinois plan, but some industries fear the plan moves too slowly, including child care centers.