Stories by Heather Cherone

Eleven firms are interested in building or operating a casino in Chicago — and eight told Mayor Lori Lightfoot that it should be downtown, according to a limited summary of the proposals submitted by firms released by the mayor’s office.

State health officials reported 238 coronavirus-related deaths Wednesday, setting a new record for the number of fatalities reported in a single day in Illinois as Dr. Ngozi Ezike urged residents to “stay the course.”

The agency is recruiting volunteers to keep a watch on river ice in the Chicago area. Ice Spotters help with early detection of ice jams, which can cause major flooding.

In giving the go-ahead for emergency use of the vaccine developed by American drugmaker Pfizer and Germany’s BioNTech, Britain vaulted past the United States by at least a week. 

An official with the Teamsters Local 700 is calling on Gov. J.B. Pritzker and other leaders to prioritize corrections officers due to the “high risk of exposure” to the disease he claimed remains in the jail.

President-elect Joe Biden on Tuesday introduced top advisers he says will help his administration rebuild an economy hammered by the coronavirus pandemic, declaring, “I know times are tough, but I want you to know that help is on the way.”

Watch the Dec. 2, 2020 full episode of “Chicago Tonight.”

The city is not doing enough to ensure that residents of large apartment complexes and businesses keep recyclable glass, paper and aluminum out of landfills, according to an audit released Wednesday by the city’s watchdog.

Health care workers and nursing home residents should be at the front of the line when the first coronavirus vaccine shots become available, an influential government advisory panel said Tuesday.

The Illinois law at the heart of the Commonwealth Edison bribery plot was a “profit machine” for the utility, according to a report released Tuesday by the Illinois Public Interest Research Group.

The head of the agency responsible for authorizing COVID-19 vaccines said Tuesday that it would take the time needed to “get this right,” despite increasing pressure from President Donald Trump to speed up the process.

President-elect Joe Biden is considering former Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, a substantial and somewhat divisive figure in Democratic Party politics, to serve as his transportation secretary. 

While awaiting the city’s verdict on its permit application to start up a metal shredding and recycling operation on the Southeast Side, Reserve Management Group is in the process of acquiring another metal recycling business in Humboldt Park. 

In 50 days, Joe Biden is set to become the country’s 45th president, but he still faces an ongoing assault on transition norms from President Donald Trump. Author Evan Osnos joins us to discuss the challenges Biden faces. 

The stories of women living with HIV in Chicago and across the country take the focus of a new online exhibition organized by the History Moves project.

Anticipating a surge in coronavirus cases as result of Thanksgiving travel and gatherings, Gov. J.B. Pritzker said people should assume they’ve been exposed to the virus “and act like it.”

A rancorous debate that stretched for more than 18 months ended Tuesday with a unanimous vote of the City Council’s Zoning Committee to reject an effort to landmark more than 900 buildings and murals in Pilsen.

It’s been four weeks since the polls closed, but the impact of the election is still unfolding. Check out our virtual discussion about the 2020 general election with Hugo Balta, host of “Latino Voices,” and a panel of guests.

The first doses of a COVID-19 vaccine could be administered to health care workers in Chicago in three weeks, Chicago health officials said Tuesday.

Watch the Dec. 1, 2020 full episode of “Chicago Tonight.”

Last month, Chicago recorded 267 shootings and 58 homicides — increases of more than 70% compared to November 2019. “This has been a difficult year for law enforcement throughout the country,” top cop David Brown said.

Upwards of 267,000 people have so far died in the U.S. from the novel coronavirus, and experts have fatalistic predictions about more infections throughout the winter. But it’s not just the coronavirus that’s killing people.

The city’s 2021 budget includes $36 million for violence prevention programs. That’s nearly $25 million more than in the 2020 budget, but some advocates say the additional funding is still not enough. 

Medical professionals in Chicago and across the country are braced for a fresh surge of coronavirus cases after millions of Americans ignored advice not to travel or gather over the Thanksgiving holiday. Dr. Emily Landon, an infectious disease specialist at UChicago Medicine, weighs in.

The coronavirus pandemic is driving holiday shoppers in the U.S. online — and they’re expected to spend a record $12.7 billion on Cyber Monday. Crain’s Chicago Business reporter Danny Ecker has details.

While the number of new COVID-19 cases have been declining in recent days, Gov. J.B. Pritzker said the state is seeing a spike in hospitalizations and is “still very much in a precarious place.”