Stories by WTTW News

Chicago-area retail stores hit record-high sales, but that's not without impacting online buying as Amazon looks to sublet warehouse space. Meanwhile, legal limbo over nearly 200 pot shop licenses could soon come to an end.

The story had been that people were leaving Illinois, and that the population dropped by about 18,000. But the U.S. Census Bureau came out last week with fresh numbers in its post-enumeration survey that show the reverse: The state gained some 250,000 people between 2010 and 2020.

Sturdy plastic snap-on can carriers are labeled as 100% recyclable. Which is true, just not when it comes to the single-stream recycling programs favored by cities like Chicago.

The S&P 500 rose 1.9%, with technology and financial sector stocks doing much of the heavy lifting for the benchmark index. The Dow Industrial Average rose 2% and the Nasdaq climbed 1.6%.

The Chicago City Council is expected to give its final stamp of approval to the Bally’s plan on Wednesday, sending the proposal to the Illinois Gaming Board, which must license Bally’s to operate the Chicago casino set to be built near Chicago Avenue and Halsted Street.

Imani, born in 2021 to Monty and Rose, has been spotted at Montrose Beach after being sighted last week in Minnesota.

Monkeypox is rarely identified outside of Africa. But as of Friday, there were 80 confirmed cases worldwide, including at least two in the United States, and another 50 suspected ones.

Crime in Chicago usually peaks during the summer months, when hot temperatures force people outside and fray tempers. In recent years, the Memorial Day holiday weekend has been extremely violent.

Gaven Leon, 18, was charged Monday with one count of first-degree murder in connection with the unprovoked Feb. 3 shooting of 30-year-old Ryan Balbag, who was killed as he drove down Irving Park Road with two of his friends.

Ald. Nicholas Sposato (38th Ward) and Ald. Emma Mitts (37th Ward) — who both support the proposal — used a parliamentary procedure to prevent a vote on Monday. However, Public Safety Committee Chair Ald. Chris Taliaferro (29th Ward) filed a notice with the city clerk’s office to ensure the measure would get an up-or-down vote on Wednesday. 

The company said that the peanut butter was sold nationwide and the recall includes more than 45 kinds of products. 

Multiple teens were among those who were injured in 20 separate shooting incidents between 6 p.m. Friday and 11:59 p.m. Sunday, according to Chicago police data.

The news comes after months of anxious waiting by parents desperate to vaccinate their babies, toddlers and preschoolers, especially as COVID-19 cases once again are rising. 

It’s a full-circle moment for Nick Cave as he looks back at his career in a new exhibit at the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago titled “Forothermore.”

A Black Voices, Latino Voices crossover conversation on Chicago’s new controversial ward map and the teen curfew debate. Plus, a local artist turning discarded materials into art.

In addition to a new rule requiring minors visiting Millennium Park to be accompanied by a “responsible adult” after 6 p.m. Thursday through Sunday, Mayor Lori Lightfoot is asking for an expanded curfew to begin at 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday nights. 

Gamer’s Universe will be held Saturday, May 28, at the Harold Washington Library. The free-of-charge gaming convention offers options for players of all levels. 

The data breach occurred Dec. 1 and technology vendor Battelle for Kids notified CPS on April 26, the district said Friday. A server used to store student and staff information was breached and four years' worth of records were accessed, CPS said.

A Latino Voices, Black Voices crossover conversation on Chicago’s new ward map. A pilot program aimed at defending undocumented immigrants facing deportation. And a local rugby program back in action.

Dr. Alejandro Lugo has taught anthropology and Latinx studies at several colleges, including the University of Illinois. As part of our Last Word series, he gives La Ultima Palabra on the change he says needs to happen to better serve all students.

The new Chicago ward map garnered enough City Council votes to dodge a referendum, but some community organizations say it reflects the same old problems.

At the west suburban Morton high schools, a full-contact team sport born in England has become an unlikely favorite among their largely Latino student body.

The Defenders for All Act took effect at the beginning of this year. Since then, the Cook County Public Defenders’ immigration unit says it’s taken on over a dozen cases free of charge — the largest county in the nation to do so.

Chicago City Council members voted 43 to 7 to approve a new ward map this week. The approval came after a monthslong tug-of-war between the council’s Latino and Black Caucuses over the balance of wards. The approved map has 14 wards with a majority of Latino voters — one short of the 15 wards the Latino Caucus had demanded.

Guest conductor Karina Canellakis led the CSO in “Brio” (by Augusta Read Thomas); Robert Schumann’s lushly beautiful “Piano Concerto in A Minor” (featuring pianist Kirill Gerstein); and finally “Ein Heldenlaben (A Heroic Life),” Richard Strauss’ sweeping, fiercely emotional tone poem.

In Illinois, which lost a seat in redistricting because of its shrinking population, the state's two first-term female representatives — one Democrat, one Republican — were among the 18-member delegation's biggest losers in the state's remapping.