Stories by Nick Blumberg

The historic Bronzeville neighborhood on the city’s South Side sits just south of McCormick Place, and has been known for decades as a hub of Black arts and culture in Chicago. Wednesday, City Council paved the way for a massive new development that could reshape the community’s future.

The country’s top law enforcement officer visits Chicago. A live report from Bronzeville. How a program to keep drug users out of jail is expanding. And translating brainwaves into text.

A “racial healing and historical reckoning project” launched by Mayor Lori Lightfoot after she removed the city’s three statues of Christopher Columbus has stalled, and the statues remain in storage a year after they were wrenched from their pedestals.

Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot has been criticized as “racist” — even as a Black woman — and she’s been called “notoriously thin-skinned” but she remains determined to leave a legacy far beyond her time in office.

A “breakthrough” case is when a fully vaccinated person gets infected with the coronavirus. A small number of such cases are expected and health officials say they’re not a cause for alarm.

“Access to birth control should never be determined by economic status, education or ZIP code. Birth control is a basic health care service. It should be treated as such and readily available for all,” said state Sen. Melinda Bush, a co-sponsor of the bill. 

“Renegades: Born in the USA” is a bound edition of the popular “Renegades” podcast featuring conversations on everything from fame to cars to the country itself between former President Barack Obama and Bruce Springsteen.

As the battle over control of business sign permits concludes, a new front in the struggle over aldermanic prerogative opened Wednesday over the future of the city’s ward superintendents. 

Eight people who had been around a party bus were shot on the North Side late Wednesday, marking the third shooting in Chicago with at least five victims in just a six-hour span, according to the Chicago Police Department.

Illinois’ governor says he’ll be among thousands of people flocking to Grant Park next week for the massive music festival, even as the delta variant drives a rise in the number of COVID-19 cases in Chicago and across the U.S.

A historic agreement on civilian oversight of the Chicago Police Department — our Spotlight Politics team weighs in. The new chief who investigates police misconduct. Colleges prepare to reopen.

Meet a group of Chicago food vendors who are now the owners of a shared kitchen after renting it for years. With it, they hope they can help their community achieve the American dream.

The massive music festival that routinely attracts more than 100,000 people per day to its stages starts next week as the delta variant drives a rise in COVID-19 cases. Should the show go on? A local music critic and an infectious disease doctor share their thoughts.

What will the fall semester look like on college campuses? We discuss reopening plans with the leaders of three area universities.

The Chicago City Council has approved a measure to create a board of civilians to oversee the Chicago Police Department, the police board and the Civilian Office of Police Accountability. Andrea Kersten, the interim chief administrator of COPA, shares her thoughts.

With just two votes to spare after a contentious debate of nearly two hours, the Chicago City Council voted 36-13 to create an elected board of Chicago residents to oversee the Chicago Police Department, enacting the most far-reaching police reform ordinance in the country.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Wednesday rejected two Republicans tapped by House GOP leader Kevin McCarthy to sit on a committee investigating the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection, a decision the Republican denounced as “an egregious abuse of power.”

Senate Republicans rejected an effort Wednesday to begin debate on the big infrastructure deal that a bipartisan group of senators brokered with President Joe Biden. But supporters in both parties remained hopeful of a better chance soon.

Drinking at least one cup of coffee per day was associated with a decreased risk of about 10% when it came to contracting COVID-19, according to a new Northwestern Medicine study.

Reports of athletes, lawmakers and others getting the coronavirus despite vaccination may sound alarming but top health experts point to overwhelming evidence that the shots are doing exactly what they are supposed to: dramatically reducing severe illness and death. 

Moths have been nabbing international headlines of late, thanks to a declaration by the Entomological Society of America that the gypsy moth is no more. The destructive insect hasn’t gone extinct, but it’s common name has been mothballed.

Devontay Anderson allegedly used an AK-47 style weapon to fire more than two dozen shots into a car carrying a 7-year-old girl at a West Side McDonald’s in April, and then fled the state to avoid arrest.

Street festivals, Latin jazz, an artistic run and a modern twist on Shakespeare usher in the weekend. Here are 10 things to do in and around Chicago.

They are often thought of as a nondescript bugs — or even pests — and are misunderstood in large part because of their nocturnal behavior. But moths are excellent pollinators and play a key role in the food web. Here’s what else you should know about moths’ incredible diversity.

The tradition of artists painting outdoors brings to mind pretty landscapes of lakes and gardens. We meet a Chicago artist who paints on location and finds beauty in unexpected places. 

Coastal repairs and climate change mitigation are a huge concern for cities around the Great Lakes region. The group behind a new survey calls on the American and Canadian governments to fund local efforts to address these issues.