Stories by Heather Cherone

The office designed to help aldermen keep tabs on how the city spends tax dollars detailed a proposal on Thursday that finds savings by cutting “perks” and things that are “nice to have, but need not have.”

Jeremiah “Jerry” Harris, known for his role on Netflix’s cheerleading reality show “Cheer,” has been charged in federal court with producing child pornography after he allegedly enticed underage children to send him sexually explicit photos and videos.

The CPD launched a series of public surveys, with the goal of hearing what Chicagoans have to say about several policing policies and making adjustments based on those responses. 

“This is an opportunity to get this right,” said Ald. Byron Sigcho Lopez (25th Ward), who vowed not to allow developers to dominate the discussion.

Watch the Sept. 17, 2020 full episode of “Chicago Tonight.”

Among the 50 large U.S. counties with the highest percentages of student residents, 20 have consistently reported higher rates of new coronavirus cases than their states have since Sept. 1, according to an Associated Press analysis.

Before the pandemic hit the economy, the number signing up for jobless aid had never exceeded 700,000 in a week, even during the depths of the 2007-2009 Great Recession. Now they've topped 700,000 for 26 straight weeks.

Another Illinois politician pleads guilty. The Cook County Democratic Party turns its back on a long-serving judge. Our politics team weighs in on those stories and more.

How some Gage Park residents are giving back to their community during the pandemic.

Previous plans have largely targeted Chicago’s North and Northwest sides. However, officials say this plan will focus on bringing equitable transit-oriented developments to the South and West sides.

According to census numbers, Chicago is currently performing at a 59% response rate. But the city risks an undercount, especially in predominantly African American and Latino neighborhoods.

“State and municipal budgets across the nation and here in Illinois are being decimated,” Gov. J.B. Pritzker said Wednesday. “It’s not a blue state problem or a red state problem.”

Pritzker has extended the ban on evictions three times since he lifted the stay-at-home order at the end of May, when the state began to make significant progress in slowing the spread of the coronavirus.

In a report to Congress and an accompanying “playbook” for states and localities, federal health agencies sketched out complex plans for a vaccination campaign to begin gradually in January or even late this year.

Chicagoans are raising chickens, growing food and experimenting with all sorts of sustainable-living practices — all in their urban backyards. See how it’s done during this weekend’s annual Windy City Coop and Eco-Yards Tour. 

While initial demand is lower than last year’s pilot program, city officials say they are encouraged by data and anecdotal accounts that the lock-to-cable requirement has reduced the number of instances of scooters blocking sidewalks. 

Citing a lack of widespread safety protocols and limited COVID-19 testing capacity, the governor on Wednesday doubled down on his stance that it’s not yet safe for youth athletes to begin playing football or other fall sports.

Watch the Sept. 16, 2020 full episode of “Chicago Tonight.”

The EPA has completed cleanup of the Hegewisch Little League Field after discovering alarming levels of lead and arsenic in the soil. 

Less than five weeks after pushing football and other fall sports to spring in the name of player safety during the pandemic, the conference changed course Wednesday and said it plans to begin its season the weekend of Oct. 24. 

Going to a bar. Dining at a restaurant. Sending children to school. What’s the risk of these activities in terms of COVID-19 exposure? In a new survey, more than 100 physicians weigh in.

A conversation with Kwame Amoaku, director of the Chicago Film Office.

In the November election, Illinoisans will be asked whether or not to change the state’s income tax system to a graduated tax — but there’s still a lot of confusion about the proposal.

Tuesday marks the start of Hispanic Heritage Month, which celebrates of the cultures and honors the contributions of Hispanic and Latino Americans. We discuss the varied and vast impact of Latinos on business, art and politics in Chicago.

Commuter rail agency Metra has seen the largest passenger decline of any of the Chicago-area transit systems. How the agency is working to reverse the slump.

For thousands of Illinois renters who are out of work during the pandemic, the threat of eviction is getting closer to reality.