The 211 call center will be home to more than 50 full-time staff connecting residents to resources such as housing, access to food and utility assistance. The center, 7247 S. South Chicago Ave., is located at the tech workforce hub Xchange Chicago.

President Donald Trump signed an order threatening to freeze federal funding to governments and jurisdictions that have eliminated the use of cash bail as a means of holding defendants in jail pretrial. Local officials say the system put in place in Illinois in 2023 is working.

Nominee Adam Bianchi has more than 17 years of experience in public land and natural resource management with the U.S. Forest Service.

According to recent data from the Kaiser Family Foundation, 41% of adults in the U.S. have medical debt. That equates to more than 100 million Americans who owe upwards of $220 billion in health care costs.

Lawyer Ebony Lucas sued Ald. Lamont Robinson’s campaign and the 4th Ward Democratic Organization for launching what she called a “coordinated smear campaign.”

“We are in the middle of a mental health crisis, particularly with our young people,” said Cook County Commissioner Tara Stamps, who represents parts of the West Side. “Our children are both imploding and exploding at the same time.”

Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle announced plans for a new advisory committee that will review research, develop recommendations and design a new model for the future of the guaranteed basic income pilot program.

“If I didn’t do this job, I’d pick another one and it wouldn’t be as interesting or challenging or as impactful,” said Toni Preckwinkle, who has led Cook County since 2010.

Preckwinkle cited building upon efforts of her current tenure such as criminal justice reform, expanding health care access and relieving medical debt. The election will be held in 2026.

Housing and shelter, utility assistance, access to food and employment and income assistance were the most common needs for residents, according to 211 Metro Chicago program leaders.

The lawsuit is the latest indication that the Trump administration, which is attempting to strip self-proclaimed sanctuary cities of all federal funding, will target Chicago directly.

So far in 2024, the district has acquired 249 acres, the second most in any year since 1984, according to officials with the Forest Preserve District of Cook County.

Preckwinkle’s $9.9 billion plan calls for investments in opioid addiction remediation, community violence intervention, firming up how generative artificial intelligence can be used, adding employees at the assessor’s office to help with property valuations and adding solar panels to county properties.  

“There are no new taxes, fines or fees in this budget,” Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle told reporters in a preview of the vision she’ll outline in a Thursday morning speech. “It reflects our choices we made over the last 14 years and strong fiscal management.”

For the second time, Democrats are trying to elect a woman to the White House over former President Donald Trump. Delegates who’ve been in Chicago since Monday will hear Thursday night from their “joyful warrior,” Vice President Kamala Harris.

The Rev. Jesse Jackson Sr., 82, a delegate to the Democratic National Convention from Illinois, was celebrated during Monday’s session of the convention, earning a loud ovation from the crowd.