The City Council is set to take a final vote Wednesday on Sterling Bay’s $350 million plan to build two towers of more than 15 stories near the Chicago River.

It is unclear whether Mayor Brandon Johnson has enough political muscle to convince at least 25 alderpeople to buck the tradition that calls on them to mind their own business and vote along with the alderperson whose ward includes the project.

One of Chicago’s largest developers will invoke a little-known and untested provision of city law in an attempt to win approval for a 615-unit apartment complex in Lincoln Park.

The imprint has been a quirk of a residential block in Chicago’s North Side neighborhood of Roscoe Village for years, but it found fresh fame in January after a Chicago comedian shared a photo on the social media platform X.

Those impersonating licensed drivers can easily order counterfeit rideshare company stickers or magnetic taxi labels online. Other tactics include claiming their payment system is malfunctioning so that the ride must instead be charged on third-party payment platforms.

The vote represents a reversal from March 30, when nearly two-thirds of the Chicago City Council voted to approve a declaration of independence — five days before Mayor Brandon Johnson defeated former Chicago Public Schools CEO Paul Vallas in the runoff.

Ald. Scott Waguespack (32nd Ward) is speaking out about Mayor-elect Brandon Johnson's plan to remove Waguespack as chair of the Chicago City Council Finance Committee.

The board will help ensure the growth, maintenance and health of Chicago’s tree canopy for generations to come, officials said. The group’s first meeting could come as early as February.

The City Council met briefly Wednesday afternoon, allowing Rules Committee Chair Ald. Michelle Harris (8th Ward) an opportunity to unveil the map drawn behind closed doors and supported by the City Council’s Black Caucus.

Negotiations over a new ward map that will shape Chicago politics for the next decade remained deadlocked Tuesday, with no sign of a possible compromise less than a day before the deadline set by state law.

Three of the four lifeguards accused of wrongdoing resigned as a result of the investigation, while Chicago Park District Interim Inspector General Alison Perona recommended the fourth be terminated in connection with the allegations. 

Mayor Lori Lightfoot made her closing argument for her $16.7 billion 2022 budget on Tuesday, saying the spending plan would allow Chicago officials to “build a stronger and more prosperous city” amid the wreckage of the continuing COVID-19 pandemic. 

Ald. Jim Gardiner (45th Ward) on Tuesday apologized on the floor of the Chicago City Council chambers for sending profane and misogynistic texts to a former aide about Ald. Tom Tunney (44th Ward) and two women who work at City Hall. 

A police union contract years in the making heads to city council Tuesday. We talk with alderpeople about that and other city business.

Ald. Jim Gardiner, elected in 2019, has been surrounded by controversy since he took office after defeating former Ald. John Arena. In 2023, he was elected to serve as the 45th Ward’s Democratic committeeperson, making him one of the leaders of the Cook County Democratic Party.

A proposal to create an elected board of Chicagoans to oversee the Chicago Police Department is likely to pass easily, now that it has the backing of a coalition of community groups and Mayor Lori Lightfoot, several aldermen told “Chicago Tonight” on Monday.