Center Square: Total taxpayer spending for Illinois’ budget jumps 95% since 2018
A new report from the Illinois Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability shows a dramatic increase of overall taxpayer spending during the past six years.
Sun-Times: Chicago Public Schools facing bus driver shortage just weeks before classes resume
Chicago Public Schools says it only has about half the bus drivers it needs to transport all students when classes resume Aug. 21. The district has been struggling with a nationwide bus driver shortage since the pandemic, causing hardship for students and families.
Chicago Tribune: Migrants are moved out of police station near Grant Park ahead of Lollapalooza, some to newly opened Broadway Armory shelter across town
In advance of Lollapalooza — the music festival that will bring hundreds of thousands of people to Grant Park this weekend — more than 100 migrants have been moved out of the 1st District police station on the Near South Side.
Daily Herald: Libertyville seeking site for new police station
Libertyville is prepared to use eminent domain to secure a site to build a new police station. Whether the village will need to do that is to be determined as planning for a new police station to replace the outdated facility continues.
WTTW: Ex-Attorney General Loretta Lynch to lead independent investigation amid Northwestern hazing scandal
Northwestern University is bringing on former U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch to lead an independent review of its existing reporting mechanisms amid an on ongoing hazing scandal that led to the firing of head football coach Pat Fitzgerald and several lawsuits.
NBC Chicago: The Shedd Aquarium is getting a massive redesign. Here's what it will soon look like
Beginning this year, the Shedd will undergo the “most significant physical transformation of its lakeside home in recent history,” a release from the aquarium said Tuesday, with a “reimagination” of the aquarium’s immersive galleries, exhibits, educational, science and conservation spaces and more.
Central Illinois Proud: State Supreme Court issues stay in Jessica Thomas legal battle with Peoria County
The ongoing legal tussle between Peoria County and County Auditor Jessica Thomas has reached the state’s highest court. Last month, the Illinois Supreme Court issued an order putting a pause on any action involving the county’s ongoing efforts to eliminate her office while they mull whether to take her case.
WCIA: Buttigieg visits Savoy to highlight new underpass project
The village wants to build an underpass at the railroad crossing at Dunlap and Curtis roads, but they never had the money to do it. That is, until now, thanks to a $22 million federal grant. U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg came to Savoy to highlight the project. The grant came from the new federal infrastructure plan.