LOCAL CHICAGO NEWS
Soldier is cut off by home church
Sarah Anderson's mother, Myra, was singing in the choir of St. Peter Lutheran Church in 1973 when her water broke, ushering young Sarah into the world.
Hailed for its innovation, but razed as out-of-date
The red neon sign that once flashed "Park" is gone, and a curtain of blue scaffolding covers the crumbling terra cotta facade of the Hotel LaSalle Garage.
State gaming expansion backed to fund schools
Gov. Rod Blagojevich on Thursday for the first time vocally supported a proposal to expand gambling in Illinois, calling for more than double the number of slot machines and other casino games on riverboats but vowing to oppose adding any other casinos in the state, including Chicago.
Small towns, crowded ballots
Jack Swan, village president of tiny south suburban Thornton for 12 years, has no idea why four challengers are clamoring for his $3,600-a-year job.
Affordable housing law deadline looms
Carriage houses could be making a comeback in some of Chicago's affluent suburbs.
City says shipper faked tickets
A longtime city contractor falsified a shipping ticket to claim his firm delivered more than 200 blank signs that the city purchased from the company, officials charged Thursday.
Soldiers memorial to honor sacrifices
Kirk Morris believes he leads a better life because of the sacrifices of American soldiers such as his son, Geoffrey, who was killed by a rocket-propelled grenade in Iraq.
Shields Township a pocket of heated campaigning
The sniping between candidates in next week's Shields Township races in Lake Bluff has turned the contest into one of the most heated on the North Shore.
Teen takes on McDonald's--and wins
The owner of a McDonald's restaurant in the Hyde Park neighborhood scrapped a policy Thursday that required Kenwood Academy High School students to sit in a separate area from other customers, after a student protesting the policy was handcuffed by Chicago police and taken back to campus.
Marine reservist arrested on charge of desertion
A fourth-year Northwestern University engineering student and Marine reservist was taken into military custody Thursday morning on charges he deserted his unit, which has been toiling in Iraq for months, officials said.
Storms rip region, leave thousands in dark
Commonwealth Edison crews worked through the night to restore power to about 7,000 homes and businesses left without electricity after storms with nickel-sized hail and winds up to 60 m.p.h.
Struggling town looks for a future
Inside a dilapidated former bank building in this tough-luck, western Illinois town known for having more deer than people, Kristy Watts has been plotting a resurrection of her dreary rural community.
Status quo challenged in Berwyn mayor race
For the first time in decades, Berwyn voters won't see Thomas G. Shaughnessy's name on the general election ballot Tuesday.
Referendums have schools again holding their breath
If Grass Lake School fails to pass a tax increase next week, it won't have to worry about eliminating the girls basketball team.
Drivers stuck in the slow lane
Chicago remains the Second City when it comes to commute times, a gas-guzzling and time-wasting distinction that city officials recently vowed to try to change.
Final Four fever grips U. of I.
Finance professor Michael Dyer is suffering from a nasty cold, and his hoarse voice sounds eerily like that of University of Illinois basketball coach Bruce Weber during the run-up to the Final Four.
School building put on hold
About $220 million in Chicago school construction projects has been postponed indefinitely because of state funding cuts, officials announced at a City Council meeting Wednesday.
Gambling watchdog wants off state's leash
Following a string of run-ins between the Illinois Gaming Board and Gov. Rod Blagojevich's administration, the board's new chairman said Wednesday he has become dismayed by intrusions on the board's authority and he's going to push for legislation ensuring its independence.
Lollapalooza could rock Grant Park
City officials confirmed Wednesday that negotiations are under way with a Texas marketing company to bring a revived Lollapalooza festival to Grant Park from July 23 to 24.
Sam Macrane
Former Naperville Mayor Sam Macrane, who entered local politics in 1991 after retiring from a successful business career and was serving his third term as a councilman, died Wednesday after a lengthy illness.
Voters to have plenty of choices
Crowded ballots will give voters plenty of choices in local elections Tuesday in McHenry County, where crowded roads and other issues related to development top many candidates' agendas.
Convictions mar Summit race
Summit mayoral candidates are battling over their convictions--but not the political kind.
To some, skunk theft has smell of politics
The 25-foot-tall inflatable skunk that towered over tiny Lakemoor for four days was either too ugly or too political.
POWERFUL WINDS WHIP THE AREA THURSDAY, DROPPING TEMPS IN MARCH 2005's CLOSING HOURS
Thursday's gusty winds return Chicago area temperatures to far more seasonable levels.
ASK TOM WHY
Dear Tom,
Hailstones--some baseball-size--bombard the area
One of Chicago's five warmest late March periods in more than a century ended with powerful wind and hail generating t-storms late Wednesday. The day's official high temperature of 77(degrees) was 25(degrees) above normal! Readings that warm typically ocurr three weeks later around April 19.
Today
Chicago: March, 2005 departs like a lion! Blustery, noticeably cooler. Cloudy, sporadic sprinkles.
WEATHER FACT
Finley, U.S. Army Signal Corps Sergeant John Park: The first tornado climatologist and forecaster.
Suburban ballots focus on growth
The April 5 election ballots in Kane County and throughout much of the west suburban region have "growth" written all over them.
Motives remain a mystery
Two weeks after Terry Ratzmann shot to death seven people before killing himself during a church service, his friends struggled to connect the gentle gardener they knew with the madman who took aim at the pastor, his family and other worshipers.
Motives remain a mystery
Two weeks after Terry Ratzmann shot to death seven people before killing himself during a church service, his friends struggled to connect the gentle gardener they knew with the madman who took aim at the pastor, his family and other worshipers.
Mayoral races that promise new faces
With mayors stepping down in six communities and vacancies created by deaths in four others, the political landscape in the south and southwest suburbs will change when voters cast ballots next month.
Mayor's aunt asks voters for his job
Politics is often a family affair, but family relationships are adding an unusual twist to the race for mayor in Melrose Park.
Meigs concerts to rev up in June
Come summer, concertgoers at Northerly Island will bask in breezes off Lake Michigan while facing a stage framed by views of Burnham Harbor, Soldier Field and downtown Chicago under plans the Chicago Park District revealed to the public Monday.
DNA in girl's slaying disputed
Two of Lake County's top law-enforcement officials insisted Monday that Juan Rivera is guilty of the 1992 sexual assault and murder of an 11-year-old baby-sitter in Waukegan despite new DNA tests that his lawyers say exonerate him.
Candidates challenge Kenilworth status quo
In a North Shore community better known for multimillion-dollar manses and genteel manners than politics, a slate of Village Board candidates in Kenilworth is facing a challenge for the first time in at least two decades.
Film lover shares his passion
Not only does Nat Dykeman watch more than 300 movies a year, he carries a notebook in which he records titles and ratings.
Candidates face competitive races
Shifting political alliances, renewed economic growth and lingering budget crunches dominate the April 5 elections in many northwest suburbs.
CTA idea irks Pace, Metra on transfers
To help cut costs, Chicago Transit Authority officials are weighing the effect of ending interagency fare agreements, a move that would make it inconvenient and more costly for riders to transfer among Metra, Pace and the CTA.
Mother tells suspect in fatal plot to give up
The mother of a man wanted in connection with a foiled kidnapping plot that left two men dead and a police officer seriously wounded begged him Monday to turn himself in to police.
Contracting scandals spark call for a watchdog
Citing recent contracting troubles, a Cook County commissioner said Monday that the county should outsource certification and oversight of its minority- and women-owned business program.
Tollway project is just days away
Work on a project to rebuild and widen the south end of the Tri-State Tollway is scheduled to begin next week, along with several initiatives that officials hope will mitigate the impact on traffic.
2005's mildest yet; first 70 (degrees) since October possible
The year's first 70(degrees) high--the mildest reading here since 72(degrees) on Oct. 30--is a good bet Tuesday. Sun-filtering high clouds may well shave a few degrees off temperatures at some locations, restricting highs there to the mid/upper 60s. And, in communities closest to Lake Michigan's northeast Illinois shoreline, an easterly component to Tuesday's dominant southerly winds is likely to restrict highs to the low/mid 60s. But, for the rest of the metro area, readings Tuesday will surge 5-10 degrees above Monday's. An official 70 (degrees) high Tuesday would nearly match the 134-year average date for the region's opening 70 (degrees) reading of the year, which is March 31. Normal highs of 70 (degrees) don't occur here for another month and a half (May 16). The 60 (degrees) high at O'Hare was the city's highest in three weeks.
THEY SWEEP WARM TEMPS NORTH FROM AREAS HEATED MORE DIRECTLY BY SUNLIGHT
Strong winds--often in association with huge spring storm systems--play a huge role in producing each year's first surge of truly warm temperatures.
ASK TOM WHY
Dear Tom,
TODAY
Chicago: Temps 10 degrees higher than 24 hours ago and nearly 20 degrees above normal.
WEATHER FACT
Illinois tornado season: The tornado season in Illinois is the four-month period of March, April, May and June. More tornadoes occur in the state in April than in any other month.
House blast deemed suspicious
Investigators this morning deemed suspicious an early morning explosion and extra-alarm fire that destroyed a vacant house on Chicago's Northwest Side, WGN-Ch. 9 reported.
GOP rallies its core, looking for a rebirth
Amid the red, white and blue balloons, table decorations and floral arrangements, the only discordant note during the annual Crawford County Lincoln Day dinner came when outgoing Mayor Wally Dean forgot a few words of "The Star-Spangled Banner."
Bean plays it safe as GOP plots
In her first three months in Congress, U.S. Rep. Melissa Bean has kept a low profile, voted resolutely down the middle and become one of the nation's biggest political targets.
Railroad cop hurt in kidnap plot case
Two men were dead and one railroad police officer was wounded in a foiled kidnapping plot Sunday on the city's South Side that ended when an off-duty Chicago police officer shot and killed one of the kidnappers, police said.
Court eavesdropping alleged
A former Chicago restaurateur who prosecutors say secretly recorded conversations between attorneys and a judge and had stored personal information on his computer about a Cook County judge, the judge's family, and the attorneys involved in a civil case against him has been charged with felony eavesdropping charges.
Plastic surgery freebie makes all the difference
In these days of extreme makeovers, plastic surgeons like Michael Epstein of Northbrook find their appointment books filled months in advance for everything from facial reconstruction to breast augmentations.
Family is investigated in death of 12-year-old
A 12-year-old girl whose family was being investigated by the state child welfare agency because of allegations of neglect died Sunday morning.
Sex-abuse case now election issue
When a DuPage County prosecutor criticized Hinsdale High School District 86 school officials in November for failing to report longtime sexual abuse allegations against a popular teacher and coach, few district residents had much to say publicly.
2 Catholic schools saved
Two Catholic schools that were to close at the end of the year as part of a consolidation plan have been saved by cash gifts from generous donors, archdiocese officials said Sunday.
Easter a blessed day for Tamia and family
Baby Tamia, the 6-month-old girl at the center of an interstate adoption feud that brought pleas from the governor for her return, was christened in front of hundreds of South Side congregants on Easter Sunday.
Hospital to close on-site incinerator
Gov. Rod Blagojevich announced Sunday that Hinsdale Hospital has agreed to shut down its on-site incinerator used to burn trash and medical waste.
Land mine kills 4 men serving in Afghanistan
A northeastern Indiana firefighter who was married with two young children was just weeks from ending a yearlong tour in Afghanistan when he and three other members of the Indiana National Guard died after a land mine exploded Sunday night under their military vehicle near Kabul, friends said Sunday.
Train transporting grain derails, dumping corn
A cargo train transporting grain derailed Sunday evening in Kirkland, Ill., spilling a "good amount" of corn across downtown, police said.
Man found fatally shot in vehicle near home
A Chicago man was found shot to death in a car near his West Englewood home Sunday morning, police said.
Stunt plane crashes; 2 are believed dead
Two people were believed killed Sunday when a stunt plane crashed near Iowa City.
Farmers lose U. of I. land after 50 years
The Hofbauer family has farmed 300 acres near this central Illinois community for more than 50 years, but this spring someone else will plant the crops because the family lost a bid to work the land.
Blagojevich nominee also 1 of his donors
Gov. Rod Blagojevich has appointed a Bloomington attorney who donated more than $83,000 to his campaign to the University of Illinois' Board of Trustees.
ALMANAC
On March 28, 1797, Nathaniel Briggs of New Hampshire patented a washing machine.
Double trouble: The week-apart spring snowstorms of 1970
Forty years to the day after Chicago was blasted by the 19-22"-plus snowstorm of March 25-26, 1930, Mother Nature once again unloaded on the city--this time with a 14.3" snowstorm accompanied by thunder, lightning and howling northeast winds that piled the snow into 3-4 foot drifts.
ASK TOM WHY
Dear Tom,
Three of March's final four days to be mild
After a month-long chill, March will exit on a significantly warmer note. Today's highs near 60+ are just a precursor to a surge of warmth that should send temps into the lower 70s Tuesday. Even lakefront areas should enjoy the warmth Tuesday as brisk southwest winds overcome the lakeside cooling that will rob those areas of today's warmth.
TODAY
Chicago: A delightful day with abundant sunshine and mild temperatures. Highs climb to the lower 60s well inland, but northeast winds off chilly Lake Michigan develop by afternoon, dropping temps there back into the 40s. Clear overnight with lows in the low/mid 40s.
WEATHER HISTORY
Melrose Park tornado on March 28, 1920: An F4 intensity tornado (winds 207-260 m.p.h.) carved a 53-mile path from Channahon (Will Co.) to Wilmette (Cook Co.) and over Lake Michigan. The most deaths (20) and damage ($2 million) were in the Maywood-Melrose Park areas.
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