Cap City

The District 186 school board narrowly approved a plan for some students, whose families so choose, to return to the classroom. The Aug. 3 meeting went on for more than three hours and had its moments of contention. “Every medical person in town (is) saying it’s not a good idea – what is wrong with […]

With nearly $32 million available from recreational marijuana taxes, the state expects to award grants next month to help repair damage from the war on drugs, and Springfield hopes to be a player. Mayor Jim Langfelder says the city has applied for a grant that would fund home rehabilitation to help neighborhoods deemed by the […]

During the July 20 school board meeting, member Tiffany Mathis raised concern about where asymptomatic kids could get tested. This was after it was announced an Illinois Department of Public Health testing site in Springfield would be leaving. The site, outside the county health department building on South Grand Avenue, had been the only option […]

Ward 8 Ald. Erin Conley spoke up Tuesday after a man told the city council that he questions the purpose of masks. “I’m not going to wear my mask everywhere,” declared the man, who, like everyone else in the audience, had a mask, perhaps because folks entering city hall for the meeting were told to […]

Everything sounded cool at last week’s meeting of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum board, where members jawed about stuff that is the purview of museum boards, with barely a hint of discord. Within an hour or so of adjournment, though, word hit that Samuel Wheeler, state historian and big cheese when it comes […]

Class reunions are one more thing impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.  The Litchfield High School Class of 1970 was planning to have its 50th reunion this July, but instead postponed the reunion to July 2021.  That didn’t stop the class from coming together in spirit.  They decided to support their local community by having a […]

This week’s Sangamon County Board meeting lasted a tick longer than two hours, which is longer than typical. More than half of board members stayed away – and who, really, could blame them – opting to participate remotely and figure out the finer points of mute buttons while they were either listening intently or doing […]

Hand sanitizer, face masks and lots of cleaning. University of Illinois Springfield has announced it will reopen campus for fall semester. UIS’ “Return to the Prairie” plan lays out details including protocol for quarantine should staff or students fall ill. A “blended course delivery” model was chosen that merges in-person and off-campus learning. The approach […]

As the White House promises to pressure local governments to open schools in the fall, details for Springfield schools are still largely unknown. On Tuesday, July 7, President Donald Trump said, “We’re very much going to put pressure on governors and everybody else to open the schools.” That declaration comes as some parts of the […]

You gotta love pluck, and new blood, and so a proposed downtown bar and restaurant emporium is a good thing. Dubbed The Public Market, the development in a vacant building at 322 East Adams Street would include at least five restaurants – think quick-serve as opposed to white table cloths – as well as a […]

Informed sources say that deadlines for the State Journal-Register’s print edition will be moved from 4 p.m., darn early for a daily newspaper delivered in the morning, to 7 p.m. That’s better, but still a far sight from 9 p.m., which the deadline had been until June 1. Just a few years ago, the deadline […]

The Springfield City Council on Tuesday approved a measure instituting fines for folks who don’t fix code violations until the last minute. The city has been dismissing fines for people issued citations who show that the problem was fixed before administrative court dates. Council members, concerned particularly about tall grass and garbage, unanimously approved the […]