The president of the union representing Springfield firefighters says he is encouraged by Mayor Misty Buscher’s plan to form a commission that will examine options for improving emergency medical services. Whether that group will make more progress than a panel with the same task under the previous mayor, Jim Langfelder, remains to be seen. Also […]
Dean Olsen
Dean Olsen is a senior staff writer for Illinois Times. He can be reached at:
dolsen@illinoistimes.com, 217-679-7810 or @DeanOlsenIT.
Posted inNews
Making downtown Springfield more marketable
Doubling the Bank of Springfield Center’s size would result in a similar increase in conventions coming to the capital city, and construction of a new 300-bed hotel adjacent to the center would maximize the expanded facility’s potential. Those were two of the major conclusions from a recently completed feasibility study of the potential impact of […]
Posted inNews
County bars to close earlier
The Sangamon County Board opted not to allow for more public comment and instead voted 21-5 on April 8 to eliminate 3 a.m. liquor licenses for bars in unincorporated areas outside Springfield and other municipalities. The decision will affect four taverns with 3 a.m. liquor licenses, effective July 1, and will require those establishments, if […]
Posted inNews
Sangamon County Board to vote on ending 3 a.m. liquor licenses
No taverns in unincorporated parts of Sangamon County would be able to stay open and serve alcohol until 3 a.m. under a proposal scheduled for a Sangamon County Board vote on April 8. A proposed resolution to eliminate 3 a.m. liquor licenses from the Sangamon County code’s alcoholic beverages section was approved March 20 by […]
Posted inNews
Talking trash
Dave Allen encounters familiar sights as he drives down alleys in Springfield’s Harvard Park neighborhood. Some alleys are relatively clean while others are filled with overflowing bins of garbage that haven’t been emptied for weeks, half-open bags of trash on the ground, trails of garbage blowing into yards and streets, discarded furniture and old mattresses. […]
Posted inNews
Photographing history
The date was Jan. 29, 2009, and Pat Quinn was sitting at his desk in the lieutenant governor’s office, writing notes for what would become his inaugural speech as governor while the state Senate, one floor above, considered voting to remove Rod Blagojevich from office. A few feet away, camera in hand, was Springfield resident […]
Posted inNews
Springfield doctors join push for statewide insurance reform
Two Springfield doctors are part of Gov. JB Pritzker’s push to reform what he called “predatory health insurance practices.” The Democratic governor’s proposed Healthcare Protection Act would ban “step therapy,” which can delay patients’ access to more-expensive medicines until cheaper medicines are tried first. House Bill 5395 also would ban requiring prior authorization for inpatient […]
Posted inNews
Building “an ecosystem of solutions” on the east side
A year from now, Dominic Watson expects to open a shared kitchen and culinary incubator for dozens of emerging minority-owned businesses in a 30,000-square-foot building at 11th Street and South Grand Avenue East. A year or two after that, his plans call for the former South Town Theater building – on the same block on […]
Posted inNews
ISP concludes investigation into shooting at juvenile detention center
An Illinois State Police investigation failed to determine how a 17-year-old obtained the handgun he fired inside the Sangamon County Juvenile Detention Center and carried as he tried to escape the facility with a hostage Sept. 30 before being shot by police. Camren Marcelis Darden, 17, was hit by several rounds fired from a semi-automatic […]
Posted inNews
Springfield man charged with operating six “houses of prostitution”
A Springfield man owned or rented six “houses of prostitution” in Springfield in which Asian women – some traveling from other countries – provided sexual services in exchange for free food, lodging and incomes of up to $30,000 per month. Those were some of the allegations aimed at Gregory L. Fraase, 60, in legal documents […]
Posted inNews
Limited capacity in juvenile detention centers statewide
The temporary closure of the Sangamon County Juvenile Detention Center almost six months ago and a shortage of staffed beds in detention facilities statewide could affect public safety, Springfield’s police chief says. “It’s stuff like this that contributes to the increase in crime stats,” Chief Kenneth Scarlette told Illinois Times. The Springfield Police Department highlighted […]
Posted inNews
FBI targets area Asian massage parlors
A 60-year-old Springfield man faces one or more federal felony charges resulting from an FBI investigation of Asian massage parlors and related allegations of human trafficking, prostitution and schemes to gain citizenship benefits for immigrants through sham marriages to Americans. Gregory L. Fraase was arraigned March 6 in Springfield’s U.S. District Court after a federal […]
