A former Illinois State Police Merit Board employee who was fired by the small state agency in July 2020 for alleged felony theft, forgery and official misconduct received $71,400 in workers’ compensation and disability payments after her termination. It’s unclear why Jenny Thornley, 41, received the benefits for more than a year based on her […]
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
COVID surge strains health care workers
Springfield’s health care workers say they are exhausted as the COVID-19 pandemic enters its third year. They say they’ve never seen more death, and they’ve fought politics that hindered efforts to contain the spread of coronavirus. Based on that experience, they say the public should temper any optimism about the latest drop in new COVID-19 […]
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Apartment complex to get overhaul
Families looking for affordable housing will be the beneficiaries after state officials approved low-interest financing for $10 million in renovations at Pine Woods Apartments in Springfield, according to Ward 7 Alderman Joe McMenamin. “This will be really attractive to folks who have a modest income,” McMenamin said after St. Louis-based Bywater Development Group received Illinois […]
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Former Vibra Hospital sold
A Springfield developer has acquired the shuttered former Vibra Hospital of Springfield and says he plans to rent it to an undisclosed tenant involved in “ancillary health care.” Developer Chris Stone told Illinois Times he finalized the $1.43 million purchase from Pennsylvania-based Vibra Healthcare on Dec. 6 and plans to have the tenant move in […]
Posted inNews
Former Vibra Hospital sold
A Springfield developer has acquired the shuttered former Vibra Hospital of Springfield and says he plans to rent it to an undisclosed tenant involved in “ancillary health care.” Developer Chris Stone told Illinois Times he finalized the $1.43 million purchase from Pennsylvania-based Vibra Healthcare on Dec. 6 and plans to have the tenant move in […]
Posted inNews
Mayor fires director of Lincoln Library
The director of Lincoln Library, who moved to Springfield from La Crosse, Wisconsin, when she was hired two-and-a-half years ago, says she was fired by Mayor Jim Langfelder Jan. 20. Rochelle Hartman, 59, told Illinois Times the following day that she was surprised and bewildered when Langfelder summoned her to City Hall and told her […]
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Dispute between city and Springfield Airport Authority continues
The Springfield Airport Authority hasn’t followed through on its threatened lawsuit against the city of Springfield to obtain disputed sales tax revenue on the sales of aviation fuel at Abraham Lincoln Capital Airport. But lawyers for both sides have started to talk, and the SAA has filed a Freedom of Information Act request to determine […]
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New grant program for minority business owners
Dee Clay hopes to acquire adjacent land so she can install a drive-through window and make other improvements to her restaurant on Springfield’s east side with a grant from the city’s share of recreational marijuana tax revenue. Clay, the owner of Clay’s Popeye’s BBQ, 1121 South Grand Ave. East, said devoting some of the revenue […]
Posted inNews
Mayor fires director of Lincoln Library
The director of Lincoln Library, who moved to Springfield from La Crosse, Wisconsin, when she was hired two-and-a-half years ago, says she was fired by Mayor Jim Langfelder Jan. 20. Rochelle Hartman, 59, told Illinois Times the following day that she was surprised and bewildered when Langfelder summoned her to City Hall and told her […]
