There are signs of progress, as well as frustration, in the efforts to reduce homelessness in Springfield. Advocates say more work is needed to expand housing options and street-level outreach to help people who cycle in and out of homelessness amid a 40% increase in rental costs in Illinois since 2020 and a lack of […]
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.
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City Council approves third round of cannabis grants
Former Ward 2 Ald. Frank McNeil, lead plaintiff in a federal court case that resulted in Springfield switching to the aldermanic form of government in 1987 and electing its first Black members of the City Council, wants to restore the city’s first Black-owned doctor’s office. “I look at this as a community enrichment project,” McNeil, […]
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Murder charges downgraded for Chatham woman
A 26-year-old Chatham woman originally charged with first-degree murder in the 2018 robbery and killing 19-year-old Springfield resident Dohndre Hughes may only serve a few months in custody after she was sentenced Aug. 4 in a plea deal. Katherine Smith received a prison sentence of 13 years after pleading guilty to home invasion in the […]
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Murder charges downgraded for Chatham woman
A 26-year-old Chatham woman originally charged with first-degree murder in the 2018 robbery and killing of 19-year-old Springfield resident Dohndre Hughes may only serve a few more months in custody after she was sentenced Aug. 4 in a plea deal. Katherine Smith received a prison sentence of 13 years after pleading guilty to home invasion […]
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Improving relations between police and the public
Springfield officials pledged to work harder to diversify the police department, inform the public about existing channels for holding law-enforcement officers accountable and “promote transparency for the community.” Those were among steps outlined in an “action plan” released by members of Mayor Misty Buscher’s administration, local nonprofits and religious leaders after more than 20 private […]
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Sean Grayson’s attorneys withdraw cease-and-desist request against Massey Commission
The citizen commission working on racial justice and reconciliation in the wake of the 2024 death of Sonya Massey won’t be restricted in its activities by the judge presiding in the murder case against Massey’s alleged killer. That’s because Mark Wykoff, one of the attorneys for former Sangamon County sheriff’s deputy […]
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Last call is earlier than ever
Police say they are receiving fewer calls to break up fights and keep the peace at bars in Springfield and elsewhere in Sangamon County since last year’s elimination of liquor licenses that allowed patrons to be served until 3 a.m. But bar owners say they have suffered economically, and they believe the decisions of the […]
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City’s Black Caucus addresses disparities
When the Springfield City Council voted July 1 to expand the way revenue can be spent from two tax-increment financing districts to improve homes and businesses on the economically challenged east side, a council member from the west side asked the proposal’s sponsors: “What are we trying to fix that’s broken?” The main sponsor, Ward […]
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Chelsey Farley tells her story
Chelsey Farley burst into tears while speaking with a reporter almost 10 months after a motorcycle she was riding on collided with a car driven by a recently retired Springfield police officer. Farley, 32, cried as she explained why she was wearing a medical boot to stabilize the lower section of her left leg. She […]
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Innovate Springfield moving to Horace Mann building
University of Illinois Springfield has pivoted from plans to open its new “Innovation Center” in a three-story building downtown and now will rent space for the center three blocks east, on half of the third floor inside Horace Mann Educators Corp.’s headquarters. A rental contract, finalized between UIS and Horace Mann in recent days, will […]
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Jerome plans to create TIF district
An average of 25,000 to 27,000 cars drive on Wabash Avenue through Jerome each day, making that stretch of road one of the busiest in the Springfield area. The commercial and retail corridor appears bustling. But side roads and underground utility lines that are undersized and deteriorating, as well an almost total lack of sidewalks […]
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County coroner’s office opens in former SJ-R building
Coroners speak for the dead. In doing so, they play a key role in bringing accountability to the living. That’s why Sangamon County Coroner Jim Allmon was emotional when he spoke at a ribbon-cutting ceremony for his recently opened regional morgue in the former State Journal-Register building in Springfield. “We’re in a position now to […]
