Kenneth Lowe

As of Nov. 1, an overflow center for the homeless is once again open at 221 N. 11th St. throughout the winter. The facility is part of a broader plan by the Heartland Continuum of Care to address homelessness in Springfield, and has become emblematic of the city’s struggles with the issue as a tent […]

Springfield is one of the most racially segregated cities in the United States, according to experts. Citizens Club of Springfield hosted a panel discussion last week that focused on the structural challenges that make homeownership, especially for people of color in Springfield, so difficult to achieve. As part of its third installment in a series […]

Many Sangamon County residents struggle with their mental health, see race as a barrier to career success and distrust police. Those are among the findings of a University of Illinois Springfield (UIS) citizen survey. UIS conducts the survey on local quality of life every two years. The most recent results were announced in late September. […]

The time between when a home becomes uninhabitable, dilapidated or derelict and when it is torn down can often take years in Springfield, a reality the city council will seek to correct as it considers recommendations in a recent report by the Bloomberg Harvard City Leadership Initiative. The city commissioned the study to find ways […]

City Water, Light and Power (CWLP) has begun formulating a plan to add significant solar-power generation in light of forthcoming changes due to a measure signed into law by Gov. JB Pritzker last week. It sets Illinois on track to end the use of coal for electricity by 2045. CWLP chief utility engineer Doug Brown […]

All Springfield hotels will see a 1% tax increase under a number of ordinances passed by the Springfield city council last week and effective immediately. As a result, the sports complex planned for the land near Scheels along South MacArthur Boulevard will benefit from an estimated $30 million to $35 million in tax rebates. The […]

The more than 40-year saga of the proposed “Hunter Lake” continues, with the city of Springfield now arguing for the lake to be used not just as a supplemental water source, but as a means of more lakeside recreation. As it has since the project began long ago, the proposal also faces criticism from detractors. […]

The Springfield City Council passed a one-year plan to convert the former Salvation Army facility at 221 N. 11th Street, now the site of a tent city, into an overflow homeless shelter. The compromise came after talk last month of a two-year plan for the same facility. The council passed the $477,000 plan at its […]

A federal moratorium on evictions has tied landlords’ hands and led to tenants simply refusing to pay rent. That’s according to Stella Dean, a board member of the Springfield Area Landlord Association. Rental assistance has been made available and many Springfield-area tenants are availing themselves of it in cooperation with their landlords. But Dean said […]

Frustration is rising as plans for a proposed homeless shelter in Springfield continue to stall. At its July 27 meeting, the Springfield city council voted to put off a decision regarding a plan for a homeless shelter at the former Salvation Army building at 221 N. 11th St. While considering an ordinance to put in […]