Last July 22, nearly 20 public officials and social service agency providers gathered in a conference room at Scheels, the sporting goods store with a big aquarium, to talk about the homeless. It was a special board meeting of the Heartland Continuum of Care, a consortium of public and private agencies required by the U.S. […]
Newsletter – Main
Posted inOpinion
Good news, bad news
First, the bad news. The Kidzeum of Health and Sciences on Adams Street isn’t turning out as hoped when doors opened in 2018. Attendance hasn’t met projections. Revenue has lagged and debt is being restructured. Premises include 5,000 square feet of empty space. The business plan is being revisited. Staff has been cut. Public money […]
Posted inNews
Dim Art House breaks ground
From the outside, Dim Art House looks like any other bungalow along MacArthur Avenue, save for the signpost on the lawn, which has already been creating a buzz, as artist Joey Wallace can attest. “The minute we threw up the sign, you could practically hear people saying, ‘What’s going on over there?’” Wallace is a […]
Posted inNews
Rainbow connections
Gay members of the central Illinois community are working to better include other LGBTQ people in events and organizing. As the acronym to represent gender nonconforming and nonheterosexual members of society stretches to include the myriad of queer identities – many now prefer LGBTQIA to include intersex and asexual people – some in the Springfield […]
Posted inNews
U of I law professor violated sexual harassment policy
A University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign law professor has been found in violation of the university’s sexual misconduct policy. That’s according to internal investigative reports from late last year, obtained by Illinois Times through a public records request. The law firm hired by the university to investigate new claims against Jay Kesan from 15 women suggests […]
Posted inNews
MAP is back
The annual budget address presented by the Illinois governor is not the hottest event of the year for most college students. “I’m actually not at all invested in politics,” said Lauren Hernandez, one of the two Lincoln Land Community College students invited by Democratic Gov. J.B. Pritzker to attend his speech last week. As part […]
Posted inFood & Drink
Home-brewed kombucha
The end of our one-year lease in Oklahoma City is approaching and we are beginning the process of boxing up our belongings and deep-cleaning the apartment. We have a $1,000 security deposit on the line, and we’ve been told that our landlord is super picky. The apartment has been well-maintained and is generally spotless… except […]
Posted inNews
Redefining home
Nearly everyone loves an immigrant success story. For five years, one successful immigrant has been working to inspire the young people of Sangamon County to become involved in the economic development of their community. Sitting at a corner table inside Pease’s at Bunn Gourmet, Nabih Elhajj shares the journey that brought him from the country […]
Posted inOpinion
Budget blues and greens
Perhaps the wisest thing that Gov. J.B. Pritzker said during last week’s budget address came near the end, when he talked about why he wants to increase funding for the Department of Children and Family Services. “There is an old saying that the best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago,” the governor […]
Posted inNews
Will something be done about parking?
Downtown Springfield is jammed with parking problems. Shoppers and tourists complain about a lack of nearby spots, while study after study shows occupancy rates for spots remain low. Outdated meters only accept coins, and it’s getting harder to repair broken ones. The company that made them discontinued the model Springfield has and stopped servicing them. […]
Posted inNews
SIU to provide prison health care
With an eye toward expansion, Southern Illinois School of Medicine plans to hire doctors to work in Illinois prisons, which are under pressure to improve health care that critics say amounts to cruel and unusual punishment. A mentally ill inmate has died from gastrointestinal bleeding two months after swallowing two sporks – a nurse determined […]
