He urged Streeterville residents to contact Illinois Sens. Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth as well as Chicago Congressman Danny Davis to urge a federal solution to the migrant crisis. “They need to hear the urgency of the situation,” Hopkins said. “We can’t sustain this. We can not indefinitely use the Inn of Chicago and police stations and other facilities as permanent housing facilities for people that don’t have the ability to support themselves and to generate their own income.”

“Cook County deserves to be a place people are eager to move to, not a place people seek to escape. Fixing the twin pension and property tax problem means a solution from state lawmakers … but 9 out of 10 take political cash from unions, who staunchly oppose the very reforms that will save rank-and-file workers’ retirements and the state’s finances.”

Waukegan’s school district is one of hundreds filing suits in both state and federal court against social media companies. Multi-district litigation is not a new tactic for Waukegan school officials, as the district also settled similar cases against JUUL Labs over the marketing of their vaping products.

Revitalizing State Street should include improving streetscapes, adding more art and light displays, creating new programs tied to major city events and periodically closing the street to vehicle traffic, according to new recommendations from a city-commissioned panel.

Last year’s 5,400 student increase brought the total number of English learners in the district above 77,000 as of June 7. Based on that data, English learners are nearly a quarter of the total student population in CPS. The number of teachers designated as bilingual teachers has declined since 2015.

Now the agency’s post-pandemic recovery plans are coming into focus, and commuters could soon feel changes, from some increased fares to new ridership packages that will make a popular 10-ride card obsolete. But perhaps the most interesting shift is Metra’s attempt to market itself as more than a vehicle to get white-collar workers downtown.

“We give each other support and have made a lot of new friends,” Colombian Steven Rodríguez said in Spanish. “I lost my barbershop, so it’s nice to spend my days here with the guys.” The added cash helps the men send money back to their families, and buy food and other treats, since they are still waiting to get work permits.

Under the contract, schools would receive automatic distribution of tests at different points throughout the school year — including the start of the year and at Halloween, Thanksgiving and during winter and spring breaks The contract initially authorized a spend of up to $2.5 million, and she said the vendor increased that price following a national uptick in the number of COVID-19 cases.

“The blood-boiling decision is sure to raise questions about the legitimacy of claims made by public officials that CPD has a concrete, collaborative and robust plan to end a months-long surge in armed robberies.”

Police said two suspects entered MCM, which is located in the 500-block of North Michigan, just before 2:30 p.m. Tuesday. One of them took merchandise as the other threatened the security guard with a handgun, CPD said.

“All of these migrants need to be sent and housed somewhere else, other than police stations. It is an overcrowded, safety, and not to mention biohazard issue for our membership,” Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 7 President John Catanzara said of the migrants housed at police stations. “Nobody seems to think this is a workplace concern, but we are going to keep exploring every avenue possible to force the city if we have to stop this practice.”

State legislation was recently signed creating a task force to prevent the displacement of longtime Cook County homeowners who have fallen behind on property tax payments. “We should do everything in our power to prevent the displacement of longtime Black and Brown homeowners in Cook County,” said state Sen. Robert Peters. “A monthly payment plan option for homeowners behind on taxes is an essential anti-displacement strategy in rapidly gentrifying neighborhoods on the South and West sides of Chicago.”

Arwady’s departure represents a new era for CDPH, one in which Chicagoans could see the public health department and its role transform dramatically if Johnson’s policies pan out. As is clear from Johnson’s removal of Arwady, CDPH’s next leader will be under intense pressure to align policies and programs with the mayor’s ambitions. Johnson’s plans, dubbed “Treatment Not Trauma,” include sending therapists to 911 calls and reopening 14 city-run mental health clinics.

Whoever Johnson taps to replace Arwady will not only have to implement his public health agenda by overseeing the reopening of at least some public mental health clinics and the expansion of the alternate response program, but also lead the city through the next phase of the COVID-19 pandemic — along with whatever threat to public health has yet to emerge. The department’s next leader also faces a looming budget crunch.

“We’re getting terrorized right now,” a man said at a community forum. “It’s that simple.”