Mackinac Island: A Weekend Itinerary
STILL LIFE: Get beyond the usual tourist traps and explore the other side with this nature-lovers’ guide
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TIFs, Reforms, and Structural Deficits
Is Chicago ready for TIF reform? Perhaps it’s ready for some reasonable changes to the internal workings of the special taxing scheme, but who knows about the future of the city’s structural tax and budget problems.
The Chicago Pedigree of My New Schwinn
A bike nerd post about stumbling on an obscure piece of local bike manufacturing history: the fillet-brazed lightweight Schwinn.
Mayor Emanuel Talks (A Little Bit) About TIFs
The mayor’s Tax Increment Financing Task Force issues its final report just before the new mayor holds two budget townhalls. There’s actually some straight talk in it, but no calls for radical change.
WBEZ's 'The First 100': What I Would Have Asked, Had Rahm Taken Questions
On Eight Forty-Eight this morning, WBEZ aired its interview with Rahm Emanuel, in commemoration of the mayor’s first 100 days in office. The discussion, hosted by Alison Cuddy, was taped Wednesday night at an event cohosted by the radio station and the Chicago History Museum…
Barbershop of Second Chances: The Story of Eddie Lopez and Xclusive Cuts
Alex Kotlowitz talks to an ex-gang member who gives the barbers at his Cicero shop second and third—even fourth—chances to turn their lives around.
The Illinois Tollway Rate Hike: Ripping the Band-Aid Off Hurts
An 88 percent hike in tollway fares opens up the inevitable frustration. If these sorts of fares rose with inflation like most other things we pay for, politicians could rest a little easier.
The Ex-Con-Tended Bees of O'Hare Airport
A honey company and the North Lawndale Employment Network put ex-offenders to work as beekeepers in the shadow of O’Hare.
DC Earthquake? NYC Earthquake? Both, Really
Much of the East Coast just took a hit from a 5.9-magnitude earthquake near Washington, DC, centered between Charlottesville and Richmond. Here’s why it was felt not just in the nation’s capital, but in New York City as well. Plus: why the East Coast’s less frequent, less intense earthquakes affect the region more than on the West Coast.
Why Millennials Don't Know How to Use Google
A recent study conducted in Illinois colleges finds the usual: students don’t know how to research stuff. Only now, they don’t know how to research stuff using Google. They were just born too late.