1. And Then There Were None: Governor, Leaders Haven’t Met at All in 2016

When will Illinois get its nine-months-late budget? Maybe after the state’s political leaders meet… sometime? WUIS tells a story about nothing.

2. Chicago Gun Epidemic, Out of Control: The Execution of Tyshawn Lee

Policing is at the center of the debate, but does the state’s austerity budget play a role? The Guardian reports from the ground.

3. The Math Nerd’s Guide to the Chicago Cubs

Who happen to be the best team in baseball going into 2016. Chicago adds it up.

4. Meet Jenner Tomaska, the Beard-Nominated Rising Star Chef No One Knows

He started at a seafood restaurant in an Orland Park shopping mall. Now he’s Dave Beran’s sounding board at Next. Fooditor profiles the suburban Chicago native.

5. Time Traveling with Martin Sorrondeguy of Los Crudos

The frontman of the long-running Pilsen hardcore group visits the gentrification of his band’s old haunts, and a changing Chicago. The Reader follows in his footsteps.

6. With Partnerships and Young Reporters, Chicago’s City Bureau Builds a Collaborative Community Newsroom

The foundation of the non-profit is high-school grads from the neighborhoods it focuses on. The Columbia Journalism Review pays them a visit.

7. An Interview with Matthew Desmond

Housing in Rust Belt cities suffers from both high vacancy rates and affordability issues. How can we put the two together? Belt talks with the Harvard sociologist.

8. Seven Years After the Great Recession, Some Chicago Suburbs May Never Recover

The hardest-hit ones fall along familiar lines of race and class. The Tribune explores the data and the people behind it.

9. Tracy Letts and Anna Shapiro Discuss Mary Page Marlowe

The Steppenwolf stars team up for a Midwestern drama. Chicago goes behind the curtain.

10. Steve Avery’s New Attorney Is Going Hard After the Cops She Says Framed Him

The tough local lawyer takes up the case made famous by Making a Murderer. Newsweek previews Kathleen Zellner’s defense.