
Latest photos
Local links...
- Illinois Labor Historical Society
- Andrew Jackson Language Academy
- Near West Community Plan
- St. Leonard's Ministries
- South Loop Historical Society
What we're reading...
- The Rahmfather portrait
- Living the high life, family style
- Taxpayers suffer for McCormick grudge
- Water + sewers = slush fund
- The mysterious death of Sammy Wanjiru
Latest comments
- John You have no idea what you are...
- It’s too bad the Bears have joined the...
- Football is great, but what about a...
- How is it suspicious when you have a...
- My comments about O'Neill were about...
- Thanks for pointing out my mistake. ...
- Just a question. Have either of you...
- I agree with you near west reside. The...
- not to talk bad about Barbara's but I...
- Let's not get bogged down in names and...

Got a tip, comment, photograph or idea? E-mail Ben at [email protected].
Powell's Books to replace University Village Barbara's Bookstore
New shop slated to open March 1

02/01/2012
Less than a month after University Village’s Barbara’s Bookstore closed its doors, citing weak sales and poor foot traffic, a Chicago-based bookstore chain is moving into the space at 1218 S. Halsted St.
Read More...Pete's Fresh Market finally closes purchase of Near West Side site
After numerous delays, Ald. Bob Fioretti says grocery store owns property, will break ground soon
01/26/2012 7:14 PM
After numerous delays, Pete’s Fresh Market finally owns the property they’re planning to build a grocery store on at Madison Street and Western Avenue, Ald. Bob Fioretti said in an email Thursday evening.
Read more...One Sixtyblue to reopen in spring 2012 as Asian barbecue
Belly Q to debut at 1400 W. Randolph
01/24/2012 4:47 PM
One Sixtyblue, the recently shuttered restaurant on Randolph Street in the West Loop co-owned by Michael Jordan, announced Tuesday morning that it’ll reopen in spring as an Asian barbecue restaurant.
Read more...Remap results: A look at West Loop, Near West Side's now-dominant Ald. Walter Burnett
The Reader profiles the man who'll run the show for the foreseeable future
01/21/2012 11:00 AM
One of the biggest winners in the wake of Chicago's new ward remap is Ald. Walter Burnett Jr. (27th), who gained a big chunk of turf covering most of the West Loop and the Near West Side. Former Chicago Journal writer and Reader reporter Mick Dumke profiles Burnett this week.
Remap results: New majority South Loop aldermen Burns, Dowell speak up
With 2nd Ward gone, 3rd and 4th wards are taking over — here’s what to expect
01/20/2012 5:23 PM
Chicago has a brand new ward map today, and political representation in the South Loop is shaping up to be much different than it used to be. Here's what the new alderman say about their new turf and new constituents.
Read more...Ward remap passes: 2nd Ward blown up, 3rd and 4th Wards split South Loop
Ald. Fioretti mounts last-ditch effort to delay map, but overruled by Emanuel, Burke
01/19/2012 12:00 AM
After months of backroom wheeling and dealing, the South Loop has gained a new alderman and lost another, as Ald. Bob Fioretti’s 2nd Ward has officially been blown up and banished to the North Side in Chicago's next ward remap.
Read more...New CTA stops at Cermak, Washington and Wabash underway
Stations will both begin construction in 2013
01/18/2012 1:49 PM
As work on the Green Line’s new Morgan stop in the West Loop approaches the finish line, two more CTA stops are being planned in and around downtown Chicago.
Read more...McCormick Place Hyatt begins expansion
Three-phase, $110 million project will add new tower, renovate old building
01/18/2012 1:48 PM
McCormick Place’s only on-site hotel, Hyatt Regency, announced Tuesday that it had begun the first phase of its expansion, starting with construction of its second tower.
Read more...Track Chicago's snowplows
City's new website lets you watch as they work
01/12/2012 4:25 PM
The city’s first major snowfall is finally upon us, and that means snowplows are out in force. According to a press release from the city’s streets and sanitation department, all 278 of the city’s snowplows are out scraping the roads for rush hour.
Read more...Johnson Publishing finds new home, clearing way for Columbia
Library, center for black music research to take over building
01/11/2012 2:28 PM
Johnson Publishing Co., the publisher of black-focused magazines Ebony and Jet, has found a new home in the Loop in the Borg-Warner Building, at 200 S. Michigan Ave.
Read more...


