Buffalo Hart
Illinois Republicans are thinking about what to do next after a brutal election that saw candidates lose by significant margins throughout the state.
Calhoun's Matthews and Eilerman, Greenfield's Bowman, Carlinville's White, Roxana's Shorter, Jersey's Tucker and Edwardsville's Hill-Lomax make football all-state first team.
Ask anyone who grew up in Illinois about the best tenderloin they ever had, and the answer usually points to a corner tavern in a small town. These are the places where the sandwich hangs off the bun, the booths have seen a few decades, and the bartender probably knows your uncle.
As we approach the end of high school football season, the Illinois High School Football Coaches Association released its all-state teams for each class. Several of Central Illinois’ top football players made the list. ALL-STATE:. 5A: Marco Casillas, Mahomet-Seymour. 4A: Jeremiah Jackson, Jacksonville. 4A: Damonte' Phillips, MacArthur. 4A: Dylan...
Chicago, Joliet, Bloomington and Springfield drivers face a hidden danger when pavement temperatures plunge.
Lake-effect snow transitioning into wet snow Friday
There’s a place in southern Illinois that most people have never heard of, and it sits above the Mississippi River like it’s been keeping a very pleasant secret for a very long time. That place is Fults Hill Prairie Nature Preserve, and it’s located near the small town...
Illinois does not need a remote mountain range to present serious outdoor hazards. Sandstone bluffs, canyon trails, and Lake Michigan can all punish a decision that seemed minor a few minutes earlier. Going alone matters because there may be nobody beside you when a slip, sudden wave, or wrong turn occurs.
“Riding high in April, shot down in May,” Frank Sinatra sang in 1966. “That’s life.” . Chris Welch can certainly relate. He was riding high last April, having just been elected to the Democratic State Central Committee, the powerful party policy making group. Two months later, he was appointed one of four Executive Vice-Chairs to Chairman and Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle.
Some people find their calling in life at a very young age, and for a surprising number of Illinois residents, that calling turns out to be driving a go-kart at K1 Speed Mokena as fast as humanly possible while pretending they’re not absolutely terrified. K1 Speed Mokena is the...
Thanksgiving in Illinois comes with strong opinions, and everyone has a hill they’re willing to die on when it comes to the table. Maybe it’s the one side dish your aunt brings every single year, or the pie that vanishes before the coffee even brews. But when you look at the whole state, the consensus […]
(The Center Square) – Legislation to change the state’s death tax credit could help families hold on to their farms as land values rise. Illinois Farm Bureau Associate Director of State Legislation Mark Raney said farmers currently pay the estate tax on everything more than $4 million in value, which is easily exceeded by the average Illinois grain farm with 1,500 acres. “And that doesn't include the value of any of your equipment, your trucks, the value of any livestock you may have harvested, corn or soy, doesn't include barns, doesn't include your house,” Raney told The Center Square. Raney said the Family Farm Preservation Act changes the $4 million threshold and would be huge for agriculture in Illinois. “We want that number to be $6 million, however, the first 6 million is tax-free. So if your estate is $6.5 million, you are taxed on $500,000 and then we tie that $6 million to inflation,” Raney said. Raney said the bill would alleviate the discrepancy between high land values and income. State Rep. Sharon Chung, D-Bloomington, filed House Bill 4736 last March, after her previous version of the Family Farm Preservation Act failed to advance in 2025. Gov. J.B. Pritzker
Some of the best meals in Illinois come from places you would drive right past without a second look. A gravel lot, a plain sign, maybe a farmhouse porch, and then a plate of crackling, golden chicken that ruins every drive-thru for you. Southern Illinois is full of these quiet...
Churches across west-central Illinois are collecting donations to fill shoeboxes for Samaritan's Purse's Operation Christmas Child shoebox charity drive.
Illinois high school officials are weighing 24 proposed changes to the IHSA Constitution and By-Laws for 2026-27. Proposals touch on school classifications, cooperative teams, transfer eligibility and regular-season schedules. After statewide town meetings, the IHSA Legislative Commission will decide which measures go to a vote of member schools. By the...
Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker marked Veterans Day on November 11 by honoring generations of American veterans, including members of his own family who served in the United States Navy. His statement connected his family’s military history to the freedoms Americans experience today while highlighting the responsibility to continue improving the country for future generations. Pritzker […]
Minnesotans love ranch dressing more than almost anywhere else, and Kwik Trip is cashing in with a brand-new deep-fried addition to the Hot Spot.
Summer gets all the credit for ice cream, but some of the best scoops in Illinois come straight from working farms and dairy shops that stay open well into fall. While combines roll through the fields and the leaves start turning, these spots are still pouring soft serve, churning gelato, and handing out waffle cones.
We have good news for Chicago renters: Starting Jan. 1, 2027 , Illinois landlords can’t charge more than $50 for a rental application, including a background check. They also can’t charge a fee to renew your lease. House Bill 3564, which Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed , amends the Illinois Landlord and Tenant Act (765 ILCS 705/35) and is enacted as Public Act 104-479. The rules apply to residential leases entered into on or after the effective date , including new and renewed leases. They do not cover units in an owner-occupied building with six or fewer units. The $50 cap and the first-page rule Every non-optional fee, one-time or recurring , must appear on the first page of the lease . If it doesn’t, you don’t have to pay it. A landlord can charge more than $50 for screening only if the actual third-party background-check cost is higher. The landlord must pay the provider first, then bill you with the provider’s receipts within 14 days . If the landlord misses that window, you don’t owe the fee. A landlord also can’t use an unpaid background-check fee as grounds for eviction during the first year of a lease. In Cook County,
