Two More Local COVID Deaths, As Hospitalizations Hit Five-Month High

The Sangamon County Coroner has released the name of the man found deceased inside a semi in Springfield last weekend. The body of 56-year-old James Barksdale of Springfield was discovered Saturday afternoon inside the truck, which was parked in a lot in the 25-hundred block of North Dirksen Parkway. There...

A key player in the city of Springfield’s economic development efforts is on leave after a recent arrest. The Illinois Times reports that the city’s business projects manager, Ravi Doshi, has taken family leave after being arrested in late December on a misdemeanor charge of violating an order of protection taken out by his estranged wife.

Springfield Mayor Jim Langfelder says he continues to talk with the fire department and the city’s major hospitals about the best way to provide emergency ambulance services in the future. The fire department routinely responds to medical emergencies, along with private ambulance companies, raising questions about whether that’s the...

The crisis of homelessness and housing insecurity is a major one throughout the United States. This is not conjecture, but simple statistical fact. There are, according to a US HUD report on the topic, at least 582,462 homeless individuals across the country on a given evening – and that rough number does not even take into consideration the housing insecure, or even some alternative definitions of homeless. Millions more are added onto the nearly 600,00 people who suffer as homeless in some stereotypical sense.

An ordinance banning the use of motorized foilboards – an inventive variety of surfboard – on Lake Springfield is on hold for the moment but could come back later this month. Supporters of the ordinance have raised concerns that the devices, also known as “efoils,” would be too...

A Riverton man has been sentenced to 18 months in federal prison for fraudulently preparing nearly three dozen tax returns. Via The State Journal-Register and Yahoo, federal prosecutors say 50-year-old Jason Hines assembled 34 fraudulent returns for 20 clients, resulting in a tax loss to state and federal governments of nearly $195,000.

When the Springfield Police present their proposed budget this week, Chief Ken Scarlette says the focus will be on training and traffic enforcement. Scarlette says his overall spending request for the fiscal year that starts March 1st is actually down one-half of one-percent from the current allocation. But he is...

Springfield has jumped into the top 20 in a new ranking of emerging housing markets from the Wall Street Journal and realtor.com. The ranking looks at the 300 largest metropolitan areas in the U.S. and ranks them based on the overall cost of living and the cost of housing, as well as the stability of the real estate market and the health of the local economy.

It took 35 firefighters to contain a fire that broke out at a Springfield business Tuesday. Fire crews responded to an automatic alarm at Nudo Products on Taylor Avenue around 3:15 pm Tuesday afternoon. They found thick black smoke coming from – and filling up – the building. Additionally, crews...

Registered Sangamon County voters will soon be receiving a form to request to be permanently placed on the Mail-In Voter list. A 2021 state law gives voters the option of requesting to vote by mail for all elections going forward. Sangamon County Clerk Don Gray points out that the mailed application is entirely optional, and voters are not required to fill it out and return it at all.

A little less than a year after announcing that Springfield would be getting a location, Raising Cane’s – a fast-food establishment that specializes in chicken fingers – will be opening its doors at 3100 West White Oaks Drive in Springfield on Tuesday, March 7. “We’re excited to...

Looking for something fun to do? Try Black Futurez: Mixtape at the UIS Studio Theater on Friday, February 3rd at 7:30p. Weaving mythical lore, parable, and personal experience, the unfolding narrative of Black Futurez: Mixtape can best be described as a compilation of ideas and emotions from Black youth living through current times. Featuring creator Reggie Guyton alongside special artists and musician guests. Get more information here.