Protestors gathered at Parkland College April 21 to demand the firing of a former Champaign police chief from his teaching position. Former police chief R.T. Finney has been teaching classes about community policing since the fall of last year. Finney was involved in a shooting that led to the 2009 killing by a different officer…
URBANA — The University of Illinois’s Krannert Center for the Performing Arts is showing “The Neverland” through Saturday. It’s an adaptation of the original “Peter Pan” play that’s more inclusive to minority groups. Although there are some changes from the original version of “Peter Pan,” “The Neverland” includes some of the original characters, such as…
URBANA – Longtime Illini sportscaster Jim Turpin died Sunday. The News-Gazette said the 90-year-old Turpin had recently suffered a fall and died with family members at his side. Jim Turpin first broadcast Illinois football, basketball and baseball games on WILL Radio in the late 1950s, while he was a University of Illinois student. After a…
CHAMPAIGN — Michael Davis describes an ideal client for his new project. An elderly couple is trying to make ends meet with their retirement income. They can’t afford to fix their leaky roof. By the time they pass their house onto their children, the house has mold and is too far gone for repairs. This…
SEYMOUR, Ind. — In the days leading up to her hospital’s COVID-19 vaccine clinic, hospital administrator Bethany Daugherty carefully monitored pre-registrations. The numbers were low: only about 30 people signed up to receive their shot. “I thought, ‘Well, 30 is better than zero,’” said Daughtery, the health and wellness education specialist at the Schneck Medical…
For more than 30 years, the radio talk show Focus 580 was a mainstay of the WILL-AM program schedule, during a time when national daytime programming for public radio was scarce. The weekday program featuring host David Inge kept its listeners in touch with their local community and with the world.
DANVILLE – The Illinois Gaming Board has invited casino developers to their Thursday, March 10 meeting to make a presentation about their application for a casino license. Danville Mayor Rickey Williams Jr. announced the gaming board’s plans on Friday, February 25. A gaming board spokesperson confirmed the plans on Tuesday, March 2. Policy director Joe…
URBANA — During snowstorms, the Champaign-Urbana Mass Transit District calls on both employees and volunteers to “plow” the sidewalks. Cynthia Hoyle chairs the C-U Safe Routes to School Project. The project coordinates volunteer “snow angels,” who commit to clearing snow from stretches of sidewalk near them. “Because you can’t get compliance by fining people. You…
For Thursday, February 17 closure information, visit here URBANA — Many cities, schools and other organizations are announcing closings and cancellations because of heavy snow in central Illinois. We will include as many of them as possible in this article, organized by location. The following closures are for Friday, February 4: University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign…
HOUSTON, Mo. — A town of 1,000 people feels like a rural place to someone from Chicago. To a person living in a town of 200 people, that population of 1,000 feels almost urban. But what the government defines as rural determines tens of billions of dollars a year in spending aimed at propping up…
URBANA — Janice Walker is no stranger to gun violence. Walker said she knew many friends and neighbors who were shot and killed when she lived in both Chicago and Champaign. The most painful was when she found out that her brother had been shot and killed after breaking up a fight outside of his…
It’s no secret that some underage students at the University of Illinois like to drink at nearby Campustown bars, and that those under 21 have ample opportunity to violate the law at Campustown bars. But throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, the Champaign Police Department has made it even easier for minors to get away with underage…
Since 2019, at least 63 Champaign-Urbana restaurants have failed and 19 have been temporarily closed down by public health officials under a new restaurant inspection system launched that year. On average, health inspectors failed 14 restaurants of 324 restaurants inspected each quarter between 2008 and 2017, according to an earlier analysis of public health department…
This story is part of a partnership between the Invisible Institute and CU-CitizenAccess exploring police misconduct in Champaign County. Champaign County Sheriff’s Sergeant Norman “JR” Meeker had a 10-year history of disciplinary violations, including destruction of personal property, contract violations, a Tik Tok account that shared bodycam videos of crime scenes, and mountains of missed paperwork. Yet,…
Some property owners are expressing concern about accessory dwelling units — small buildings on single housing property — while Champaign city officials move towards approving them. The housing units have been promoted as a possible step towards more affordable housing and a way for family members to comfortably live together, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. …