By HOI ABC NORMAL – Hundreds of unionized graduate teaching assistants at Illinois State University are voting this week whether to accept a two-year contract offer from ISU’s administration. A no vote on what would be the group’s first-ever union contract is tantamount to favoring a strike after two years of contentious negotiations. However, the…… MORE
By USDA SPRINGFIELD -There were 6.0 days suitable for field work during the week ending October 3, 2021. Topsoil moisture supply was rated 9 percent very short, 18 percent short, 71 percent adequate, and 2 percent surplus. Subsoil moisture supply was rated 8 percent very short, 29 percent short, 62 percent adequate, and 1 percent…… MORE
By Neil Doyle BLOOMINGTON – Bloomington public works crews are collecting residential bulk waste as part of the fall 2021 free bulk pickup. The service is offered at no additional charge for solid waste program customers. Brush will not be picked up during seasonal free bulk pickups. Public works will post daily updates and update the…… MORE
By HOI ABC NORMAL – Dozens of people, including students, showed up Monday night to peacefully protest the town of Normal’s removal of a painting honoring late ISU grad student Jelani Day. An artist painted the image of Day on the side of the Trail East building in Uptown Normal. It was there for one…… MORE
By Neil Doyle BLOOMINGTON – Gas prices are up five cents per gallon in the past week, averaging $3.32 a gallon across the state, according to GasBuddy. GasBuddy says prices in Illinois are two cents higher than a month ago and over a dollar more expensive compared to this time last year. GasBuddy price reports…… MORE
According to a Central Illinois Congressman, Republicans are prepared to work with Democrats and President Joe Biden to pass an infrastructure bill.… MORE
The McLean County Health Department reports five more residents have died from COVID-19, along with 81 new virus cases since Friday.… MORE
By Neil Doyle BLOOMINGTON – Bloomington Police are investigating a shots fired incident from the over the weekend on the city’s east side. Authorities were called Saturday around 11:15 p.m. to the area of Willedrob Road. When officers arrived, they located evidence that a shooting had occurred. Officers also learned that gunfire had struck an…… MORE
By HOI ABC NORMAL – Normal Police say a man is in protective custody after being in a standoff with police for almost two hours Sunday evening. Normal Police Chief Rick Bleichner said they called in crisis negotiations after there was a report of a man in a yard at the 1200 block of Brentwood…… MORE
During a federal sentencing hearing in Peoria, authorities tracked a handgun from the time it was stolen in McLean County, a shooting in Peoria, to the coat pocket of a man sentenced to prison Friday for carrying that gun.… MORE
By Mike Matejka Because of COVID, there is no Labor Day Parade this year. It’s always a great event for our everyday workers to march proudly down the street and enjoys the festive crowd. If there had been a parade, this year’s Labor Day theme was to be “150 years of struggle: your right to vote.” …
By Mike Matejka As President Donald Trump threatens to send federal marshals into Chicago, over the objections of Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker, recall another Illinois Governor who protested the incursion of armed federal personnel into the city. Those federal troops, rather than calming, escalated the situation, leading to deaths and violence. Illinois poet Vachel Lindsay…
By Mike Matejka Our nation is at a unique watershed in human relations. African-Americans have been killed too many times in the past before George Floyd, but the response to this man’s death is international and all-encompassing. I was a grade-schooler during the Civil Rights 1960s. I watched Birmingham demonstrators hosed and the Selma – Montgomery…
Looking around our community, when we say employer, most will respond to State Farm, Country, or Illinois State University. We too often forget those who are building our roads, serving our food, or our public employees. COVID-19 has made us more aware of the risk. Going to work every day for some people means…