By Neil Doyle BLOOMINGTON – Frontier Airlines will provide new nonstop flights from Central Illinois Regional Airport to Las Vegas beginning this August. FRONTIER AIRLINES ANNOUNCES NONSTOP LAS VEGAS FLIGHTS FROM CENTRAL ILLINOIS REGIONAL AIRPORT Fares as low as $49* https://t.co/p2nWGAoALh #flycira #flyfrontier #Vegas #readysetcira — Central Illinois Regional Airport (@FlyCIRA) June 22, 2021 “We…… MORE
By USDA SPRINGFIELD – There were 6.1 days suitable for field work during the week ending June 20. Statewide, the average temperature was 75.2 degrees, 2.2 degrees above normal. Precipitation averaged 0.72 inches, 0.27 inches below normal. Topsoil moisture supply was rated 4 percent very short, 28 percent short, 64 percent adequate, and 4 percent…… MORE
By HOI ABC NORMAL – Outdoor dining will continue in Normal at least until the end of the year following town council action Monday night. Council members also agreed to give City Manager Pam Reece a pay raise, although one of the elected officials voted against the pay hike. The council voted unanimously to grant Reece…… MORE
The Illinois Soybean Association is introducing new farm practices to farmers all across the state.… MORE
As things slowly return to business as usual during the COVID-19 pandemic, the American Red Cross calls on Central Illinoisans to donate blood.… MORE
By Neil Doyle CHAMPAIGN – The University of Illinois system will require that all students receive a COVID-19 vaccination if they plan to be on campus for fall semester. The university sent the following message to students, faculty and staff Monday regarding vaccination guidelines for the fall semester: This requirement is consistent with our…… MORE
Police say a missing girl from Bloomington has been located.… MORE
Illinois State University’s governing board has signed off on a four-year contract with the school’s next president, paying her an annual salary of $375,000.… MORE
Now that Tari Renner is no longer Bloomington’s mayor, he’s considering a run for the Illinois legislature.… MORE
Parents, teachers, students, and even former students– all shared their concerns over district policies at the Unit 5 school board meeting Wednesday night.… 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…