Results tagged “chicagoriver”

Media outlets around the city are reporting that a body pulled from the Chicago River near Merchandise Mart early this morning is that of CPS Board of Education President Michael Scott. As of 9:00 a.m. this morning, police have yet to confirm the news but outlets such as the Tribune, Sun-Times, and ABC 7 (where Scott's wife, Diana Palomar, was vice president of community affairs) have reported the body as being Scott's. The body was discovered around 3:15 a.m. and Scott's car was found parked in a lot near the river; the body was pulled from the river around 4:30 a.m. Scott had last been seen yesterday evening around 6 p.m. after visiting his sister in a South Loop care facility, something family members said he did every Sunday. Scott's family later reported him missing. Neither police or the Cook County Medical Examiner's Office have confirmed the body was Scotts, though ABC 7 reports the CCME confirmed the body is an unidentified man, black, in his 50s.

Have a safe and happy Halloween!

Updated studies show that by 2015 some outlying suburbs could face a long-term water shortage according to Crain's. Water supplies are not going to dry up but projections by the University of Illinois Water Survey show that water supplies won't be able to keep up with population growth. As a result, pumping water from them will become cost-inefficient said Josh Ellis, a water policy expert at the Metropolitan Planning Council. He told Crain's:

Communities served by Lake Michigan face the same long-term problem. From drinking water to the reversal of the Chicago River, the Chicago region is now diverting 85% of the lake water that a Supreme Court decision allows; without conservation, that limit could be reached in 15 years.

As if we didn't have enough to worry about between coyotes and cougars, we can add alligators to the list of wildlife they may snatch us away while taking the dog for a walk. Yesterday afternoon, someone reported seeing an alligator at the Chicago River, near Damen and Fullerton, prompting a visit from Animal Care and Control. The gator, which was reported to be between two and four feet long, had already eased back into the river and escaped to its underwater lair to plot my demise by the time the official showed up. Of course, alligator sightings in the Chicago River are not exactly new, but this one is just another reason for us to skip the kayaking tour.

The first annual Taste of the Riverwalk kicks off today, along with the opening of a new section of the riverwalk, running along the south bank of the river between Wabash and Michigan Avenue. It’s now possible to walk along the river from Wabash all along the lake without having to go up and down stairs.

A hotel for Chicago's aquatic citizens has recently opened for its fifth season.

Today was the first day of the Chicago River’s bridge lift season, and both river and vehicle traffic was disrupted when the Michigan Avenue bridge failed to open. The center lock on the bridge was unable to open. After about an hour, crews were able to get the northern half of the bridge to open so sailboats could pass. Traffic was flowing again at 2:20 p.m.

The annual migration to the lake has begun.

It seems there's trouble brewing for Mr. Trump's new hotel, the supposed new "jewel" of the Chicago skyline. According to the Wall Street Journal:

So far, Mr. Trump has lined up buyers for a bit less than $600 million of condo units and condo-hotel units in a residential market that has virtually seized up. Yet he owes lenders as much as $1 billion when the loans are due, according to public records and several people familiar with the project. He has closed around $200 million in sales so far, with roughly $380 million still in contract. The retail portion of the giant building is for sale, at a time of rising vacancies for retail space in Chicago and one of the worst eras for retailers in years.

The Chicago River has flooded the north-side neighborhood Albany Park. As a result, the Chicago Fire Department has evacuated several families.

Maybe the best part of St. Patrick’s Day festivities is the reminder that warmer days are on their way, bringing with them festivals and parades. Today’s emerald green dyeing of Chicago River and the downtown Chicago Parade was chillier than it had been this week, but lower temperatures far from cooled the spirits of the crowd. We were on hand to snap a few photos of the day.

There are sixty bridges spanning the Chicago River throughout the city, as we found out last month at the annual B News neighborhood pub quiz. We know about the larger bridges downtown, and we stop to stare at them when the spans are raised to allow boats to pass. However, the majority of bridges spanning the river are smaller ones allowing traffic to pass between neighborhoods. We tend to overlook those bridges. This is one of them.

The crowd at Bernice's Tavern was separated into smaller groups. They were huddled together, studying a board containing ten photographs of church steeples and facades.

After months of anticipation, the $21,400,000 suspension bridge that's gradually been taking form at North Avenue appears to be nearing completion. This morning, for the first time since construction began in mid-2006, traffic is actually passing over the bridge, instead of being diverted to the temporary bridge that sits just to the south.

We're leading off today's awesome round-up by reminding everyone that, as Roosevelt "Rosey" Grier says, it's alright to cry. People seem very stressed out today — Holiday stuff? Lack of daylight? Weird diet? — but don't keep it bottled up. Let it out, and recover with some things that should cheer you up and quick:

The Chicago City Council held off on voting on a controversial ban on urban chickens yesterday. Since urban chickens are all the rage, it seems like a perfect time to ban them, right? Southwest Side Alderman Lona Lane (18th), who proposed the ban, said she didn't know why the vote on the ban was held up. Maybe it is, as the Sun-TImes suggests, because Mayor Daley has a thing for urban poultry: "Let's be realistic,"...

Loyola University Medical Center started testing all incoming patients for that drug-resistant staph germ that's been going around. Our version of a spa is where George Ryan's going to prison. Jesse Jackson Jr. throws a "tea party" style photo op, dumping bottled water in the Chicago River. Big talk for a man who opted not to run against His Elective Majesty for Mayor. Does El Cubanito make the best Cuban sandwich in town? You'll...

First item on the agenda is a month away, but a classic case of the early bird getting the worm. The Northern Illinois Branch of the International Wine & Food Society is sponsoring a seven-course dinner November 10 at Bonsoirée. Bonsoirée will do the cooking; IWFS is bringing the wines. Cost is $120 per person, and advance reservations (highly recommended) can be made here. This weekend is going to be a cold one to ride...

We once dreamed of free municipal WiFi. Now, we'll settle for cheap WiMax, the new standard that will offer WiFi-like speeds but with about ten times the range, which cuts down on the number of towers needed in a coverage area. Tech website Ars Technica was on the Chicago River earlier this week for Sprint's demonstration of its new XOHM WiMax service. The testers were given laptops with XOHM plug-in cards and Motorola cell phones hooked up to the network.

A dog named Miss Pickles was rescued from the Chicago River last night. Miss Pickles's owner Claude was walking her and his three other pooches—yes, on leashes, according to reports—near Chicago and Halsted when Miss Pickles, a bullmastiff, started chasing a rat. She wound up running right into the water, so Claude called 911. After falling in the water, Miss Pickles began to paddle eastbound underneath the bridge, before heading north around the Goose Island...

Chicagoist is a big cheerleader for the city, but there are some things that even we have a hard time getting excited about. Swimming in Lake Michigan or jumping into the Chicago River are two of them. Maybe it is the dumping. Or maybe it is (jump in the way-back machine, for a second with us) Dave Matthews Band. Or maybe it is the knowledge that every summer, the beaches are closed several times...

It's been confirmed. Orlando Jones, John Stroger's godson who avoided being interviewed by the FBI in conjunction with a hosptial shakedown in Las Vegas, committed suicide on a Michigan beach. Not only is this a tragedy for the people involved, but we're really disappointed with the Jesuits, as well -- The Rev. Donald McGuire has been convicted of molesting two boys in Wisconsin, faces a new accusation of sexual abuse, and his Jesuit religious...

If you’re not totally familiar with The Hideout, you’re not alone. It’s not called “The Hideout” for no reason – it’s tucked away amidst warehouses and a U.S.P.S. processing center in the gritty industrial neighborhood just south of the North Branch of the Chicago River. A hand-painted “Hideout Block Party, an unpretentious celebration of local, national, and international talent that ends in a nice donation to charity, and this year’s lineup challenges Pitchfork for the...

Chalk this up to the "print what the Mayor thinks, not what he says" baseline established by Mayor Daley's father. Remember last month when the city celebrated the opening of the Riverwalk? Someone asked Mayor Daley if he'd eat fish caught from the Chicago River and he said, "Sure, why not?", which must've sent his press department scrambling for their phones, laptops and antacid to play it down as a half-joke. Sun-Times outdoor reporter Dale...

By Any Other Name?

“Had the Des Plaines and Chicago Rivers not been so close and had a mountain -- instead of a small hill -- separated them, perhaps there might not have been a Chicago.” Before launching into the story of the Chicago River, the exhibit at the McCormick Tribune Bridgehouse & Chicago River Museum contemplates this thought, illustrating the essential relationship between the development of Chicago into its current metropolis and the river that flows through it....

The major stories this week are the opening of Crust, the continuing saga of David Hammond, bug eater, and how — if Hammond decides to head to Beverly in the near future — he might have a Tippi Hedren moment fighting with the seagulls who've been dining al fresco on cicadas. There are still plenty of events happening in the next seven days. Here are a few of note. - This weekend would be a...

Some of us are still recovering from last week's Four Questions, but our readers have an insatiable thirst for answers. One recently posed an interesting question to us concerning Chicago's Olympic bid and the city's flag. As all Chicagoans no doubt know, the city's flag includes three white bars, two blue bars and four six-sided stars. The three white bars signify the North, West and South sides of the city, while the blue bars...

Chicago came in #44 in a ranking of the world's cities based on quality of life. The Field Museum got a new totem pole to replace the one they returned to an Alaskan tribe. A couple of historic bridge houses on the Monroe Street Bridge over the Chicago River's south branch are getting major makeovers. There's a 3rd videotaped bar fight involving an off-duty Chicago police officer. He's the brother of the guy who...

Sign outside of the Patio Motel by abbyworld.