The new law will allow more coach house construction and conversions but will likely create confusion and increase costs, advocates say.
Investigation
Posted inInvestigations
A New Wastewater Plant in Carterville Could Stop Sewage Overflows — Why Hasn’t Construction Started Yet?
Carterville reported 40 sanitary sewer overflows in the past decade. City officials have known for years that a new wastewater treatment plant would resolve the issue. They promised it would be operational by last year. But construction hasn’t started yet. Meanwhile, residents deal with flooding and backed up basements.
Posted inEquity & Economic Opportunity
‘Most Drivers Aren’t Making Money:’ App-Based Gig Work Promised Freedom and Flexibility. Workers Feel Exploited and Unsafe.
As the app-based informal economy grows, its many low-wage workers are demanding the same protections and benefits that many other full and part time workers have – to limited success in Chicago.
Posted inInvestigating Responses
Unsettling Accounts: How Illinois is Confronting the Student Loan Crisis
Illinois has one of the highest rates of student loans in the country, compelling the state to intervene so that residents burdened by debt can have some financial freedom to pursue their goals, including offering state-level loans and programs like the SmartBuy program which relieves a portion of student loan debt for residents who sign up to purchase a home through the program. But legislative support and limited funding for some of these initiatives are barriers to success.
Posted inInvestigating Responses
‘We’re at the Mercy of Child Care:’ Child Care Costs are Crushing Families — Illinois’ Largest Subsidy Excludes Thousands
While the state infuses hundreds of millions of dollars a year into child care programs, the strict eligibility requirements and limitations for its largest child care subsidy exclude tens of thousands of families.
Posted inInvestigating Responses
When Seniors Face Expensive Home Repairs, the Solutions Can be a Lifeline…Or Leave Their Families an Inheritance of Debt
Wealth and property passed down from parents to their children can be a major financial boost. But as some aging parents struggle financially, they can become prey to mortgage scams or even the complicated lifeline of reverse mortgages, where homeowners trade equity in their homes for cash but won’t be able to leave their property to their family. Home repair is at the root of the ability of senior Chicagoans to stay in their homes as they age. Local organizations are trying to provide relief without depriving seniors of the ability to pass their homes down to the next generation.
Posted inInvestigating Responses
Jobs. Block Clubs. Investment: How Chicagoans are Interrupting Violence at its Roots
The causes and solutions to gun violence are difficult to quantify—or control. One thing is clear: gun violence is highest in Chicago’s poorest neighborhoods.
Organizers in the hardest-hit communities like Garfield Park say tackling poverty is the only way to create lasting change.
Posted inInvestigating Responses
A Mentally Ill Man Died After Being Restrained. His Family’s Advocacy Led to Statewide Changes in California.
The knock came around midnight.
The officers told Carty Holland that his son, Andrew, had died at the county jail.
“They didn’t tell me how he passed,” Holland said. “The ugliness of it came later on.”
Posted inCriminal Justice & Public Safety
Iowa Jails Abused Restraint Chairs. A Watchdog Agency Intervened, Spurring Reform.
Two Iowa jails have made reforms after an ombudsman report found the facilities were restraining people with mental illnesses in chairs for long periods of time.
Posted inInvestigating Responses
This Pennsylvania County Banned Restraint Chairs at its Jail. Public Data Was Key.
Jason Porter takes comfort in knowing restraint chairs have been banned from Allegheny County Jail.
He was strapped down in the controversial device for six hours without food or water in 2020. His testimony bolstered by public data helped bring about a ban on restraint chairs at Allegheny County Jail.
