* ICYMI: Illinois cannabis sales are on the rise again after a long slump. Crain’s…

- Sales in August and September rose 8% from the same period a year earlier on 12% higher unit sales, newly released data show.
- The Illinois growth likely was fueled by a 10% increase in the number of retail stores, as well as a recent change in state law that doubled the amount of cannabis consumers can buy in a single visit.
- Dispensary owner Tim O’Hern expects growth to continue because of a state law that takes effect next month which essentially bans intoxicating hemp products, which have undercut the regulated cannabis market.

* At 3 pm, Gov. JB Pritzker will joint Sen. Tammy Duckworth, Christian Mitchell “for a special announcement.”

*** Isabel’s Top Picks ***

* Tribune | ‘We need to be speaking out’: High school, college students across Illinois protest sexual violence: Almost 300 miles away, students at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville were standing against sexual violence. After seeing information about the National Day of Action online, Isabel Montano, a junior studying philosophy and economics, decided to take action at SIUE. It can be really easy to feel overwhelmed with sadness and anger, but Montano said she thought it would be good to channel those feelings into “an outlet to try to do something good and bring people together, to bring about positive change,” she said.

* Sun-Times | White Sox headed to Cleveland for Game 5 after Grant Taylor, pitching staff routed in 9-5 loss: But behind 18 runs and 17 walks allowed in two games to a Guardians offense that finished 11th in the AL in runs scored, but upgraded at the trade deadline in a way the Sox pitching staff was not, it won’t be happening. Not in this series, and without an about-face in two days, not this year at all.

*** Statehouse News ***

* Capitol News Illinois | Pritzker says ‘so much more to do’ in Illinois as he seeks rare 3rd term: “I would like people to remember what I walked into when I took office, the challenges the state was facing, the structural deficit, the credit downgrades — 24 credit downgrades over the course of 15 years — and I turned all of that around,” Pritzker told Capitol News Illinois in an interview at his Loop campaign office in early October. “You know, other people have talked about a turnaround,” Pritzker said, a not-so-veiled play on the largely unfulfilled “Turnaround Agenda” of his predecessor, one-term Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner. “We actually accomplished it over the last seven-and-a-half years.”

*** Chicago ***

* CBS Chicago | Hotel workers on strike ahead of Chicago Marathon weekend: The strike comes as people from around the world plan to travel to the city this weekend for the 2026 Chicago Marathon on Sunday. UNITE HERE Local 1 said negotiations on new contracts failed to reach an agreement, and most of those contracts expired on Aug. 31. The contracts are with companies including Hilton, Hyatt, and Marriott. Collectively, the hotels employ more than 7,000 room attendants, cooks, dishwashers, front desk agents, servers, and food service workers at more than 40 hotels downtown and near McCormick Place.

* Sun-Times | Newly appointed Chicago inspector general wants city to put AI to work for City Hall: With Glockner as an ally in the push to put AI to use, Ald. Gilbert Villegas (36th) said he hopes to start implementing the “dormant” game plan in a host of areas — from hiring, permitting, time and attendance to billing, 311 requests and customer service. “It’s frustrating. … They make utilization of AI out to be a boogeyman and the reality is that there are ways you can incorporate it that will allow for the worker to be more efficient,” said Villegas, former chair of the City Council’s Committee on Economic, Capital and Technology Development.

* Tribune | Pilsen residents call for more air quality testing at scrap metal facility: “It’s not something that you want to live in Pilsen and have your windows wide open,” said Adriana Gutierrez-Diaz, 58, who lives two blocks from the site. “It just seems to me that there’s a lot going on that we don’t even know, but we’re feeling it and seeing it.” Pilsen residents are demanding that Gov. JB Pritzker’s office ​stop the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency from moving forward on an operating permit for the facility until more testing has been done.

* Tribune | At long last, Chicago school board puts its committees to work: Nearly two years after its 21 members were seated — and just three weeks before a consequential election — the Chicago school board finally put its three standing committees on finance, operations and student success to work. It’s unclear why the Board of Education took so long to form the committees, even though its bylaws require them. Advocates have long viewed the model as a way to streamline governance by having small groups zero in on specific issues. Committee appointments were announced last month, and the groups convened for the first time Thursday.

*** Cook County and Suburbs ***

* Sun-Times | To protect immigrant students, a Chicago-area college told Flock to remove its cameras. The company refused: Heinrich said her staff audited the campus’ Flock data and found no evidence to suggest it had been accessed by federal immigration agents. Still, college officials asked Flock to remove the surveillance cameras “out of an abundance of caution for our students,” Heinrich said. But getting the cameras taken down was not as simple as it sounds, especially because Flock retains ownership of the company’s equipment. Flock responded to Elgin Community College’s request with silence — and even resistance.

* Daily Southtown | Will County sheriff candidates discuss Flock cameras, SAFE-T Act: Republican James “Jim” Reilly faces Democrat Patrick Jones for a four-year term, and both candidates are longtime sheriff’s office employees. Kelley, sheriff since 2014, decided not to seek reelection. Reilly, 60, a Will County sheriff’s deputy who has been in law enforcement for 24 years, has been a K-9 officer and juvenile officer, and was part of an undercover organized crime unit that worked with federal agencies to investigate high-level criminal activities, narcotics and gangs.

* Aurora Beacon-News | Aurora eyes allowing department leaders to live outside the city: ‘Address doesn’t dictate commitment’: The measure was held at the committee level and is set to be discussed again at the panel’s next meeting on Oct. 20. Officials in favor of completely removing the requirement said residency in Aurora could be listed instead as a preference on job applications. This change would take the measure a step further than a similar ordinance approved by the city in September that allows the city’s police and fire chiefs to live in any municipality within 15 miles of Aurora, instead of having to live within the city limits.

* Daily Herald | Mount Prospect plans to build a new south side community center: The Community Connections Center at 1711 W. Algonquin Road serves as a satellite location for the village’s Human Services Department and the Mount Prospect Public Library. It was created to bring those services to residents on the south end who may face transportation and language barriers. But a 2025 assessment found an urgent need to expand services, and the 3,600-square-foot center had no room to grow.

*** Downstate ***

* Illinois Times | Data center lawsuit could be tossed out: Circuit Judge Adam Giganti could decide on Oct. 9 whether a lawsuit regarding the Sangamon County Board’s approval for the county’s first hyperscale data center goes forward or is dismissed. The July 6 lawsuit was originally filed against Sangamon County and the County Board by residents who live approximately a mile or less from the site seeking to overturn the county’s approval of the project due to procedural and environmental concerns. The Sangamon County Board approved a conditional use permit on April 7 for a data center to be constructed on 280 acres of farmland by a vote of 17-10, with one board member abstaining.

* WGLT | Bessler aims to keep McLean County Board seat against counselor Klinkner: Bessler credits himself as the architect of the plan that delivered a Democratic majority to the county board in 2024. The plan was a slow and steady trend showing the county leaning more blue than before. He said fighting for housing, collective bargaining and equal and fair treatment for all inform his decision to not just run, but run as a Democrat.

* Journal Courier | Public opinion being sought on Greene County Work Camp closure: here will be a public hearing this month for people to share their thoughts about the proposed closure of the Greene County Work Camp, which hasn’t had prisoners since 2020. The Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability won’t give a final recommendation for its closure until its final hearing the week of Nov. 16. It’s required to give its advisory opinion within 30 days after a department recommends a facility closure.

* KFVS | Public hearing set on proposed closure of Du Quoin correctional facility: A hearing on the proposed closure of the Du Quoin Impact Program will be held on October 21, after the Illinois Department of Corrections announced in August its intent to permanently close the facility. The Du Quoin Impact Program is located behind the Du Quoin State Fairgrounds. Some locals who work nearby said the building could be repurposed. “They could use it for anything from homeless to vets to help with any types of shelters,” said Katy Cathcart, of Cutler, Ill.