* ICYMI: Veteran of Burke, Madigan trials to lead US attorney’s office Public Corruption section. Tribune…

-Assistant U.S. Attorney Sarah Streicker has been named as the replacement of Amarjeet Bhachu, who is leaving the U.S. attorney’s office on Friday after a 21-year career there.
- The Public Corruption section is one of the most storied and critical in the office, responsible for bringing high-profile cases over the years that decimated the leadership of the Chicago Outfit and sent a seemingly endless parade of elected officials to prison.
- Streicker, 45, joined the office in 2009 and was one of the lead prosecutors in the 2011 trial of Tahawwur Rana, a Chicago businessman accused of helping Pakistani American David Headley plot the deadly 2008 terror attack on a hotel in Mumbai.

* BlueRoomStream.com’s coverage of today’s press conferences and committee hearings can be found here.

*** Isabel’s Top Picks ***

* CBS | Illinois Treasurer Michael Frerichs denounces 3 a.m. protest at his house: Frerichs released a statement reading: “I will always defend the right of people to peacefully protest. But coming to my home with bullhorns at 3 a.m. and frightening my family simply goes too far. This is intimidation to cause fear through scare tactics. They made it clear as they were leaving that they would continue to harass my wife and children where they sleep until my office divests from Israel Bonds. I won’t back down from these threats. I stand by the investment decisions I’ve made.”

* Chalkbeat Chicago | Chicago’s fight over school staff pensions: 4 big things you need to know: The budget amendment on the school board’s agenda for its March 20 meeting accepts an additional $139 million in unexpected revenue, but does not spell out what the board will spend the money on. It lays out three possibilities: paying the yet-to-be determined costs of a new contract with the Chicago Teachers Union, funding an inaugural collective bargaining agreement with the union representing principals, and giving the money to the city as a contribution to the retirement fund that supports non-teaching school staff.

* Daily Herald | All aboard the M1? Metra considers renaming train lines: The discussion comes as the Union Pacific Railroad is handing off its routes to Metra to operate. The commuter railroad intends to discontinue “Union Pacific” as a route name. Currently, Metra’s line names “follow no logical or consistent pattern,” officials said.

*** Statehouse News ***

* WCIA | IL early childhood education advocates rally for more funding: As a part of an annual Early Childhood Advocacy Day, a group of parents and childcare providers gathered at the state Capitol to call on legislators to increase funding for programs that affect young children and families. On Tuesday, March 4, in the middle of the Capitol rotunda, children and adults raised banners and signs written “Fund the ECACE scholarship” and “Fund Early Intervention’’. Educators spoke at the podium urging stronger investment in the state’s early education workforce.

* 21st Show | IL Senate Minority Leader John Curran takes aim at Democratic bills and budget: Senate Republicans want the Pritzker administration to provide more details about how the state has spent money on programs for asylum seekers and undocumented residents. They argue the state has made it difficult to see exactly where resources have been spent. “We’re unable to do that because of all the workarounds by this administration through executive orders and the state of emergency declarations that are constantly issued,” Senate Minority Leader John Curran, R-Downers Grove, said Tuesday at a Capitol news conference.

*** Statewide ***

* Crain’s | Illinois university leaders show united front as Trump threats loom: Illinois university leaders showed a united front at Crain’s Power Breakfast today, reaffirming commitments to diversity on their campuses and touting the importance of colleges as vital drivers of local economies. University presidents from Northwestern University, the University of Illinois System, the University of Chicago and Chicago State University joined Crain’s for a wide-ranging conversation on how higher education is shaping Chicago and the Midwest while also touching on the state of higher education under a new presidential administration.

*** Downstate ***

* WCIA | Vermilion Co. UPS facility shutting down permanently: The UPS Customer Center on the border of Tilton and Danville is shutting down permanently. A spokesperson for the company said the UPS building made a notice in January that they’ll be making changes to optimize their network and improve efficiency. After hearing about the hub closing everything, the Mayor of Tilton is disappointed to see another business leave their county. “We can’t keep letting stuff move away. Yes, I understand, Champaign-Urbana is bigger; we’re not, I’m not going to argue that. But we’re losing a lot of things,” said William Wear, Mayor of Tilton. “We’ve lost Quaker Oats, we’ve lost General Electric, we’ve lost stores, we lost Ball Aluminum. We, Vermilion County, somewhere has got to stand up and fight and quit losing everything.”

* WCIA | Four Springfield officers must ‘complete retraining’ for violating rules in retired officer’s DUI crash: The Springfield Police Department has released the findings of the Internal Affairs investigation into a former Springfield Sergeant’s DUI crash. A six-month investigation by the Illinois State Police involved talking with witnesses and DUI experts, combing over a timeline of events and reviewing officers’ bodycam footage and their reports of what happened that night. The Springfield Police Department said that Internal Affairs “examined the actions” of the responding officers and worked to make sure that all “laws and department policies” were followed.

* WCIA | U of I Soybean Innovation Lab to close next month: On Jan. 27, they got an Executive Order to cease normal operations, minimize costs, engage in no new programming and conduct no further business with clients and partners. Three days later, the university lost all access to SIL’s research accounts in Washington — meaning there were no funds to pay expenses including salaries. That was when a closure plan was put in place. April 15 was chosen to be the lab’s last day.

* Rockford Register Star | Rockford-area leaders discuss workforce, childcare crisis: Rockford-area leaders and members of ReadyNation Illinois gathered Tuesday morning to discuss a workforce crisis as business leaders are struggling to hire skilled applicants due to lapses in adequate available childcare. A survey by ReadNation Illinois found more than 91% of poll respondents support greater public investments in quality childcare and early education. The survey results coincide with a ReadyNation report saying more than four out of five business leaders have seen their employees struggle to find affordable and stable childcare.

* PJ Star | Illinois Central College won’t offer on-campus housing after spring semester. Here’s what’s next: Illinois Central College students looking for housing will need to seek alternatives to the junior college’s on-campus apartment complex. ICC president Sheila Quirk-Bailey, in an email to the college, said that the group that manages on-campus housing, called WoodView Commons, informed the school they will not be leasing after the Spring 2025 semester. Quirk-Bailey added that ICC will compile a list of available housing options no later than March 21.

* 25News Now | An official says the teacher shortage is ‘worse than ever’ in Peoria County: The Regional Superintendent for Peoria County Regional Office of Education (Peoria County ROE), Beth Crider said the teacher shortage is “worse than ever [before].” Crider said there are shortages statewide, but Peoria County sees it in special education, early education, and high school math. She added that 87% of districts report a shortage, 65% of districts report that half of the teacher applicants are unqualified, and 91% of districts have fewer than five applicants for each role.

*** Chicago ***

* Tribune | Mayor Brandon Johnson pushes CPS to refinance $240M in debt, experts warn of long-term risks: In a briefing with reporters Tuesday, senior aides to Mayor Brandon Johnson said the district could get the money released out of an existing debt service fund, which school districts use to pay off debt similar to a mortgage or a construction loan on a house. CPS borrows money by selling bonds and has to pay it back over time. CPS could then pay it back with expiring tax increment financing money — tax money set aside to spur growth in neighborhoods — in two to 10 years, Johnson’s aides said. But the city and outgoing CPS chief Pedro Martinez are in a tough spot, financial experts say.

* WTTW | With Latest Settlement, Taxpayers Spent $8.7M to Settle, Defend Lawsuits Accusing CPD Officers of Misconduct During Protests, Unrest in 2020: The Civilian Office of Police Accountability, the agency charged with investigating police misconduct, concluded the officer used excessive force against Boyd, tried to prevent her from recording police and made false, misleading or incomplete statements in his report of the incident. The officer resigned after COPA urged the superintendent to fire him. More than $3 million of the $8.7 million went to pay private lawyers to defend the conduct of CPD officers from late May until mid-August 2020, one of the most tumultuous periods in Chicago history, according to records obtained by WTTW News through multiple Freedom of Information Act requests.

* Capitol Fax | Council votes down Chicago fur ban: Facing opposition from the Black clergy and the Black Caucus, the Council voted 26 to 19 to reject a citywide ban on the sale of new fur products championed by Ald. Ray Lopez (15th). Black Caucus Chair Stephanie Coleman (16th) led the charge against the ban in defense of Island Furs, a Black-owned furrier at 1827 W. 103rd St. in Beverly. Island Furs owner Gerard Brown was in the Council chambers as the City Council decided not to sign what he said would have amounted to a death warrant for his business.

* Sun-Times | Trump slashes environmental programs in Chicago that protect poor communities: It’s unclear how many positions will be cut in Chicago, but union officials estimate it may affect 20 to 30 of the roughly 1,000 EPA regional employees. Most significantly, the order ends a practice of “environmental justice” at the agency that has responded to people threatened by pollution in urban and rural areas. Environmental justice, born in Chicago decades ago, is a movement that recognizes how poorer communities often experience more air, water and ground pollution than more affluent areas. At the EPA, environmental justice programs have zeroed in on drinking water protections as well as hazardous waste and other problems.

* Sun-Times | Education Department layoffs gut civil rights offices in Chicago, nationwide: The layoffs are eliminating Chicago’s Office for Civil Rights, one of seven around the country where all positions are being cut, officials with the union that represents department employees said Wednesday. The office is tasked with enforcing federal anti-discrimination laws in schools. That will leave five offices at a time when the Education Department faces a backlog of complaints from students and families.

* Sun-Times | City clerk wants closer scrutiny of CTA, CPS, Chicago’s other sister agencies: City Clerk Anna Valencia has joined forces with Ald. Scott Waguespack (32nd) on a resolution directing the Council’s Committee on Ethics and Government Operations to create a subcommittee charged with “examining the process for appointing board members at sister agencies and establishing best practices relating to transparency, accountability and the democratic process.”

* Crain’s | Two more showrooms leaving Merchandise Mart for Fulton Market: The moves fortify Fulton Market’s growing profile as a hub for designer furniture brands, a shift that has come at the expense of the Mart and its longtime local dominance in the sector. Senator and KI follow a line that includes Steelcase, Herman Miller, Knoll, Allsteel, Teknion, Gabriel and Tarkett, among the brands that have set up shop in Fulton Market in recent years. The gritty-turned-trendy former meatpacking neighborhood now hosts its own “Design Days” showcase during the Mart’s annual NeoCon commercial interior design convention.

*** Cook County and Suburbs ***

* Daily Herald | Mending relationships with teachers, community among priorities for District 128 candidates: With five of seven seats up for election and a tumultuous period in Libertyville-Vernon Hills High School District 128 still fresh, guiding the next steps will be up to a new school board. Four incumbents are not running, guaranteeing a majority of members will be new after April 1. And there could be five new members if an appointee whose term is ending is not reelected. Candidates Wes Polen, COO of a consulting firm; health care executive Doug Fleegle; attorney Marnie Navarro; Mithilesh Kotwal, managing director of a consulting firm; and, Rahul Deshmukh, a private university educator, are running for four, 4-year terms.

* Shaw Local | Pistakee Country Club near Lakemoor could become a solar farm; hearing Wednesday evening: According to slides that are part of a presentation planned for a Wednesday evening public hearing, the proposal is for a solar farm of about 32 acres, which would be screened from nearby homes that would include “extensive existing vegetation and additional buffer and native pollinator plantings.” The farm’s entrance is proposed to be off Cuhlman Road, which runs north-south on the east side of the property.

* Daily Herald | Filling gaps and protecting rookeries among goals of two additions to Lake County forest preserve system: Forest commissioners Wednesday approved buying two properties totaling about 88 acres for nearly $2.4 million as additions to existing areas on opposite ends of the county. Lakewood Forest Preserve on the south near Wauconda is the largest and one of the oldest in the Lake County Forest Preserve District system. Lotus Country Conservation Preserve in Antioch Township in northern Lake County is among the newest and was acquired last summer for its valuable ecological features, including the largest heron and egret rookery.

* Maybe we’ll see her in the Bear…

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*** National ***

* WIRED | The Violent Rise of ‘No Lives Matter’: The US Department of Justice classifies Com and 764 as a “Tier One” terrorism threat, the highest priority afforded to an extremist group, ideology, or tendency in American law enforcement’s internal rubric. Intelligence documents reviewed by WIRED show a stream of concern from analysts about the group’s harm to juvenile exploitation victims and the growing exhortations to physical violence that embody the No Lives Matter ethos.

* NPR | EPA announces dozens of environmental regulations it plans to target: The Environmental Protection Agency announced plans to target more than two dozen rules and policies in what the agency called the “most consequential day of deregulation in U.S. history.” The EPA didn’t provide details about what it wants to do with the regulations — whether it will try to weaken them or eliminate them entirely. In most cases, the agency said it is reconsidering rules that apply to things like climate pollution from vehicles and power plants, wastewater from coal plants and air pollution from the energy and manufacturing sectors.