* Tribune…

National Weather Service weather balloon releases — tracking temperature, pressure and wind speed — have been temporarily suspended in Omaha, Nebraska, and Rapid City, South Dakota, because of staff shortages and reduced at six other sites in the Midwest and Great Plains, according to agency memos.

That loss has created “a gaping hole” in our balloon data in Illinois, according to Victor Gensini, an associate professor in the department of Earth, atmosphere and environment at Northern Illinois University.

Gensini was among the climate and weather scientists who told the Tribune they’re concerned about the effects on Illinois of recent National Weather Service staff cuts.

“Is public safety at risk? Yes, it is,” said former National Weather Service Director Louis Uccellini, referring to the staff cuts. “(Can) I tell you exactly when the system is going to break? No, but the risks are definitely increasing.”

*** Statehouse News ***

* Journal Courier | Illinois task force uncovers nearly 400 Underground Railroad sites: Gerald McWorter, vice president of the New Philadelphia Association board, said the task force looked at several areas. “The first aspect is the actual telling of the history — the experience of people escaping from slavery — the freedom seekers,” McWorter said. Now, the task force is pushing legislation that would establish a commission to help provide resources, funding and support for all sites and academics connected to the Underground Railroad in the state.

* Tribune | Thomas Hardy, Tribune political columnist who went to work for Gov. Edgar, U. of I., dies at 72: Thomas Hardy was a writer and editor for the Tribune, including 10 years as the paper’s top political reporter and a Sunday columnist, before leaving journalism to work as a press secretary for then-Gov. Jim Edgar and then spending 18 years overseeing public affairs for the University of Illinois System. “He was the epitome of what you would hope a political writer would be,” said Edgar, who hired Hardy from the Tribune in 1997. “He wasn’t cynical but he was not fooled by anyone.”

*** Statewide ***

* Tribune | ‘We’re not seen’: Illinois’ incarcerated Muslim community observes Ramadan: Richblood, 33, has been incarcerated since he was 16 and in different facilities throughout the state, starting in juvenile detention. He has been at Danville Correctional for about nine years. He became Muslim at 19 while in the prison system, he said. Richblood said he appreciated his first Ramadan because he “likes challenges” but said the facility he was in at the time wasn’t particularly accommodating. “My perception was that being afforded accommodations to fast while incarcerated would be met with a little resistance,” Richblood said. “Then I came here, and the chaplain has got our back. It’s been a different experience than what I had all those years ago,” he said of his experience at Danville.

*** Downstate ***

* SJ-R | In face of allegation, Capital Township trustee candidate says he’s done ‘nothing wrong’: Leadership of the Sangamon County Democratic Party is standing behind a Capital Township trustee candidate who has been the subject of recent sexual misconduct allegation by a Springfield woman on social media. At least one group within the party, the Sangamon County Young Democrats, withdrew support for Evan Brown, who is seeking his first public office position in the April 1 consolidated election.

* Advantage News | Macoupin County Board Chair target of protest: The chairman of the Macoupin County Board has apparently stirred up some controversy as a result of social media postings. Larry Schmidt is identified in a post from a St. Louis television station reporting on a bar dropping Anheuser-Busch products after the company dropped its sponsorship of the St. Louis Pride Parade. In a comment on that post, Schmidt equated homosexuality to a disability, a statement that he later retracted. Chelsa Pruden is partnering with the Macoupin County Action Alliance and is helping organize a demonstration at the next county board meeting on April 8. She tells The Big Z the comments were hurtful.

* PJ Star | Dunlap school board candidate addresses issue from his past: The professional history of Dunlap school board candidate Mick Hall includes a three-year suspension of his license to practice law in 2012. […] According to the Illinois State Bar Association, Hall was suspended because of: Misappropriation of over $35,000 in funds he had agreed to hold for a relative in a trust. Conversion of $2,500 from The Hall Law Group in 2001. He was a senior partner at the Hall group. Conversion of $57,500 from client trust accounts between 2005 and 2006.

* WAND | New technology at Carle Foundation Hospital saves over $40,000 in food waste: Carle Foundation Hospital is fighting back on food waste, and has implemented a new technology that should help keep those food waste numbers to a minimum. It’s called Leanpath. At first glance, it’s just a scale and tablet. But in actuality, the scale is programmed to see what the food is, and determine the dollar amount of food that’s being wasted.

* PJ Star | Five vying for three spots on Dunlap School Board. Meet the candidates: Ahead of the April 1 consolidated election, perhaps the biggest subplot has been a campaign by a group of parents to remove Abby Humbles as school board president. […] Humbles believes the campaign to remove her as school board president is something that comes with serving in the public sector. “Sometimes, we have to endure some negative comment,” she said. “We’d like to please everyone, but to me, the results of the Dunlap School District are astoundingly positive. That doesn’t mean that we don’t take into consideration comments from parents. We always feel we could do better.”

* WAND | Former WAND Anchor to star in documentary “The Farmer’s Daughter”: Tara Barrett, a former morning news anchor at WAND News, left her TV career in 2011 to take over the family farm. A documentary titled “The Farmer’s Daughter,” airing this weekend on WAND, explores her transition. Tara discusses the challenges she faced, particularly the business aspects of farming, which were new to her despite her prior experience with farm operations.

*** Chicago ***

* Tribune Opinion | Police district councilors: Enforcement of parking violations shouldn’t fall on CPD: We often think of 911 as a number to call for violent crimes or emergencies that need an immediate response. But the Chicago Police Department receives about 100,000 911 calls each year for something far less urgent: parking violations. As some of Chicago’s first elected police district councilors, it’s our job to understand our neighbors’ policing and public safety priorities. Our constituents want CPD addressing serious crime and spending more time in the community — not tied up with minor enforcement issues.

* Block Club | NASCAR’s Chicago Street Race Will Close Downtown Streets Starting In June: The race is set for July 5-6, though the city will need 25 days for setting up and then tearing down the course, according to a Monday news release. Traffic and street closures related to the building will total 18 days, with pre-race closures and parking restrictions starting in late June.

* Chicago Eater | Feast Upon a Unique Cambodian Tasting Menu: One of America’s only Cambodian tasting menus is served in Chicago thanks to Khmai Fine Dining in Rogers Park. Chef and owner Mona Sang launched the endeavor in January with the intent of rotating menus monthly to focus on a particular Cambodian province. Diners can experience a unique seven-course meal with non-alcoholic or alcoholic beverage pairings. March’s menu focuses on Kampot, a province known for its peppercorns, durian, and crab dishes. For many diners, Khmai’s gateway to Cambodian food is the egg roll, something they’re eaten at Chinese and Vietnamese restaurants. Egg rolls aren’t on Khmai’s tasting menu. Sang is determined to set Cambodian food apart from other Asian cuisines.

*** Cook County and Suburbs ***

* Tribune | Waukegan area residents sharing $48.1 million settlement for EtO emissions from an industrial plant: A group of Waukegan area people impacted by the emission of ethylene oxide (EtO), a known carcinogen, from an industrial plant in Waukegan will be sharing in a $48.15 million settlement with Isomedix Operations, Inc., a one-time owner of the Waukegan facility. Isomedix, a subsidiary of STERIS, plc, a Dublin, Ireland-based company, settled its portion of a multiparty lawsuit with numerous plaintiffs (the ETO plaintiffs) for $48.15 million, according to a March 3 filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

* Daily Herald | Seven Northwest suburbs to receive backup water supply during upcoming leak repair: Seven Northwest suburbs will rely on backup water supplies for about five days but should experience no disruption of service as repairs are made to a leak in water main. Residents of Elk Grove Village, Hanover Park, Hoffman Estates, Mount Prospect, Rolling Meadows, Schaumburg, and Streamwood will switch over to the backup supplies beginning at 7 a.m. Tuesday. A repair to a leak in a 90-inch water main delivering water to the seven Northwest suburbs is needed, officials at the Northwest Suburban Municipal Joint Action Water Agency said.

*** National ***

* Forbes | RFK Jr. Expected To Lay Off Entire Office Of Infectious Disease And HIV/AIDS Policy: It’s apparently part of HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s whole HHS downsizing and restructuring plan, which has been posted as a fact sheet. That fact sheet indicates that the number of HHS employees will be slashed from around 82,000 to 62,000. This will include cutting around 3,500 jobs at the Food and Drug Administration, 2,400 at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and 1,200 at the National Institutes of Health.