…Adding… Austin Weekly News…

After 17 years as a state representative for Illinois’ 8th district, La Shawn Ford said on July 15 that he won’t be running for reelection come November 2026.

The announcement comes nearly two months after Ford filed with the Federal Elections Commission on May 21 to run for United States Congress in Illinois’ 7th district, a position held by Danny Davis since 1997. Ford said that, if Davis runs next November, he won’t run against him and instead plans to retire from politics.

“Once I filed those papers that I was considering running for Congress, I knew at that time I would not run for reelection as state representative,” Ford told Growing Community Media. […]

“It’s only fair that I am able to give full notice before the process starts of circulating petitions so that, if there are people who are interested in running, they have that information,” Ford said. He added that those interested in running for state representative of the 8th district should contact his office for an opportunity to receive some mentorship from Ford. 

* Tribune…

Attorneys for former House Speaker Michael Madigan have formally asked that he remain free on bond pending appeal of his conviction on sweeping corruption charges, arguing in a filing Monday night he’s not a flight risk and that there are complex legal issues which, if resolved in his favor, will require a new trial.

Madigan, 83, was sentenced last month to 7 1/2 years in prison and ordered to report by Oct. 13. But in their 21-page motion, Madigan’s attorneys signaled they will file a vigorous appeal, and argued he should not spend time behind bars until after it is resolved — which could take a year or more.

Such requests are fairly common in white collar cases where there were significant legal issues, which Madigan’s case certainly contained. But convincing a judge who sentenced a defendant to prison that they should remain free can be challenging, particularly when the same judge already ruled before or during the trial on the issues being raised.

Madigan’s defense team acknowledged that U.S. District Judge John Robert Blakey already “resolved the issues discussed” in their motion, but said “few areas of criminal law are more complex, and more rapidly evolving, than federal bribery law.”

* Patrick Daley Thompson makes an appearance at City Hall…

* Former state Senator Richard Guidice has passed away…

Richard J. Guidice, 85, passed away peacefully at home on July 12, 2025, surrounded by his family. Born on April 29, 1940, in Chicago, Illinois, Richard was the son of the late Roger and the late Susan (nee Comiano) Guidice. […]

Born, raised, and lived in Chicago (most recently resided in Arlington Heights) he attended Chopin Grammar School, Austin High School, DePaul University and DePaul University College of Law. He was a Member of Alpha Phi Delta Fraternity, Beta Mu Chapter.

In his early career as an attorney, he established a general law practice and was appointed to fulfill a term as a Senator in the State of Illinois Legislature. It was there that Senator Guidice discovered his passion for governmental law. He became a lobbyist for the Chicago Board of Education Governmental Relations Department and in subsequent years, he was a founding partner of Capitol Consulting Group Illinois LLC, representing associations, agencies and businesses with varied interests in the State of Illinois. He retired at the age of 80. […]

Visitation will be held on Friday, July 18, from 3:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at Glueckert Funeral Home, Ltd., 1520 N. Arlington Heights Road, Arlington Heights, IL.

Family and friends will meet on Saturday, July 19, at Queen of All Saints Basilica, 6280 N Sauganash Ave, Chicago, IL, for a Mass of Christian Burial at 10:00 a.m. Entombment will follow at St. Joseph Catholic Cemetery in River Grove, IL.

* Daily Herald | Why the races to succeed Krishnamoorthi, Schakowsky in Congress are packed: Kent Redfield, a professor emeritus of political science at the University of Illinois Springfield, said the departure of an incumbent almost always increases the number of primary candidates. But in addition to that, Illinois is experiencing a weakening of party organizations that historically have limited competition by slating candidates and enforcing party loyalty. “This encourages individuals to try to take advantage of opportunities to run in races where incumbency is not a factor,” Redfield said. “Social media also facilitates both communication and fundraising outside of the traditional political party network.”

* Advantage News | Measure raising minimum detainment age in Illinois remains in committee: Juvenile Justice Initiative Founder Elizabeth Clarke says minimum detainment age legislation in Illinois could prove to be a critical early step in the fight to steer more minors on the right course. But the bill remains in committee. Billing it as a measure that gives young people a fairer chance by working to prevent early criminalization, the Illinois House advanced Senate Bill 2418 by a 73-41 vote before legislators adjourned spring session. The Senate didn’t take the bill up on concurrence, and it remains in a Senate committee.

* Sun-Times | Inspector general’s quarterly report chock-full of wrongdoing by city employees: Deborah Witzburg’s second quarter report accuses a pair of city employees—including a Chicago Police officer and an assistant housing commissioner—of fraudulently obtaining Payroll Protection Program loans for side businesses that did not exist.

* South Side Weekly | June 4 Calls Show CPD Knew Federal Immigration Agents Were Asking for Help: “I am calling from a program that is contracted through ICE, and we are seeing people here for visits, but I have a crowd of protesters that are on private property,” the caller said. She told the dispatcher that twenty to thirty protesters were outside the facility, blocking its entrances. “It’s a program called ISAP; we are contracted with ICE,” the caller said. The dispatcher asked if any in the crowd had weapons. “No, no, it looks like they’re peaceful, just screaming and yelling, but they’re blocking—we can’t get in, we can’t get out. I need to be able to have all my participants coming into the [ISAP] program and not feel, not feel intimidated.”

* Block Club | Traffic Spillover From Kennedy Construction Has Been A ‘Nightmare’ This Year. Can Anything Be Done?: Officials with the Illinois Department of Transportation — which is overseeing the construction project — and the Chicago Department of Transportation said they are working together to improve signal timings, add signs and assess traffic-calming measures to alleviate neighborhood congestion. That includes adding “No Thru Traffic” signs in certain residential areas, with more to be installed this week to prohibit truck drivers from using the Keeler Avenue/Irving Park Road exit ramp. But the problems persist, and neighbors have been left wondering if there’s any possible solution or even partial fix — or if they’ll just have to accept the traffic snarls until construction wraps up.

* Block Club | Rush Medical Center Rolls Back Gender-Affirming Care For Minors: Rush has ended its puberty blockers and hormone replacement therapy treatments for new patients under 18, making it the latest local hospital to curb gender-affirming care for minors amid ongoing threats from the Trump administration.

* Block Club | Ald. Harris Moves To Rezone Properties Near Regal Mile Studios Development, Drawing Pushback: More than 100 people have signed a petition against Harris’ proposal to rezone parts of 79th Street from commercial to residential — a move that could hamper plans to restore “desolate” properties, a developer said.

* Crain’s | Granny flats plan moves forward — but aldermanic control is the real sticking point: The Zoning Committee advanced the amended ordinance in a 13 to 7 vote, but approval in the full City Council is far from certain. A vote is likely to be delayed further if opponents use a parliamentary maneuver to block consideration of the measure when it comes up for a vote tomorrow. Supporters argue the new housing, which would come in the form of coach houses and conversions of basements or attics, is needed to chip away at an estimated 120,000-unit shortage of affordable housing in the city. […] But opponents say the policy is a direct attack on the City Council’s long-standing tradition of deferring to local aldermen on zoning policy in their wards.

* Oak Park Journal | Nurses escorted out of West Sub amid Family Birthplace closure : The afternoon of July 3, six staff members in the middle of their shifts at West Suburban Medical Center’s Family Birthplace were escorted out of the hospital by security, according to multiple sources who work on the floor that consists of the labor and delivery, postpartum and nursery units.  West Suburban staff said they were told the three units would be closed indefinitely, and they would be suspended without pay, because of a shortage of nurses. But timesheets shared with Wednesday Journal show nurses were fully staffed on Thursday, July 3 and through that weekend. 

* Daily Herald | Mount Prospect mulling ban on unregulated THC products, Kratom and Tianeptine: The proposed measure, which will be discussed at Tuesday’s village board meeting, comes in response to what village officials describe as a “rapid increase” in the sale of such products in local stores. If approved, the ordinance would prohibit the sale and possession of “illicit THC products,” including Delta-8, as well as such psychoactive substances as Kratom and Tianeptine. There would be a 90-day grace period for retailers to sell or safely dispose of their current inventory to those aged 21 and above.

* Daily Southtown | Lifelong resident Bart Holzhauser sworn in as Homer Glen village trustee: Holzhauser said there are a lot of issues to tackle, including preserving the village’s motto of community and nature in harmony, fighting against the expansion of 143rd Street and standing up for residents who have long complained about high water bills and customer service from Illinois American Water. He said ensuring residents are not victims of price gouging on their water bills is one of the top challenges, adding some residents have bills that are unaffordable.

* Crain’s | Downtown Wheaton apartment development lands $124M in financing: Chicago-based Banner Real Estate Group has secured an $84 million construction loan from PNC Bank and about $40 million in joint venture equity from a blue-chip insurance company to develop The Faywell, a seven-story, 334-unit rental building, according to brokerage Jones Lang LaSalle, which worked with Banner to secure the debt and equity. Banner’s project will capitalize on strong demand for apartments in the Chicago suburbs, which is boosted by people staying in the renter pool for longer as they put off home ownership due to high borrowing costs and economic uncertainty. The median net rent in the suburbs was $2.14 per square foot in the first quarter of 2025, up 4% from the same time frame in 2024, according to data from Integra Realty Resources.

* Daily Herald | Chaperone policy to be reinstated at Six Flags Great America and Hurricane Harbor Chicago: A chaperone policy is being reactivated beginning Thursday at Six Flags Great America and Hurricane Harbor in Gurnee. Visitors 15 years old and younger must be accompanied by a parent, guardian or adult chaperone who is at least 21 years old to enter or remain in the park, the company announced on its Instagram account. The policy will be in effect all day Thursday through Sunday. On all days following, it will begin at 5 p.m. until the park closes. It applies to all park guests including single-day ticket and season pass holders and members.

* Chicago Mag | How to Eat (and Drink) Your Way Through the Suburbs: From doughnuts with global flair to refreshing lychee martinis, there’s no shortage of bold flavors beyond the city limits. Here are our new favorites.

* BND | How will Trump administration’s $6B school funding freeze impact Belleville?: This $219 million, which were allocated for the coming school year, are composed of five core programs, Illinois State Board of Education spokesperson Jackie Matthews explained. […] Instead, the U.S. Department of Education notified states on June 30 that it is “reviewing” this previously promised funding.

* WSIL | New Era for SIU Housing: Old Dorms Out, Saluki Village In: The demolition will make room for “Saluki Village,” a multi-million dollar project in partnership with the SIU Foundation. The future village draft plans to offer 898 new beds, a community building, and four to five houses designated for special interest housing, particularly fraternities and sororities.

* WCIA | Mattoon’s Lytle Pool reopens after closing for toxic water: “Amazing. I mean, this pool is really just a gem for Mattoon, and the fact that we’ve had hiccup after hiccup last year with a whole motor breaking, as well as this year following into now this pool being shut down for a few days,” said head lifeguard Ethan Schmohe. “Our biggest goal is just to make sure that we don’t have to close any more this season. And the fact that we’re back and we’re up and running — I’m ecstatic to see it.”

* WCIA | Iroquois County Fair kicks off: Other headlining activities throughout the week include a tractor pull on Wednesday, demolition derby on Thursday, a rodeo on Friday and a country music concert on Saturday, featuring Chris Cagle and Craig Campbell. Many more activities will take place each day.

* WCIA | U of I getting $3M from state for tech incubator project: In Central Illinois, $3 million is going to EnterpriseWorks 2.0 at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Their project is a new construction building in Research Park for startup companies with an emphasis on laboratory and manufacturing commercial spaces for scaling companies. This would grow the capacity and capabilities of the existing EnterpriseWorks incubator.

* The Hollywood Reporter | Broadcast Falls Below 20 Percent of TV Use for the First Time: TV use across all platforms grew by 3 percent in June compared to a month earlier, with increases among kids and teenagers driving most of that increase as summer breaks from school kicked in. People ages 6-17 spent 27 percent more time on TV screens in June than they did in May, with streaming accounting for two thirds of their viewing. Accordingly, streaming set another monthly high with 46 percent of all use and beat the combined total for broadcast (18.5 percent) and cable (23.4 percent) for a second straight month.

* AP | A lockout is looming over MLB in December 2026, with a salary cap fight possibly at the center: “No one’s talking about it, but we all know that they’re going to lock us out for it, and then we’re going to miss time,” New York Mets All-Star first baseman Pete Alonso said Monday at the All-Star Game. “We’re definitely going to fight to not have a salary cap and the league’s obviously not going to like that.” Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred and some owners have cited payroll disparity as a problem, while at the same time MLB is working to address a revenue decline from regional sports networks. Unlike the NFL, NBA and NHL, baseball has never had a salary cap because its players staunchly oppose one.

* The Guardian | Irish tourist jailed by Ice for months after overstaying US visit by three days: ‘Nobody is safe’: He had planned to return to Ireland in December, but was briefly unable to fly due to a health issue, his medical records show. He was only three days overdue to leave the US when an encounter with police landed him in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice) custody. From there, what should have been a minor incident became a nightmarish ordeal: he was detained by Ice in three different facilities, ultimately spending roughly 100 days behind bars with little understanding of why he was being held – or when he’d get out.

* BBC | WeTransfer says files not used to train AI after backlash: The file sharing company had received lots of criticism from customers on social media after changing its terms of service, which some interpreted as allowing it the right to use files for AI training. A WeTransfer spokeswoman told BBC News: “We don’t use machine learning or any form of AI to process content shared via WeTransfer, nor do we sell content or data to any third parties.” The firm has now updated its terms, saying it has “made the language easier to understand” to avoid confusion.

* Stereogum | Hear John Prine’s Previously Unreleased “Hey Ah Nothin” From New Lost Dogs & Mixed Blessings Deluxe Reissue: John Prine’s Lost Dogs & Mixed Blessings is getting a deluxe reissue for its 30th anniversary, which will bring the beloved 1995 album (produced by Howie Epstein of Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers) to vinyl for the first time. You know what that means: We’re about to enjoy some previously unreleased music from the late legend’s vault.