Category: 4-FrequentNewsStreams

Officials have touted the Unity Initiative, a donation-funded partnership between the city of Chicago and its faith community, as one reason the city is no longer relying on police stations as shelter. Reset checks back in with Jonathan de la O, pastor of Starting Point Community Church in Belmont Cragin, about participating in that program and what migrants need ahead of an impending stay limit being imposed at city-run shelters.

Four former employees in the mayor’s office say they were improperly placed on City Hall’s do-not-hire list. Reset talks with Leigh Giangreco, government and politics reporter for Crain’s Chicago Business and David Greising, president, Better Government Association about those stories and how the city’s do-not-hire list is supposed to work.

From overseeing the forest preserves’ centennial celebration to making a strategic conservation plan for the next century, Arnold Randall left an indelible mark during his 13 years as the general superintendent of Cook County’s forest preserves. Ahead of his departure from the district, Reset reflects with Randall on his legacy and conservation in Cook County over the past decade.

Continued freezing temperatures add another challenge to housing migrants. Car insurance rates are on the rise. And Illinois releases new assault weapons registration rules after only a fraction of eligible gun owners registered their weapons with the state. Reset breaks down these stories and more with Ravi Baichwal anchor at ABC 7 News, Stephanie Zimmermann, consumer investigations reporter for the Chicago Sun-Times and Paris Schutz, reporter and anchor, WTTW.

Museums like the Field are now federally required to get “free, prior and informed consent” from tribes or descendants before allowing display of cultural items or ancestral remains. The Field already does not display those remains, but it does hold one of the largest collections in the nation. Reset hears from Debra Yepa-Pappan, artist and former community engagement coordinator for the Native American exhibition renovation at the Field Museum, about the museum’s repatriation procedures and the changes following these rules.

Stern Pinball, based in suburban Elk Grove Village, created a new machine styled after Steven Spielberg’s classic summer blockbuster Jaws. Reset gets the scoop from Zach Sharpe of Stern Pinball and horror fan Moses Gibson of The Horror House Shop.

The Chicago Transit Authority and Chicago Department of Transportation released a plan in November that aims to create a more reliable bus service in the city. Reset learns more on what the plan includes from Jennifer Henry, CTA’s director of strategic planning. We then heard from public transit advocates Kyle Lucas of Better Streets Chicago and Julia Gerasimenko of Active Transportation Alliance about what improvements they’d like to see to the CTA bus system.

A bipartisan deal reached in the U.S. Senate could expand the child tax credit for lower income families, many of whom do not currently earn enough to qualify. Lawmakers are trying to pass the bill before the current filing deadline of Jan. 29, but it’s unclear if it can pass in the House. Additionally, there’s a bill in the Illinois House to create a permanent child tax credit. Reset learns about the proposed expansions from Deirdre Walsh, NPR Congressional correspondent and how this could benefit lower income families in Illinois from Audra Wilson, president and CEO, Shriver Center on Poverty Law and Mykela Collins, parent ambassador, Ada S. McKinley Community Services.

Around this time of the year, people are starting to work toward their New Year's resolutions. For many, their goals are to lose weight, work out more or eat healthier. But how can we embrace a more positive and less anxious relationship with our bodies, food and movement? Reset discusses with a panel of health and nutrition experts: Bethany Doerfler, a research specialist and clinical dietitian for Northwestern Medicine Digestive Health Center; Dana Buccheri, the owner and trainer of StrongWithDana; and Àngel Casas, a non-diet personal trainer.

With frigid temperatures, Chicago officials postponed kicking newly-arrived migrants out of city shelters. But the new deadline is still looming. Reset spoke with a panel of people who are connecting migrants with resources: Veronica Saldaña, a volunteer lead for the police station response team, Annie Gomberg, another lead volunteer, and Andre Gordillo, director of New Vecinos – or “New Neighbors” in English – at New Life Centers, a nonprofit that is partnering with the state to provide services.