Daywatch: Aurora Mayor Richard Irvin started a consulting firm with a top aide and two men who got a city contract
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Good morning, Chicago.
Two years ago, Aurora Mayor Richard Irvin quietly co-founded a consulting firm with a top city aide, who’s also a lifelong friend, and two men from Virginia. The arrangement has raised several potential conflict of interest issues for Irvin, who seeks to become Illinois’ next governor.
Irvin’s campaign said the mayor’s firm was started basically as a fallback career if Irvin, a defense attorney by trade, lost his 2021 mayoral reelection bid. Irvin, of course, didn’t lose that race. So, his campaign said, the firm has just sat there, with zero clients or income, for nearly two years. As of Tuesday, the consulting firm had a half-finished website that’s designed to be hard to Google but — if someone could find it — advertised a wide swath of services, including government consulting.
Political experts said the episode raises questions: Why would a sitting mayor start a business with a city employee he’s supposed to be supervising? And how did two of their business partners end up getting city work? Read the full story from the Tribune’s Joe Mahr and Ray Long.
Meanwhile, Irvin’s campaign received another $5 million from billionaire Ken Griffin, bringing his investment in Irvin to $50 million. And Irvin announced he will not participate in the Aurora Pride Parade and is removing the city’s float from the event after organizers had banned police officers from wearing their uniforms while marching in the event.
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CPS librarian who spoke out against library cuts said she expects to lose her job
Just two years ago, the American Library Association honored Chicago Public Schools librarian Nora Wiltse with an award for her “courageous efforts” to raise awareness about the effects of district cuts to library and school media positions.
Now Wiltse says her own job is in jeopardy. She expects to receive a pink slip in the next week after 19 years as a CPS librarian, the last 14 at Coonley Elementary. The 900-student school in the North Center neighborhood is one of several in CPS that may cut positions because of budget constraints, even though the district is sitting on more than $1 billion in federal COVID-19 relief funds.
Chicago mayoral candidate Kam Buckner would invest both in police and alternatives: ‘We can do both’
Chicago mayoral candidate and Illinois state Rep. Kam Buckner unveiled a public safety plan that he said will invest in both law enforcement and community resources as the city’s crime problem becomes a chief issue of the race.
Among Buckner’s proposals are filling vacant positions in the Chicago Police Department and hiring more detectives to try to get through the department’s case backlog — a promise he made despite the city’s recent struggle with recruiting and retaining officers. “We cannot spend $1.9 billion dollars on CPD every year and not see results,” Buckner said. “Families deserve answers and communities deserve to feel safe.”
‘Justice requires truth and reconciliation’: Mother of victim in Logan Square killing maintains rare outlook as son’s accused killer is granted new trial
Before her son’s accused killer was sentenced, Maria Pike had an extraordinary message for the judge who was about to hand down a punishment to Arcadio Davila. Have mercy, Maria Pike asked Judge Nicholas Ford that day, even though Davila had been found guilty of fatally shooting her son, aspiring restaurateur Ricky Pike.
On Tuesday, three years later, Davila was back in Cook County court. His conviction had been thrown out on appeal, starting his case over fresh in front of a new judge. And while the prospect of starting the process all over again is stressful, Maria Pike told the Tribune, her outlook on justice and mercy has not changed. She believes Davila is guilty, yes, but the system should focus on rehabilitation and atonement — not revenge.
Column: Rookie Christopher Morel is here to stay for the Cubs, so what does that mean for Jason Heyward?
Chicago Cubs manager David Ross has an important decision to make, the Tribune’s Paul Sullivan writes, when Jason Heyward returns from the injured list: What to do with Christopher Morel?
Morel, who led off and started in center field Tuesday, has shown he can play center, second base, shortstop and third. But Nico Hoerner is the starting shortstop, Wisdom is the regular third baseman and second baseman Nick Madrigal returned from his IL stint Tuesday.
That leaves Morel mostly in center, which appears to be his best position, right?
A ‘wild’ spring is over in Chicago — say weather experts. Look back at the coldest, rainiest and warmest days.
Summer is here — according to meteorologists. Though the summer solstice is June 21, experts prefer to track weather in four, three-month increments instead of astronomical seasons, which are defined by equinoxes and solstices.
We take a look back with local weather experts at the past three months and chose key dates to highlight meteorological spring 2022′s significant events.
Flood of new Greek restaurants in Chicago showcases regionality in delicious ways
When Louie Alexakis and his team opened Avli Taverna in Lincoln Park in 2018 after the success of their Winnetka location, it set the stage for three additional city locations to follow within just four years.
Chicago’s Greek dining scene has shown little sign of slowing down since, with openings that showcase the many dimensions of the cuisine, featuring seafood, spices, produce and meze, or tapas-like small plates.
