Daywatch: The crucial role of wetlands

Good morning, Chicago.

Chicago is seeing its next big wave of new arrivals.

More than 8,000 migrants have come to the city in what Mayor Lori Lightfoot derided as a “political stunt” by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott.

Families, including children and pregnant women, have resorted to sleeping on the floor of crowded police stations, while more than a hundred daily new arrivals add to the need at untenable rates.

Lightfoot declared a state of emergency yesterday, marking the outgoing administration’s grimmest prognosis yet on how Chicago’s most vulnerable new arrivals will fare.

Hours later, President Joe Biden predicted that the U.S.-Mexico border would be “chaotic for a while” when pandemic-related restrictions end, as 550 active-duty troops began arriving and migrants weighed whether or when to cross.

Here are the top stories you need to know to start your day.

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Illinois environmentalists point to crucial role of wetlands in Supreme Court case that pits ecology against property rights

No matter how far wetlands are from a major body of water, they act as natural sponges that absorb water, preventing flooding and filtering out pollutants before they can reach waterways. They are also nurseries for biodiversity. In Illinois, over 77% of mammals, 90% of amphibians, 78% of reptiles, and 60% of bird species rely on wetlands to some extent, according to The Wetlands Initiative.

But developers and landowners say broad definitions of protected wetlands infringe on private land rights and hinder development.

City treasurer moves to bolster community lending on Northwest Side

The Chicago treasurer’s office deposited $10 million of its cash holdings into Albany Bank & Trust Co., a community bank on the Northwest Side, in a move aimed at bolstering affordable housing construction and small business creation in neighborhoods such as Albany Park, according to City Treasurer Melissa Conyears-Ervin.

Good golly, Miss Dolly: Why Chicagoans are flocking to music icon’s Dollywood theme park

Approximately 33,600 people across northeastern Illinois and northwestern Indiana visited Dollywood last year — over four times the Chicagoland visitors from just three years prior. And it’s not just Chicago; according to park data, total visits have grown 76% in the past five years.

The 165-acre theme park was voted the No. 1 theme park in the country and eighth-best in the world in 2022 by TripAdvisor.

Bears Q&A: Is a reunion with Leonard Floyd a possibility? How much improvement can be expected from Justin Fields?

The NFL calendar never rests. With the draft and rookie minicamp in the rearview mirror for the Chicago Bears, this week brings the 2023 schedule release, followed by the start of organized team activities.

The Bears still have holes to fill on their roster, too, and that’s where Brad Biggs’ weekly Bears mailbag begins.

Column: Why the Hollywood writers strike matters to audiences

What is Hollywood without screenwriters? No characters to play. No scripts to shoot. That’s as fundamental as it gets, writes Nina Metz.

It’s unclear how long the strike will last. It could be days. It could be months. Late-night talk shows were the first to go dark, but other shows have also paused production or preproduction on their new seasons, including Netflix’s “Cobra Kai” and Showtime’s “Yellowjackets.”