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Hydrologist Stephen McCracken has dedicated his career to conserving river ecosystems. But no project would consume more of his life than the historic Graue Mill dam.
In 2007, he surveyed the murky waters surrounding the Oak Brook structure. Within a few years, he was certain that the dam — adjacent to the 172-year-old mill — was the culprit of the river’s deteriorating ecosystem. It should have been a relatively simple project: Dozens of dams have been quietly removed across Illinois amid environmental and safety concerns. Instead, it took over a decade.
A group of determined community members believed the dam was an integral piece of the Graue Mill. To remove it was to strip away a historic hallmark in the village, they argued.
Meanwhile, McCracken and the Forest Preserve District of DuPage County were determined to remove the impoundment. Both sides were unrelenting.
The dam was finally removed in November. But the DuPage Graue Mill Corp. — which had operated the site for more than 70 years — remains embroiled in a bitter legal battle with the Forest Preserve District as environmental and historical interests collide.
It’s a portrait of a sweeping effort to improve river ecosystems across the state, and the fallout from setting aside the past.
Read the full story from the Tribune’s Kate Armanini.
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Suspect arrested in fatal shooting of CPD Officer Luis Huesca
A Cook County judge last week issued an arrest warrant charging Xavier Tate, 22, with murder in the April 21 killing of Huesca, 30, near Huesca’s home in the Gage Park neighborhood on the Southwest Side.
A CPD source familiar with the investigation told the Tribune that Tate was arrested with the handcuffs that belonged to Huesca. Authorities announced a combined $100,000 reward for public information leading to Tate’s arrest and conviction.
As pro-Palestinian protests at some U.S. colleges devolve into violence, Chicago campuses remain peaceful
As hundreds at Chicago-area campuses call for their schools to divest from Israel and weapons manufacturers, demonstrations have remained relatively subdued, with little to no police intervention. However, some students and experts say they worry about the possibility of escalation.
Donald Trump faces prospect of additional sanctions in hush money trial as key witness resumes testimony
Trump faces the prospect of additional sanctions in his hush money trial as he returns to court today for another contempt hearing followed by testimony from a lawyer who represented two women who have said they had sexual encounters with the former president.
The testimony from attorney Keith Davidson is seen as a vital building block for the prosecution’s case that Trump and his allies schemed to bury unflattering stories in the run-up to the 2016 presidential election. He is one of multiple key players expected to be called to the stand in advance of prosecutors’ star witness, Michael Cohen, Trump’s former lawyer and personal fixer.
Could Chicago lower its citywide speed limit? Aldermen weigh drop from 30 mph to 25 mph
If one Northwest Side alderman has his way, Chicago drivers would soon face a slower citywide speed limit in a bid to cut traffic crashes and fatalities.
The effort got its first look in the City Council Wednesday during a Pedestrian and Traffic Safety Committee subject matter hearing where experts praised the potential shift. They lauded the impact small decreases in speed could have to reduce crash deaths.
Mayor selects president, vice president of interim CPD oversight board to join permanent panel
Two current leaders of a board meant to provide Chicago residents with oversight of the city’s embattled Police Department are poised to join its first permanent iteration alongside five other candidates, Mayor Brandon Johnson announced Tuesday.
Calumet City City Council Meeting November 9
Terrence Antonio James/Chicago Tribune Calumet City Mayor Thaddeus Jones presides over a City Council meeting Nov. 9, 2023. (Terrence Antonio James/Chicago Tribune)
Calumet City aldermen question credit card bills for Hooters, hotels, dinners and cars
Calumet City’s municipal credit card statement showing charges from Hooters, a Gordon Ramsey restaurant, a hotel in New Orleans and a Cadillac lease have led aldermen to question whether Mayor Thaddeus Jones or another official is attempting to charge city taxpayers for personal expenses.
‘A unique combination of greed, intelligence, and remorselessness’: Feds make case for 10-year sentence for Chicago con man
A federal prosecutor on Wednesday described serial Chicago con man Joey Cipolla as a charmer with an unhealthy obsession with wealth — and he doesn’t care about hurting people to get it.
“(Cipolla) is a unique combination of greed, intelligence, and remorselessness, and that makes him profoundly dangerous,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy Chapman said in asking a federal judge to sentence Cipolla to nearly 10 years in prison. “He’s trying to be someone that he is not capable of being unless he steals the money to pay for it.”
Column: A busy May in Chicago includes Craig Counsell’s return to Milwaukee, 2 draft lotteries — and no break from the Bears
Chicago’s sports calendar is packed this month, and Paul Sullivan has what to expect from our local teams.
Bears clear a path for rookie punter Tory Taylor by placing Trenton Gill on waivers
There will be no guise of competition for rookie Tory Taylor, not from Trenton Gill anyway.
The Bears, who made Taylor their highest-drafted punter since Todd Sauerbrun was a second-round pick in 1995 when they selected him in Round 4 (No. 122) on Saturday, placed Gill on waivers Wednesday afternoon. The move has been expected since the weekend.
AP Photo/Universal Pictures
Henry Thomas as Elliott and E.T. in a basket on a bicycle in a scene from director Steven Spielberg’s 1982 movie “E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial.” (AP Photo/Bruce McBroom, Universal Studios Amblin Entertainment)
Summer movies and more concerts announced for Millennium Park
The rest of the summer season has been announced for Millennium Park, including more music and the Summer Film Series.
A few of the boldface names include Corinne Bailey Rae and GZA in the Summer Music Series and “American Fiction,” “Barbie” and a double feature of “E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial” and “Jurassic Park” for the outdoor movie series.
‘Hacks’ review: Jean Smart’s Deborah Vance sets her sights on a late-night talk show gig in Season 3
There’s real tenderness in a show like “Hacks,” writes Tribune critic Nina Metz. Real cruelty, too, and that’s separate from its insult comedy sensibility. Back for its third and strongest season on Max, the Joan Rivers-esque showbiz veteran Deborah Vance (Jean Smart) and her semi-obnoxious Gen-Z writer Ava Daniels (Hannah Einbinder) have a new goal: To land Deborah the job hosting a late-night talk show.
Review: ‘Guys and Dolls’ at Drury Lane Theatre needs a little more spark
This uneven, mixed bag of a production, directed and choreographed by a possibly overstretched Dan Knechtges, is certainly serviceable and mostly well sung, but it somehow doesn’t fully fill the stage with life, even as it gets trapped in the kind of overwrought characterizations that “Guys and Dolls” just doesn’t need. Tribune critic Chris Jones reviews the production.