Chicago Citywide Digest

City Council Actions

• 🔥 Tipped Wage Pause Approved: Chicago City Council voted 30-18 to pause the phase-out of the subminimum wage for tipped...

Timeline of Chicago's tipped wage battle amid restaurant woes:

• Pre-vote: Council eyes freeze on subminimum wage hikes, citing struggling eateries...

Chicago's aggressive revenue push: unanimous City Council vote raises downtown hotel tax from 17.5% to 19%—highest in the nation—near McCormick Place,...

Big real estate play advances White Sox stadium talks: Justin Ishbia's Shore Capital nearing deal for 47-acre South Loop rail yard from Amtrak.

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Quick reversal on barring ICE from polling areas highlights immigration tensions and procedural shifts.

• Backtrack: Canceled March 11 special...

Chicago's drag scene channels activism into Chicago Drag Melts ICE, a 40-performer extravaganza at Metro Friday.

• Headliners include RuPaul’s Drag...

Voters delivered mixed signals on tax-related offices, rejecting scandal amid rising complaints:

• Board of Review upset: Incumbent Samantha Steele...

Tipped wage ordinance backlash intensifies as owners warn of industry damage:

• Approved in 2023, hikes tipped min wage ~8% yearly to full min by...

Tragic line-of-duty death: Firefighter Mike Altman from Truck 47 passed away March 16 after critical burns.

• Condolences pour in for his family,...

Treavor Taylor, 26, charged after allegedly shooting an on-duty CPD sergeant in his patrol car and a woman on Corliss Avenue. Swift custody follows the Far South Side incident.

Hood Container, an Atlanta-based packaging firm, signs two leases totaling 391,560 sq ft at 5750–5800 W 51st St in Garfield Ridge and Bedford Park...

CTA pushes ahead with enhanced safety strategy despite federal funding reversal. Security expert G. Michael Verden assesses new measures' effectiveness so far after threats lifted.

Government & Housing Updates

• 🔥 CHA CEO Appointment: The CHA Board named Keith Pettigrew, head of Washington D.C.'s public housing agency, as...

Key leadership change at Chicago Housing Authority:

• CHA Board appoints Keith Pettigrew, longtime administrator from DC and New Orleans
• Selected...

Primary Day has arrived in Illinois, marking the end of months of campaigning, ads, and debates.

Chicago voters: Focus on key races at federal, state, and local levels.

• Fox Chicago offers all-day results coverage.

Federal crackdown on Chicago welfare fraud:

• David Quinones sentenced to 52 months prison + $1.55M restitution after guilty plea
• Ran 2018-2023...

Threat to Chicago's arts: DePaul University to shutter its 40-year-old Art Museum by June 30, despite its 4,000-object collection of Chicago artists...

Key 2026 trends from WGN's Noon Business Lunch shaping Chicago's economy:

• Gen Z office preference: Tom Gimbel (LaSalle Network) explains why young...

Superb vocals shine in Lyric's bold Madama Butterfly reboot, led by Karah Son's thrilling Cio-Cio San and Evan LeRoy Johnson's rich Pinkerton.

Yet...

Opportunistic grab of Chicago's troubled 40-story Pittsfield Building signals distressed CRE revival.

• $7.5M deal on 500K sq ft landmark, born from...