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The Daily Northwestern •

Councilmembers, community activist propose ‘circuit breaker’ for property tax, rent relief

Evanston could soon begin offering financial assistance to long-term residents under a program City Council is currently considering. 
The proposed Property Tax and Rent Circuit Breaker would subsidize property tax or rent for some longtime residents facing housing burdens, said Ald. Clare Kelly (1st), who referred the proposal to City Council in February.
“Many people are chanting the mantra of ‘build affordable housing’ without expressing equal concern for protecting our long-term residents he...
The Daily Northwestern •

Illinois legislators, advocates rally to shield federal prescription drug discounts

Amid potential cuts to Medicaid funding from Washington, some Illinois lawmakers, advocates and medical practitioners are pushing to protect access to a federal program that discounts prescription drugs in what could be a clash with the nation’s top drug makers.
Legislators in both chambers of the Illinois General Assembly are currently considering a bill that would prohibit pharmaceutical companies from restricting or interfering with drug discounts under what’s known as the 340B Drug Pricing p...
The Daily Northwestern •

Green Homes Pilot completes retrofit, aims for completion by year’s end

Three years since its inception, Evanston’s Green Homes Pilot is moving forward with the first retrofits funded by the program, according to two nonprofits spearheading the effort.
The pilot program is a collaboration between the city and two Chicago-based nonprofits: Elevate and the Center for Neighborhood Technology. It aims to provide free energy, health and safety improvements for up to 50 existing housing units in the 8092 and 8102 census tracts — two tracts that sit mostly in Evanston’s 5t...
The Daily Northwestern •

Bobby Burns has clear lead over Carlis Sutton in 5th Ward race

Ald. Bobby Burns (5th) is leading by 437 votes in Tuesday’s election as of 8:30 p.m., according to preliminary results from the Cook County Clerk’s office.
“I’m incredibly happy about the results,” Burns told The Daily Tuesday evening. “It shows that I’ve put in the work, and people think we are going in the right direction.”
Burns, a political consultant and entrepreneur, grew up in Evanston and now raises three children in the central Evanston ward he has represented since being first elected...
The Daily Northwestern •

In Focus: Colectivo Coffee workers allege toxic workplace environment, lack of accountability under current management

Interviews with seven current and former employees and internal communications obtained by The Daily reveal that the chain has faced a host of mismanagement allegations, including “inappropriate” behavior from the Evanston store manager, a “toxic” workplace culture and a lack of support from upper management.

These allegations contrast with the chain’s public image — Colectivo leaders have called their company “a deeply progressive organization,” and its members have been represented by the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers union since 2021.

“(Colectivo) say what they need to say and do certain things on the public scale that look good, that look like they are very pro-workers’ rights,” Ridenour said. “They want to look like a collective for Colectivo, and it’s not at all how they actually run their stores.”
Midstory •

What Safe-State Status Means for Ohio

While the 2024 presidential election is expected to be close nationally, the outcome in Ohio seems to be beyond a doubt. Ohio’s rightward shift over the past decade appears likely to continue, and Donald Trump is set to win the Buckeye State for a third time. “I think everybody generally agrees that Donald Trump is going to win Ohio in 2024 with relative ease, using that populist coalition that he’s built,” Matt Dole, chair of the Licking County Republican Party, said.
Midstory •

How the 2020 Election Changed Ohio’s Political Identity

In 2020, Ohio voted for incumbent President Donald Trump, marking the first time in 56 years that Ohio failed to select the winner of a presidential election. Trump received 3,154,734 votes in Ohio, accounting for 53.3% of all votes cast, while President Joe Biden won 2,679,165 votes — just 45.2%. This marked the first time that any candidate had won over 3 million votes in Ohio and the best result for Republicans in the state in a presidential election since 1988.
Midstory •

How America’s Quintessential Battleground Broke Down

As Ohio goes, so goes the nation. At least, it used to. The Buckeye State — the seventh most populous and 34th in size among the states — has been a longtime focus of politicians, pundits and political scientists alike for a simple but peculiar reason. In each presidential election between 1964 and 2016, the candidate that won Ohio also won the presidency. Ohio’s streak stands as the longest in American history. During this period, Ohio was not only a bellwether, but also the quintessenti...
Midstory •

A New Federal Program Aims to Create the Nation’s Next Silicon Valleys — in the Midwest

When Silicon Valley — the iconic northern California tech cluster home to thousands of companies like Apple, Google and Netflix — started in the 1950s, it had all the right ingredients for innovation and tech-fueled growth: pioneers of the semiconductor, personal computer and internet industries, scholarship and research at area universities, and generous government funding. Now, a new federal program is trying to reproduce this recipe for the 21st century around the country — including in Am...
Midstory •

From ‘Eighth Wonder of the World’ to the ‘Great American Comeback Story’: How a Wisconsin Town Becomes the Focus of Re-Industrializing the Midwest

In 2017, Taiwanese electronic manufacturer Foxconn announced its plan to build a $10-billion, 13,000-people display factory in Mount Pleasant, Wisconsin. But the factory never came, and much of the land it claimed remains empty. Now, residents are hoping Microsoft will follow through with building an artificial intelligence data center at the same site.
Midstory •

In the nation’s ‘hottest housing market,’ local programs support first-time homebuyers

When Sam Diller, a manufacturing engineer who came to Toledo about six years ago, decided to purchase his first house, he didn’t expect the process to be difficult. For two months, Diller browsed real estate listing websites regularly. He toured dozens of houses with his real estate agent and made multiple “strong offers” that were turned down, he said. One house had 30 other offers.
The Daily Northwestern •

Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Anne Applebaum talks Russo-Ukrainian War, rise of autocracies at Buffett Lecture

More than 200 people filled Lutkin Hall on Wednesday to hear Pulitzer Prize-winning historian and journalist Anne Applebaum discuss the ongoing Russo-Ukrainian War and the rise of autocracies globally in an event organized by the Buffett Institute for Global Affairs.
“One of the metaphors that I like to argue against is this idea that we’re entering a new Cold War … You build a wall, and there are autocracies on one side and democracies on the other, and it’s going to be one side fighting the ot...
The Daily Northwestern •

Leveraging grants and local partnerships, Evanston Latinos looks to open community kitchen pilot in June

Growing up, chef Mario Perez said he was always fascinated by the art of cooking. “As long as I can remember — since I’m the baby of the family — I was always attached to my mom and grandma,” Perez said. “Every time they would cook, I will be right next to them still watching what they do.” As Perez grew older, he began cooking with his family, and the passion led him into the culinary business, he said. For the past 15 years, he has moved between different jobs in the industry, including a bri...
The Daily Northwestern •

City Council rejects proposal to consider shorter leases for downtown civic center, sustain 15-year lease

City Council voted 5-3 at a special meeting Thursday to sustain the city’s plan to lease downtown office space for city government operations for 15 years, rejecting a superseding resolution that would direct city staff to explore shorter leases. 
At its Jan. 22 meeting, City Council voted 6-3 to authorize City Manager Luke Stowe to sign a proposed 15-year lease — with an option to opt out after seven years — at 909 Davis St. for about $2.4 million per year. The downtown space will house city of...
The Daily Northwestern •

Downtown lease sparks concerns over cost, transparency amid discussion on Civic Center’s future

Growing up in Evanston in the 1980s, Emilio Vargas remembers the Lorraine H. Morton Civic Center as the building at the center of the city. His mother would bring him to art shows, book fairs and other events. Now, as an adult, Vargas said he most recently went to the Civic Center to vote.
The city, however, is poised to leave the Georgian Revival-style building at 2100 Ridge Ave. — the building that has been the heart of Evanston civic life since 1979 — before the end of the year. 
At its Jan....
The Daily Northwestern •

Year in Review: The biggest stories in Evanston politics in 2023

With City Council gearing up for the new year, The Daily takes a look at Evanston’s biggest political stories in 2023.
March: City Council expands reparations program, allows for cash payments
Evanston became the first city in the U.S. to enact a reparations resolution for Black residents in 2019. The Restorative Housing Program, launched in 2021, initially planned to give eligible Black residents $25,000 housing grants used for mortgage payments, down payments on a new home or renovations.
But,...
Medill News Service •

After China’s surprised chip breakthrough, Washington has new worries about future of export controls

WASHINGTON – When Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo was in Beijing in August to discuss trade with economic officials, she and others in the tech industry were shocked by a new smartphone, unveiled by Chinese telecom giant Huawei. The phone was named the Mate 60 Pro, featuring a seven-nanometer processor developed by a Huawei subsidiary and produced at the Chinese semiconductor fabrication plant SMIC. It immediately set off alarm bells among Western nations because it meant that China had achieve...
Medill News Service •

Officials urge economic ‘de-risking’ ahead of Biden-Xi summit

WASHINGTON – Ahead of the first meeting between President Joe Biden and President Xi Jinping of China since November 2022, legislators, economic officials and China experts were optimistic about reopening communication channels with China but urged the U.S. to rethink economic and diplomatic relationship between the world’s two largest economies.
“There’s broad bipartisan agreement that we need to be much more focused on how we deal with this strategic competition,” Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.)...
Medill News Service •

Meta whistleblower, bipartisan senators call for social media regulation - Medill on the Hill

WASHINGTON – Testimony from a Meta whistleblower on the company’s reluctance to act on online safety and privacy led to a rare bipartisan push for legislation to protect children’s online safety and privacy Tuesday. 
“Meta knows the harm kids experience on their platform, and the executives know that their measures fail to address it,” said Arturo Béjar. “There are actionable steps that Meta can take to address the problem, and … they are deciding time to time again to not tackle this issue.”
Bé...
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