The Margarita Inn, 1566 Oak Ave., in Evanston, is now being used by Connections for the Homeless to provide housing and support services. (Credit: Medill School of Journalism)
,

The hotels were originally used as temporary solutions during the COVID-19 pandemic. Housing advocates said the hotels are turning out to be significantly more effective than a traditional shelter approach.

(WTTW News)

According to the Federal Emergency Management Agency, renters and homeowners have until 11:59 p.m. Friday to apply for the disaster assistance, which comes more than five months after rain and flooding wreaked havoc around Cook County.

(WTTW News)
,

Property tax bills for Cook County residents are available online at cookcountytreasurer.com and should hit mailboxes this week.

A worker at the 211 Resource Navigation Center. (WTTW News)
,

Have you heard of 211? It’s a free hotline connecting Chicago and suburban Cook County residents to everyday services — from housing resources to utility payment assistance.

(WTTW News)

Maher Kassem, 63, was detained in jail following a hearing Tuesday after he was arrested and charged with four counts of first-degree murder.

(WTTW News)

A federal disaster declaration was issued last month in Cook County for severe storms and flooding on Sept. 17 and 18, which significantly impacted the south suburbs of Chicago. The deadline to apply for FEMA assistance is on Jan. 19, 2024.

(WTTW News)

According to the Cook County Sheriff’s Office, 33-year-old Michael O’Connor was found unresponsive in his cell in the jail’s Residential Treatment Unit at around 4:30 p.m. Christmas day.

(WTTW News)

Mustafaa Saleh, 37, was sentenced last week to a year and one day in prison after he pleaded guilty earlier this year to a charge of wire fraud.

(WTTW News)

Neighborhoods on the South and West Sides of Chicago have seen the highest amount of medical debt erased so far, according to officials.

(WTTW News)
,

Bills are available online at cookcountytreasurer.com and should hit mailboxes by Nov. 1.

(Pixabay)

Under the “Sun and Save” program, solar photovoltaic systems will be supplied and installed at no cost for income-qualified county residents.

(ELEVATE / Pexels)

Dry cleaners, auto body and repair shops, food and beverage manufacturers and metal finishers in suburban Cook County that experienced a decrease in revenue during the COVID-19 pandemic are able to benefit from the program.

File photo of a railroad crossing. (Jared Rutecki / WTTW News)

Many of the country’s worst rail crossings are located in diverse suburbs south and southwest of Chicago

Many of the country’s worst rail crossings are located in diverse suburbs south and southwest of Chicago. Some will be helped by big construction projects while others get creative finding potential solutions.

(WTTW News)
,

The second-installment of property owners’ 2022 tax bills will be more than 120 days late amid months of bureaucratic wrangling and finger pointing among Cook County officials.

Empty jury box area readied for members of the jury in the courtroom of Judge Vincent Gaughan at the Leighton Criminal Court Building on Tuesday, Sept. 4, 2018. (Antonio Perez / Pool / Chicago Tribune)

Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx on Monday released her office’s “Do Not Call List” — which she said includes a collection of “disreputable” law enforcement officers who have “propelled Cook County’s reputation as the wrongful conviction capital of the country.”

Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle appeared on “Chicago Tonight” on May 11, 2023. (WTTW News)

That expected surplus will more than offset a projected budget gap of $82.6 million during the 2024 fiscal year, more evidence that Cook County’s finances remain on “sturdy” financial footing in the wake of the acute phase of the COVID-19 pandemic, officials said.