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| | | Back to School — Almost | It’s the last week of summer for Chicago Public Schools students. Here’s what to know before next Monday — including the state of school board elections. | | Get your school supplies! Unfortunately, Illinois’ back-to-school sales tax holiday ended Sunday. Procrastinators, buckle in: | | | This year’s calendar: School in Chicago before Labor Day sounds so, so wrong to an old (okay, 28-year-old) geezer like me. But here we are. Monday kicks off a school year with 176 attendance days. One bright spot for students? Summer break will be longer next year, though it will end in August. | | | AI at schools? Last month, the State Board of Education released a 400-plus-page guide for AI in schools, opting to avoid a moratorium on generative AI use. (The guide even included content developed by AI.) | | | About those elections … The rivalry between the Service Employees International Union and the Chicago Teachers Union is heating up. Each progressive group supports opposing candidates, and SEIU is gearing up to spend an additional $1.1 million in the race. | |
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| What Chicago's Talking About |
| | Cook County Forest Preserves Teamsters on Strike | More than 230 members of Teamsters Local 700 are striking for higher pay at Cook County Forest Preserves. The on-strike workers deal with landscape maintenance, conservation, and more — especially in late summer amid threats of storm damage and high demand for public space. The parties have been negotiating since mid-2025. [Tribune 🔒] | | Mayor Walks Quantum Tightrope | What exactly went down at the recent quantum project town hall? On today’s podcast, we discuss what neighbors are asking for, plus the mayor’s response. We’re also celebrating a community journalism program and pitching Chicago’s next great “America’s Got Talent” superstars. [City Cast Chicago 🎧] | | |  | The Squirrel Flower album release show drew a massive crowd to the Humboldt Park Boathouse Monday evening. (Emmi Mack / City Cast Chicago) |
| Cafe May Be Coming to Humboldt Park Boathouse | The team behind Lincoln Park’s North Pond restaurant has proposed opening an all-day cafe at the Humboldt Park Boathouse. Plans also include a beer garden. The spot lost its only food concessions in 2020. [Block Club] | - Just this week: I attended my first-ever show at the boathouse. Well over 100 people turned out to the oft-underutilized space.
| | Ford City Mall Developer Entices Public Support | Kurv Industrial has added a public park and CTA bus terminal to its $200 million plan to redevelop the Southwest Side mall into an industrial park. Warehouse proposals often cause concern over traffic and pollution, so the goal is to win some public support ahead of a planning commission meeting Thursday. [Crain’s 🎁] | | | A Search For Obama’s Tan Suit | In the latest episode of Larry David’s new HBO show, former President Barack Obama dons his (in)famous tan suit. But it’s a replica. The real one is missing: reportedly given away when Obama was cleaning out a closet. Now one Chicago reporter is on a mission to find it. [Sun-Times] | |
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Do you love D’amato’s bread, JP Graziano giardiniera, and Fry the Coop Chicken? TODAY is your lucky day. Find the rare JP D’Coopziano sandwich in West Town. |
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