The Latest Breaking News from City Council

Just because Ald. Walter Burnett is willing to put up with the inconvenience of a casino doesn’t mean Mayor Lori Lightfoot will easily round up the other 25 City Council votes she needs to ratify Bally’s River West site.

Bally’s was picked over two rival bids involving South Loop sites: one by gaming behemoth Hard Rock International and another by hometown favorite Rush Street Gaming, chaired by billionaire Rivers Casino mogul Neil Bluhm.

The city signaled in March that the proposal for the Chicago Tribune printing plant site at Chicago Avenue and Halsted Street was the frontrunner over two other finalists. An official choice could be announced as soon as Thursday.

ALBANY, N.Y. — Indicted ex-Lt. Gov. Brian Benjamin will remove himself from June’s primary ballot as Democratic lawmakers opened the door Monday for Gov. Kathy Hochul to replace her disgraced running mate.

LOS ANGELES — As encampments multiply from Echo Park to Venice, homelessness has been the top issue in the L.A. mayoral race. And although Angelenos express broad support for building more housing for the homeless, the contenders say that can be only part of the solution.

Mayor Lori Lightfoot said her predecessor’s grand experiment was doomed from the start. Many in the community are “hard pressed to pay, for example, 15 bucks a pound for a piece of steak.”

Ald. Brendan Reilly (42nd) issued the warning after dozens of spectators, surrounded by a flaming ring of gasoline, jumped through the fire moments before a driver did donut stunts around the flames.

These are pessimistic days in Los Angeles. In focus groups, surveys and polls, the same themes keep surfacing: Residents are angry and frustrated by the continued human suffering of the homelessness crisis. They’re dissatisfied with their quality of life. They’re worried about having money to pay their rent or mortgage,…

Lee Townley, 40, has been left furious by the work Stoke-on-Trent City Council have carried out outside his home, with contractors returning four times to fix the shoddy work