The Latest Breaking News from Lori Lightfoot

“We have a much longer way to go,” says Susan Lee, the former deputy mayor for public safety who was the architect of Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s signature “Our City Our Safety” initiative.

Another whirlwind year of local news saw a string of City Hall denizens bowing out, thousands of families reeling from the ongoing epidemic of gun violence and a wave of new arrivals looking to get their footing.

CHICAGO — Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot urged residents to get vaccinated and boosted as the Christmas holiday approaches and noted that the city will issue a mask advisory if COVID-19 cases continue rising.

Mayor says mask “advisory” is coming as virus cases rise.

Interviews with Chicago City Council members, experts and a WBEZ analysis of the contract show minimal financial benefit to the city and few specifics about who pays for related costs, such as security and clean up.

The program will start in five neighborhoods. Families in those areas who lose a loved one to gun violence are eligible for $1,500 toward funeral or burial costs. Shooting victims can get $1,000. And those sustaining debilitating injuries can qualify for up to $1,000 in relocation costs.

BRETT CHASE: As an environmental reporter, I dig for documents through open records requests and court filings, and I interview experts. But the most invaluable lessons come from spending time with families who say they just want clean air and a healthy place to live for their kids.

CHICAGO — Chicago police released pictures of a person they are seeking to identify around the time four teens were shot, two of whom died Friday afternoon at Benito Juarez Community Academy in the Pilsen neighborhood.

The Illinois Gaming Board has to ask some serious questions — that’s it’s job — about the Bally’s casino project when the body meets next year to take up the matter for approval. Chicago has to get this right.