'Transformers 3' wrecks Michigan Avenue

Tagged with:

lollapalooza, tourism

Published July 16, 2010 at 11:42 p.m.
791471--transformers-3--wrecks-michigan-avenue

Sporting all-black military gear on a hot summer morning, "Transformers 3" actor Josh Duhamel took a leisurely bicycle ride around Pioneer Court off North Michigan Avenue on Friday while waiting for his next scene ... Onlookers pressed up against a barricade to take photos of the actor, while others gathered to gape at the chaos of flipped cars, fake chunks of rubble and dirt strewn across Michigan Avenue. A small hot dog stand propped alongside the famous boulevard completed the bizarre scene

Read Article Read    Post Talkback Post Talkback

My Latest Glimpse Into the Chicago Economy

Published June 3, 2010 at 5:18 p.m.

It's said that everybody in this town has some sort of hustle going. Quite often I come across evidence that it's true—and not just at City Hall ... The other night I stopped at a convenience store to buy a pack of gum. The store is just down the street from a large Catholic church whose bells were chiming for an evening service ... The clerk rang me up. "One sixty-four," he said ... I looked down at the pack of gum. The price tag said it cost $1.39 ... A quarter tax on a pack of gum? I don't

Read Article Read    Post Talkback Post Talkback

Watchdog: Fire Department OT wipes out furlough savings

Published July 6, 2010 at 6:30 p.m.
787465-watchdog--fire-department-ot-wipes-out-furlough-savings

Soaring overtime pay to dozens of high-level Chicago Fire Department employees wiped out the savings Mayor Richard Daley sought when he made them take unpaid days off, the city's top watchdog reported today ... Last year, 50 fire workers not covered by the union contract collected $311,180 in overtime -- nearly 17 times as much as they got in 2008, Inspector General Joseph Ferguson found ... And if the pace for this year continues, those employees would be paid $765,175 in overtime, the report

Read Article Read    Post Talkback Post Talkback

MarketMaker Goes To Washington

Tagged with:

baseball, sox

Published June 21, 2010 at 10:47 p.m.
787274-marketmaker-goes-to-washington

On Thursday, I drunkenly said that I'd write some sort of recap of my trip to our nation's capital.  Not only was it my first trip to DC, it was my first trip to a non-Chicago MLB park.  The results?  Well, I can't complain.  It wasn't perfect, but there were more pluses than minuses.  I certainly had more fun on my trip to Washington than Tony Hayward ... As I sat delirious and hungover on my couch last Sunday, the 13th, I watched Nationals first round pick Stephen Strasburg throw some of

Read Article Read    Post Talkback Post Talkback

'Sex and the City 2': Kind of a drag

Published May 26, 2010 at 12:00 a.m.
773724--sex-and-the-city-2---kind-of-a-drag

Carrie and company need a plot — and a fashion — makeover ... Two years ago, with the world economy about to be credit-default-swapped right in the kisser, the first "Sex and the City" feature made $415 million worldwide. Its pre-sold fan base, already nostalgic for Cosmopolitans, heaved a collective, economically envious sigh: Nice to see you four again. By the way, nice shoes ...

Read Article Read    Post Talkback Post Talkback

Buckingham Fountain rehab on hold

Published May 26, 2010 at 12:00 a.m.
773713-buckingham-fountain-rehab-on-hold

Work on 82-year-old landmark on hold in 'tough economy' ... Work on 82-year-old landmark on hold in "tough economy." ...

Read Article Read    Post Talkback Post Talkback

City using computers to track abandoned buildings

Published May 18, 2010 at 4:19 p.m.
772251-city-using-computers-to-track-abandoned-buildings

Posted by John Byrne at 4:23 p.m. Mayor Richard Daley said today that the city is getting more aggressive about dealing with abandoned buildings that continue to proliferate in the down economy. Several city departments are now linked in a ...

Read Article Read    Post Talkback Post Talkback

Evanston fails to report 1,500 building permits to Cook County

Published May 18, 2010 at 10:41 p.m.
772196-evanston-fails-to-report-1-500-building-permits-to-cook-county

More than 1,500 building permits weren't reported to Cook County over a three-year period, leaving Evanston officials trying to figure out how much tax revenue was lost as a result ... Building permits are the main way the Cook County assessor knows to inspect a property to evaluate whether it has increased in value. So the failure to forward those permits means the properties may have been undervalued -- their owners not paying their fair share of property taxes ... Some complain that it's

Read Article Read    Post Talkback Post Talkback

Solid recovery, but concerns remain

Published May 15, 2010 at 5:00 a.m.

The economy is being boosted by higher retail sales, stronger factory output and a rise in companies' stockpiles. That picture emerged from reports Friday pointing to an economy that's improving modestly but steadily after the worst recession in decades ...

Read Article Read    Post Talkback Post Talkback

Stocks renew climb; debt woes ebb

Published May 12, 2010 at 5:00 a.m.

Stocks are higher as investors' focus returns to the improving health of the U.S. economy ...

Read Article Read    Post Talkback Post Talkback


Featured Advertiser: