Two attempts to block the Nov. 8 referendum on whether or not to keep the Peoria County Auditor office failed in the last month as Judge James Mack denied requests by Peoria County Auditor Jessica Thomas and community advocate Karrie…
Straight Talk: School/Teacher negotiations are on a need-to-know basis
The good news is the Peoria Federation of Teachers reached agreement on a new three-year contract with the Peoria School District. Unfortunately, it took months of negotiations, a federal mediator, and the threat of a strike. Once again both sides…
Arts Alerts: Mars, Keith Urban, Oak Ridge Boys, Bill Burr, Holiday Inn, Regifters
ART The 10-foot artwork “Mars,” by U.K. artist Luke Jerram, is a highlight of “Mars: The Exhibition,” continuing in November at the Riverfront Museum. The interative display will be here through Spring. MUSIC Keith Urban is set to play…
Real Talk: Parenthood is the root of it all, folks
Spending almost half of my life working in a school capacity, I have seen a lot of issues involving children. Lately it seems to have grown strikingly more serious — more aggression, more serious crimes, the anger, the hurt.…
Who’s dissing you? Be sure you’re not missing out because lawmakers are lying about the SAFE-T Act
Information is power, it’s said, but increasingly — especially with today’s sophisticated, speedy technology — so is disinformation. In elections, maybe such fearmongering was always powerful. Commentator H.L. Mencken in 1918 wrote, “Democracy tends to degenerate into a mere combat…
Ready to vote? Community Word Election primer here to help
Do Republicans have what it takes to control Congress? Will Democrats keep their hold on statewide offices? Casting an uneducated vote, political scientists say, can be worse than not voting. It’s important for the electorate to be knowledgeable of the…
Community Word Election Primer 2022
Metro Peoria’s monthly newspaper has compiled a bit of campaign information for some key races affecting central Illinois. Most media attention in campaigns for the Nov. 8 election has focused on the tops of party tickets. In Illinois, that means…
Meet the candidates running for Peoria County Board
We reached out to the candidates running for a seat on the Peoria County Board to give them the opportunity to let our readers learn something about them. District 2 CAMILLE COATES (D): “Born, raised and educated in central Illinois,…
SAFE SPACE: Jim and Laura Sniff provide special kind of fun on their farm
At press time, a few shows remain in the Blue Ridge Community Farm’s fall concert series, but there’s no end in sight for Jim and Laura Sniff’s activities — or the love behind it in Chillicothe. A self-described “farm kid”…
Op-Ed | Meritocracy: Smug up top with demoralizing bottom
By EMILY GILL Social mobility has long been the United States’s answer to inequality. Equality of opportunity should allow individuals to rise as far as their abilities and hard work can take them. In the twenty-first century, however, the promise…
Op-Ed | Ten years of reflection at Jon Buckley Memorial Garden
By YOLANDA WALLACE Have you ever been down to the Marina far east along the walking trail near the Illinois River? Sometimes I’d go walking along the trail and see the Constitution Park. That’s where people go to discuss…
Op-Ed | Protect our Constitution, prosecute insurrectionists
By JAMES WILHELM Every member of Congress of the United States of America, specifically the Senate and House of Representatives, takes a solemn oath to “… support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and…
Inland Arts | Raising Helvetica: Travis Janssen creating cyanotypes with one of the ‘finest’ fonts in the world
Helvetica: Uppercase, currently on display at the Contemporary Art Center of Peoria until Oct 22, is an exhibition of an ongoing series by the artist Travis Janssen, Associate Professor and Head of the Printmaking Program at Southern Illinois University-Carbondale.…
Referenda on the November ballot
At the top of all Illinois ballots is a Proposed Amendment to the 1970 Illinois Constitution “EXPLANATION OF (WORKER’S RIGHTS) AMENDMENT: The proposed amendment would add a new section to the Bill of Rights Article of the Illinois Constitution that…
Serendipity: Here we go again, this is not our first reorganizing rodeo
Some people are born organized; others spend considerable time and energy trying to get organized. Is there a gene for that, or medical or psychological assistance? If so, please do your kind deed for the day and let me know…
Heat Waves in Red and Black: Energy companies would rather energize investors than consumers
Ameren and MISO are playing politics with state regulations, slow walking Illinois into an electricity shortage Past columns revealed Exelon crippling the Illinois Renewable Portfolio Standard and thus contributing to Illinois’ electricity shortage. Additionally, Exelon supports its grid operator’s…
New wedge issue from Darren Bailey a non-issue wedgie
Campaigning for Illinois governor, Republican State Sen. Darren Bailey has core issues: For education, agriculture, lower taxes and term limits; against crime, abortion, gun restrictions and pandemic mandates. Now he wants his own mandate: University enrollments. “Bailey’s recent ‘kitchen table’…
The Lion’s Den | Coming to America: So many different stories, so very much still to learn
Many of us are familiar with the PBS series “Finding Your Roots,” hosted by Dr. Henry Louis Gates. The show’s basic premise is that Dr. Gates helps celebrities trace their ancestry. I have found the show to be quite interesting…
Straight Talk | Another golf learning center? What are they smoking?
The Peoria Park District and some area state lawmakers held a news conference announcing plans to develop a new $4 million golf learning center thanks to a state grant. This will not be an ordinary facility. After all, the district…
The Watch: County refinances Heddington Oaks, Elizabeth Gannon new Executive Director of Election Commission
Too bad we have that debt, but cheers to the Peoria County Board for saving between $20 million and $25 million by refinancing Heddington Oaks. PEORIA CITY COUNCIL On July 26, the council approved a request from City Manager…
City of Peoria launches program focused on housing rehab
Applications are now available for the 2022 Housing Rehabilitation Program, which provides a 50/50 matching grant of up to $15,000 of assistance to property owners of single-family residential properties within Qualified Census Tracts (QCT). Developed by the Community Development Department…