The Darrey family in suburban Des Plaines is outraged after a police officer shot and killed their dog, Bowzer, a 40 pound beagle and cocker spaniel mix. more ›

Instead of relying on flashing signs, Des Plaines' new casino--set to open in fall 2011--will feature large-scale LED monitors and electronic murals. This week, the city council approved a sign ordinance that allows the casino to display 57 signs inside and around it. In addition, the plan for the 20-acre casino site that will be located at Devon Avenue and Des Plaines River Road was also approved by the alderman. The developer, Midwest Gaming, is still trying to finalize its financing and hopes to break ground by the end of the month. more ›

• Mayor Daley and Governor Quinn are defending the $16 million price tag on the state's tourism spending. If gubernatorial opponent Dan Hynes thinks that's steep now, wait til October 3rd when we might add roughly $4 billion to that.
• Officials downstate are investigating a brutal quintuple homicide in which a couple and three of their children were shot dead in Beason; a 3-year-old girl survived the shooting, but police haven't released any additional details on her condition.
• Investigators have ruled that the fire-related deaths of a couple in their Des Plaines-area home was a murder-suicide.

We've heard a lot about potholes around the area lately (and the city's failure to fill some of them) but we've got nothing on Des Plaines. An officer drove his car up onto the sidewalk to test for "dead zones" on the sidewalk" only to have a sinkhole open up and swallow his car. Authorities say the area had been hit hard by last September's flooding and erosion was more than likely responsible for the sinkhole. [ABC 7] more ›

In a 3-1 vote, the Illinois Gaming Board awarded the state's 10th Casino license to Des Plaines-based Midwest Gaming LLC, ending a ten-year process in which bidders throughout the state vied for the open license. [Crain's] more ›

While companies are putting together bids for Des Plaines, Rosemont and Waukegan for the state's final casino license, they're finding themselves hampered by the struggling economy. Bill Eadington, director of a gambling institute at the University of Nevada-Reno, recently told the Trib, "It's very bad timing for Illinois. We're facing the biggest economic recession in 75 years. I wouldn't be surprised if the companies that made bids a couple months ago could no longer justify them." Casino giants like Harrah's are having to scale back or scrap plans for new casinos altogether.

The finalists are Trilliant Gaming, a Los Angeles-based venture that has teamed up with Rosemont and submitted the high bid of $435 million. The next highest offer is $225 million from Waukegan Gaming. A distant third at $100 million is Midwest Gaming & Entertainment, billionaire developer Neil Bluhm's group, who wants to open in Des Plaines. Those figures don't include the cost of building the casino, which could be in the hundreds of millions, making it tougher to turn a profit. more ›

Des Plaines police arrested a man yesterday who allegedly broke into a restaurant over the weekend. It was a pretty easy bust, as the burglar had the idea to enter the restaurant through a kitchen exhaust vent of which he apparently misjudged the size -- he got stuck and wound up hanging upside down covered in grease for 26 hours. So why didn't the restaurant workers find him sooner? Because there weren't any -- the restaurant was out of business. And we know the rich, rich bounty to be found inside a closed restaurant. Fortunately the building's owner discovered the Thomas Crown wannabe when he went to get the mail, otherwise an embarrassing bungle could have turned into a tragic ending. more ›

As neighborhoods like Albany Park and many suburbs begin to dry out and clean up from this weekend's flooding, residents are beginning to ask for help from the federal government. Senator Dick Durbin was joined by 39th Ward Alderman Margaret Laurino, and a representative from Barack Obama's office to get a first-hand look at the massive flooding that happened from this weekend's intense rains. Said Durbin:

This has been devastating. A lot of these folks don't have insurance to cover this. One hundred billion gallons of water dumped on any community . . . is something you can't prepare for. I think when we need FEMA, they will be here.

We'll still have to wait awhile for Chicago's new Trader Vic's, but in the meanwhile Tiki Terrace has now reopened for business and is ready to hula. And we mean that literally: the Hanalei Revue, every Saturday night, and the Ports of Paradise review on Fridays both feature plenty of dancing and other island-style entertainment. more ›

If the RTA extended the Blue Line out to the Yorktown Mall in Lombard, would you go? The Sun-Times reported yesterday that possible improvements to the city's transit system could include a longer trek on the Forest Park line, new bus routes on major expressways, and a north-south train between Midway and O'hare, among other things. more ›

Since its restoration in 2005 the Portage Theater has become a popular destination for music, movies (it's the home base for the Silent Film Society of Chicago) and live theater. This time of year, Portage Theater management and the folks at the Six Corners Association use the theater to screen some classic scary movies. This year's line-up casts a wide net across silent film, the classic Universal monster movies, modern horror, and a little bit... more ›

We've gone around and about a lot of times about a couple key subjects: How relevant losing Marshall Fields is in the grand scheme of things, Hipster/Yuppie, where does Whole Foods play into the life of a person looking to eat healthy and live on a budget? But another topic that never fails to get someone's ire up is that of biker vs. driver vs. pedestrian vs. driver vs. biker. Most people realize that there... more ›

After being shuttered for three years amidst a series of complains of poor management and DCFS investigation, Maryville Academy's City of Youth has re-opened. When Maryville was shut down in 2003, nearly 270 wards of the state called the Des Plaines campus home. Increasingly frequent acts of violence and sexual assault, a suicide on campus and bad management led to DCFS' decision to remove their wards from Maryville, with a mandate that Maryville review and... more ›

Where Chicagoist used to live, we were within walking distance to three (or more, depending on boundary definitions) cemeteries. Not one to be easily creeped out by the prospect, their proximity actually sweetened the pot for us. We’re no Fox Mulder, but we are of the ilk that likes the occasional cemetery walk: peace and quiet, nice funerary art, and a different angle on local history. Some of the places we know are full up and not accepting any new arrivals. However, others have plenty of exploitable space … perhaps too much. more ›

“Had the Des Plaines and Chicago Rivers not been so close and had a mountain -- instead of a small hill -- separated them, perhaps there might not have been a Chicago.” Before launching into the story of the Chicago River, the exhibit at the McCormick Tribune Bridgehouse & Chicago River Museum contemplates this thought, illustrating the essential relationship between the development of Chicago into its current metropolis and the river that flows through it.... more ›

Chicagoist: Peeking into the minds of the mad, the dangerous and the just plain stupid. more ›

"Grinders" via pantagrapher. more ›

For the 75th anniversary of the Lindbergh kidnapping, Time released what they believe are the top 25 crimes of the century. We must say, we got sucked in and were captivated by the crimes, some of which we were familiar with and some we were completely unawares. Two of the crimes were from the Chicago area. John Wayne Gacy, executed by lethal injection in 1994, murdered 32 boys and young men. Police found 28 of them in a crawl space in his Des Plaines home. The mysteries of the human psyche, the false sense of security in suburbia, the facade of an upstanding citizen — these were all brought to the forefront in an American society that was getting comfortable. more ›

In an effort to be your one-stop McDonald's shop, Chicagoist has the following sad news to report: A unique, historic Crystal Lake branch of the mighty empire is shutting down. Granted, that's not as tragic as the overall fast food gentrification trend, but there's something special about this particular Mickey D's: it's housed in a piece of Chicago. Four years after the very first McDonald's opened in Des Plaines, Crystal Lake became home to the... more ›

Chicagoist hopes you’re busy celebrating Labor Day the way most folks do: by sitting around on your fat ass and drinking some beer (BBQ called on account of rain). Admit it: you deserve a break. Even though Federal, state, city and county offices will be closed along with banks and the post office, many people are spending the day working in our fair city, so it’s only right that we take a brief look at... more ›

A week ago, there were snakes everywhere we turned. But today, we learned that wild rattlesnakes are a disappearing species, and a recent survey found only 10 in a prairie near the Des Plaines River. more ›

"His options were quickly running out" via p2wy more ›

River Reversal? more ›

Do you feel intimidated walking into Reckless Records? Did you cry soft tears of recognition during the “I Just Called To Say I Love You” scene in High Fidelity? Well sob no more, friend. This month’s Illinois Entertainer features an indie record label fakebook so you’ll never confuse Polyvinyl Records with Black Vinyl Records ever again (there’s a version of it posted online as well). We know there are a few labels around town they missed but perhaps these are the only ones who bothered to fill out the questionnaire. The guide tells you which labels accept unsolicited demos (almost all of them do) and what type of music they feature. more ›

What can you say about Pilsen? That it’s the largest Mexican-American community in Chicago, and one of the largest in the United States? Check. That it’s home to a decades-old, well established arts scene and some of the finest galleries in town? Check. That’s it a vibrant place to raise a family? Well, for the folks that produce mind-numbing, ubiquitous American Girl dolls, that may not be so. more ›

We know a blog about Chicago weather wouldn�t exactly the most riveting site of all time ("It�s cold. Still cold. Cold again today. Rain." ), but this month is the 17th-wettest May in Chicago history! Good god damn, my soaked compadres. more ›

Last week Chicagoist commented on the abundance of May showers that were predicted. Little did we know that we were in for a week or more of torrential lightening, thunder, hail and tornado-producing storms. On TV, all of the local stations have had a weather bug in the corner for days warning us of the danger of floods. The abundance of rain has caused many Illinois rivers to overflow. There has already been some flooding... more ›