The sit-in at Pilsen's Whittier Elementary appears to be reaching its endgame. Chicago Public Schools agreed to lease the fieldhouse where parents have staged a sit-in for over a month to a non-profit community group for $1, who would convert the fieldhouse into a library for Whittier that's the focus of the sit-in. CPS CEO Ron Huberman said the agreement "is a good-faith effort to continue the work we have completed on behalf of Whittier students." more ›

Just a day after Chicago Public School bosses had the gas shut off at the Whittier elementary where parents have been staging a sit-in for nearly a month, the Chicago city council has ordered the utility restored. Two powerful aldermen - the 14th Ward's Ed Burke and the 25th Ward's Danny Solis - co-sponsored an order mandating that heat be restored to the structure. The council approved the order unanimously. “I don’t know what genius at the Board of Education made this decision," Burke told the Sun-Times. "But, whoever it is ought to see what it’s like to live overnight in a 35-degree dwelling place. They ought to turn the gas back on and we ought to direct them to do so.” more ›

Chicago Public School officials ordered the gas shut off at the fieldhouse at Pilsen's Whittier Elementary School, where parents have been staging a sit-in for almost a month. The city wants to tear down the building and turn the land into a soccer field, which will be used by Cristo Rey Catholic High School. Neighborhood parents want the fieldhouse repaired and turned into a library for Whittier students to use. more ›

• It seems some aldermen are pretty steamed about Rahm Emanuel's impending run for Mayor.
• It seems Tony Rezko , who pleaded guilty today to another fraud charge, is "ready and willing" to testify against ex-gov Rod Blagojevich if given the chance at the next Blago trial.
• Allan Kustok, the husband of slain teacher Anita Jeanie Kustok and charged with her murder, has been ordered held on $2 million bond.

As the sit-in at Whittier Elementary School in Pilsen continues, Gapers Block's Cinnamon Cooper got the chance to sit down with some of the children involved in the protest, students of Whittier directly affected by the plans and the protest. It's a different angle in the ongoing, developing story that hasn't been addressed until now. Check it out here. more ›

The sit-in at Whittier Elementary continues, now reaching it's 10th day despite warnings from the parents' own inspector the building may not be safe to occupy may need roof repairs to make it safe to occupy though his inspection was based only on a visual assessment and not a full, technical assessment. Meanwhile, parents of students also protested outside the office of Ald. Danny Solis (25th) after Solis promised the building, planned to be torn down to make way for a soccer field to be used by a private school located next door, would not be demolished until a third assessment has been completed. Progress Illinois and Revision Street's Anne Elizabeth Moore have more on the ongoing situation. more ›

The sit-in by parents and students at Pilsen's Whittier Elementary School is in its seventh day now but a resolution could soon be at hand. Ald. Danny Solis (25th) and his chief-of-staff are in the midst of arranging a meeting between the parents and CPS CEO Ron Huberman to discuss the plans for the fieldhouse, which is at the center of the controversy. The CPS planned to use more than $300,000 of $1.5 million in TIF money set aside for the school to level the fieldhouse and put in a soccer field but parents want the field house to be renovated into a library; the CPS insists the building is structurally unsound. Meanwhile, WBEZ Revision Street's Anne Elizabeth Moore talks to Evelin Santos, a 23-year-old DePaul student who's currently involved in the sit-in as a support member for the parents. more ›

The sit-in by parents at the Whittier Elementary School fieldhouse has entered its sixth day. At issue is what to do with the structure. Chicago Public Schools want to put in a soccer field while parents say they want a library to go on the site instead. Police tried to remove the demonstrators from the fieldhouse on Friday but gave up after scores more of parents - and students - joined the cause after school let out. more ›

• Parents of students at Whittier Elementary School in Pilsen held a sit-in to protest the proposed demolition of the school's field house.
• A South Side man was shot twice today and survived both times.
• Shareholders for both Continental and United Airlines approved the airlines' proposed merger.

A sit-in protest by Centro Communitario Juan Diego on the South Side this morning - protesting the installation of new parking meter pay boxes - led to a pair of arrests. Two women plopped themselves right on top of the site where LAZ Parking was trying to install the box and earned themselves each a pair of cuffs. The Parking Ticket Geek has the details and pictures. more ›

Workers at the Rochester, NY Hickey-Freeman plant, which is owned by parent company Hartmarx, voted Wednesday to join Illinois workers in a sit-in if Wells-Fargo shutters and liquidates the Des Plaines suit maker, effectively throwing 3,500 families out of work. “There are a lot of married couples that work here. If they lost their jobs, their families would be devastated,” said Debbie Glinski, who has worked at Hickey-Freeman in Rochester for 15 years. more ›

Workers at the Des Plaines Hartmarx suit plant voted Monday to stage a sit in - a la Republic Windows and Doors - if Wells Fargo goes forward with plans to liquidate the company and its assets. Hartmarx filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in January, and Wells Fargo, which took $25 billion in federal bank bailout funding in October, holds over $100 million of the company’s debt. Wells Fargo issued a statement on Monday saying that Hartmarx "has been in default of its loan obligations to banks in the group that have provided it credit, including Wachovia Capital Finance, part of Wells Fargo." more ›

Publisher Melville House has announced that Chicago-based writer Kari Lydersen's account of the Republic Windows and Doors sit-in on her blog at the Washington Post a blog on the publisher's website is being turned into a book, due out in early 2009. Because nothing screams riveting page-turner like a sordid tale of severance pay, bad credit, and people sitting around on lawn chairs. No offense to Ms. Lydersen, but other than the people that actually did the sitting in, who's going to buy this book? Perhaps the publisher is hoping union leaders will snap up lots of copies to hand out to members as a how-to guide. more ›

After a six day sit-in by workers at the Republic Windows and Doors factory, an agreement to end the protest was reached. The workers approved a $1.75 million deal which will pay each worker eight weeks' salary, all accrued vacation pay and two months' paid health care. Late last night the workers voted unanimously to end the strike after a 20-hour negotiation involving union members, Republic management, members from the lender companies, and others such as U.S. Rep Luis Gutierrez. We mentioned the $400,000 from JP Morgan Chase that was put towards the deal; in addition, Bank of America has agreed to loan Republic management another $1.35 million. more ›

Governor Rod Blagojevich, who has enough on his mind already, hit the ground running on Monday, ordering all state agencies to cease work with Bank of America in a bid to pressure the bank into negotiating with workers at the Republic Windows and Doors where workers are in a fourth day of a sit-in. Of course, Blago isn't alone on showing support for the workers: President-Elect Obama and a gaggle of Chicago aldermen have jumped into the fray on behalf of the workers. more ›

As the sit-in at the Republic Windows and Doors plant reached its third day, Rev. Jesse Jackson paid a visit to factory workers. The factory was suddenly shut down this week after Bank of America canceled the company's line of credit due to the current economic crisis. Workers, however, are demanding severance packages they say are owed to them. A law signed by Gov. Blagojevich a few years ago backs this claim up. According to NBC 5:

The Illinois WARN Act, signed by Gov. Rod Blagojevich in 2004, requires employers to give 60 days notice to employees and their unions, the Illinois Department of Commerce & Economic Opportunity’s Bureau of Workforce Development and the Illinois Department of Labor, of a plant closing or mass layoff.