City Cast Chicago

We are continuing our Summer Entertainment Guide, where every week this month we give you recommendations for how to live your best summertime Chi life. This week, it’s time to pack your water bottle, sunscreen, and glitter because we’re talking all things music festivals. No matter what kind of music you love, there is definitely a festival for it here in Chicago. Joining host Jacoby Cochran are...

This week, neighbors gathered in Douglass Park to protest Riot Fest ahead of today’s Park District meeting considering permit approvals for the September music festival. We asked you what you thought about Riot Fest in our newsletter Hey Chicago. Lead Producer Simone Alicea and Host Jacoby Cochran catch you up on the conflict and read through some of your responses. Plus, we’re revisiting Chicago’...

Better weather means more Chicagoans outside and more bikes on city streets. Unfortunately, infrastructure to keep cyclists safe is inconsistent across neighborhoods. We’re revisiting our conversation from December with Kyle Lucas and Michael Podgers from Better Streets Chicago to learn what city and state officials can do to keep cyclists safe and get some tips for the road. Plus, Kyle gives us a...

One of Mayor Brandon Johnson’s first announcements when he took office was to create a task force to solve Chicago’s so-called “pension crisis.” You’ve probably seen pensions come up in headlines a lot. It’s why the city says it’s building a new casino, and it comes up every time we talk about the city budget. But be honest with us, do you have any idea what’s going on with Chicago’s pensions? Wel...

Ten years ago, Chicago closed 50 schools in largely Black and brown neighborhoods. But what happened to those buildings after the doors were boarded up? A new WBEZ and Sun-Times report tracked the fate of each school and found more than half remain vacant. Host Jacoby Cochran is joined by freelance journalists Natalie Frazier and Maia McDonald to talk about that along with the cottonwood seeds bla...

Every week this month, we’re bringing you our summer entertainment guide where we give you recommendations to make the most of summertime Chi. We’re kicking it off with a guide to Pride events with Block Club Chicago’s Jake Wittich. He tells host Jacoby Cochran about the best events for families, some lesser-known spots, and etiquette for Pride newcomers.  June 9th-11th: Andersonville Midsommarfes...

The city is currently looking for volunteers to help map heat disparities in Chicago —neighborhoods where the temps are higher and potentially more dangerous. But that map won’t come out for months, so the Chicago Tribune decided to make its own. Reporter Sarah Macaraeg found that between neighborhood design and longstanding inequities, Chicago’s most vulnerable communities face even more danger i...

An administrative judge ruled late last week that the city should have granted a permit to a metal scrapping facility looking to operate on the Southeast Side. Host Jacoby Cochran and lead producer Simone Alicea talk about how we got to this point. Plus, we get your advice for people moving to Chicago, and Simone and Jacoby talk parks vs. beaches. Want some more City Cast Chicago news? Then make s...

As Chicago Public Schools let out for summer around this time a decade ago, 50 schools were closed for good. It was the largest mass school closure in the nation’s history, which sent shockwaves through the city’s Black and brown neighborhoods. Eve Ewing is a former CPS teacher and the author of “Ghosts in the Schoolyard: Racism and School Closings on Chicago’s South Side.” She talks with host Jac...

Alders on Wednesday approved $51 million in funding to help asylum-seekers in Chicago, but the City Council vote was contentious. Meanwhile, negotiations between Chicago and DuPage County over drinking water supply are also heating up as the west suburban county considers building its own pipeline to Lake Michigan. Chicago Tribune’s A.D. Quig and WCIU’s Brandon Pope join lead producer Simone Alice...

No list of classic Chicago movies is complete without “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off.” But is Ferris’ itinerary even possible to complete in a school day? Writer Leigh Giangreco decided to find out and recreate his day for the Washington Post. Ahead of June 5, the day some say Ferris took off, we are revisiting a conversation with Leigh from September, where host Jacoby Cochran got all details of how i...

Pickleball is growing so fast in Chicago the city is set to build 50 new pickleball courts by 2025. But are Chicago parks big enough for all racket sport enthusiasts? Chris Clark, a former college tennis player and a pickleball enthusiast, says yes! Clark founded Toss and Spin in August 2020 to introduce more people to racket sports. Host Jacoby Cochran and lead producer Simone Alicea met Clark at...

It’s almost June 1, so you know what that means: It’s time to pay the rent. But from maintenance problems, to rent increases, to sneaky clauses in your lease, do you know your rights as a renter? Lead producer Simone Alicea talked with John Bartlett, executive director of the Metropolitan Tenants Organization, and she shares what she found with host Jacoby Cochran and newsletter editor Sidney Madd...

If you’ve heard it once, you’ve heard it a thousand times: Construction in Chicago sucks. This year’s road and highway projects are a major headache, with traffic up over last year and drivers complaining about outrageous commute times. We’re discussing particular pain points around the city with Melody Mercado of Block Club Chicago and Charles Preston with Injustice Watch. Alongside host Jacoby C...

Memorial Day is the perfect excuse to take a trip, whether it be for the whole weekend or just the day. That’s why we are revisiting our conversation with Thrillist’s Meredith Heil from last summer breaking down the best spots around the Midwest within driving distance. Plus, we hear some suggestions form City Cast readers. Want some more City Cast Chicago news? Then make sure to sign up for our H...

Though the legislative session was supposed to end last week, lawmakers are still in Springfield working on a state budget and a few other outstanding issues. One of those lawmakers is Rep. Nabeela Syed, a Democrat from northwest suburban Palatine. At 24 years old, Syed is the youngest Democrat in the state House. She joins host Jacoby Cochran to recap her first session, which has left her surpris...

While the scheduled end of the spring legislative session has come and gone, Illinois lawmakers have until July 1 to approve a district map for Chicago’s new elected school board, which will be on the November 2024 ballot. This process has drawn a lot of criticism from parents and advocates who argue the proposed maps don’t accurately reflect CPS demographics. Lead producer and map enthusiast Simo...

Ahead of the summer travel season, the Biden administration announced it would propose new rules requiring compensation for air passengers if they end up stranded, and it’s the airline’s fault. That’s in addition to a push in Congress for a “passengers’ bill of rights.” Given that nearly 8 million people traveled through O’Hare and Midway airports in May alone last year, Scott Keyes the potential...

Mayor Brandon Johnson was sworn in earlier this week with a memorable inauguration ceremony. Now the 57th mayor of Chicago gets busy on pushing his progressive agenda through a City Council with a lot of new faces. To help break down some of those key campaign promises, we are joined by Alex Nitkin from the Illinois Answers Project and poet and South Side Weekly editor Chima “Naira” Ikoro. Alongsi...

The hit show “The Bear” dropped a new trailer this week ahead of its highly anticipated return for season 2 next month, and it’s got us hungry for a good old-fashioned Chicago Italian beef sandwich. Longtime food critic Kevin Pang has eaten his share of juicy sandwiches, but he wanted to know how to turn a good Italian beef into the best Italian beef. Pang sets out to answer this question in his p...

Zayd Dohrn was born underground and on the run from the FBI. His parents, Bernadine Dohrn and Bill Ayers, were leaders of the Weather Underground — a radical leftist group born in the 70s that declared war on the United States and fought alongside anti-war activists and Black Panthers. Zayd Dohrn‘s podcast Mother Country Radicals asks his parents hard questions about their storied and revolutionar...

Humorist Samantha Irby has made a career out of oversharing, from her start as a blogger in Chicago’s lit scene to becoming a New York Times bestselling essayist. Her new collection “Quietly Hostile” spins personal horrors like bathroom emergencies and mortifying dates into comedy gold that makes readers feel less alone. Irby talks with host Jacoby Cochran about why her stories resonate and her ad...

Brandon Johnson will be inaugurated as the 57th mayor of Chicago this morning, officially bringing a close to the Lori Lightfoot administration. City Hall reporters Mariah Woelfel from WBEZ and Heather Cherone from WTTW talk to host Jacoby Cochran about Lightfoot’s legacy, what grade they’re giving the one-term mayor, and what they’re expecting as Johnson makes his way to the fifth floor.  Chicago...

Earlier this week Mayor Lightfoot issued a state of emergency as hundreds of asylum seekers are arriving to Chicago daily. Block Club Chicago’s Quinn Myers and lead producer Carrie Shepherd discuss the latest on the ongoing humanitarian crisis, the city’s struggle securing money, and the scramble to provide resources. Plus, we are asking what the end of the COVID-19 emergency declaration means for...

Beginning in 2019, two names dominated headlines and became a love story Chicago could get behind. Monty and Rose were piping plovers who came to nest, and fell in love, at Montrose Beach. Piping plovers are an endangered species, but birders and other volunteers began protecting Monty and Rose, and eventually their offspring, while educating the public about the tiny birds. City Cast Chicago prod...