1. Will the Real Bruce Rauner Please Stand Up?
The gubernatorial candidate is sticking to his script. So what’s between the lines? Chicago profiles the private-equity titan and possible future governor.
2. Chicago Soul
A reporter returns to Washington Heights, in the “Wild Hundreds” of Chicago’s South Side, to see what’s become of where she’s from. The Washington Post’s Lonnae O’Neal Parker goes home again.
3. Gone But Not Forgotten: Chicago Businesses We Miss
From the New Wave hub Wax Trax! to an Edgewater shop specializing in a Transylvanian pastry, a fond look back at some old favorites. Time Out Chicago takes a tour through the past.
4. Miracle on Mount Baldy
How a six-year-old boy survived under 11 feet of sand on Indiana’s mysteriously shifting dunes. The Chicago Tribune tells the amazing tale.
5. Big Profit for Pritzkers on Costly Chicago FBI Deal
The government will pay more than twice the construction costs for rent and operating expenses on the 14-year, build-to-lease local headquarters. The Better Government Association investigates the deal.
6. Dirty Schools the Norm Since Privatizing Custodians: Principals
It’s supposed to save $40 million—but school leaders say cleaning is understaffed and disorganized, leading to “filthy” buildings. Catalyst Chicago reports on a survey of principals about the issue.
7. Thousands Charged with Drug Possession Walk Free, Leaving Taxpayers with the Tab
Low-level drug possession offenses cost taxpayers $143 a day to jail, even though one in three cases is dismissed. The Chicago Reporter tallies the expense.
8. Tech Turns Chicago Skid Row into Top Market
Once a red-light district, development in River North is “off the charts.” Bloomberg examines how the neighborhood was rebranded and rehabbed.
9. Lawsuit: Man Beaten in Cook County Jail More Than 10 Hours After Judge Ordered His Release
Sometimes getting out of jail means having to go back to jail first. One man says he was attacked while waiting. WBEZ explains why getting released takes so long.
10. Two Reasons Why You Should Read ‘Native Son’
The classic Chicago novel doesn’t have a great reputation as literature, but it’s better than its critics suggest. Chicago examines Richard Wright’s still-resonant tragedy.