Tag Archives: North Side

Lake Shore Drive Delays Ahead

A new construction project is getting underway on Chicago’s North Side that will make getting around on Lake Shore Drive a real challenge.

Crews worked Tuesday measuring, marking, and setting up cones on LaSalle Drive near Lake Shore. Eventually, LaSalle will be down to one lane in each direction from North Avenue to the drive.

This advance work is just a part of the big picture: a resurfacing and bridge repair project on Lake Shore Drive from North Avenue to Monroe. On Monday, Aug. 27, crews will have the drive reduced to only two lanes in each direction from North to Monroe until Oct. 6.

The Chicago Department of Transportation is strongly urging drivers to use public transportation during the six-week project.
The repairs and resurfacing will be done in two stages. During the first phase, the two left lanes of Lake Shore will be closed in both directions from North to Monroe. The second phase would shift traffic and close the right lanes.

While CDOT admits this will be a major inconvenience, they also stress that the work is badly needed, both the resurfacing on the drive between Grand Avenue and Monroe and the bridge work at North. In order to get the repair work done as quickly and safely as possible, crews will work double shifts with around the clock closures.

Read more at ABC 7.

CPS: Possible mumps case reported at North Side school

(CHICAGO) Authorities are investigating a possible case of mumps at an Andersonville neighborhood elementary school on the North Side.

Chicago Public Schools notified parents on Monday about a case of mumps at Helen C. Peirce School of International Studies, 1423 W. Bryn Mawr Ave., according to the district. The case has not been confirmed and the Chicago Department of Public Health considers it a preliminary diagnosis.

“CPS is supporting the Chicago Department of Public Health as it investigates a potential case of mumps,” a statement from CPS said. “A diagnosis has not been confirmed, and we will work with the Department of Public Health to institute any necessary precautionary measures.”

The notification comes in the same week that three cases of the highly contagious disease were confirmed at Barrington High School, along with a fourth unrelated case in the suburb, according to the Lake County Health Department.

Seven additional cases are considered “probable” and 20 more were deemed “suspect” at two high schools, two middle schools and elsewhere in the surrounding area, health officials said.

Mumps is passed through saliva and mucus, especially by sharing cups or other items, officials said. Up to half of people who contract the virus at first show mild or no symptoms, which include fever, headache, loss of appetite and tender salivary glands under the ears.

Man charged with stealing $150K from Edgewater condo association

(CHICAGO) A property manager is facing federal charges for allegedly pocketing more than $150,000 in illegal fees from a condominium association in the North Side Edgewater neighborhood.

Alan P. Gold, 65, was arrested Nov. 9 and charged with one count of mail fraud, according to the U.S. attorney’s office.

Gold, owner and operator of A.P. Gold Realty & Management Inc., had authority over the condo association’s bank accounts, prosecutors said. He was supposed to draw a monthly $650 fee for management services such as collecting special assessments and paying utility providers.

Prosecutors said Gold over-billed the association by withdrawing multiple $650 checks in the same month and tapping into the association’s reserve fund to write “substantially higher” checks to himself. He is accused of stealing $154,271 from the association between 2010 and 2014.

He also tried to conceal the fraud by providing fraudulent monthly statements to the association that showed their account balances higher than they actually were, the U.S. attorney’s office said.

If convicted of the mail fraud charge, Gold could face a maximum sentence of up to 20 years in prison, according to prosecutors.

Police warn of armed robberies in Irving Park

(CHICAGO) Police are cautioning residents of the Irving Park neighborhood on the Northwest Side after two recent armed robberies were reported on the same block.

Both robberies occurred in the 4300 block of North Francisco, according to an alert from Area North detectives. The first was on May 27 at 2:50 a.m., while the second occurred on June 7 at 3:50 p.m.

In the first robbery, three men approached the victim in an alley, demanded money, pulled out a handgun and put it to the victim’s head, police said. The suspects made off with cash and a cellphone.

The suspects were described as a white man between 18 and 20 years old, standing 6-feet and weighing 160 pounds; a black man between 25 and 30, standing 6-feet; and black man between 18 and 24 years old, also standing 6-feet, police said.

In the most recent robbery, a single man was in the alley, “acting as though he needs help,” police said. The victim walked over and the suspect hit them in the head with a handgun before taking cash.

The suspect was described as a Hispanic man between 18 and 24 years old, standing 6-feet and weighing 140 pounds, police said.

Anyone with information on the robberies is asked to call Area North detectives at (312) 744-8263.

Police investigating school burglaries in Uptown, North Center

(CHICAGO) Police are investigating two burglaries that happened after-hours at North Side schools in the past two months.

Both schools had electronics stolen and property damaged, Area North detectives said in a community alert issued Wednesday.

The first burglary happened March 16, at a school in the 2500 block of West Addison in the North Center neighborhood. Authorities believe the burglary happened between 1:30 p.m. and 10 p.m., police said.

In that incident, the burglars are described as four people who were riding BMX-style bicycles, police said.

Another burglary happened in the 4400 block of North Magnolia in the Uptown neighborhood, police said.

That incident happened between Friday and Monday over the Memorial Day weekend, sometime between 3:30 p.m. and 7:15 a.m., police said.

Anyone with information is asked to contact detectives at (312) 744-8263.

Burglars targeting electronics, jewelry in North Side homes

(Chicago)  Police issued a community alert Thursday warning North Side residents of a string of recent burglaries in the Lincoln Square and West Ridge neighborhoods.

At least one burglar breaks into an apartment or home, and takes electronics, jewelry and cash, according to the alert from Area North detectives.

Five burglaries have taken place since Feb. 1:

—in the 5900 block of North Richmond about 3 p.m. Feb. 1;

—in the 2600 block of West Berwyn about 9 a.m. Feb. 5;

—in the 2600 block of West Berwyn about 9 a.m. Feb. 5;

—in the 2800 block of West Berwyn about 7:30 a.m. Feb. 10;

—and in the 2700 block of West Gregory about 3 p.m. on Feb. 11.

Anyone with information should call detectives at (312) 744-8263.

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Two armed robberies reported near mayor’s North Side home

(Chicago)  Two armed robberies have been reported in the last 24 hours near Mayor Emanuel’s home in the Ravenswood neighborhood on the North Side.

The most recent robbery happened at a business early Tuesday morning in the 4000 block of North Lincoln, police said.

A suspect armed with a box cutter entered the business and stole cash from the register, police said. He ran away after the robbery and no injuries were reported. A description of the suspect was not immediately available, only that it was a male of unknown age.

The other robbery happened in the 4500 block of North Hermitage, three blocks from the mayor’s home, at 7:45 p.m. Monday night.

Three teenage boys dressed in all black walked up to a 32-year-old man, pulled out a handgun and demanded his valuables, police said. Witnesses saw the suspects running eastbound on Sunnyside from Ashland after the robbery.

Police said no one was in custody in connection with either robbery as of Tuesday morning.

On Dec. 19, the mayor’s son Zach Emanuel was mugged outside their home in the 4500 block of North Hermitage.

An 18-year-old was charged with robbery and aggravated battery in a public way, police said. He was charged as a juvenile because he was 17 at the time the crime was committed. He is scheduled to appear in court March 9.

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