Champaign
Read more about the article Clark Park residents express concern over accessory dwelling unit regulationaccessorydwellings.org
A backyard Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) from accessorydwellings.org, which is cited by Champaign to learn more information about ADUs.

Clark Park residents express concern over accessory dwelling unit regulation

Some property owners are expressing concern about accessory dwelling units — small buildings on single housing property — while Champaign city officials move towards approving them. To gauge Champaign’s interest in ADUs, City Planning sent out a survey in mid-August with questions about ADUs and what they might look like in Champaign. About 65% to 70% of about 1,500 participants seemed to indicate interest and support for ADUs.

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Read more about the article United Garden Hills lighting, flooding projects underway after years of resident complaintsUnited Garden Hills, Facebook
Flooding on Anita Dr. in the Garden Hills neighborhood in June 2021.

United Garden Hills lighting, flooding projects underway after years of resident complaints

In June, the city was awarded $25 million through the American Rescue Plan (ARP), a COVID-19 economic relief plan disbursing emergency funds. Half of the funds have already been given to the city, while the other half will be received next year. Kay Nees, finance director of the city, said the ARP was like a “key missing piece” in order to get to work on Garden Hills.  The two efforts, a drainage project to target flooding, and a lighting project to make the streets safer, have their own timeline, budget and design. The first phase of the drainage project has already been completed: creating greenspace to install detention basins. The city worked with residents to demolish properties that were frequently getting flooded to make room for detention basins.

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Read more about the article Pay gap between Champaign and Urbana employees actually widening, new data revealsGoogle Maps Street View
Urbana City Building from Google Maps.

Pay gap between Champaign and Urbana employees actually widening, new data reveals

Recently released data on employee salaries of the City of Champaign and City of Urbana show that Urbana pays substantially less than Champaign and that the pay gap between the two cities has actually increased over the past two fiscal years, according a CU-CitizenAccess review.  When the data for employees receiving under $75,000 a year is included, the number of employees increases to 315, more than double the 145 employees included in the compensation report the City of Urbana publishes. 

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Read more about the article Ebertfest prices increased up to 50% prior to postponing due to COVID-19Danielle Sheppard
Virginia Theatre, 203 W. Park Ave., Champaign, Illinois

Ebertfest prices increased up to 50% prior to postponing due to COVID-19

Prices for Ebertfest tickets soared this year with passes increasing between 35% and 50% from 2020 to 2021, depending on the type of pass. The annual film festival started by the late film critic Roger Ebert in Champaign-Urbana in 1999, was scheduled for September 8 to 11 at the Virginia Theatre in Champaign, but was delayed again because of concerns about COVID-19 pandemic. The festival had previously been called off in the spring of 2020 due similar concerns about COVID-19, but returned this fall with the price increases.

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Champaign financial impact from pandemic offset by taxes and repurposing, records show top costs remained mostly same

Champaign’s cash outflow reports show that business assistance funding has dramatically increased during the pandemic, aided by a fund program that wasn’t designed to…

Continue ReadingChampaign financial impact from pandemic offset by taxes and repurposing, records show top costs remained mostly same
Read more about the article Champaign and Urbana police struggle to diversifyDarrell Hoemann
Looking south to the Champaign Police Department Building on First Street. Photo by Darrell Hoemann/CU-CitizenAccess

Champaign and Urbana police struggle to diversify

In 2014, the police staff in Champaign was 88% white and Urbana’s police staff was 84% white, CU-CitizenAccess reported at that time. Almost seven years later, those numbers are virtually unchanged, despite pledges by both cities to diversify their police forces.

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Read more about the article Community members, businesses rally to clean littered fields in business areaDarrell Hoemann
Litter in a field by Interstate Drive in north Champaign, IL on Wednesday, May 12, 2021. photo by Darrell Hoemann/C-U Citizen Access

Community members, businesses rally to clean littered fields in business area

In response to uncontrolled trash piling up in the North Prospect business area, community members rallied together to pick up 29 bags of litter…

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Read more about the article Illinois flu activity plunges amid pandemicIllinois Department of Public Health
Source: Illinois Department of Public Health

Illinois flu activity plunges amid pandemic

Influenza-like illness (ILI) activity has decreased compared to previous years in Illinois. The highest ILI rate was in mid-February of 2020 at 7.4%. That is a 93.2% decrease to 0.5% of ILI activity in February of 2021 compared to 2020.

Continue ReadingIllinois flu activity plunges amid pandemic