Happy Friday. This snowy day marks the 2025 return of Patty Wetli’s weekly City in a Garden column and more local stories from WTTW News.
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Devoted stewardship turned a stretch of Montrose Beach into an incredible natural area. (Credit: Patty Wetli / WTTW News)
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Patty Wetli: Well that didn’t last long. One of my many, many resolutions for 2025 was to “stop being so easily annoyed.”
I tried, folks, I really tried, but then a co-worker shared a link to an article about people finding “whimsy” in a couch dumped on one of Chicago’s North Side beaches, and that was all it took to break my resolve. In short: Neighbors apparently are making “pilgrimages” to visit the abandoned couch, photograph it and post pictures on social media.
They’re not banding together to clear it from the beach or demanding action from the Park District or alderperson. They’re “decorating” it with pillows and blankets — so, more junk — and have added spray paint, too. My annoyance meter spiked. Probably my blood pressure, too.
I’ve got nothing against whimsy. Heck, I quite often skip down the sidewalk. But I gotta draw the line at celebrating trash on a beach.
Yeah, it might seem like a harmless bit of fun, but what’s next? Making pilgrimages to tires tossed in forest preserves or shopping carts ditched in the river? Because it’s kind of the same thing. I don't know, maybe I’m taking this all too seriously.
But I think about all the people and organizations that have worked so hard for so long to clean up Chicago’s waterways and natural areas — the decades of advocacy it’s taken to get people to look at the Chicago River as something other than a sewer, the incredible stewardship that led to the city’s lakefront welcoming endangered piping plovers — and I don’t see the whimsy. So yeah, I’m annoyed.
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A rendering of Sterling Bay's planned residential buildings at 1840 N. Marcey St. (Credit: Sterling Bay)
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One of Chicago’s largest developers will invoke a little-known and untested provision of city law in an attempt to win approval for a 615-unit apartment complex in Lincoln Park, setting the stage for a major fight over the decades-old tradition that gives Chicago City Council members the final authority over housing developments in their own wards.
Sterling Bay will hold a community meeting at 6 p.m. Jan. 15 at 1840 N. Marcey St., the site of the planned development that would build two towers — one reaching 25 stories and the other 15 stories — across the north branch of the Chicago River from the planned Lincoln Yards megadevelopment, which has yet to get off the ground.
That meeting, designed to again give community members a chance to weigh in on the project, is the first step on a path that could result in the apartment complex's approval by the City Council despite the opposition of Ald. Scott Waguespack, whose 32nd Ward includes the proposed development.
Waguespack contends the development is too dense, too tall, would worsen the area’s perpetual traffic gridlock and does not have the support of nearby residents.
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A file photo of Crockett Cookies. (WTTW News)
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Do you remember those buttery lunchroom cookies? The simple shortbread snack was a staple in hundreds of Chicago public schools; they sold for just a couple of cents for years. Now, a local entrepreneur is recreating the classic treat with Crockett Cookies. WTTW News headed to Cheryl Crockett’s cookie headquarters in the Medical District to see how the cookies are made. “It was very familiar to me, and a recipe kind of came my way, and I thought I’d try it out,” Crockett said. “Unsuccessful the first time, but the second time they came out great, and I’ve always been an entrepreneur at heart, and I thought maybe I’ll sell these.”
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Outdoor Recommendations and Events
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A file photo of Crockett Cookies. (WTTW News)
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Every Friday, WTTW News science and nature reporter Patty Wetli tells you the best ways to explore the great outdoors.
Happy New Year, everyone. Just because it’s January doesn’t mean you can’t still get your nature fix. We’ve got indoor and outdoor options for you.
Normally closed to the public, the Urban Stream Research Center in Warrenville is throwing open its doors Saturday. Registration is required for this behind-the-scenes look at the center’s efforts to raise freshwater mussels and endangered Hine’s emerald dragonflies. Cost is $5 per person, and
spaces are filling up quickly.
Already dreaming about spring and making plans for your garden? The Conservation@Home program is holding a seed swap, Jan. 12, noon, at the River Trail Nature Center in Northbrook. Bring some and/or take some.
If you’ve heard about the Wild Mile but have never seen it, here’s your chance to check out this unique floating wetland on the Chicago River. Join a tour hosted by the site’s creator, Urban Rivers. Jan. 15; 5:30-6 p.m.; meet behind REI Lincoln Park, 905 W. Eastman St.
In case you missed it, we also covered some upcoming eagle watching opportunities.
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Back in the Day: January 10, 2010 - The 'No Pants Subway Ride'
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2010 was just 15 years ago but to this newsletter producer, it might as well have been 40 years in the past. “TiK ToK” by Ke$ha was the No. 1 song on the Billboard charts, young people wore TOMS® Shoes, Obama was still in his first term, and “flash mobs” were a popular if cloying way to go viral. It was a different time. Speaking of that, on this day in 2010, Chicagoans participated in the annual “No Pants Subway Ride.” The event started in New York City in 2002 and spread to cities around the world. Why did they do this? Well, according to organizers it’s fun — “a celebration of silliness.” To commit to the bit, the pantsless participants try to look as
normal as possible on the ride: They’ll read books, wear half of their work outfit, and stay serious. Why it’s in the middle of winter? Because it’s funny and adds to the shock value. Like I said, 2010 feels like an entirely different lifetime.
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What is your favorite museum in Chicago? Tell us why.
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Email DailyChicagoan@wttw.com with your responses and your answers might be published. Here's what you had to
say.
"The Museum of Science and Industry (before they sold out to Ken Griffin). We spent many an hour watching the GreatTrain Story exhibit when my son was small. He could tell us every engine and car on each train. It led to getting him wooden trains with “no faces”. Great memories." — @roguishjrt.bsky.social
"The Art Institute" — Natalie Rodriguez.
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5:30 PM | 7:00 PM
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Want more WTTW News content? Follow WTTW on Instagram to check in with us daily, go behind-the-scenes, and more.
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Newsletter Producer: Josh Terry
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