|
Good news: You’re recovered from New Year’s festivities and now it’s Friday. Dive into the weekend with these stories from WTTW News. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
(WTTW News) |
|
Chicagoans will get a small break on their grocery bills but be forced to pony up to cover a host of tax and fee hikes that a deeply divided Chicago City Council approved to fill a massive budget shortfall over the objections of Mayor Brandon Johnson.
The $16.6 billion spending plan, which took effect Thursday, closed a $1.19 billion gap without imposing a per-employee tax on large firms to fund violence prevention and youth employment programs.
The City Council voted 29-19 on Dec. 19 to raise the necessary revenue for the city’s 2026 spending plan, and 30-18 on Dec. 20 to allow the city to spend those funds.
But Johnson, who neither signed nor vetoed the spending plan, allowing it to take effect, has repeatedly warned that the budget is not balanced — with a $163 million deficit — and that the City Council may have to make emergency cuts to make up for revenue that does not materialize.
More context:
The spending plan legalizes video poker and slot machines in every Chicago bar or restaurant with a liquor license.
In all, the spending plan imposes $473 million in new taxes and relies on $35 million in revenue from advertising on city light poles and in other public spaces.
The largest tax hike included in the budget boosts the tax levied on software licenses, cloud services and other digital goods from 11% to 15% to generate $415.2 million.
The budget also imposes a 1.5% increase in the taxes on beer, wine and liquor sold at stores for consumption elsewhere.
The budget also hikes Chicagoans’ property taxes by $9.1 million to boost the budget for the Chicago Public Library, which had been set to see 69 vacant positions eliminated in next year’s budget.
Property taxes dedicated to funding the Chicago Public Schools will likely rise by approximately $55 for the average Chicago homeowner, according to a WTTW News analysis.
Although Johnson twice asked the City Council to authorize the city to keep collecting a 1% tax on groceries eliminated by state lawmakers, the tax will expire Wednesday, saving most families $115 per year.
In addition, Chicagoans will pay more for all Uber and Lyft rides to and from an expanded area downtown under the spending plan. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
Seniors attend a digital literacy class provided by the Coalition for a Better Chinese American Community. (Medill School of Journalism) |
|
In May, the Trump administration terminated the federal Digital Equity Capacity Grant, which had provided Illinois $23.7 million to give residents access to internet and digital education. The Digital Equity Coalition distributed the grant to dozens of community groups in underserved and low-income communities across Chicago. In Chinatown, the Coalition for a Better Chinese American Community, or CBCAC, would have received $50,000 from the cut federal grant.
Chinatown senior Ping Dong attends CBCACs’ weekly digital education classes. There, CBCAC staff and volunteers help seniors learn how to use technology — from identifying online scams to using Google Maps to navigate public transportation.
“The elderly have many issues they don’t understand, including benefits and welfare, so we often have to call to inquire about that, especially when there is this organization, we learn a lot of things,” Dong said.
Using what she learned in class, Dong downloaded an app where she can access online bus timetables.
Li Qiulin, 100, lives in a primarily English-speaking nursery home while possessing only basic English language skills. She said her biggest motivation to attend the classes was to learn how to take photographs. “I like traveling and taking pictures,” she said. “But when traveling, what’s the point of taking pictures if you don’t know how to use the phone?”
Wenyan Wang, the director of the Digital Equity and Literacy program at CBCAC, said the classes help seniors develop independence and autonomy and overcome significant language barriers.
Wang said seniors rely on CBCAC to help them with all of their technology issues, but the organization can no longer provide help immediately — leaving seniors to join a growing appointment waitlist. CBCAC Director Grace Chen said that even with the federal grant, funding ran short.
Henna Samurd Butt, a digital equity researcher at the University of Chicago, said making online access fair means confronting longstanding patterns of segregation and disparity in Chicago.
“We need to tackle it as a social issue,” Butt said.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
Christmas trees can be recycled at more than two dozen Chicago parks, Jan. 3-17. All decorations must be removed, and that includes string. (Patty Wetli / WTTW News) |
|
The holidays aren’t over til the trees are recycled. Chicago is once again hosting collection sites for real trees at 27 locations around the city (see map). Drop off trees in the designated corral at any participating site, Jan. 3-17. All decorations — including tinsel, lights and ornaments — must be removed first, as well as tree stands and any plastic bag used to transport the tree. The trees will be chipped to create mulch, which people can pick up for free at six of the sites beginning Jan. 5:
-
Forestry site, 900 E. 103rd St.
-
Lincoln Park, east side of Cannon Drive, north of Fullerton Avenue
-
Margate Park, 4921 N. Marine Drive
-
Mt. Greenwood Park, 3721 W. 111th St.
-
North Park Village Nature Center, 5801 N. Pulaski Road
-
Warren Park, 6601 N. Western Ave.
People can also do a little tree recycling at home. Before carting it off to one of the city's sites, snip off some branches. You can lay these on your garden beds for insulation.
The tree recycling program is run by the Department of Streets and Sanitation, in partnership with the Chicago Park District. More than 22,000 trees were recycled in 2025, officials said. Artificial trees that have reached the end of their life are generally not recyclable. Decorations and gift wrap — specifically ribbons and bows, as well as any foil or glitter paper — typically can't be recycled either. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
More From WTTW News:
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
Back in the Day: Jan. 2, 1963 - The Portage Park Plane Crash
|
|
While commercial air disasters like the American Airlines Flight 191 in 1979 that killed 279 people are more well known to most Chicagoans, there have been other crashes that were covered in far less detail. On Jan. 2, 1963, a small airplane crashed into a midcentury home in the Portage Park neighborhood of Chicago north of Irving Park Road at about 5:10 p.m. during a winter weather advisory. The house sat across from Luther North High School, which closed in 2017. Thomas Somlo, then 35, of Skokie, piloted a Cessna with multiple passengers and no de-icing equipment, according to court records. The flight went down about five miles southeast of O’Hare International Airport. The investigation determined a two-inch crust of ice developed on the plane during the flight, eventually causing it to lose altitude and crash. In the 1960s, many Chicago parks, including Portage Park, had ice skating rinks. Reports indicate Somlo attempted to land the airplane at the park, but changed his path when he saw children on the rink. The transcript shows the final garbled transmission by Somlo was, “Icing up terribly, can you help me sir?” The wing hit a telephone pole during descent, spinning the plane before it crashed into the brick ranch, leaving a hole in a bedroom wall big enough for a person to crawl through. Four people were killed, including the pilot’s wife and young daughter. The crash left a lasting memory in the neighborhood. Read reporter Jared Rutecki’s new piece on the tragic incident here on its 63rd anniversary. |
|
|
|
|
|
2025 Chicago Holiday Events Guide |
|
The holidays may be wrapping up, but we’ve still rounded up some of the season’s event highlights in Chicago and the suburbs.
Trees: You still have time to visit the official Chicago Christmas Tree (until Jan. 11) in Millennium Park. This year’s tree is a 66-foot Norway spruce from Glenview. Inside the Walnut Room at Macy’s on State Street you’ll find the Great Tree, a 45-foot tree that hangs from the ceiling (until Jan. 11). No worries if you can’t get a Walnut Room reservation; visitors are still able to snap a selfie with the tree.
Ice skating: There are a number of ice skating options in and around Chicago still happening, including McCormick Tribune Ice Rink (until early February), Maggie Daley Park (until March 8), Parkway Bank Park (until Jan. 25), Navy Pier (until Jan. 4), Cantigny (until Jan. 4), Winterland at Gallagher Way (Nov. 23-Feb. 15) and select Chicago Park District locations throughout the city.
Last call for light shows: Want to see the bright lights tonight? You’ll have to do it this weekend as Illumination: Tree Lights at Lisle’s Morton Arboretum ends Saturday, while Northbrook’s Willow Hill Lights, Chicago Botanic Garden’s Lightscape and the Lincoln Park Zoo’s ZooLights all end Sunday. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
What part of Chicago would you like to explore in the new year? |
|
|
|
Email DailyChicagoan@wttw.com with your responses and your answers might be published. Here's what some of the WTTW News staff had to say:
"Pilsen! I have failed to soak up all that I hear about what Pilsen has to offer. The ways I like to learn about a place are through eating and shopping. So, while I've dined there a few times, I need more. I'd like to check out a festival, certainly the National Museum of Mexican Art and some live music/performances to really feel like I've been there and I know the place. I'm open to recommendations! Don't forget to include the shopping."
—Brandis Friedman, Chief Correspondent and Anchor for “Chicago Tonight”
"Beyond a few oases—Community Tavern and Superdawg in Jefferson Park and The Original Nottoli & Son in Dunning—the far Northwest Side is a personal blind spot. What's going on in Oriole Park? Where's a good place to get a beer besides Newark Nook in Norwood Park? My 2026 resolution is to explore the top left corner of Chicago's map." — Josh Terry, newsletter producer
"Bronzeville!" — Katelyn Haas, social media editor |
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
5:30 PM | 7:00 PM |
|
|
|
|
Want more WTTW News content? Follow WTTW on Instagram to check in with us daily, go behind-the-scenes, and more. |
|
Newsletter Producer: Josh Terry |
|
|
|
|
