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Happy Easter Monday. Ease into another week with these stories from WTTW News.
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The Hideout is pictured in a file photo. (WTTW News)
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Music, art and movies are woven into Chicago’s history. For years, Chicagoans have been able to experience the arts in neighborhoods across the city.
But the city’s cultural landscape is constantly evolving. Many well-known institutions have undergone changes — from sales to renovations to closures — with a number of spaces trying to stay afloat.
DePaul University recently announced its art museum would close this year. A new operator announced plans in 2025 to reopen the 400 Theater in Rogers Park. And a new owner took over the storied music and event venue The Hideout just two weeks ago.
The leaders of these venues joined “Chicago Tonight” to discuss changes, challenges and their personal connections to their jobs. Excerpts from the conversation are below.
On culture:
Laura-Caroline de Lara, director of the DePaul Art Museum: “Our cultural organizations shape our city. It’s a reason for people to come visit, it’s a reason for students to come learn in our city. … Being able to provide a platform, particularly for those artists that aren’t generally shown in some of the larger museums, this is a really important space.”
Teri O’Brien, owner of The Hideout: “Small music venues are the heart and soul of the city. You get more culture, and you get more of the Chicago experience from small music venues. … The Hideout is like a community hall, it’s so much more than music. It’s comedy, it’s community, it’s conversation, and it’s a really cool legacy that the four owners started 30 years ago.”
Jordan Stancil, operator of the 400 Theater: “(Independent theaters offering) lower prices, I think is the obvious answer. Besides the community commitment and the experience you have when you’re there. It’s just not the cookie-cutter experience.”
On the future:
De Lara: “I’m pleased to say that the university will actually be keeping the collection. There are no plans to sell it.”
O’Brien: “I want to continue the legacy that (the original owners) built. It’s going to be much of the same, but I also have more of a national perspective. … I’ve seen a lot of small music venues, I’ve fallen in love with them, and I feel like I can bring musicians and comedians from all over the country.”
Stancil: “I think it’s a very viable theater, I think Rogers Park is going to support it for sure.”
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Sponsor Message
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Make your plans to celebrate in April with the Poetry Foundation, offering a full roster of FREE public programs, including:
- a poetry reading with Chicago’s own National Book Award winner Patricia Smith;
- a live performance by chamber music collective D+Composed;
- a library packed with more than 40,000 books of poetry for readers of all ages.
Visiting Hours: Wednesday, Friday, Saturday 11 AM–5 PM; Thursday 11 AM–6 PM
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(WTTW News)
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Chicago recorded an increase in both the number of homicides and people shot throughout March compared to the same month last year, as the level of gun violence seen in the city creeps ahead of last year’s historically low rates.
Forty-one people were killed in March, according to data from the Chicago Police Department, an uptick of 17% from the 35 homicides recorded during the same month in 2025. The number of shootings (124) and shooting victims (137) last month were also both up compared to March 2025.
Through the first three months of 2026, Chicago has recorded 97 homicides, which matches the total from the same time period in 2025 — a year that ended with the fewest homicides Chicago had seen in 60 years.
But the number of shootings and shooting victims are up 4% and 5%, respectively, compared to the first three months of 2025.
According to the CPD data, the total number of robberies recorded so far in 2026 is down 26% year to date, while the number of armed robberies is down 35%.
Burglaries are also down 20% this year, and there has been a 13% decline in the number of carjackings, Chicago police said.
Violent crime on the CTA’s train and bus lines is down 4% so far in 2026, according to the CPD, while property crime is down 22% year to date.
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(WTTW News)
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A Chicago police officer repeatedly accused of improperly stopping and searching Black men downtown should be suspended for a third time in less than four months, Chicago Police Supt. Larry Snelling and the agency tasked with investigating police misconduct and department leaders agreed, records show.
Officer Richard Rodriguez Jr., who was a member of the Near North (18th) Police District tactical team until he was stripped of his police powers in February, was suspended for 15 days for his conduct while stopping and searching a Black man near Chicago Avenue and Rush Street at 8 p.m. July 25, 2022, according to documents published March 26 by the Civilian Office of Police Accountability.
Some backstory:
In all, Rodriguez has been suspended for at least 83 days in connection with eight incidents of misconduct, records show.
Investigators did not begin probing the July 25, 2022, incident until January 2024, when a Chicago police sergeant reviewing body-worn camera footage of a separate traffic stop raised concerns about the conduct of Rodriguez and Officer Crystina Kittrell, another member of the 18th District Tactical Team.
The incident was part of what COPA identified as a troubling pattern of 50 undocumented and unprofessional stops of Black people in Lincoln Park, West Town, Old Town, River North, Streeterville, the Gold Coast and parts of Logan Square in 2024.
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More From WTTW News:
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Back in the Day: April 6, 1823 - Joseph Medill, Mayor of Chicago and Chicago Tribune Co-Owner, Born in Canada
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On this day, 203 years ago, the newspaper publisher, editor and Republican politician Joseph Medill was born in Saint John, Canada. At a young age, his family moved to Ohio, and in adulthood he became involved in the newspaper business. Alongside a partner, he started a Cleveland newspaper in 1853 called The Leader (which eventually became the Plain-Dealer) and in 1854, moved to Chicago and became the Chicago Tribune’s managing editor. His role eventually evolved to become co-owner, and he ushered in a period of success for the fledgling paper. He later moved into politics. A Republican with anti-slavery and pro-prohibition politics, he became Chicago’s 26th mayor in 1871,
immediately following the Great Chicago Fire. Since 1921, Northwestern’s Medill School of Journalism has been named in his honor.
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This Week’s Civic Events and Meetings
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Every Monday, WTTW News highlights the best ways to get involved with local government.
Chicago Park District Board of Commissioners
The Chicago Park District Board of Commissioners will hold its regular monthly meeting on Wednesday at 9 a.m. Last month, the meeting came to a standstill after protests and a heated debate over the future of homeless encampments in local parks. For more information on the meeting held at the Chicago Park District Administration Building (4830 S. Western Ave.), check the Park District website.
Chicago Transit Board
A regular meeting of the Chicago Transit Board will be held on Wednesday, April 8, 2026, at 10 a.m. It takes place in the second floor boardroom at the office of the Chicago Transit Authority (567 W. Lake St.). Public comment is available in person or virtually via the CTA's public comment process. For more information, which includes a link to a live stream, click here.
WTTW: "Henry David Thoreau: A Screening & Conversation"
On the evening of April 16, join WTTW for a screening of “Henry David Thoreau,” a new three-part documentary directed by Erik Ewers and Christopher Loren Ewers and executive produced by Ken Burns and Don Henley. Following the screening, WTTW News environmental reporter Patty Wetli will moderate a conversation with filmmaker Erik Ewers on Thoreau’s enduring relevance, from conservation and climate to urban development and public space. For more information on the event at the UIC Isadore & Sadie Dorin Forum and tickets, click here.
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What's your favorite book about Chicago?
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Email DailyChicagoan@wttw.com with your responses and your answers might be published.
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5:30 PM | 10:00 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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