LATEST NEWS
Leaving a legacy
Seven charitable organizations that help women in need have received a total of $1.21 million in grants from the newly…
The most well-staffed data center in Illinois?
If all ‘projections’ go according to plan, Sangamon County could have the most well-staffed hyperscale data center in the state.…
19th Street rail project options reviewed
Springfield residents reviewed displays explaining the options for the 19th Street rail corridor improvements during a Sept. 9 open house…
Collaborating with ICE
This story was reported and produced by Injustice Watch, a nonprofit newsroom in Chicago that investigates issues of equity and…
COVER STORY
A man on a mission in Athens
Who is Sameer Somal, and what has he been doing in Athens? The 43-year-old Pennsylvania resident, entrepreneur and Abraham Lincoln historian has been a frequent presence in the Menard County community in recent months. Somal is on the board of the town’s Abraham Lincoln Long Nine Museum, and he envisions transforming vacant and available property…
NEWSLETTER
News
Springfield airport receives $11M in federal funding
The Springfield Airport Authority received more than $11 million dollars in federal funding to improve one of two crosswind runways…
Ethics commission names acting inspector general
The Legislative Ethics Commission has appointed David Risley acting legislative inspector general effective the day following the Sept. 30 resignation…
Illinois inches closer on battery storage, solar goals
For Illinois to meet its ambitious decarbonization goals, the state’s energy grid will need more battery storage to make use…
“Turning grief into good”
University of Illinois Springfield students, faculty and staff assembled food packets Sept. 11 for Midwest Mission Distribution Center to commemorate…
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Previous Issues
opinion
Letters to the editor 9/17/26
We welcome letters. Please include your full name, address and telephone number. We edit all letters. Send them to editor@illinoistimes.com. WRONG PRIORITIES We need…
Prevention is a shared responsibility
As a practicing pediatrician and president of the Sangamon County Medical Society, I have serious concern about the Aug. 10 executive order targeting routine…
Doing the job
We live in dread of the robot brains, haunted as we are by our exchanges with chatbots that are smarter than any actual person…
McCuskey agrees to resign as LIG
You may know that embattled Legislative Inspector General Michael McCuskey has agreed to resign his post by the end of September. But this sorry…
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> More Rich Miller
Food and drink
Beat the frost
Pepper production is reaching its peak at Prairie Fruits Farm and Creamery in Champaign. Our walk-in cooler is filling up…
Slow cooker apple butter
Subtle hints of fall have begun to appear in spite of this month’s sweltering start. There’s a tinge of gold…
No waste, all taste
As the COVID pandemic began to wind down and restaurants reopened for indoor dining, I was anxious to end my…
> More Food and Drink
Music
Music to remember in September
We’re showing definite signs of the summer slowdown as fall comes up fast with regular outdoor gigs…
September music rises
With Labor Day behind us, that means only four days of toil for you workers of the…
Labor Day weekend music
It’s here and so are we as the Labor Day holiday comes on Monday preceded by a…
> More Music
ARTS AND CULTURE
Learn more about Pillsbury Mills
As Pillsbury Mills continues to be demolished, interest remains strong in the complex that employed thousands of Springfield residents. Here’s a chance for local residents…
Solution
We were loaned a lovely temporarily vacanthome for our stay out west, but we addlepatedadults had forgotten to retain the key, so we werelocked out.…
The much-maligned Mary Lincoln – revisited
Fans of Mary Todd Lincoln, rejoice! What? You are not a fan of Mary Lincoln? There are no Mary Lincoln fans? In fact, Mary Lincoln…
> More Arts and Culture
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Best Of Springfield 2025
See the results Every year, we ask our opinionated readers to tell us about their favorite people, places and things in the Springfield area. Over the decades we’ve been doing this, we’ve continued to tweak both the process and the results issue to try to keep things fresh and interesting. While anything food-related typically dominates…
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