COVER STORY
Historic properties for sale
Historic buildings in downtown Springfield have been put on the market. Several properties along South Second, as well as on Capitol Avenue and Seventh Street, are ready for new owners, while two others have recently changed hands. Court and Karen Conn…
LATEST NEWS
Sangamon County Board still considering data center proposal
One day after the Sangamon County Board voted March 23 to table a data center proposal, the city of Aurora,…
Illinois Times partners with podcast
Karen Conn was recently interviewed on Tony Stang’s podcast, The Mosiac Project. Stang is the pastor of Central Baptist Church,…
A call for police reforms
Residents packed the Springfield City Council chambers on March 31 to demand an independent investigation, and even reforms, of the…
A collaborative effort for downtown
City, county and state elected officials are offering bipartisan support for a bill in the Statehouse that would help facilitate…
Lawmakers seek measure to make small-scale plug-in solar panels available to renters
A bill to make solar power more accessible to renters and others who face barriers to the alternative energy source…
WICS slated to be sold again
Springfield’s main television station, NewsChannel 20 WICS, will soon be under new ownership for the second time in a little…
Trending
NEWSLETTER
News
Social service concerns mount as federal changes take effect
The federal budget’s sweeping changes to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, including additional work requirements and shifting age bracket qualifications,…
No Kings rally held in Springfield
Peaceful No Kings rallies took place March 28 in cities all over the U.S., including Springfield, to protest policies of…
DSI names executive director, presents annual awards
The Downtown Springfield, Inc. (DSI) board of directors has appointed Jay Shanle as the nonprofit’s new executive director. “I’m incredibly…
Ancient roots, modern future
The air inside the sanctuary was thick with incense. A priest in embroidered vestments chanted ancient prayers as parishioners stood…
opinion
Don’t let perception become the narrative
The My Heart’s Downtown campaign has been in the news recently, and while I am grateful to see attention focused on our city center,…
Armory 2.0
How nice to see construction cranes instead of wrecking balls around the Illinois State Armory. Having kvetched for years about its neglect by the…
Letters to the editor 4/2/26
We welcome letters. Please include your full name, address and telephone number. We edit all letters. Send them to editor@illinoistimes.com. SLOW DOWN The coverage…
Voter turnout analysis
The trend in special elections around the country for the past several months has shown spiking Democratic voter turnout and tanking Republican turnout. And…
> More Opinion
> More Rich Miller
LOCAL JOURNALISM MATTERS: SUPPORT THE ILLINOIS TIMES
Invest in Local Journalism: Help Illinois Times Sustain Community-Focused Reporting
We are dedicated to giving our readers a source of news and opinions on local politics, communities, culture and the arts. We have the Springfield area’s most comprehensive calendar of events – coverage of movies, dining, music, visual arts and the printed word. We offer stories you won’t find anywhere else on topics ranging from city and state government to marijuana to prison reform to education.
Food and drink
The French Connection
One of the most rewarding aspects of travel is discovering local culinary traditions – those storied techniques and heritage dishes…
Two cheers for chives
The past week was a tough one for plant lovers. The first half of the month was unseasonably warm, precipitating…
An ancient food preservation method for today
Confit and rillettes are two traditional methods of food preservation. Dating back to ancient civilizations, these methods originated as a…
> More Food and Drink
Music
Midweek music muster
Hello everyone to the month of April and all the music therein. We missed making an April…
Music through March
Here we go into the last weekend of March with weather that to say the least –…
March to the music
As we leave behind the recent blast of uninvited, somewhat unexpected and definitely unwanted wintry weather and…
> More Music
ARTS AND CULTURE
Super Mario Galaxy Movie disappoints, Fantasy Life is aimless and predictable
Galaxy simply goes through the motions I have yet to be blessed with grandchildren. Still, that doesn’t prevent me from casting my thoughts toward future…
“The finest thing ever done in Springfield”
The news last month about the sale of BUNN brings to mind stories about the Bunn family’s influence on Springfield’s development, dating back to since…
Gone but not Forgotten
I am alas, losing some memory, agingcan cause this sometimes! I am nowtrying to remember the people I can’t remember.Hmm…..who did you say you were…
> More Arts and Culture
Best of Springfield®
Related
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…
Keep reading
