Category Archives: Local News
Senate advances bills requiring more insurance for boaters, protections for mobile ID users
Article Summary The Senate Transportation Committee approved a bill that requires more boaters to have liability insurance. Bills dealing with pension buy-out programs, mobile IDs and workload for col...
Mar 11, 2026 Sen. Julie Morrison, D-Lake Forest, presents a bill in the Illinois Senate on May 21, 2025. (Capitol News Illinois photo by Jerry Nowicki)
Thousands more Illinoisans with disabilities now have access to savings accounts
Article Summary The age of eligibility for Achieving a Better Life Experience accounts was expanded in January 2026, meaning people who acquired their disabilities before they turned 46 can now open a...
Mar 11, 2026 Illinois Treasurer Mike Frerichs has announced expanded eligibility for ABLE accounts, which allow people with disabilities to save and invest money without risking their federal benefits. (Capitol News Illinois file photo)
EXCLUSIVE: Big Al's could reopen as strip parlor and concert venue
PEORIA - Big Al's Speakeasy would reopen as a strip joint and concert hall, according to a proposal under review by the City of Peoria. Ty Seibert, a veteran owner and operator of Peoria nightclubs, h...
Mar 11, 2026 Big Al's Speakeasy would reopen as a strip joint and concert hall, according to a proposal under review by the City of Peoria. (Phil Luciano/1470 & 100.3 WMBD)
Death of elderly Pekin woman under investigation
PEKIN, Ill. - An autopsy is being conducted on Wednesday after the death of an elderly woman in Pekin Tuesday night. Tazewell County Coroner Charles Hanley says the 82-year-old woman encountered fatal...
Mar 11, 2026 (Midwest Communications)
Illinois abortion clinics gain renewed support despite Republican, pro-life pushback
Article Summary Despite a Republican-led push for bills restricting abortion access, Illinois continues to serve as an abortion travel destination and celebrates 30 years of National Abortion Provider...
Mar 11, 2026 Planned Parenthood of Illinois sees more than 100,000 patients per year, and 30% of those are for abortions. (Medill Illinois News Bureau photo by Sam Freeman)
Victim in rural East Peoria fatal fire identified
TAZEWELL COUNTY, Ill. - The victim in a fatal fire Monday in rural East Peoria has been identified. Tazewell County Coroner Charles Hanley says 65-year-old Mark Evans was pronounced dead at the scene ...
Mar 11, 2026 Midwest Communications
Fire destroys home on Peoria's southside
PEORIA, Ill. - A home on Peoria's southside was a total loss after a fire early Wednesday morning. Battalion Chief Steve Rada said crews arrived just before 5 a.m., finding the home on W. Humboldt Ave...
Mar 11, 2026 A fire early Wednesday morning on W. Humboldt left a home on Peoria's southside a total loss. (Peoria Firefighters Local 50)
Illinois launches new program to help first-time homebuyers
CHICAGO - Governor J-B Pritzker and the Illinois Housing Development Authority have launched a new program called IHDAccess Home to make homeownership more accessible for first-time buyers across the ...
Mar 11, 2026 Feverpitch / Depositphotos.com
ISP investigating death in Creve Coeur
By Peter Curi and Howard Packowitz CREVE COEUR, Ill. (25 News) - Illinois State Police are investigating a death in Creve Coeur after officers were seen blocking off streets Tuesday morning. A heavy p...
Mar 11, 2026 (Illinois State Police)
Hundreds of households lose power in Tazewell County after 2nd round of storms
By Howard Packowitz TAZEWELL COUNTY, Ill. (25 News) - A second round of severe storms swept through Central Illinois early Wednesday, knocking out power to hundreds of Tazewell County households. The ...
Mar 11, 2026 (Ameren Illinois)
