By Scott Faingold “It’s one thing to fix up an old building or two,” declares George Sinclair of Southtown. “Our mission has been more about bringing back the whole neighborhood.” Sinclair first came to Southtown in 1988 when he opened indoor skateboard park Skank Skates at 1101 South Grand Avenue East. A quarter century later, […]
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Small-scale solar: 4.5 billion years in the making
By David A. Kelm Solar energy has long been relegated to the hippies living in the geodesic home out in the woods or the weird “off the grid” guy at the end of the block whose 1988 pickup truck smells like a Chinese restaurant because it has been converted to run on used restaurant oil. […]
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Conlee: Getting things done
By Courtney Westlake Ginny Conlee gets things done. That has been my impression as I’ve witnessed Conlee’s work in her leadership roles for many years, though I’ve only just gotten to know her better personally in the last year. And after sitting down to lunch with her at Café Brio, I am more convinced of […]
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Residential Landlord-Tenant laws
By Sarah Jane Delano Pavlik Is your residential lease up and you want to move? Is your lease not up and you want to move? Or, are you a landlord and want to evict a troublesome tenant? What are your options? First, as with any question regarding a document, you need to read your lease. You […]
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Mac versus PC
By Brant Mackey About 30 years ago one of the most hotly debated questions was which was “better,” a Mac or a PC? Back in the 80s it was all the rage to argue the advantages and shortcomings of each. Mac users were clearly in the minority and fiercely loyal while PC users simply thought […]
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Coming in from the cold
By Joe Natale April – so said the poet – is the cruelest month. I don’t know if that’s a reference to paying income taxes or not; but to my way of thinking, January is certainly the coldest month. This is really old news, but the month of “January” is named in honor of the […]
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Natural gas powers commercial vehicles
By Douglas L. Whitley What has been lost during the on-going debate on hydraulic fracturing in Illinois and across the country is the “other side of the coin.” What do I mean by that? When it comes to increased natural gas production, the other side of the coin is the increased demand and opportunities for businesses […]
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It’s ok to be vulnerable
By Bridget Ingebrigtsen While perusing my company’s bookshelf for a good book to read, Patrick Lencioni’s “Getting Naked” grabbed my attention for obvious reasons. Published in 2010, I’ve heard about it but not as often as Lencioni’s other books like “Death by Meeting,” “Three Dysfunctions of a Team” and “The Advantage.” I figured that maybe […]
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Sarah Phalen listens and learns
By Courtney Westlake Constant listening and learning from the leadership are essential to building and bettering a company. So has been the mentality of Sarah Phalen, as she has concentrated on continual communication across the branches and departments of Illinois National Bank (INB) as president and CEO. Over lunch at Café Brio, Phalen told me […]
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New laws roll take effect 2014
By Thomas C. Pavlik, Jr. Sometimes, I think Texas got it right – their legislature only meets every other year. Ours, of course, meets much more often than that. What do we have to show for it? Check out these new laws that will take effect in 2014. Cell Phones and Driving. You’ve probably already heard about […]
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Traditional versus LED: Christmas lighting smackdown
By David A. Kelm Christmas decorations are going up in neighborhoods and at area businesses as nearly everyone is getting ready for shoppers, family and festivities. From simple white twinkly lit wreaths to massive computer-aided, musically-timed, “Christmas Vacation” light shows, traditional holiday lighting is getting phased out and replaced by energy efficient LED (light-emitting diode) […]
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Judicial activism influencing workers’ comp
By Douglas L. Whitley The Illinois Chamber of Commerce recently released its latest public policy research document entitled “The Impact of Judicial Activism in Illinois: Workers’ Compensation Rulings from the Employer’s Perspective.” The report recognizes that while progress has been made legislatively toward improving Illinois’ workers’ compensation system, there has been little attention directed towards the […]