Starship Billiards to close, Starship Gaming will remain open
A local landmark is changing its business model with the announcement that Starship Billiards Parlor will come to an end as of April 30. Longtime friends Dave Shanle and Chuck Harris opened Starship Billiards and Enterprise Grill, 2301 Stevenson Dr., in 1991. After more than three decades as a pool hall, that side of the…
Changes proposed to state’s biometric privacy law
It’s been more than a year since the Illinois Supreme Court “respectfully suggest(ed)” state lawmakers clarify a law that’s led to several multi-million-dollar settlements with tech companies over the collection of Illinoisans’ biometric data. On April 11, a bipartisan majority in the Illinois Senate did just that, approving the first major change to Illinois’ Biometric…
UIS Good as Gold Ceremony honors volunteers, businesses and organizations
The University of Illinois Springfield, Junior League of Springfield and the United Way of Central Illinois honored more than 40 Sangamon County volunteers, businesses and organizations during the 16th annual Good as Gold Ceremony on April 22 in the UIS Student Union. The Good as Gold Ceremony was started in 2008 to honor people, businesses…
MOD Pizza being evicted from Springfield location
MOD Pizza’s presence in Springfield was short-lived. On April 19, Sangamon County Judge Jennifer Ascher issued an order to vacate to the parent company, MOD Super Fast Pizza LLC, in response to an eviction complaint filed by the property owner, NIKJEF Springfield LLC. The landlord was awarded a $37,931 judgment. MOD Pizza opened at 2401…
Dave Bretz, CFO of Heartland Credit Union, announces retirement
Dave Bretz, chief financial officer of Heartland Credit Union, will retire from his position effective May 1, after more than 33 years of service to the organization. Bretz joined the HCU Board of Directors in February 1991 and served on the board until June 1998. Following his tenure on the board, Bretz was hired at…
Building permits – April 15 – April 21
Roger H. Jennings received a commercial remodel permit for 4501 Wabash Ave. Contractor is Smoky Jennings and the project is valued at $2,000. Washington Street Mission received a commercial remodel permit for 408 N. Fourth St. Contractor is O’Shea Builders and the project is valued at $328,643. RR Family LLC dba Raymond E. Roland received…
Brian Barstead to retire
Brian Barstead has spent most of his professional career helping clients learn to manage their money and plan for retirement, and now he’s preparing to take his own advice. “I’m retiring from Ameriprise and financial planning and have transferred ownership of my franchise to Jennifer Sylvia,” Barstead said. “My last official date is still tentative,…
Additional raids on Asian massage parlors
Greg Fraase apparently wasn’t involved in the ownership of two massage parlors raided on April 11. And unlike the February raids of Fraase’s properties, which were conducted by the FBI, the recent raids were handled by the Springfield Police Department. A news release from the police department said search warrants served at Golden Relax at…
Man arrested by FBI owns property with an Illinois state trooper
A 60-year-old man charged in federal court with operating six “houses of prostitution” in Springfield wants to transfer his ownership interest in an office building to an Illinois state trooper who jointly owns the building. Gregory L. Fraase of Springfield asked U.S. Magistrate Judge Karen McNaught for permission to transfer his interest in a vacant…
Lights out for Olde Towne Apartments
Dennis Hull is losing his home of 18 years through no fault of his own. “I always paid my rent on time – every month. I never missed a month and now this happens,” he said as he glanced down the entrance to Olde Towne apartments at the intersection of Bruns Lane and Jefferson Street.…
Springfield-area native wants to redesign global supply chain logistics
Matt Salefski, an entrepreneur who grew up in the Springfield area, recently launched Rectangle, a freight cargo logistics communications company. He reached out to Illini Angels as part of his quest for early-stage venture capital. “When you look around your home, or at store shelves, probably everything you see moved through a global supply chain…
Merch madness
Thanks to ingenuity and fortunate timing, Campus Ink has become a sensational example of small business expansion, with the assistance of Illini Angels investment capital. Founder Steven Farag isn’t a coach, player or official, but he and his team logged many miles on the road to the Final Four. When rules changed in 2021, allowing…
A self-serve farmers market
The tiny Scott County community of Riggston, 50 miles west of Springfield, with a mere 18 residents, is drawing national attention for a self-serve operation in a small building that is addressing the issue of rural American food deserts. “There is not another one like this in the United States,” said Jenny Sauer-Schmidgall, the owner…
Wm. Van Coffee Café to open April 19
The wait is almost over for fans of Wm. Van’s, with the relocated and revamped coffee shop scheduled to open at 7 a.m. on Friday, April 19, in Vinegar Hill Mall. The original Wm. Van’s Coffee House at the corner of Seventh and Jackson streets closed in April 2022 and 7th Street Cidery later opened…
Building permits – April 8 – April 14
Cherry Hills Baptist Church received commercial permit for 2125 Woodside Road. Contractor is O’Shea Builders and the project is valued at $4.1 million. City of Springfield received a commercial demolition permit for 1613 North Grand Ave. E. Contractor is GreenTrac, LLC and the project is valued at $9,375. City of Springfield received a commercial demolition…
Making downtown Springfield more marketable
Doubling the Bank of Springfield Center’s size would result in a similar increase in conventions coming to the capital city, and construction of a new 300-bed hotel adjacent to the center would maximize the expanded facility’s potential. Those were two of the major conclusions from a recently completed feasibility study of the potential impact of…
Grand opening for The Railyard
Following a brief soft opening in November, The Railyard reopened for the season April 12-14. The outdoor food venue at 2442 S. Sixth St. is based around shipping containers. It opened Nov. 3 and operated for several weeks before closing for the season. The brick-and-mortar building on site, Zuba’s Café and Creamery, has remained open…
Jason Knoedler appointed CEO of Bank of Springfield
Jason Knoedler has been appointed as the new chief executive officer for Bank of Springfield (BOS), effective immediately. Knoedler has been with BOS for 18 years. “Jason’s proven track record of leadership and his ability to inspire those around him make him the perfect choice to lead BOS into the future,” said Mike Pence, president…
County bars to close earlier
The Sangamon County Board opted not to allow for more public comment and instead voted 21-5 on April 8 to eliminate 3 a.m. liquor licenses for bars in unincorporated areas outside Springfield and other municipalities. The decision will affect four taverns with 3 a.m. liquor licenses, effective July 1, and will require those establishments, if…
Building permits – April 1 – April 7
TC Investment 4 LLC received a commercial remodel permit for 3760 S. Sixth Street Frontage Road. Contractor is CFI and the project is vlued at $1.8 million. Masteez LLC Series C received a commercial remodel permit for 151 S. Durkin Drive. Contractor is Repair Masters’ Construction and the project is valued at $100,000. Speeks Electric…
Aviatori Coffeehouse closes, business for sale
Aviatori Coffeehouse has closed, but fans of the aviation-themed coffee shop will have one last chance to get their favorite drinks and baked goods. Owner Juliana Turchetti Coppick said Aviatori Coffeehouse, 311 N. Logan Ave., will be open from 7 a.m.-2 p.m. April 8 and 9, the final two days of operation. She’s also still…
Your Corner Office and Synergetic Solutions relocating to west side
Your Corner Office and Synergetic Solutions, Inc. will be relocating from downtown to a new west-side location on the corner of Monroe Street and Chatham Road. Your Corner Office, which provides shared office space, and Synergetic Solutions, a business consulting firm, have been located at 427 E. Monroe for the past eight years in leased…
Bill ending state’s tipped wage advances but prospects uncertain amid pushback
An Illinois House committee advanced a measure that would end the state’s subminimum wage for tipped workers amid bipartisan opposition this week, but the bill’s sponsor said she’d seek further compromise before presenting it for a vote. Current Illinois law allows employers to pay their tipped workers 60% of the state’s minimum wage. That amounts…
Katie Andel joins Rose Aesthetics & Wellness Clinic
Katie Andel has joined Rose Aesthetics & Wellness Clinic as an additional provider. Cori Jahns launched the business, located at 2525 W. Iles Ave., three years ago. “We are so excited to add another nurse to our team,” said Jahns. “Katie brings a lot of experience to Rose. Her patients love her, and we cannot…
Talking trash
Dave Allen encounters familiar sights as he drives down alleys in Springfield’s Harvard Park neighborhood. Some alleys are relatively clean while others are filled with overflowing bins of garbage that haven’t been emptied for weeks, half-open bags of trash on the ground, trails of garbage blowing into yards and streets, discarded furniture and old mattresses.…
Phoenix Center opens a new resource center, Out East, on South Dirksen
Phoenix Center has opened a new resource center, testing facility and event space. The new location, Out East, is located at 704 South Dirksen Parkway. Some of the services available include harm reduction, HIV/HCV/STD testing, referrals, Narcan distribution, support groups and LGBTQ+ specific information such as health navigation. Services are available Monday-Thursday from 2-8 p.m.,…
Sangamon County Board to vote on ending 3 a.m. liquor licenses
No taverns in unincorporated parts of Sangamon County would be able to stay open and serve alcohol until 3 a.m. under a proposal scheduled for a Sangamon County Board vote on April 8. A proposed resolution to eliminate 3 a.m. liquor licenses from the Sangamon County code’s alcoholic beverages section was approved March 20 by…
It’s Scrapicated consolidating into one location
It’s Scrapicated, a galvanized steel home décor company, is consolidating into one location and expanding its hours of operation. Owner Tammy Tolley launched the business in August 2015, shortly after leaving her full-time employment with AT&T. “I started in my basement, and then moved to 1326 S. State St. soon after that,” Tolley said. For…
New hotel breaking ground in Legacy Pointe
A local hotel ownership group, Legacy Hospitality, plans to break ground on a new hotel next month at Legacy Pointe. The new hotel, Fairfield Inn & Suites by Marriott, will be located just south of and adjacent to the existing SpringHill Suites by Marriott, 3921 S. MacArthur Boulevard. The new hotel will open in the…
Building permits – March 25 – March 31
Board of Trustees of West Side Christian Church received a commercial accessory structure permit for 2850 Cider Mill Lane. Contractor is Custom Structures and the value of the project is $51,298. Kingsmill LLC received a commercial roofing permit for 7024-7040 Kingsmill Court. Contractor is Green Construction Services Inc. and the project is valued at $130,000.
Nonprofits collaborate to serve the community
“Nonprofit organizations are essential to our community, not only from the perspective of mission fulfillment, but also as a significant part of our local economy,” says John Stremsterfer, president and CEO of the Community Foundation for the Land of Lincoln. “The nonprofit sector is incredibly dynamic and fills vital roles for the betterment of educational…
Association management trends for 2024
Springfield is home to 125 trade and professional associations, and you may belong to one or more of them. Association management companies offer the full array of resources and expertise needed to run the daily operations of an association, even those without any paid staff. As in many industries, technology, artificial intelligence and the human…
Q&A with Dr. Traci Krause
Dr. Traci Krause came to Springfield in May 2023 to serve as the chancellor of St. John’s College of Nursing. She had spent a decade as dean of the School of Nursing, Health Sciences and Wellness at Minneapolis College and prior to that was the assistant director of nursing in the Minnesota Department of Veterans…
OSF HealthCare expands women’s health care services
Women in the Lincoln, Decatur-Forsyth and Champaign-Urbana areas will soon have increased access to obstetrics care through a new collaboration on select services between OSF HealthCare and Advanced Women’s Healthcare in Bloomington. Clinics with Advanced Women’s Healthcare providers and OSF Mission Partners began serving patients in Forsyth, 845 US Route 51, in February, and anticipate…
HSHS awarded Healing Illinois grant
Hospital Sisters Health System (HSHS) was recently awarded a Healing Illinois grant to foster discussion between central Illinois community members and health care professionals around equity in health care. Healing Illinois is an initiative led by the Illinois Department of Human Services and the Field Foundation of Illinois. Statewide, 184 recipients will receive $4.5 million…
Buying a business
If you want to work for yourself, you may well be thinking about purchasing an existing small business. It could be a printer, restaurant or distributor, for example. The current business owner may be looking to retire or is simply tired of the stress of owning and managing a business. Chances are the business doesn’t…
You are more than your job
When you meet someone new and they ask, “So, what do you do?” how do you typically respond? If you’re like many of us, you share your job title and likely a few details about how you spend 40 or more hours per week at work – that’s over 2,000 hours per year, by the…
SILVER SEVENS
I’d been hearing about Silver Sevens over the last few months and seeing some good commentary on social media about its food, so I figured it was time to give it a try. I’m glad I did. Silver Sevens is located on Lake Plaza Drive just off of Stevenson Drive. For those in need of…
Pioneers of the UIS Prairie
About 100 people who helped to transform University of Illinois Springfield into a four-year university held their first reunion Feb. 24, at a breakfast on the campus. That visible display of support for UIS was a testimony to the impact felt by those first freshmen classes starting in the fall 2001, with many of them…
Vying to fill vacancies
A teacher shortage and a waning interest in teaching as a profession are both being addressed locally by two major grants. The Teacher Vacancy Grant pilot program provides resources to attract, hire, support and retain teachers in the state’s most understaffed districts, and the Grow Your Own grant awarded to University of Illinois Springfield’s School…
Golfing for a cause
When coming up with ideas for fundraisers, nonprofit organizations often need to give a lot of “fore” thought about to how to attract donors and participants. The result may be a golf outing. Orthopedic Center of Illinois Foundation’s Chip in Fore Charity golf outing was “created as an opportunity to raise funds for the OCI’s…
