Lakeisha Purchase took part in phone calls unrelated to her job at the Illinois Department of Transportation for almost half of the time she was supposed to be working during an 18-month period in 2021 and 2022, a state report says. Purchase, 35, the Springfield Ward 5 alderperson since September 2021, quit her job as […]
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High expectations
The small-scale, $8 million marijuana cultivation center expected to open in June on Springfield’s northeast side would be the largest site of its kind in the state, and perhaps the nation, to produce beverages infused with cannabis and hemp oil. So says Christopher Stone, a Springfield-based cannabis entrepreneur and managing partner of CoPack Industries, 3451 […]
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Frito-Lay distribution center slated to be built in Springfield
A distribution center employing 150 to 200 full-time workers at a warehouse the size of almost four football fields would be built along Interstate 55 near the Chatham exit, based on a proposal Springfield zoning officials will consider June 20. Local economic development officials told Illinois Times they don’t yet know who would operate the […]
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Cured Catering breaks ground on new facility
Cured Catering is expanding again, this time by building a new facility in Dawson. Owners Brian and Melissa Reilly, who started the business in 2017, held a May 22 groundbreaking at 10076 Old Route 36 in Dawson. Horve Builders is constructing a 10,000-square-foot building that will serve as the headquarters for Cured Catering’s operations. The […]
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Lawsuits for Lincoln Tower Apartments
Structural problems have festered for years at Springfield’s tallest apartment building, but court action to fix at least one of the issues at Lincoln Tower Apartments could be coming in the next few months. The situation – including an inadequate number of working elevators and the city-mandated closure of the deteriorating underground parking garage – […]
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Jay Roszhart to become CEO of Springfield Memorial Hospital
The Springfield Memorial Hospital board of directors has approved Jay Roszhart as the next president and CEO of the nonprofit hospital. Roszhart, who currently serves as president of the Memorial Health Ambulatory Group, will assume the role on July 1. “I’m honored by the opportunity to lead a hospital that has such an impact in […]
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Airport seeks rezoning to facilitate future redevelopment
Residents of the Val-E-Vue subdivision near Abraham Lincoln Capital Airport say they are relieved the airport altered a plan to change about 92 acres from residential to industrial zoning. The proposed rezoning for the land, which acts as a buffer between the subdivision to the south and the developed part of the airport, “could potentially […]
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Golden Hour Bake House to open café downtown
After getting her start at the Old Capitol Farmers Market, Alli Donaldson is transitioning Golden Hour Bake House to a brick-and-mortar location downtown. Donaldson began selling baked goods at the Farmers Market in May 2021, and last August she told SBJ that she was “eyeing some storefronts and looking at taking that next step.” While […]
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Charro Mexican Restaurant opened May 20
Charro Mexican Restaurant opened May 20 at 2500 Sunrise Dr., just off South Dirksen Parkway. The family-owned business started in the St. Louis area and also has locations in Taylorville and Decatur. Earlier this year, owner Ezequiel Camacho purchased the building that formerly operated as Springfield Char House and remodeled it for a fourth Charro’s […]
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Matthew Hutton joins Wellman Financial Services
Matthew Hutton has joined Wellman Financial Services as a financial adviser. The firm, located at 6300 S. Sixth Street Frontage Road East, includes Brandon Wellman and his staff, Heather Wellman and Yvonne Anderson. Hutton has been working in the personal financial industry in various capacities for more than 14 years and has been a certified […]
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Springfield-area Ace Hardware stores to change ownership
Ace Retail Holdings is acquiring Bishop Ace Hardware, a 13-store chain in central Illinois. Bishop Ace currently owns and operates two Ace Hardware stores in Springfield (214 N. Walnut St. and 1600 Wabash Ave.), one in Chatham (1200 North Main St.) and in in Jacksonville (900 W. Morton St.) in addition to nine other stores […]
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New ownership for Yellow Bird Coffee House
Yellow Bird Coffee House has new ownership, but patrons shouldn’t expect any major changes. “The most important thing right now is to uphold the Yellow Bird standards; we want all the fans to know that there’s nothing to be afraid of,” said Nicole Watts, who purchased the business along with Barb Binkley as of April […]