chicagotribune--2020-07-01--More companies are making masks to battle the ‘sweat factor’ this summer, but are they effective? He

More companies are making masks to battle the ‘sweat factor’ this summer, but are they effective? Here’s what you need to know.

That means you ’ re less likely to end up with a soggy layer of cotton over your mouth , @ @ @ @ @ mask probably isn ’ t doing as good a job of containing respiratory droplets that @ @ @ @ @ COVID-19 , said Janse van Rensburg , who wrote about the use of masks during @ @ @ @ @ of Sports Medicine ’ s blog in June .

Francisco Medina monitors a laser cutter making marching band uniform jackets May 20, 2021, at R&S Marching Arts in Chicago. The company pivoted early in the pandemic to 100% mask production and is best known as the maker of the Chicago flag mask worn by Mayor Lori Lightfoot. Now it's back to making marching band uniforms and flags. (Jose M. Osorio / Chicago Tribune)
As a pastry chef who spends her workdays in a surgical-style mask next to hot ovens, Leigh Omilinsky is no stranger to the face mask “sweat factor.”
So she has little patience for those griping about muggy mouths now that Chicago’s weather has turned steamy.
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“This has to be more comfortable than a ventilator,” said Omilinsky, 35, of Chicago’s Logan Square neighborhood.
When health officials began recommending people wear masks in public places to slow the spread of COVID-19, they turned to whatever was available, be it a hand-sewn fabric mask, cut up T-shirt or winter balaclava. Now they’re often required, in places where social distancing is a challenge. As Illinoisans cautiously return to more activities put on hold during the pandemic, some are looking for masks that are tolerable for more than a quick grocery run.
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Big brands like Under Armour, New Balance and Uniqlo have announced designs using breathable fabrics, and Chicago mask-makers are experimenting with new styles as well.
There’s no magic bullet. Things that make a mask effective at containing droplets that can spread the virus causing COVID-19, like multiple layers of tightly woven fabrics, also tend to make them steamy on hot, humid days. Still, a mask that’s comfortable enough to keep on your face is more effective than one that spends most of its time dangling under your chin, experts said.
“That’s the Catch-22,” said Alan Spaeth, co-founder of Chicago-based PrideMasks. “You make it lighter and more breathable, and it’s not doing its job, which is keeping your particulates close to your face.”
PrideMasks co-founders Alan Spaeth, left, and Steve Ryan, right, with Alan's spouse, Eddie Spaeth, are seen at the custom-designed face mask company's manufacturing space in the Belmont Gardens neighborhood of Chicago. (John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune)
PrideMasks sewing machine operator Araceli Gomez assembles custom-designed face masks July 1, 2020, at the company's manufacturing space in the Belmont Gardens neighborhood of Chicago. (John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune)
Kourtney Vahle, 45, of Logan Square, wears a thick mask with a filter at the grocery store but chose a lighter, more comfortable version on a recent walk with her daughter in Lincoln Park. She’s been trying out options from different brands, trying to find ones that work for her kids before they go back to school classrooms.
Federal and local health officials recommend wearing masks in public places, especially when social distancing can be difficult. Many retailers require them, and some apparel chains have even started selling them.
The Illinois Department of Public Health advises using a cloth face covering but doesn’t specify the type of material. It recommends the mask be breathable while covering the wearer’s nose and mouth, fit snugly and comfortably against the side of the wearer’s face and have multiple layers of fabric.
PrideMasks opted for a two-layer design with an inner layer of cotton and an outer layer of athletic microfiber fabric to help control moisture, Spaeth said. PrideMasks also started selling neck gaiters, and both styles offer sun protection.
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Mr. Pink’s, a mask-making offshoot of Chicago-based Bangtel, which rents properties in Chicago and New York for vacations and bachelorette parties, originally designed a mask with three layers of fabric and a pocket for a filter. It’s still the most popular, but Mr. Pink’s is constantly experimenting, said owner and founder Liz Klafeta.
There’s also a two-layer option for people worried about overheating. Another has a stiff outer layer that stands away from the wearer’s face, keeping fabric off their mouth. Customers can choose between masks that loop around their ears or tie behind the head. Some styles also offer a choice between an all-cotton mask or one with an inner flannel layer that’s softer against the skin.
Soon Mr. Pink’s will carry a see-through mask with a clear vinyl window along with a line of bachelorette and wedding-themed masks.
“We’ll do it for as long as people need it or are requesting them,” Klafeta said. “It feels good to be doing something a little different that can bring a smile to people’s faces.”
Companies also are adding sizes. Chicago-based menswear maker The Tie Bar, which makes a two-layer, all-cotton mask with room for a filter, added kids’ sizes and an extra-large size after hearing from men who grew “big COVID beards,” said CEO Allyson Lewis.
Masks for exercise
Finding masks breathable enough to wear while working out can be more of a challenge. Chicago requires people wear masks while exercising at indoor gyms. Even for those running outdoors, keeping faces covered on sidewalks and trails where people could encounter others is smart as a safety measure and show of respect, said Chicago Area Runners Association Executive Director Greg Hipp.
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Many runners use neck gaiters that can be worn around the neck for easier breathing when a runner is alone, or pulled up over the mouth and nose when others are near, Hipp said.
Under Armour said its “Sportsmask,” designed for athletes, sold out within an hour when it was introduced in June. The mask has structured fabric designed to sit off the wearer’s mouth and nose for better airflow. There are three layers; the one that sits closest to the skin has an anti-microbial treatment and is designed to feel cool.
The company worked with health experts when designing a mask for workers in hospitals near its Maryland headquarters, and used what it learned to make the Sportsmask, according to Kyle Blakely, Under Armour’s vice president of materials innovation.
Another athletic brand, New Balance, has said it plans to sell an “athletics-ready face mask” in the coming weeks.
Some masks designed for exercise are already on the market. At specialty running store Dick Pond Athletics, a “performance mask” made by Zensah sold out as soon as shipments arrived, said Caroline Clayton, assistant manager of the St. Charles store.
After the pandemic hit, Florida-based Zensah used the same fabric that goes into its other athletic apparel to make face masks. It’s designed to be antibacterial and wick moisture away from the skin, said CEO Ze’ev Feig.
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The company is working on a second version with loops worn behind the ears instead of around the back of the head. The behind-the-head design was meant to keep the mask from tugging on the wearer’s ears, but women who wear their hair down tend to prefer ear loops, Feig said. Zensah is also working on a lighter, cooler-feeling version of its neck gaiter, originally designed to be worn for warmth in winter.
Higher-tech masks can come with a higher price tag. Under Armour’s Sportsmask is $30 — the same price The Tie Bar charges for a pack of five. Masks from Zensah and PrideMasks cost $18 and $15, respectively. Gap sells three-packs for $15.
Custom-designed face masks are stacked on a table at PrideMasks, July 1, 2020, in Chicago. (John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune)
While any mask is better than no mask, some do the job better than others.
Multiple layers more effective
Two separate studies on the effectiveness of homemade masks at the University of Illinois and Wake Forest Baptist Health found multiple layers are better than one, as are heavier fabrics.
At the University of Illinois, researchers filled an inhaler with distilled water mixed with tiny particles and compared how effectively common household fabrics blocked droplets puffed by the inhaler.
A mask made from a single layer of cotton T-shirt material caught about 40% of the droplets, but two layers blocked about 98%. That’s comparable to a surgical mask but significantly more breathable, said Taher Saif, professor of mechanical science and engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Other fabrics tested, including silk, polyester and a dish towel, were “all pretty good,” meaning consumers shouldn’t feel they need to buy an expensive version, he said.
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Dr. Scott Segal, who led the mask research at Wake Forest Baptist, recommended two layers of high-quality, heavyweight cotton. Even a lighter cotton, paired with an inner flannel layer, was very effective.
Masks with a single layer of fabric or two layers of lower-quality, lightweight cotton performed worse.
If someone isn’t sure whether a fabric will make a good filter, hold it up to the light, said Segal, Wake Forest Baptist’s chair of anesthesiology. If the light highlights individual fibers, it’s likely a looser weave and may not be as effective.
A mask also needs to be breathable, and not just because it’s more comfortable. If the fabric is too good at blocking air, respiratory droplets might escape out the sides of the mask when the wearer exhales, according to the researchers. Ensuring a good fit around the sides of the face helps too, Segal said.
Still, experts said it’s OK to aim for a balance between good protection and something that’s tolerable to wear as designed.
“If you’re wearing a mask with added layers of filtration but keep touching it or dropping it to your chin for a breath of fresh air, you’re better off opting for a more breathable choice,” Christa Janse van Rensburg, professor of sports medicine at the University of Pretoria in South Africa, said in an email.
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Several brands say they use moisture-wicking materials, which should be more comfortable in hot weather since they are designed to move liquid, like sweat, away from your skin to the side of the fabric exposed to the air, where it can dry.
That means you’re less likely to end up with a soggy layer of cotton over your mouth, though it also means the mask probably isn’t doing as good a job of containing respiratory droplets that could transmit the virus causing COVID-19, said Janse van Rensburg, who wrote about the use of masks during exercise for the British Journal of Sports Medicine’s blog in June.
If all else fails, pack spares. A wet, sweaty mask will be less comfortable and could irritate the skin, Janse van Rensburg said.
Segal had another option: Focus on social distancing.
“Maybe don’t go out unless you have to, and then you don’t need a mask.”
lzumbach@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-07-01--COVID-19 cases in Illinois by ZIP code: Search for your neighborhood

Search below by street address , ZIP code or city , then click on the map to see the number @ @ @ @ @ state is not providing data for any ZIP code with five cases or fewer .

Note: With Chicago and Illinois moving into phase 5, the Tribune is no longer updating this data. If the state moves back into bridge phase, the Tribune we reassess. Daily metrics on COVID-19, like cases, deaths and hospitalizations, can be found here. And Daily metrics on the vaccination effort can be found here. More on where the coronavirus stands nationally and around the world can be found here.
Illinois releases the number of positive COVID-19 cases by ZIP code daily. The map below shows the cumulative cases for each area as well as other analysis of the data.
• Check out the Tribune’s coronavirus coverage.
• Tracking daily Illinois coronavirus deaths, cases and tests.
Search below by street address, ZIP code or city, then click on the map to see the number of confirmed and probable cases. The state is not providing data for any ZIP code with five cases or fewer.
Data as of June 10.
The map search tool above works best in Chrome or Firefox and may not perform consistently in Internet Explorer.
Note: Because of a coding error this map was displaying the incorrect rates for new cases in the last 7 days per 100,000 people — the issue should now be resolved.. The Tribune adjusted the data shown on the map below to focus on new cases, those the state tracked in the last 7 seven days. The totals for the entire pandemic are still available, but in the pop-up after tapping or clicking on a ZIP.


chicagotribune--2020-07-01--Illinois coronavirus graphs: 6,951 deaths, 144,013 confirmed cases, 1.64 million tests, 4.32% positi

Illinois coronavirus graphs: 6,951 deaths, 144,013 confirmed cases, 1.64 million tests, 4.32% positivity rate for northeast region

• When can Illinois reopen ?
Check our daily charts on where each region stands on positivity rate and other @ @ @ @ @

Johns Hopkins University & Medicine tracked coronavirus cases, deaths and test totals from Jan. 22, 2020 through March 10, 2023, but is no longer providing this data. These charts will no longer be updated.
Check the Illinois Department of Public Health for the most up-to-date data for Illinois.
[ Remembering the lives of those in Illinois who died from coronavirus ]
Can’t see these charts? Go here.


chicagotribune--2020-07-01--Parents of slain 20-month-old appear at vigil as yet another child is shot in Chicago. ‘My baby is g

Parents of slain 20-month-old appear at vigil as yet another child is shot in Chicago. ‘My baby is gone, my baby is dead to violence.'

“ My baby is gone , my baby is dead to violence , ” he said .
“ I used @ @ @ @ @ , and he changed me tremendously .
Only thing I do is take care of @ @ @ @ @ , I don ’ t live no life of crime .
”

Thomas Gaston, left, and Yasmine Miller, the parents of slain child Sincere Gaston, speak at a vigil at 61st and Halsted streets in Chicago on July 1, 2020. (Terrence Antonio James / Chicago Tribune)
Held up by his wife and fighting back tears, Thomas Gaston stood before dozens of people gathered for a vigil where his 20-month-old son Sincere had been shot dead days ago in Englewood.
“My baby is gone, my baby is dead to violence,” he said. “I used to be a bad person, and he changed me tremendously. Only thing I do is take care of my kids and my wife, I don’t live no life of crime.”
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Chicago police have said they believe a gunman who fired into a car, killing Sincere and grazing his mother last Saturday afternoon in Englewood, was actually targeting Gaston. But he was not in the car.
“I’m not the suspect. I just want my family to continue loving me,” Gaston cried into the microphone he held at 61st and Halsted streets. “This is me mourning, this is my baby.”
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People gather at 61st and Halsted streets in Chicago on July 1, 2020, to memorialize slain child Sincere Gaston. (Terrence Antonio James / Chicago Tribune)
People release balloons at 61st and Halsted streets in Chicago on July 1, 2020, to memorialize slain child Sincere Gaston. (Terrence Antonio James / Chicago Tribune)
A speaker at the rally said Gaston should not be demonized over the murder of his son. “We need to start placing the blame on those who committed the action,” said Steven Gates, a supervisor with Chicago Beyond, which works in disadvantaged neighborhoods.
The boy’s mother, Yasmine Miller, wondered why no one had been arrested yet.
“He lit up the room. Everybody loved him,” she told the crowd. “I can do nothing without that little boy. I feel lifeless, I am lifeless. That was my world.”
A crowd of TV cameras and reporters mobbed the couple as they left.
The vigil drew more than 50 people to the street corner to call for an end to violence against children. They held red and blue balloons, and raised pictures of the baby boy, smiling and holding a bottle. Many pulled down their face masks to wipe away tears.
“Enough is enough,” they chanted.
On Tuesday night, a 3-year-old girl was shot as she played with other children outside her West Englewood home. On the same weekend that Sincere was killed, a 10-year-old girl was fatally shot and an 8-year-old suffered a graze wound to the head. A week earlier, five children were shot and killed in Chicago, including a 3-year-old boy.
“We should be outraged at this. This is not acceptable at all,” Gates said after the vigil. “I know these guys aren’t trying to kill kids, but the recklessness to which they’re acting is so irresponsible, there’s no regard for life.”
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Arne Duncan, the former U.S. secretary of education who now heads a nonprofit geared toward at-risk youth, said this has been the hardest six weeks of his life. He attributes the spike in violence to financial desperation brought on by the coronavirus pandemic.
Duncan said Sincere’s father has been an active member with his organization — Creating Real Economic Destiny — over the last two years. He would often bring Sincere to meetings and events.
“He’s a guy who’s been through a lot,” Duncan said. “He’s the reason we do this work. These are guys who are choosing to do something different and be better.”


chicagotribune--2020-07-01--With Fourth of July approaching in violent summer, Mayor Lori Lightfoot defends police plan to get y

With Fourth of July approaching in violent summer, Mayor Lori Lightfoot defends police plan to get young people off drug corners

“ This is shades of , like Larry Hoover from the 1990s , ” Lightfoot said at an unrelated news @ @ @ @ @ drug enterprises are doing is this : These spots , they can earn $ 30 @ @ @ @ @ .
They ’ re extraordinarily lucrative .
Which is why they ’ re literally willing @ @ @ @ @ to keep those spots .
But cynically — and this is what the superintendent was @ @ @ @ @ ’ s frustrated — they put young people out on those corners .
”

Mayor Lightfoot on Wednesday defended police Superintendent David Brown’s plan to clear people off of “drug corners” by making arrests in an effort to tamp down gun violence over the Fourth of July weekend.
Though critics have raised questions about the legality of Brown’s proposal and cautioned that sweeping arrests will further harm the relationship between police and Black residents, the mayor said such condemnation is misplaced as officers try to save young lives.
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“If any civil liberty group has a problem with people who are killing, killing our people over drug spots, let’s have a conversation, because you need to have your attitude readjusted,” Lightfoot said. “What I’m talking about is, we’ve got criminal enterprises that are using vulnerable young people. We all should be appalled by that.”
Lightfoot likened the structure of drug markets on the West and South sides to the almost corporate hierarchy of the Gangster Disciples under notorious and long incarcerated Chicago gang leader Larry Hoover, where leaders reap huge profits while letting teens and young men take most of the risks of getting shot on corners.
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Brown wants to protect those young people, she said.
“This is shades of, like Larry Hoover from the 1990s,” Lightfoot said at an unrelated news conference. “What these drug enterprises are doing is this: These spots, they can earn $30 to $50,000 a day. They’re extraordinarily lucrative. Which is why they’re literally willing to fight to the death to keep those spots. But cynically — and this is what the superintendent was saying, and why he’s frustrated — they put young people out on those corners.”
Lightfoot also said the young men on the corners need more opportunities to work and learn so that they don’t see acting as low-level drug dealers as their only option, a common refrain from the mayor as she seeks to deliver on a campaign promise to deliver more city services to impoverished neighborhoods.
Brown this week called drug dealing and possessing guns “precursors to violence,” and said too many people arrested on drug and gun charges are being released on low bonds or on electronic monitoring.
“Our endgame is arrest. … Every day we’re going to be clearing corners, every day we’re going to be clearing these drug corners to protect these young people from violence,” he said.
jebyrne@chicagotribune.com
Twitter @_johnbyrne


chicagotribune--2020-07-01--Wells St Market reopening, becoming the first Chicago food hall to remerge during the coronavirus pa

Wells St Market reopening, becoming the first Chicago food hall to remerge during the coronavirus pandemic

“ It ’ ll be a slow process but we want to get back to operations when it ’ s @ @ @ @ @ .
“ Speaking with the ( Wells St Market ) tenants , this is incredibly @ @ @ @ @ They want to get their staff back to work , they want to take care @ @ @ @ @ want to do this safely .
”

Wells St. Market in the Loop closed temporarily in March, with the rest of the city's restaurants and dining halls, but will reopen Monday. (Agency H5)
Although food hall operators and chefs expressed much trepidation only a few months ago, Wells St. Market announced Wednesday that it will reopen Monday, making it the first Chicago food hall to do so during the pandemic. But not all of its vendors are included in the first phase.
Firecakes Donuts, Fry the Coop, Tabo Sushi and Grand Central Bar will offer online ordering and pickup, as well as limited seating for now. Piggie Smalls, Dos Toros Taqueria, Tempesta and Fare may come later, but currently the food hall is focused on the operations that felt comfortable enough to return.
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General Manager John Williamson noted that fewer tenants operating means fewer people in the space, which is outfitted with large windows that open to Wells Street.
In addition to Firecakes, Fry the Coop and Tabo Sushi’s normal offerings, Grand Central Bar is working on to-go cocktails that are in compliance with the recently enacted city law.
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Health and safety regulations apply for both employees and visitors, who are required to wear masks and adhere to distancing guidelines with the help of floor decals. High-touch, nonfood surfaces will receive increased sanitation, and cashier stations have shields to separate guests and employees. The food hall will also be counting the number of people entering the space, and patrons may have to line up outside during peak hours.
Williamson said his staff will be strongly enforcing these guidelines and hopes that guests will pay attention to the displayed instructions when dining in or grabbing to go. He also hopes people will use the nearby Riverwalk to enjoy their food.
“I feel positive about this,” Williamson said. “This is a great food city, and we want people to be able to enjoy the restaurants that we have, and come in and experience great cuisine and feel safe doing it.”
He hopes to have all the vendors back in a few months but is leaving it up to them to decide on their own. In the meantime, Williamson is in contact with Loop businesses to gather information about when tenants are returning to work downtown.
“It’ll be a slow process, but we want to get back to operations when it’s safe,” Williamson said. “Speaking with the (Wells St. Market) tenants, this is incredibly important to them too. They want to get their staff back to work, they want to take care of our guests and they want to do this safely.”
Online ordering is available through Ritual, Toast, Tock to Go and more. Customers can pick up online orders at the exterior window on Wells Street or enter the food hall through Wacker Drive.
gwong@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-07-01--Extra-alarm fire hits 4 homes, coach house on Northwest Side; 1 firefighter injured

No one at the homes was reported injured , but about 120 personnel and five ambulances responded to the scene @ @ @ @ @ fire was not immediately known , Merritt said .

Firefighters respond to a fire that damaged multiple houses in the 2400 block of North Mason Avenue, July 1, 2020. (Brian Cassella / Chicago Tribune)
An extra-alarm fire damaged at least five residential buildings in the Belmont Central neighborhood Wednesday afternoon and left one firefighter with injuries, according to the Chicago Fire Department.
The fire began a little before 2:20 p.m. in the 2400 block of North Mason Avenue, according to Fire Department spokesman Larry Merritt. The fire, which damaged four homes and a coach house, was under control by about 3:20 p.m., fire officials tweeted.
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Photos from the scene showed several frame residential buildings with vinyl siding badly damaged.
Downed power lines in an alley after a fire that damaged multiple houses in the 2400 block of North Mason Avenue, July 1, 2020. (Brian Cassella / Chicago Tribune)
No one at the homes was reported injured, but about 120 personnel and five ambulances responded to the scene. The cause of the fire was not immediately known, Merritt said.
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One firefighter was being transported to the hospital because of injuries from the fire. They were not believed to be life-threatening, according to the Fire Department.
Check back for updates.


chicagotribune--2020-07-01--Man charged with attempted murder for allegedly using military-style weapon to shoot another man wal

Man charged with attempted murder for allegedly using military-style weapon to shoot another man walking dog in Elmhurst: prosecutors

About 9 p.m. May 14 , Alec Gonzales , 22 , of Elmhurst , “ with the intent to kill @ @ @ @ @ AR-15 eight times while driving in an SUV by Linden Avenue and Van Buren Street @ @ @ @ @ .
Bullets struck the 54-year-old victim in the side and grazed his scalp , and @ @ @ @ @ Hospital and was recovering , prosecutors said .

A man has been charged with attempted murder for allegedly shooting a military-style rifle and wounding a man who was walking his dog in Elmhurst, DuPage County prosecutors announced Wednesday.
About 9 p.m. May 14, Alec Gonzales, 22, of Elmhurst, “with the intent to kill,” fired a Bushmaster AR-15 eight times while driving in an SUV by Linden Avenue and Van Buren Street, police and prosecutors said. Bullets struck the 54-year-old victim in the side and grazed his scalp, and he was taken to Elmhurst Hospital and was recovering, prosecutors said.
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Police recovered a rifle in the area, and Gonzales was charged with attempted first-degree murder and aggravated battery.
Gonzales was arrested June 25 in Mesa, Arizona, where he also has a home. He was being held in Maricopa County jail on a $5 million arrest warrant. Extradition proceedings were pending and prosecutors said he is expected back in DuPage County in the near future.
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State’s Attorney Robert Berlin praised police from Elmhurst and the DuPage countywide task force, MERIT, for working with the FBI and Maricopa County law enforcement to track down Gonzales.
rmccoppin@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-07-01--Dancer troupe supports fellow dancer shot at block party

Treja Kelley had been hesitant to come forward after witnessing the murder of her 17-year-old cousin .
But she found @ @ @ @ @ stand last year and helped secure a guilty verdict .
Her testimony , though , @ @ @ @ @ head , prosecutors said .
Just a few months after testifying , Kelley was shot @ @ @ @ @ not far from where her cousin had been slain .
She was 18 and pregnant @

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chicagotribune--2020-07-01--Man arrested in Arizona charged with attempted murder of Elmhurst man

Police allege that at about 8:50 p.m. May 14 , Gonzales shot a Bushmaster AR-15 rifle “ with the intent @ @ @ @ @ a 54-year-old Elmhurst man in the side and grazed his scalp .
Police found the @ @ @ @ @ said had been walking his dog , on the 800 block of South Linden Avenue @

A 22-year-old Elmhurst man, accused of firing a semi-automatic rifle eight times and striking another resident in May, has been charged with attempted first degree murder.
Alec Gonzales, 22, who lives in the 600 block of South Berkley Avenue, Elmhurst, and in Mesa, Arizona, also was charged with aggravated battery for discharging a firearm.
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Police allege that at about 8:50 p.m. May 14, Gonzales shot a Bushmaster AR-15 rifle “with the intent to kill” and hit a 54-year-old Elmhurst man in the side and grazed his scalp. Police found the wounded man, who witnesses said had been walking his dog, on the 800 block of South Linden Avenue.
Witnesses told police someone in a light-colored sports utility vehicle fired the shots.
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Officers recovered a rifle believed to be used in the shooting on the 700 block of Colfax Avenue.
A judge issued a warrant for Gonzales June 25 and he was taken into custody the same day in Mesa, the state’s attorney’s office reported. He is being held in the Maricopa County, Arizona Jail, while DuPage officials arrange to extradite him.
The Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office SWAT team and the FBI Violent Crimes Fugitive Task Force helped in the investigation, the state’s attorney said.


chicagotribune--2020-07-01--United adding 25,000 flights in August despite spikes in COVID-19 cases

United Airlines plans to fly about three times more routes in August than it did last month as passengers slowly @ @ @ @ @ even as the number of new COVID-19 cases across the U.S. rises .

A United Airlines plane taxis by parked United jets at O'Hare International Airport on April 14, 2020 during the coronavirus pandemic. (Brian Cassella / Chicago Tribune)
United Airlines plans to fly about three times more routes in August than it did last month as passengers slowly return to the skies, even as the number of new COVID-19 cases across the U.S. rises.
Chicago-based United will have about 60% fewer flights on its schedule in August compared with the same month last year. But travelers are slowly coming back, particularly when it comes to domestic flights, said Ankit Gupta, United’s vice president of domestic network planning.
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The number of people passing through U.S. airport security checkpoints each day topped 600,000 on certain days in late June, down from 2.7 million people a year ago. Still, airports are busier than they’ve been since late March.
United is scheduling about 600 more domestic flights a day in August than July, including more flights between Hawaii and hubs including Chicago. The airline said it has seen interest in beach travel, suggesting passengers may be seeking outdoor vacation spots where social distancing could be easier.
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Some states have slowed reopening plans after seeing an increase in cases of COVID-19. Nationwide, the number of new confirmed cases has topped 40,000 per day after falling below 25,000 earlier this summer, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.
When COVID-19 cases rise in different areas of the country, United sees an “ebb and flow” in demand for those destinations, Gupta said.
“We will be flexible in moving capacity where we see demand shift,” he said.
Companies that banned business travel in the early days of the pandemic are also starting to relax their travel policies, though large corporations have been slower to resume flying than small and medium-sized businesses, Gupta said.
International flying has been slower to come back, in part because many countries are still restricting travel. European nations have started to open their borders to nonessential travelers from some countries, but not the U.S.
In August, United plans to fly 25% of the international flights it operated the same month last year, up from 16% scheduled for July. That includes new flights between Chicago and Brussels, Belgium; Frankfurt, Germany; Cancun and Mexico City in Mexico; and Quebec City, Canada.
Nearly half of United’s international passengers in May were under 35, and more of them were traveling one-way than usual, suggesting they were returning home after studying or working abroad, said Patrick Quayle, United’s vice president of International Network and Alliances.
United also extended a waiver on change fees for new flights booked through July 31.
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lzumbach@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-07-01--After delays from pandemic, census outreach door-knockers slated to start visiting households in Aug

After delays from pandemic, census outreach door-knockers slated to start visiting households in August

“ Our families , our community is not thinking about a questionnaire .
They ’ re thinking about essential things @ @ @ @ @ and health care at this moment , ” Anaya said .
“ We ’ re @ @ @ @ @ of pandemic the importance of health care , the importance of our education system , @ @ @ @ @ resources for our community .
And that ’ s exactly why we want to make @ @ @ @ @ .
”

Census workers will start visiting households that have not responded to the form in August, a return of the traditional face-to-face campaigning that has been delayed for months because of the coronavirus pandemic.
The locally hired census workers will start door-knocking after the Department of Commerce Census Bureau mails out reminder cards between July 23 and July 28.
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The exact size of the workforce is to be determined based on how many households have not filled out the census. Those households will primarily be the targets for the in-person visits that will begin Aug. 11 and extend through the Oct. 31 census deadline.
Door-knockers will don personal protective equipment and be trained in social distancing measures to ensure a safe atmosphere for these visits, census bureau Regional Director Marilyn Sanders said at a Wednesday news conference with Cook County officials.
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“What we call hard-to-count populations are those that may be hard to persuade, may be fearful of the data, may not trust the government,” Sanders said. “That is why trusted voices are needed to help us message the importance for the next 10 years of this data.”
Normally, a team of census workers would have visited non-responding households much sooner to remind them to fill out the census, which is taken every 10 years and determines allocation of congressional seats and federal funding.
But since the coronavirus outbreak, census outreach from the city to the federal level has largely been redirected to digital messaging and other efforts that don’t require human contact.
That includes buying ZIP code-targeted ads, distributing lawn signs, placing flyers in food pantries and PPE distribution sites, mobilizing community leaders to put out census reminders, making robocalls, hanging door posters during canvassing and even TikTok challenges.
“Traditional outreach methods just weren’t cutting it right now,” said Cristina Vera of the William Everett Group, which was hired by the county for census outreach. “We had to get creative.”
Illinois’ 66.5% response rate so far this year makes it one of the countries’ top 10 states in filling out the census, but Cook County lags behind at 61.3% and Chicago at 54.3%. Neighborhoods on the South and West sides have been particularly hard to count, and officials fear the coronavirus pandemic has hampered outreach efforts in those areas.
Cook County Commissioner Alma Anaya represents one of those communities on the Southwest Side. She spoke at the news conference in both English and Spanish to outline how the pandemic, while likely worsening response rates, underlines just how important it is to fill out the census. Some estimates say each uncounted person amounts to $14,000 in lost funding for the state each decade.
“Our families, our community is not thinking about a questionnaire. They’re thinking about essential things like food, housing, and health care at this moment,” Anaya said. “We’re seeing now in a time of pandemic the importance of health care, the importance of our education system, to have all of the resources for our community. And that’s exactly why we want to make sure that everybody is counted.”
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Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle stressed that the pandemic has made outreach efforts “much harder,” and said the county will lose out on about 40% of eligible funding should the current response rate not budge.
There are no immediate plans to boost funding for census efforts as the county braces for a $410 million budget gap and a $280 million gap projected for 2021 and 2020, respectively, Preckwinkle said. However, the transition from in-person census outreach has reduced some of the anticipated costs.
“We’re going to do the best we have with the resources we have,” Preckwinkle said. “The short story is we don’t have any resources other than the ones we’ve already devoted to this, and we’re going to try to do the best we can to use that money effectively.”
ayin@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-07-01--Madison health officials close indoor service at bars ahead of holiday weekend as COVID-19 cases ris

Madison health officials close indoor service at bars ahead of holiday weekend as COVID-19 cases rise in college town

“ I do think that we need to continue to concentrate on those businesses that represent uncontrolled spread ( of @ @ @ @ @ said Friday .
“ And here I ’ m thinking , tightly packed bars — @ @ @ @ @ to hear me say that , here in Wisconsin ; that might be something we @ @ @ @ @ that the virus can spread through the air and because cases have been increasing in @ @ @ @ @

MADISON, Wis. — Public health officials are closing indoor service at bars in Madison as the Fourth of July weekend approaches and as the number of reported coronavirus cases accelerate, many involving young people in Wisconsin's largest college community.
The order from Public Health Madison & Dane County effective Thursday allows bars that have patios to keep them open and it limits the number of people who may eat inside restaurants to 25% capacity, the Journal Sentinel reported.
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Since June 13, 614 people have tested positive for coronavirus and half of them were between the ages of 18 and 29.
“For the past week, Dane County has seen a sustained, high number of cases. After consultation with our contact tracing team, gatherings and visits to bars and restaurants continue to be implicated in interviews with cases,” Janel Heinrich, the agency’s director said in a statement.
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Bar owners are weighing a legal challenge.
Tavern League of Wisconsin lobbyist Scott Stenger said public health officials are unfairly punishing bar owners and not taking into account what role recent protests over police brutality may have in the surge.
“To make out bars to be a scapegoat of an increase when you’ve had historic protests for three weeks straight — it seems a bit irresponsible to not factor that in,” Stenger said.
The National Bureau of Economic Research released a paper last week that found little evidence that police brutality protests across the country caused a significant increase in infections.
The paper said if the protests had driven a surge in cases the increase would have become apparent within two weeks, but that didn't happen in many cities with the largest protests, including New York, Chicago, Minneapolis and Washington, D.C. The protests began the night after George Floyd died in Minneapolis police custody on May 25. The paper has not been published by a peer-reviewed journal.
Republican U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson has said that it makes sense to limit bars.
“I do think that we need to continue to concentrate on those businesses that represent uncontrolled spread (of coronavirus),” Johnson said Friday. “And here I’m thinking, tightly packed bars — I know that hurts people to hear me say that, here in Wisconsin; that might be something we need to control” given that the virus can spread through the air and because cases have been increasing in the past few days.


chicagotribune--2020-07-01--3-year-old girl recovering after shot outside her home on South Side. ‘She’s going to pull through’

“ When you look at the age of that baby and considering the amount of pain and suffering that she @ @ @ @ @ to say that out of her mouth , with all of that pain , that @ @ @ @ @ strength and a lot of awareness of her surroundings , ” he continued .
“ @ @ @ @ @ I say , well you know that ’ s 50 % of her strength and @ @ @ @ @ you , and you being able to touch her , that ’ s the other @ @ @ @ @ bring 100 % recovery .
”

Morgan Greene, Alice Yin, Katherine Rosenberg-Douglas

Chicago police work the scene near where a 3-year-old girl was shot in the 7000 block of South Damen Avenue in the West Englewood neighborhood on June 30, 2020. (Armando L. Sanchez / Chicago Tribune)
A 3-year-old girl was shot in the chest outside her home in West Englewood Tuesday night when a gunman opened fire into a yard filled with children, minutes after a 15-year-old boy was wounded just blocks away, according to Chicago police.
Investigators said they were looking into whether the two attacks were related, as Chicago experiences one of its worst stretches of gun violence against children. This past weekend a 20-month-old boy was killed, a 10-year-old girl was fatally shot, and an 8-year-old suffered a graze wound to the head. A week earlier, five children were shot and killed in Chicago, including a 3-year-old boy.
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“This is not and this cannot be our new normal,” said Chicago police Chief of Operations Fred Waller, echoing remarks of the mayor and the police superintendent over the last few weeks. “Where is the outrage? Our babies are being shot. These are our babies.”
Police say the girl was outside her home in the 7000 block of South Damen Avenue about 8 p.m. Tuesday, playing in the yard with other children, when someone fired shots from a car. Relatives said they thought the gunfire was fireworks, but the girl’s mother ran outside and found the girl lying face up with a wound to her chest.
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She was taken to Comer Children’s Hospital in critical condition, but was stabilized and upgraded to serious condition overnight, according to community activist Andrew Holmes, who was with the family at the hospital. She underwent emergency surgery for internal bleeding, and was alert and talking afterward, he said.
The girl has pierced ears and, before the surgery, she told a nurse who was apparently prepping her not to touch her earrings, Holmes said.
“The bright moment was when they came back out and told the family that she didn’t want anyone to touch or take out her earrings. That was a spark to the grandmother, to the whole family, indicating that she was well and alert,” Holmes said. “I guess usually she would tell them, don’t anybody touch her earrings. So that brought a smile to their faces, kind of brightened them up, and the first thing the grandmother said is, ‘She’s going to pull through.‘
“When you look at the age of that baby and considering the amount of pain and suffering that she’s going through, to say that out of her mouth, with all of that pain, that’s a lot of strength and a lot of awareness of her surroundings,” he continued. “I told the mother, I say, well you know that’s 50% of her strength and once she lays eyes on you, and you being able to touch her, that’s the other 50%. That would bring 100% recovery.”
Holmes said he wasn’t sure where the 3-year-old was hit. “Not by the heart or anything right in there, or we’d be looking at the same thing as last week. If it was dead center I think we’d be looking at another child lost,” he said.
The girl is expected to remain under observation in the hospital for a few days.
Bursts of fireworks kept going off as police worked the scene of the shooting, cordoning off the block and laying out markers next to shell casings.
A woman visiting friends said she was sitting on their couch when she heard a series of shots. “I’m like, they’re shooting out here, when there’s kids out here?” the woman said. “As soon as I came out, all the yellow tape was up.”
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Police are investigating whether the shooting may have been in retaliation for an attack about an hour earlier that wounded a 15-year-old boy in the 7100 block of South Honore Street, also in West Englewood. The boy was hit at least twice when someone fired from a black car, police said. The boy was taken to University of Chicago Medical Center in good condition.
No one was in custody for either shooting.
3yr old girl shot in the 7000 block of S. Damen. 7th Dist. Media staging 70th & Damen. Will update shortly. #ChicagoPolice pic.twitter.com/8lqAmbA1mU — Tom Ahern (@TomAhernCPD) July 1, 2020
Police also have reported no arrests in the fatal shootings of two other children in Chicago over the weekend.
On Saturday, 20-month-old Sincere Gaston died after he was shot in a car seat while riding with his mom in the Englewood neighborhood. Police said the gunman may have been targeting his father, who was not in the car.
Later that day, 10-year-old Lena Nunez was struck in the head by a stray bullet that came through a second-floor apartment window in Logan Square. Her 8-year-old cousin was injured on her face by glass broken in the shooting. Police said gang members a block away had been firing at rivals near the girl’s home.
Less than two hours later, another 8-year-old girl was grazed by a bullet on her head. The scene in the West Englewood neighborhood was similar to the Logan Square shooting. The girl was sitting on a couch inside a home in the 6600 block of South Wood Street when a bullet came through the window. She last was reported in fair condition.
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In the first six months of the year, Chicago has experienced a sharp spike in shootings and homicides over the same time last year, a jump of more than 25% in homicides, reaching 295, which is 60 more than the same period a year ago, according to a review of crime statistics.
According to the statistics, 96 of those occurred during a 28-day stretch that covered most of June.
Holmes said the most important thing neighbors can do is to turn over any surveillance video of an area around the time of a shooting. If a resident wants a detective to retrieve footage, they can call 800-883-5587 and a call-taker will reach out to Chicago police on their behalf.
“Anybody walking, running, standing, anybody they don’t recognize acting suspicious or staying a good length of time that shouldn’t be there, or any car stalled in an alley like they’re waiting, any of that could lead to an arrest and conviction,” he said.
Holmes, a crisis worker for Chicago Survivors, lost his daughter Tamara Sword in 2015 when she was shot in Indianapolis. He said the recent gun violence against children is unprecedented.
“We’ve lost so many babies in Chicago through the years, so many. But never this many. Not like this,” he said. “I’ve seen many of them hurt but not this many, so close together within weeks after week after week and just days apart, not this close.”
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mgreene@chicagotribune.com
ayin@chicagotribune.com
kdouglas@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-07-01--A COVID-19 surge in your county? New Illinois website offers ways to check.

Researchers who work with the state on pandemic modeling say the new display of data is good but not perfect @ @ @ @ @ a week old or more — the site on Wednesday showed data from June 14-20 @ @ @ @ @ not be precise enough to distinguish places seeing a second wave from those that are @ @ @ @ @

Paca Kujtim of Arlington Heights self-administers a COVID-19 test in his car at the Arlington International Racecourse on March 31, 2021 in Arlington Heights. Kujtim was getting testing as a precaution for upcoming travel. (Stacey Wescott / Chicago Tribune)
As Illinois shifts into phase four of its reopening plan, state health officials have now made it possible for residents to track weekly COVID-19 figures at the county level.
Their new website includes a warning system to highlight instances where the latest numbers — such as a rise in cases or more people testing positive — signal trouble.
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Score poorly overall and the county will show up as orange on a blue map of the state. (Only one has qualified thus far. More on that in a moment.)
“If your county is colored orange, that’s a caution or a warning that something is going on,” the department’s director, Dr. Ngozi Ezike, said last week at a briefing with reporters. “And our goal is that, with that caution, you will think twice of your own personal habits and activities.”
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The Illinois Department of Public Health unveiled the site just before the state on Friday officially entered the latest phase of its reopening plan, which allows people more freedom to gather and move about.
So far, Illinois officials have said, new case counts remain relatively flat and the state has plenty of available ICU beds and ventilators. But that could change. In other states, rises in cases have led to tightened restrictions as hospitals fill up.
“The metrics that we’ve been watching all along, to move us forward in our phases, are the very same metrics that we’re watching about whether or not we need to think about moving backward,” said Gov. J.B. Pritzker said last week.
Researchers who work with the state on pandemic modeling say the new display of data is good but not perfect. The information can be a week old or more — the site on Wednesday showed data from June 14-20 — and it also may not be precise enough to distinguish places seeing a second wave from those that are merely testing more aggressively.
Still, researchers say the new website offers a helpful addition to the conversation.
“It is good to show the county level because (looking just at) the whole state doesn’t really tell the whole story,” said Jaline Gerardin, a Northwestern University assistant professor of preventive medicine who works on virus modeling.
“Could there be better indicators? Yes. Are we working toward that? Yes,” she said.
For now, here’s what’s available to the public.
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Case numbers and test results
The website offers a new way to look at some of the same data the state has been monitoring for months, plus some additional data never before shared.
One set of metrics involves the most-cited figures used to track the pandemic: the number of new cases, and — of new people tested for the virus — the percent who test positive.
The state’s new website measures these figures weekly, which is new. Another new feature is that the site takes the county’s population into account, making it easier to compare bigger and smaller counties. The state’s threshold for concern is the number of new weekly cases climbing past 50 per 100,000 residents or the positivity rate reaching 10% or more.
That latter calculation is the one most useful to help detect a second wave, said Nigel Goldenfeld, a University of Illinois physics professor who is working with university colleague Sergei Maslov to develop COVID-19 case forecasts.
“If this ratio is small, then it means that the disease is well under control. By testing you are unlikely to find anyone new with an infection,” he said in an email. “If this ratio is large, then you have a good chance to find someone new with an infection, so that means the infection is prevalent.”
He cautioned, however, that the 10% threshold may be too high to signal a problem, because most places that have controlled the epidemic have dropped that ratio below 3%.
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As it is, the heart of the early pandemic in Illinois — Chicago — scores below both thresholds, at 42 cases per 100,000 people, with a 5.6% positivity rate. (The site splits Chicago from suburban Cook County.)
Among the suburban counties, only Kane County scores higher than the threshold at 58 cases per 100,000. Other rates range from 21 in McHenry County to 48 in suburban Cook.
(Jemal R. Brinson)
(Jemal R. Brinson)
Hospital visits and admissions
Another set of metrics focuses just on cases serious enough to send people to the hospital.
One measure looks at hospital capacity: whether plenty of ICU beds are available. It’s the only metric measured by region of the state, not by county. At least 20% of ICU beds should be open. So far, across Illinois, that hasn’t been a problem. At worst, the region covering the southwest suburbs had 38% available ICU beds during the week analyzed. (By Tuesday, other state data showed that figure climbing to 43%.)
Two other metrics look at hospital data a different way, based on numbers of patients.
One focuses on emergency room visits. It looks at the ratio of people coming to the ER who complain of COVID-19-like symptoms. Another looks at weekly hospital admissions, also with those symptoms.
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The website offers no cutoff between good and bad. Rather, it’s about making sure the figures, whatever they are, are stable or declining.
For example, when Chicago residents went to the ER in the most recent week measured, just 3.4% complained of COVID-19-like symptoms. Seven weeks earlier, it was near 14%. So Chicago improved significantly on that measure. The raw number of ER visits with those symptoms also dropped in that same period from 2,008 to 314, according to the website’s underlying data.
The same is true of weekly hospital admissions, which for Chicago residents was 182 in the most recent week of data reported, down from a height of 1,119 seven weeks earlier.
(Jemal R. Brinson)
The figures come with a big caveat: Not all people with these symptoms will actually have COVID-19.
It also can be tricky to judge ups and downs when looking at individual counties, particularly less-populated ones that have seen fewer COVID-19 cases. So the state will give counties a warning label if either metric increases by 20% over two consecutive weeks.
Who got warnings?
In all, eight counties got a warning label in at least one category, usually for having a higher rate of new cases per 100,000 residents.
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But the only county colored orange on the new map is Cass County, in central Illinois. It got warnings for a high rate of new cases, for a high positivity rate from that week’s tests and for insufficient testing (a warning triggered automatically when a county’s positivity rate is too high).
What happened? According to the county health department, a worker at a small nursing home went to the local hospital with COVID-19-like symptoms during the week of June 14. That triggered a massive set of tests the next day of all workers and staff at the facility, which found 10 employees and 11 residents to be positive for the virus.
“I think we caught this fairly early, although you cannot tell by the spread,” said the county’s health administrator, Teresa Armstrong. “At the very beginning, when we were doing interviews, most people (testing positive) were saying they were asymptomatic, except for some congestion and things they were attributing to seasonal allergies.”
Among health officials, what happened at the nursing home is called a cluster. And the state put a special category on the website to report, for each county, the percentage of new weekly cases tied to clusters. Yet, for Cass County, that figure is listed as only 4.2% for the week of June 14-20.
Armstrong said that figure is wrong and should be 84%. She said the state pulled the data for the metric from a shared government health database on June 19, before her staff could update the database to show cases were linked.
Subsequent testing at the nursing home has found another nine employees and 19 residents who were positive, suggesting the county will likely miss targets in the next weekly update as well.
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The situation in Cass County highlights another caveat for Illinois residents: Be careful rushing to judgment based on these figures.
As Northwestern’s Gerardin said: “The fact they went into a long-term care facility and found a bunch of cases is a good thing — and now they’re the only orange county in all of Illinois.”
jmahr@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-07-01--College campuses are trying to reopen in the fall. The main source of opposition? The faculty.

Notre Dame ’ s position on in-person instruction is among the most rigid , showing how far universities are willing @ @ @ @ @ to return to campuses after classes were abruptly moved online this spring .
College faculty @ @ @ @ @ and more likely to develop complications from a COVID-19 infection than students , say that @ @ @ @ @ person could expose family members in their homes to the virus , and also question @ @ @ @ @ to a variety of new safety protocols that are supposed to be in place .

The University of Chicago is letting instructors decide whether fall classes will be virtual or in person. Faculty at other colleges like Notre Dame are clamoring for the same option. (Terrence Antonio James / Chicago Tribune)
Just because students might be returning to college campuses this fall doesn’t mean professors will be joining them.
Controversy over whether instructors need to be in the classroom during the fall term has erupted at campuses including the University of Notre Dame, where professors are pushing back, noting the dangers of face-to-face classes while the coronavirus pandemic continues to rage.
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These faculty members say they alone should determine how they will teach this fall. Notre Dame, however, is asking those with objections to in-person instruction to submit documentation of medical conditions and a formal request for accommodations. Those who taught remotely prior to the pandemic likely will not need to obtain special approval, said Paul Browne, a spokesman for Notre Dame.
But Eileen Hunt Botting, a political science professor who is spearheading the faculty opposition, said the application process is invasive, requiring colleagues to share personal medical information, and there’s no guarantee that a professor who is uncomfortable teaching on campus will be granted an exemption.
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“We want to encourage students to choose to study online as much as possible during the pandemic,” said Botting, who’s taught at Notre Dame, outside South Bend, Indiana, since 2001. “We ought to encourage faculty and staff to teach and work online during the pandemic if simply to eliminate unnecessary crowds on campus milling about on the sidewalks, unintentionally spreading the virus.”
Notre Dame’s position on in-person instruction is among the most rigid, showing how far universities are willing to go to compel professors to return to campuses after classes were abruptly moved online this spring. College faculty, who are generally older and more likely to develop complications from a COVID-19 infection than students, say that being forced to teach in person could expose family members in their homes to the virus, and also question whether all students will adhere to a variety of new safety protocols that are supposed to be in place.
On the other end of the spectrum, the University of Chicago recently announced that it will not require any of its instructors, including graduate students, to teach in person for the fall quarter, which begins Sept. 29 for most classes. In an update released Tuesday, U. of C. said a limited number of classes will be held in-person. New students will be given priority to enroll in such courses so they can acclimate to the university setting.
“Due to these extraordinary circumstances, the University is temporarily suspending the normal requirement that teaching be done in person,” the Office of the Provost said in a message to faculty on Friday.
The school will not require faculty to submit medical records or impose a deadline on the decision, said spokesman Jeremy Manier.
That might present a challenge to students as they consider not just which classes to take but also whether they should move back to campus at all or continue taking virtual courses at home. Some schools are designating how courses will be offered when students register and notifying them about any changes.
Na’ama Rokem, an associate professor of modern Hebrew literature and comparative literature at U. of C., said she was pleased the school leadership is trusting its staff to make the decision on their own and that it won’t ask faculty to share personal medical information.
“We’re very happy about this,” said Rokem, who is also an elected member of the university senate. “This represents, precisely, the faith of the institution in our judgment, as the people who carry out the teaching and research mission of the university.”
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Rokem said she is slated to teach only one class this fall — an advanced course for graduate students — and will likely offer it remotely. She said she feels confident she can develop a high-quality online class with all the time she has to prepare over the summer break, as opposed to the abrupt switch this spring. Most of the colleagues she’s conversed with are also planning to teach online, Rokem said.
“Of course we all want to be back in our classrooms. This is what we’re there for,” she said. “There’s no desire to stay online forever, but I think with some experience, a lot of us have the sense that if we plan well, it can actually be a decent temporary replacement.”
In a statement, the school’s local chapter of the American Association of University Professors also praised the new policy, but urged U. of C. to be more transparent in its decision-making process and to include members of its faculty unions.
“Absent a democratic decision-making procedure, and absent much essential information such as the exact level of risk, including predicted numbers of infections and deaths, that is being factored into the university’s planning models, we see no reason to believe that any kind of instructional reopening in the Fall will be safe,” the statement says.
The U. of C.’s chapter said it was also concerned about staff who can’t work remotely — such as those in libraries, dining halls and maintenance — who might not be allowed to stay at home. The group said there should also be systems in place to ensure that lower-rung faculty, including instructors seeking tenure or contract renewals, don’t feel pressured into offering in-person classes.
With coronavirus cases surging in the southern and western parts of the country, colleges are constantly fine-tuning reopening plans for the fall. Some have been especially hard hit by the costs of adapting, doling out millions of dollars in refunds for room and board, and losing revenue from canceled events.
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And every college seems to be handling the question of in-person instruction differently.
At the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, the format of each course will be decided by individual programs and academic departments, depending on the type of course and faculty availability, said spokeswoman Robin Kaler.
“We recognize that faculty and graduate instructors may have health and safety concerns related to the COVID-19 pandemic that may prevent them from returning to face-to-face instruction, and we want to insure that they have an opportunity to engage with students remotely,” Kaler said in an emailed statement.
In May, however, a group of faculty said they opposed any further reopening of campus, which would include holding in-person classes this fall. In a statement on its website, UIUC’s Campus Faculty Association said that “adequate protection on a residential campus the breadth and size of ours is nearly impossible” with students from across the country socializing, living and learning in close quarters.
In Evanston, Northwestern University is continuing to devise its plans for fall instruction, including policies to address personal situations that would make working on or commuting to campus difficult for faculty, according to spokesman Jon Yates. Other challenges could stem from child care, if schools need to remain closed, or from preexisting medical conditions.
NU administrators have said “a significant portion of instruction will be conducted remotely” but hopes to provide opportunities for face-to-face learning as well.
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College leaders are walking a fine line: They want to keep students and staff safe, but some also worry that enrollment will drop off if they can’t provide a full on-campus experience. And they know that many students and their parents are wary of paying hefty tuition costs just for online classes taken at home.
Notre Dame is doubling down on its promise to offer in-person instruction. The premier Catholic institution released an ambitious plan in May, signaling to students they could return, and revising the fall schedule. Notre Dame is starting classes about two weeks early, eliminating fall break and conducting finals online in case a second wave of COVID-19 emerges in the winter.
“Notre Dame is fundamentally about the on-campus experience, where the whole person is enriched — intellectually, spiritually and physically,” Browne said in an email. “That kind of enrichment can’t be realized remotely alone.”
Instructors who apply for accommodation will not be automatically approved to teach remotely, but administrators reviewing the requests were told “to be as understanding as possible,” Browne said.
Botting, the political science professor, said she received a medical exemption to teach online in the fall after following the accommodation process but is still speaking out for colleagues who morally object to fully reopening campus.
“As a Catholic university, Notre Dame has an obligation to put the lives of its community first in any policy that it crafts, and right now, Notre Dame is effectively expecting the vast majority of its population to return to work on campus during a pandemic in which there is no vaccine and no effective treatment,” she said. “Notre Dame isn’t a bubble. No campus is a bubble. Everything we do will have consequences in the wider community, especially in a pandemic.”
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Notre Dame students and alumni have also raised concerns on behalf of faculty, with another petition that also calls for decisions about in-person teaching to be left to instructors.
Rokem said faculty at U. of C. is also keenly aware that allowing thousands of students to flood the Hyde Park campus could adversely affect neighbors in surrounding areas that are majority Black. The concern is particularly acute because of racial disparities documented in minority communities, showing that Black Chicagoans were dying at higher rates compared with others in the early days of the pandemic.
“There is a very serious conversation going on about our responsibility to the community that we are in,” she said. “We are on the South Side of Chicago, and we are in an environment that’s been impacted very severely.”
echerney@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-07-01--Police work scene where 3-year-old girl shot

Expand Autoplay Image 1 of 6 Chicago police work the scene near where a 3-year-old girl was shot in the 7000 block of South Damen Avenue in the West Englewood neighborhood on June 30, 2020. (Armando L. Sanchez / Chicago Tribune)
A 3-year-old girl was shot in the chest outside her home in West Englewood when a gunman opened fire into a yard filled with children. She was taken to Comer Children’s Hospital in critical condition and was upgraded to serious condition overnight, according to community activist Andrew Holmes.


chicagotribune--2020-06-30--Coronavirus in Illinois updates: Here’s what happened June 30 with COVID-19 in the Chicago area

“ I think you ’ re going to see quite a bit change , ” Superintendent Tony Sanders said .
@ @ @ @ @ know at this moment in time .
But as I said in the beginning , @ @ @ @ @ to August I think even more might change as we learn more about ( COVID-19 @ @ @ @ @ what other states might be doing , as we learn what other districts across the @ @ @ @ @

We have lifted the paywall on this story. To support essential reporting, please consider becoming a subscriber .
The Fulton Market area of Chicago is no longer the ghost town it was during the depths of the COVID-19 virus pandemic shutdown. As restrictions on restaurants are eased, a worker takes a woman's temperature before she can enter Federales restaurant on Morgan Street on July 1, 2020. (Terrence Antonio James / Chicago Tribune)
Illinois health officials Tuesday reported 724 new known cases of COVID-19 and 23 additional fatalities, bringing the total number of known cases to 143,185 and the confirmed death toll to 6,923.
Confirmed deaths on Monday, 14, were the lowest daily number announced by state officials since March 30. The average number of daily deaths in the state has been declining each week recently, although state officials warn about reading too much into fluctuations in the numbers.
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Outside of the state, Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute for Allergy and Infectious Diseases, warned the United States is “going in the wrong direction” as novel coronavirus cases surge across the country and said he “would not be surprised if we go up to 100,000 a day if this does not turn around.”
[ How to assess your COVID-19 risk when going out in public: Use this chart ]
[ Phase four of Illinois’s COVID-19 reopening: Settle in, folks, we may be here a while ]
[ Illinois enters phase 4 of reopening plan. Here’s a guide to what’s allowed. ]
[ COVID-19 cases in Illinois by ZIP code: Search for your neighborhood ]
[ Illinois coronavirus graphs: 6,923 deaths, 143,185 confirmed cases, 1.6 million tests, 4.42% positivity rate for northeast region ]
Here’s what’s happening Tuesday with COVID-19 in the Chicago area and Illinois:
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5:58 p.m.: After months of waiting during COVID-19 pandemic, some nursing homes are allowing visitors
In a canary-yellow Hawaiian shirt, 85-year-old Lauren Pierce rolled out of Hillcrest Nursing Center in a wheelchair to see her son for the first time in three months.
”She looks good,” said Tony Pierce, wearing a white Hawaiian shirt himself.
Tuesday marked the first day of visiting hours resuming at the home in Round Lake Beach since the state banned visitors at all long-term care facilities in March. Nursing homes in Illinois have been hit hard by COVID-19, with more than 22,000 cases and nearly 3,800 deaths — more than half the fatalities in the state — connected to the virus.
Arthur Cook, 93, visits with grandchildren Heidi and Roy Cook outdoors at Hillcrest Nursing Center on June 30, 2020, in Round Lake Beach. Arthur Cook hasn’t been outside or visited in person with family members since February.
State health officials recently began allowing visits again, but only out of doors, and with participants wearing masks and keeping at least 6 feet apart. Facilities also must write individual rules for allowing the visits, per state requirements. Thus, not all homes have been ready for visitors at the same time.
For visitors like Pierce, it was a relief to finally be able to see a loved one. Because his mom is hard of hearing, she can’t talk by phone or online.
”It’s been tough,” Pierce said “This is great to see her. I am ecstatic.” Read more here. — Robert McCoppin and Kaitlin Edquist
4:16 p.m.: What happens when a restaurant worker gets COVID-19? With dining-in open across Chicago, restaurants grapple with infection risks
On June 1, The Alinea Group announced on Twitter that an employee tested positive for COVID-19. Even though that employee had not worked in eight days, every other person who worked the same day was tested, and the restaurant closed for cleaning. A few weeks later, another employee tested positive, and the restaurant repeated the same steps.
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Early last week, Longman & Eagle, a take on a traditional drinking inn in Logan Square, announced on Instagram that it would be closing because it also had an employee who tested positive for COVID-19. Its entire staff is quarantining and being tested, and the space is being cleaned, the post said.
Although the city gave restaurants the green light to open indoor dining up to 25% capacity as part of phase four of the pandemic plan, which started last Friday, some restaurant operators are wondering if it’s worth it to do so with COVID-19 infection risks still present. Read more here. — Grace Wong
3:26 p.m.: Why does one Chicago ZIP code have more COVID-19 cases than the next? Finger-prick blood tests may help find an answer.
Northwestern University scientists will be asking Chicagoans to prick their fingers and send in a dried blood sample as part of an effort to figure out why some parts of the city are hit so much harder by COVID-19 than others nearby — research they hope could help control future disease flare-ups.
The blood tests for COVID-19 antibodies, also known as serology testing, will be conducted in five pairs of adjoining city ZIP codes initially. Each pair includes an area with much higher infection rates than its neighbor, as determined by city data from the end of April that is based on traditional coronavirus tests. Read more here. — Hal Dardick
2:53 p.m.: 23 new deaths reported in Illinois
The Illinois Department of Public Health announced 724 new confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Illinois on Tuesday, including 23 additional confirmed deaths.
Eleven of the dead are Cook County residents, the IDPH said in a news release. Five are from suburban Chicago counties.
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As of Tuesday afternoon, the IDPH is reporting a total of 143,185 cases and 6,923 deaths in 101 counties across the state.
The statewide positive rate for tests performed in the last 7 full days stands at 2.6%, the department said. In the northeast region of the state, the rate is 4.4%, — Charles J. Johnson
1:23 p.m.: D.C. dispatch: Fauci says the U.S. could reach 100,000 new coronavirus cases a day
Dr. Anthony Fauci said coronavirus cases could grow to 100,000 a day in the U.S. if Americans don’t start following public health recommendations.
The nation’s leading infectious disease expert made the remark at a Senate hearing on reopening schools and workplaces.
Dr. Anthony Fauci wears a face covering as he listens during a Senate hearing on June 30, 2020. (Al Drago /AP)
Asked to forecast the outcome of recent surges in some states, Fauci said he can’t make an accurate prediction but believes it will be “very disturbing.”
“We are now having 40-plus-thousand new cases a day. I would not be surprised if we go up to to 100,000 a day if this does not turn around, and so I am very concerned,” said Fauci, infectious disease chief at the National Institutes of Health.
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Fauci said areas seeing recent outbreaks are putting the entire nation at risk, including areas that have made progress in reducing COVID-19 cases. Read more here. — Associated Press
1:18 p.m.: Hyde Park Jazz Festival re-imagines itself amid pandemic
A few months ago, Kate Dumbleton had the 14th annual Hyde Park Jazz Festival pretty much mapped out.
As always, the event would feature September performances in venues across the historic neighborhood, concerts in the University of Chicago’s Logan Center, commissioned work and more.
The coronavirus pandemic shattered all that, of course, to the disappointment of executive and artistic director Dumbleton, her colleagues and anyone who has admired this most inventive of Chicago jazz festivals.
But rather than cancel the event, Dumbleton and friends have reimagined it. According to the current plan, the festival will open with a day’s worth of performances streamed live from the Logan Center on Sept. 26. “The University of Chicago protocols for building occupancy will guide decisions about whether there can be a physically distanced audience,” according to a festival statement.
On Sept. 27, the festival will present small ensembles in short sets across Hyde Park, using mobile stages to bring the music to listeners, rather than drawing large groups of listeners to particular venues.
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Details have yet to be pinned down, and Dumbleton – like everyone else – is trying to prepare for whatever the pandemic brings us by the end of September. But Dumbleton, never known to think small, believes all the above is thoroughly achievable. Read more here. — Howard Reich
1:15 p.m.: U-46 likely to require face mask usage, hand-washing stations, office shields when school resumes
Mandatory face masks, portable hand-washing stations, Plexiglass shields for main offices and a mix of in-person/remote instruction likely await School District U-46 students and staff when classes resume in August, district officials said.
Last week, the Illinois State Board of Education laid out guidelines for schools and instruction in a post-pandemic world. On Monday, U-46 officials presented the school board with its tentative plans for reopening schools in the 2020-21 school year.
The district is conducting a districtwide survey on reopening, which is available now on the U-46.org website. Results will be shared at the July 20 board meeting, where more concrete recommendations will be made.
“I think you’re going to see quite a bit change,” Superintendent Tony Sanders said. “This is what we know at this moment in time. But as I said in the beginning, by the time we get to August I think even more might change as we learn more about (COVID-19), as we learn what other states might be doing, as we learn what other districts across the state are doing.”
In order for schools to allow in-person instruction, the state will require face coverings at all times while indoors, including at any of U-46′s schools and facilities.
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“Masks will be the norm in every single one of our buildings,” Sanders said. Read more here. — Rafael Guerrero
11:40 a.m.: Noise from al fresco dining irritates some neighbors of downtown Arlington Heights restaurants
Some downtown Arlington Heights residents want to turn down the volume at the new Arlington Al Fresco outdoor dining area.
In an effort to support the village’s downtown restaurant district, officials closed Campbell Street and Vail Avenue this summer to traffic to allow for outdoor dining on the street. It’s been a popular attraction in recent weeks as more residents escape from their home during the coronavirus pandemic and as the state emerges from months of shutdowns.
Neighbor complaints, however, about noise from the area were sent to Village Hall the first weekend and even more residents submitted written concerns during a Village Board committee-of-the-whole virtual meeting on Monday, June 29. Village officials said they’re trying to address noise concerns. Read more here. — Elizabeth Owens-Schiele
11:20 a.m.: ‘What if I don’t get better?’ Some COVID-19 survivors struggle with symptoms for weeks, even months, mystifying doctors.
Candy Malina of the Lakeview East neighborhood tested positive for COVID-19 in mid-March, with a cough and flu-like illness she described as debilitating but never life-threatening or requiring emergency care.
Yet more than three months later, the 60-year-old social service agency administrator says she still suffers from lingering symptoms: hoarseness, coughing and gastric issues, along with an unrelenting fatigue that makes it difficult to function.
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Since her diagnosis, she has tested negative for the virus twice. A positive serology test showed that her body is producing COVID-19 antibodies. But she does not feel recovered.
She is among an emerging group of COVID-19 survivors, dubbed the “long-haulers,” who endure symptoms for weeks — even months — past the expected recovery period, mystifying physicians and scientists who are still grappling to understand the new virus. Read more here. — Angie Leventis Lourgos
11 a.m.: The Farnsworth House reopens weeks after floodwaters hit as architecture tour scene comes back to life
Weeks after being seriously threatened by floodwaters, the Farnsworth House, a modernist masterpiece in Chicago’s far southwest suburbs, will reopen for public tours Wednesday, with a temporary exhibit devoted to its often-overlooked namesake — the late Chicago kidney doctor Edith Farnsworth.
The exhibit, “Edith Farnsworth’s Country House,” will refurnish the single-story, steel-and-glass weekend retreat, now a house museum owned by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, to its 1955 appearance, when it was four years old.
The reopening of the home in Plano, about 60 miles southwest of the Loop, is the latest sign that Chicago’s architectural tour scene is coming back to life after being shut down by the coronavirus.
The Chicago Architecture Center, which features exhibitions about the city’s architecture at its 111 E. Wacker Drive headquarters, will reopen Friday. The center restarted select architectural walking tours June 20.
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Architectural tour boats on the Chicago River and Lake Michigan, which were sidelined by the virus, began running again in mid-June. Read more here. — Blair Kamin
The Farnsworth House in Plano was designed by Mies van der Rohe in 1945 and constructed in 1951 for Dr. Edith Farnsworth as a country retreat along the Fox River. The home is photographed here in 2016. (Michael Zajakowski / Chicago Tribune)
10:45 a.m.: Chicago Gourmet cancels main event for 2020, plans smaller programs
This shouldn’t come as a huge surprise, but Chicago Gourmet will not take place this September in Millennium Park. The main event, where thousands of paying guests crowd into tasting pavilions to sample the food of dozens of Chicago’s biggest chefs, will be suspended until at least September 2021.
According to Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s “Restore Illinois” reopening plan, we are in phase four, which allows gatherings of no more than 50 people. Currently, larger events will not be allowed in the state until there is a COVID-19 vaccine.
But that doesn’t mean that Chicago Gourmet, which is in its 13th year, will be entirely silent. According to a press release, the Illinois Restaurant Association will “soon reveal new programming that celebrates Chicago’s diverse culinary landscape while safely bringing food and drink enthusiasts the memorable experiences they crave.” Read more here. — Nick Kindelsperger
10:35 a.m.: State delays awarding licenses to grow marijuana
Illinois will delay awarding more than 80 marijuana licenses meant to expand the industry, following delays in the application process brought on by the coronavirus pandemic.
The state’s Department of Agriculture, which regulates marijuana grow facilities, was set to award 40 craft grow licenses, 40 infuser licenses and an undetermined amount of transporter licenses Wednesday.
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The delays could be catastrophic for some applicants, particularly those who were paying to hold real estate for grow facilities. Read more here. — Ally Marotti
10:20 a.m: Aon to restore most salaries cut by COVID-19 pandemic — and pay employees back what they gave up
Two months after cutting pay for most employees by 20% in response to the coronavirus pandemic, Aon is restoring their salaries, repaying them for what they gave up — and adding a bonus.
The global insurance giant announced Tuesday it was ending those salary reductions July 1, in part because the likelihood of a worst-case macroeconomic outcome had “decreased significantly” since the pay cuts were implemented.
“We took decisive action from a position of strength to protect every Aon colleague against the worst-case economic scenarios from this pandemic,” Aon CEO Greg Case said in a statement Tuesday. “We based our decisions on a set of core principles and a belief that we’d emerge stronger by staying together.” Read more here. — Robert Channick
10 a.m.: Cubs’ Jason Heyward donates $100,000 to aid COVID-19 workers and increase contract tracing efforts on the South Side
Chicago Cubs right fielder Jason Heyward is donating $100,000 to University of Chicago Medicine through the Heyward Family Fund to help reduce hardships experienced by healthcare workers during the coronavirus pandemic and increase contact tracing efforts on the South Side.
“Through this donation, I want to help ease the personal burdens on our healthcare heroes and support efforts aimed at reducing the spread of COVID-19, especially in vulnerable communities hit hard by the virus,” Heyward said in a statement. Read more here. — Mark Gonzales
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6:45 a.m.: Cook County property tax bills begin arriving Tuesday, but late fees waived until Oct. 1
Cook County property tax bills should start arriving in the mail Tuesday, but because of the coronavirus pandemic, fees for paying after the usual August deadline are waived until Oct. 1, according to county officials.
The Cook County Board voted last month to allow property owners to pay the second installment of their taxes this year without incurring the usual fees if they pay after this year’s Aug. 3 deadline.
“Because of the pandemic, many homeowners and business people are juggling their bills, worried that they will have to let one bill drop,” Cook County Treasurer Maria Pappas said in a news release. “Now they have extra time without paying extra money in late fees.” — Chicago Tribune staff
6:35 a.m.: Edgewater pet food pantry reopens this week after COVID-19 shutdown
As many food pantries closed during the coronavirus shutdown, Edgewater’s Care for Real charity also closed its Pet Pantry for three months and will reopen it Thursday, the nonprofit announced this week.
The pet food pantry, 5339 N. Sheridan Road, normally runs once a month, according to a news release. But Care for Real had to prioritize providing food for people in need. It reopens Thursday, from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m.
“We didn’t want to halt the pet pantry even temporarily,” said Karen Feiler, pet pantry manger, in the release. “But clearly feeding people and ensuring social distancing came first. Now, with all our systems and precautions in place, we can resume this service.”
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The pantry, which gives out food, treats and other pet supplies, usually serves 300 patrons a month. —Chicago Tribune staff
6 a.m.: Beaches and pools begin to reopen throughout the suburbs. But in Chicago, at least officially, the wait continues.
With Illinois in phase four of coronavirus regulations, Sunrise Beach in north suburban Lake Bluff is among the many Illinois beaches and pools now open, with capacity and social distancing restrictions, after being shuttered because of the pandemic.
When Illinois entered phase four Friday, the Illinois Department of Health issued guidelines for swimming pools, water parks, splash pads and beaches, essentially allowing locations to open to a maximum 50% capacity with safety protocols in place.
While suburban beaches have opened, Chicago’s iconic beaches remain officially closed for swimming. But “closed” has often been more of an idea than an ironclad rule recently, especially with the sultry summer weather during the final days of June.
Scores of beachgoers flocked to Montrose Beach on Monday. Couples, friends, and families lay on blankets and beach towels in the sand. Dozens played in the water, despite the conspicuously empty lifeguard chairs. A man wearing a straw hat pulled an ice cream cart across the sand.
Farther south at Oak Street Beach, two women stood knee-deep in the water while others played in the sand. Read more here. — Patrick M. O’Connell, Katherine Rosenberg-Douglas, Robert McCoppin, Sarah Freishtat, Javonte Anderson
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5 a.m.: Bud Billiken Parade, a longtime Chicago tradition, canceled
The COVID-19 pandemic has forced the cancellation of Chicago’s Bud Billiken Parade, a traditional African American back-to-school event for about 90 years, organizers announced Monday.
Tens of thousands of spectators yearly attend the parade, in which similar numbers march through Chicago’s Bronzeville neighborhood to Washington Park, where picnicking and a music festival takes place.
Bud Billiken is a fictional character that is considered a guardian of children was created in 1923. The parade was originally organized in 1929 by the Chicago Defender newspaper. In the past, the floats and marching bands have been accompanied by such celebrities as Spike Lee and Michael Jordan.
Chicago Defender Charities CEO Myiti Sengstacke-Rice says although the parade won’t take place Aug. 8, as planned, the charity will continue its support of scholarships for graduating high school students. — Associated Press
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Here are three things that happened Monday related to coronavirus in Illinois:
Live from Chicago: Jazz back in action at the Green Mill and Andy’s
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Some Illinois parents are opting for home schooling instead of sending kids back to school in the fall
Chicago Heights is creating protective equipment as schools seek alternatives to keep students safe