chicago business

According to stats from the National Retail Federation, crime along Chicago's Magnificent Mile is down since 2020, despite viral videos of break-ins, crash-and-grabs and more seemingly painting a different story. So how are business development organizations and shop owners building consumer confidence, attempting to reverse stigmas, and working to attract more locals and tourists to Chicago's downtown? This week, WBBM reporter Brandon Ison provides compelling audio recorded in the Loop and Mag Mile on all of the above. You can also hear more on this subject on our recent nationwide broadcast "Audacy Conversations: The State of Downtown" moderated by WBBM's Cisco Cotto.

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According to stats from the National Retail Federation, crime along Chicago's Magnificent Mile is down since 2020, despite viral videos of break-ins, crash-and-grabs and more seemingly painting a different story. So how are business development organizations and shop owners building consumer confidence, attempting to reverse stigmas, and working to attract more locals and tourists to Chicago's downtown? This week, WBBM reporter Brandon Ison provides compelling audio recorded in the Loop and Mag Mile on all of the above. You can also hear more on this subject on our recent nationwide broadcast "Audacy Conversations: The State of Downtown" moderated by WBBM's Cisco Cotto.

Follow Magnificent Mile Association on Instagram | Follow Chicago Loop Alliance on Instagram

Follow Brandon Ison on Twitter | Follow WBBM Podcasts: Twitter | Instagram
Follow WBBM Newsradio: Twitter | Instagram | Facebook

From clothing stores to pharmacies, retail accounts for about one-fifth of Illinois' workforce and is the second-largest revenue generator in the state. So as crash-and-grab robberies (those that use the force of a large vehicle to break the entrance of a store) continue to rise, how does this affect our safety and our economy? This week, host Jim Hanke speaks with Rob Karr, President/CEO of the Illinois Retail Merchants Association -- or, IRMA -- to find out how the organization works with state representatives to deter these ram-and-raid crime sprees, as well as balances the needs of both national chains and local independent stores.

Follow IRMA on Facebook | Follow WBBM Podcasts: Twitter | Instagram
Follow WBBM Newsradio: Twitter | Instagram | Facebook

From clothing stores to pharmacies, retail accounts for about one-fifth of Illinois' workforce and is the second-largest revenue generator in the state. So as crash-and-grab robberies (those that use the force of a large vehicle to break the entrance of a store) continue to rise, how does this affect our safety and our economy? This week, host Jim Hanke speaks with Rob Karr, President/CEO of the Illinois Retail Merchants Association -- or, IRMA -- to find out how the organization works with state representatives to deter these ram-and-raid crime sprees, as well as balances the needs of both national chains and local independent stores.

Follow IRMA on Facebook | Follow WBBM Podcasts: Twitter | Instagram
Follow WBBM Newsradio: Twitter | Instagram | Facebook

Also in the news: Chicago police have now ordered a River North nightclub to close one day after a fight outside its front door ended with a shooting that sent eight people to the hospital; Brandon Johnson prepares for his first budget address as Chicago's mayor; and a Chicago man was among nine people who were shot in a mass shooting near Pittsburgh.

Organizers of the Chicago Marathon expected their 1,000,000th finisher to cross the finish line on Sunday. Also in the News: Hundreds gathered across the street from Chicago's Israeli Consulate Sunday afternoon to protest the Israeli government's formally declared war; Eight people were injured, four critically, in a shooting in River North early Sunday morning; and the CTA said they've finished the major track work as part of Phase One of the Forest Park Branch Rebuild.

Two persons of interest in the murders of four family members in their Romeoville home over the weekend were located Wednesday in Oklahoma.

Also in the news: The Cook County Medical Examiner says a man found inside a Glenview home was stabbed to death; residents of Calumet City, Dolton and Burnham are continuing to mop up from severe rainfall on Sunday; and McHenry County’s top prosecutor says the first day the State of Illinois went to a no-cash-bail system resulted in “absurd and incoherent” results.

This week on the Gains podcast we talk to Paul Hochman, President of Humongous Media and Former Tech Editor for the Today Show about how to navigate Artificial Intelligence's impact on jobs and provide a guide to getting AI into your hands right now.

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This week's Made in Chicago features a Hyde Park sneakers shop. WBBM's Lisa Fielding has their story. 

Also in the news: A Little Village man is due in court Wednesday for a bond hearing after allegedly shooting his wife and daughter to death and wounding his son; Officials believe fireworks are to blame for three fires on the Southwest Side; and the FBI has offered a $25,000 reward for any information that leads to the whereabouts of a 2-year-old Michigan girl.

Also in the news: Cooper Roberts' family is preparing for tomorrow's anniversary of the Highland Park parade shooting that killed seven people and permanently changed their lives; NASCAR roared through Grant Park despite heavy rains Sunday, and fans seemed to feel it was worth the wait; and the Illinois State Fire Marshall’s Office and the Chicago Fire Department have asked residents to leave fireworks to professionals this Fourth of July weekend.

Also in the news: Chicago's public health commissioner admits that the extent of the smoke descending upon Chicago caught her office off guard; Traffic flow will be stop and go for the new few months in a section of Mount Greenwood as a new street project is underway; and a Park City man has been charged in a hit and run accident early this morning that killed two horses on West Casey Road in unincorporated Grayslake.

Also in the news: Residents of Northwest Indiana have been turning up their noses since yesterday when many of them reported smelling a sulfur-like odor; An Arlington Heights business group is hosting the Chicago Bears' CEO for a discussion Monday night; and a rash of carjackings on Chicago's South Side has police warning residents to stay alert.

Also in the news: The field house in Gage Park will become temporary housing for more than 300 migrants by July 1; free lunches are now available weekdays at at hundreds of Chicago Public Schools; and a vigil was held last night for the victims of the shooting in Willowbrook over the weekend, in which one person was killed and 22 people were shot.

Also in the news: Chicago is closer than ever to putting up a long-discussed memorial honoring victims of police torture in the city; a daylong Juneteenth Celebration continues this hour at the DuSable Black History Museum and Education Center; and a man in the western suburbs is fighting plans for an industrial park, which he says would include destroying hundreds of oak trees.

Also in the news: Members of the Chicago Park District board have formally signed off on two music festivals, including Riot Fest, despite concerns and opposition from those living around the parks; a popular suburban restaurant, which closed down a couple of years ago, has re-opened to the delight of its fans; and Chicago alderpersons gave preliminary approval to more than $9 million in payments to settle lawsuits against the City, mostly involving the police.

In other news: NASCAR representatives to address concerns of City Council; Man charged after shooting himself during nightmare; McDonald's goes all in on Grimace with nostalgia-infused birthday meal

Also in the news: Streets will be closed all over downtown later this month to prepare for the city's first NASCAR race; A nightmare recently landed a Lake Barrington man in the hospital -- then jail; and kids with autism will have a chance to learn how to sail when the only national autism sailing camp comes to Chicago for three days next week.

Also in the news: Almost one year after Roe v. Wade was overturned, Planned Parenthood and state officials are highlighting new legislation that aims to protect the privacy and safety of people seeking abortion care; Mayor Brandon Johnson, Chicago Public Schools officials and the Teachers Union have jointly announced an expansion of the administration's parental leave policy; and the Village of Deerfield says a developer has ditched plans, for now, to annex and redevelop the Baxter Healthcare Corporation campus.

Also in the news: An employee of an organization that donates cadavers to medical schools says he's being singled out for voicing concerns about the condition of some of the bodies; Chicago Sky ownership has welcomed new investors to the fold, including the co-owner of the Cubs; and a couple of local chefs have won awards known as the "Oscars of the culinary industry."