Welcome to the Reader‘s morning briefing for Monday, December 12, 2016.
- Weather: Possibly the warmest day all week
Monday will be nice when compared to the rest of the week, with a high of 26 and a low of 15. The snow will stop and the sun will even be out for a bit. [AccuWeather]
- Rahm insists that he won’t run for DNC chair or president
Mayor Rahm Emanuel made it very clear during an appearance in Washington, D.C., Friday that he does not want to be chair of the Democratic National Committee. He also discussed how the Democratic party needs to refocus its message on economics after the devastating presidential election. The mayor allegedly gave the middle finger to a political consultant who asked him at a D.C. bar if he would run for president in 2020, and a reporter for The Hill witnessed the incident. When he was told about reporter Megan R. Wilson’s presence, he said “I don’t give a fuck who she is,” she reported. “Look, the mayor wanted to be clear he’s not running for president,” Emanuel spokesman Adam Collins said. “Sounds to me like he made his point.” [Tribune] [Politico]
[content-1]
- The New York Times returns to Chicago’s 11th police district
When the New York Times tracked shootings in Chicago over Memorial Day weekend, they noted that 16 of the 64 shootings happened in the city’s 11th police district, and three of those shootings happened along the same stretch of Walnut Street. The newspaper returned to the community to learn more about the gun violence tearing the neighborhood apart. “It’s about desperation, decadence, depression and rage,” the Reverend Marshall E. Hatch Sr. of New Mount Pilgrim Missionary Baptist Church told the Times. “It’s the concentration of all of that, all in one place.” [New York Times]
- Second City posts signs about “zero-tolerance policy” against hate speech
Second City is trying to prevent audiences from shouting out racist, homophobic or misogynistic phrases during its shows, which became such a problem that several cast members left the company in October. New signs have been posted that explain that the improv theater “has a zero-tolerance policy and does not allow hate speech of any kind whether it’s directed toward our artists, employees or patrons,” according to DNAinfo Chicago. Audience members who say “any homophobic, misogynistic, xenophobic, racist or prejudiced comments will be asked to leave.” [DNAinfo Chicago]
- Former A. Finkl & Sons steel plant site purchased, one step closer to redevelopment
The Lincoln Park site of the demolished A. Finkl & Sons steel plant has been purchased by local real estate developer Sterling Bay, according to Crain’s Chicago Business. The exact price is still unknown but it likely cost more than $100 million. Sterling Bay is reportedly interested in transforming the site into a “mix of commercial, retail and residential space.” [Crain’s Chicago Business]
- After a brief retirement, Mark Thomas will reopen The Alley in Lakeview
Businessman Mark Thomas will reopen his famed store The Alley next year. “I hear from customers almost on a daily basis, asking if we’ll reopen,” he told DNAinfo Chicago. “It’s killing me. I’m bored, I miss my customers, and I can’t wait to be with them again.” The Lakeview counterculture store closed in late 2015 after 39 years in the neighborhood. “But it’s really important people start to realize that if they keep buying from Amazon.com, they’re just going to put their cousins and friends out of business,” Thomas said about reopening. [DNAinfo Chicago]