Had Enough?

Tyler Durden
Mon, 01/26/2026 – 16:20

https://www.zerohedge.com/political/had-enough 

Two partner bills passed the Indiana Senate Thursday that would amend the Indiana constitution as it relates to a judge’s authority in setting bail.

Senate Joint Resolution 1, authored by Sen. Eric Koch, R-Bedford, would allow for a constitutional amendment to state if someone commits a crime other than murder or treason, then a judge could deny bail if there is strong evidence against the defendant or if prosecutors present evidence that withholding bail will ensure the safety of others.

Senate Bill 3, also authored by Koch, provides the ballot question language for the constitutional amendment, which would state: “Currently, under the Constitution of the State of Indiana, a person charged with murder or treason is not entitled to be released on bail if the proof is evident or the presumption strong. Shall the Constitution of the State of Indiana be amended to provide that a person charged with an offense other than murder or treason is not entitled to bail if: (1) the proof is evident or the presumption strong and; (2) the state proves by clear and convincing evidence that no release conditions will reasonably protect the safety of any other person or the community.”

To amend the state constitution, two separately elected state legislatures have to approve a joint resolution. Then, the state legislature has to pass a piece of legislation with the constitutional amendment ballot question, said Indiana University Maurer School of Law professor Jody Madeira.

The resolution to amend the constitution concerning bail passed in the 2023 legislative session. If Senate Joint Resolution 1 and Senate Bill 3 pass this session, voters will be able to vote on the public question in November, Koch said.

Currently, the Indiana constitution requires all defendants to be offered bail unless they are charged with murder or treason, Koch said. In 23 states, courts could deny bail to defendants under certain circumstances and nine states don’t guarantee bail to any defendant, Koch said.

Further, Senate Bill 2, which addresses bail procedures and authored by State Sen. Aaron Freeman, D-Indianapolis, would ensure defendants “have due process protections,” Koch said.

“SJR 1 amends the Indiana constitution to allow courts to hold dangerous suspects without bail if releasing them from jail would threaten the public,” Koch said. “In order to protect Hoosiers from violent crime, SJR 1 would give Indiana’s criminal justice system the flexibility to use a policy that most of the country already enjoys.”

The resolution and the bill are problematic for two reasons: it will raise the county jail populations without additional funding for jails and, if implied loosely, it risks turning pretrial detention into punishment without conviction, Madeira said.

The legislature would be increasing jail costs a year after decreasing county funding through Senate Enrolled Act 1 passed in 2025, Madeira said. Senate Enrolled Act 1 established a new property tax system by saving two-thirds of taxpayers up to $300 on their 2025 property tax bill, while local governments will lose $1.4 billion through 2028.

What’s also concerning, Madeira said, by allowing the judge to deny bail for any crime, there could be a situation where a judge doesn’t like marijuana and is dealing with a marijuana offense. As long as prosecutors say they will present evidence in trial that the defendant possessed marijuana, the judge could decide to hold the defendant without bond, she said.

“In practice, these hearings really happen with little investigation. They happen really quickly. In these hearings, judges rely heavily on hearsay, which can be really problematic,” Madeira said.

When the constitutional amendment was first presented in 2023, it was the year that Illinois’ cash bail law went into effect, Madeira said. It’s possible that Indiana began its change in bail procedure to show it’s tougher than Illinois, she said.

Madeira said it’s likely the pieces of legislation will face legal challenges if passed.

State Sen. Greg Taylor, D-Indianapolis, questioned Koch why the legislature would like to deny bail for all crimes, including a misdemeanor. Koch said that’s not the intent of the constitutional amendment but rather “a larger analysis of the dangerousness of that defendant.”

The argument that the resolution and bill have been proposed to look at the defendant and not the charge “makes this even more egregious,” Taylor said. But, Taylor said he’s glad that ultimately voters will decide if the constitution should be amended to address bail.

“If you don’t think there’s some judges out here that may have a bias in their community of certain people, then you haven’t been to court in Indiana,” Taylor said.

State Sen. Lonnie Randolph, D-East Chicago, suggested the legislature address bail through a statute instead of a constitutional amendment.

State Sen. Rodney Pol. Jr, D-Chesterton, presented an amendment to Senate Bill 3 when it was heard on second reading to include that a defendant of a minor misdemeanor could receive bail. The amendment failed in a voice vote.

When he drafted the ballot question, Koch said his aim was to keep it “accurate, but also as brief as I could and also as neutral as I could.”

Pol said he’s glad that voters will be able to vote on the constitutional amendment.

“I don’t think any of my colleagues, whichever way they vote on this, wants to see violent offenders released to commit crimes when that can be avoided. I think the major concern has always been that the penalty is not abused and that individuals are not set behind the eight ball before they are given their day in court,” Pol said.

For that reason, Pol said he supported Senate Joint Resolution 1 but couldn’t support Senate Bill 3 because he was concerned about how the language would be presented to voters.

Addressing Senate Bill 3, Taylor said the ballot question “is leading” because it doesn’t “tell the whole story.”

“The whole story is this: It doesn’t matter, even from your words, what you’re convinced of or what you’re charged with. It matters who you are,” Taylor said. “You may feel safe in a court of law, Senator Koch, and your constituents may, but if you take a step back and you look at how communities like mine have been treated by this court system … you can’t expect me to stand here and trust the court system with the lives and the freedom of my people.”

Senate Joint Resolution 1 passed the Senate Thursday in a 43-2 vote, with Randolph and Taylor voting against it.

Senate Bill 3 passed the Senate Thursday in a 36-9 vote, with State Sen. David Niezgodski, D-South Bend, joining all Republicans present voting in favor of the bill.

Both bills advance for consideration by the House.

akukulka@post-trib.com

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/01/26/bill-for-constitutional-amendment-to-deny-bail-passes-indiana-senate/ 

An Aurora alderman has launched a citywide program offering rebates to those who have installed solar panels or electric vehicle charging stations at their homes or businesses.

Ald. Will White, at-large, recently announced that this year he’d be committing up to $10,000 in city funds toward the Aurora Solar and EV Charging Rebate Program. Qualifying residents, businesses and nonprofits can get up to $1,000 for installing solar panels or up to $500 for installing electric vehicle chargers.

“If we all work together towards sustainable living, I think Aurora can really be a frontrunner in the state of Illinois when it comes to energy conservation and energy efficiency,” White told The Beacon-News.

He noted that Aurora already has several high-level initiatives related to sustainability, such as its 2019 Sustainability Plan, the newly-created sustainability division and the planned CEJA Workforce Development Hub. With that in mind, he started to consider how residents could get involved.

So, his Aurora Solar and EV Charging Rebate Program will give residents the opportunity to reduce their own impact on global warming and other negative environmental effects, White said.

Because it is a rebate program, any work should already be complete before an application is made, according to White. To qualify, the work needs to have been done last year or this year, so between Jan. 1, 2025, and Dec. 31, 2026, by an electrician or contractor who is licensed by the city and provides evidence of paying prevailing wage, according to the application.

Those who apply must also be in good standing with the city and present a proof of purchase. Plus, they must have obtained all necessary permits, passed required inspections and tried to obtain a quote from a business located within Aurora.

Applications can be found on White’s alderman webpage: yourvoice.aurora.il.us/aldermanatlarge2

“My goal is to have as many people apply now, so towards the end of the year I can explore what this rebate program looks like next year,” he said.

In recent years and particularly under Mayor John Laesch, Aurora has made sustainability a key goal. The city earned a statewide award last year for its commitment to making its fleet of vehicles more sustainable by adding electric and hybrid vehicles, created the first-ever director of sustainability role, started looking into energy stretch code adoption and placed a temporary moratorium on data centers, partially citing environmental reasons.

City staff members are also developing loan programs to support sustainable upgrades for commercial and residential properties. One such program, the Commercial Property Assessed Clean Energy financing program, commonly called C-PACE, is set to go before the Aurora City Council for final approval Tuesday evening.

Sustainability, particularly through green building, was a large part of Laesch’s campaign platform last year. And when he was previously an alderman at-large, Laesch had a similar rebate program to the one White recently launched.

After Laesch was sworn in as mayor and White was appointed to take his place, White said he heard from people who were interested in seeing Laesch’s program continue, so he made some changes and launched it again.

Aldermen are allocated funds each year from the city’s tax on the local Hollywood Casino to spend on those they represent, and White is committing half of his yearly amount to this program.

As for the rest of the funds, White said he has other initiatives he is exploring. One high on his priority list is permanent supportive housing for the city’s homeless population, he said, and another is centered around job opportunities for those who graduate from the planned CEJA Workforce Development Hub.

rsmith@chicagotribune.com

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/01/26/aurora-alderman-launches-rebate-program-for-solar-panels-electric-vehicle-chargers/ 

SANTA ANA, Calif. — A former Canadian Olympic snowboarder turned top FBI fugitive is expected to appear in federal court Monday on charges he allegedly ran a billion-dollar multinational drug trafficking ring and orchestrated multiple killings.

Ryan Wedding, 44, turned himself in at the U.S. Embassy in Mexico City last week and was flown to Southern California after a yearlong effort by authorities in the United States, Mexico, Canada, Colombia and the Dominican Republic to arrest him.

Wedding is scheduled to make an initial appearance in federal court in Santa Ana, California. No attorney was listed for him on the court docket Monday morning.

U.S. authorities believe the former Olympian, who competed in a single event for his home country in the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, had been hiding in Mexico for more than a decade. He was added to the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list last March when authorities offered a $15 million reward for information leading to his arrest and conviction.

Authorities say Wedding moved as much as 60 tons of cocaine between Colombia, Mexico, Canada and Southern California and believe he was working under the protection of the Sinaloa Cartel, one of Mexico’s most powerful drug rings.

He was indicted in 2024 on federal charges of running a criminal enterprise, murder, conspiring to distribute cocaine and other crimes.

The murder charges accuse Wedding of directing the 2023 killings of two members of a Canadian family in retaliation for a stolen drug shipment, and for ordering a killing over a drug debt in 2024. Last year, Wedding was indicted on new charges of orchestrating the killing of a witness in Colombia to help him avoid extradition to the U.S.

Wedding was previously convicted in the U.S. of conspiracy to distribute cocaine and sentenced to prison in 2010. Online records show he was released from Bureau of Prisons custody in 2011.

In Canada, Wedding faces separate drug charges dating back to 2015.

The 2024 indictment says Wedding ran a billion-dollar drug trafficking group that was the largest supplier of cocaine to Canada. The group obtained cocaine from Colombia and worked with Mexican cartels to move drugs by boat and plane to Mexico and then into the U.S. using semitrucks, the indictment said. It said the group stored cocaine in Southern California before sending it to Canada and other U.S. states.

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/01/26/ryan-wedding-ex-olympic-snowboarder-drug-smuggling/ 

Many of Chicago’s top chefs and restaurateurs gathered Sunday night in the Loop for the annual Banchet Awards to celebrate the excellence, depth and diversity of the city’s food community.

More than 400 guests attended the ceremony at Venue SIX10, which was live-streamed for the first time on NBC. And outside in the cold and snow, protestors marched for 37-year-old Alex Pretti, an intensive care unit nurse who was fatally shot by a federal immigration agent in Minnesota last week.

During the ceremony, the politics of the moment were not ignored, with several award winners using the stage to speak out against the aggressive immigration enforcement that’s gripping the country. 

Fresh off its first Michelin star and a James Beard Award semifinalist nod, Feld took home the award for Best New Restaurant and Best Hospitality.  

Feld chef Jake Potashnick ended his speech at the podium with “Screw ICE.” 

On Monday morning, Potashnick told the Tribune that he’s lucky to have a small platform to be able to say something about the political climate that’s terrorizing immigrant communities.

Chef and owner Jake Potashnick, center, goes over the evening’s details with his staff before dinner service at Feld on Nov. 20, 2025, in Chicago. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune)

“I am a member of the hospitality industry, which historically is an access point for immigrants to get a foot in the door, to follow the old mentality of the American dream of working your way up,” Potashnick said. “But regardless of if I was in the restaurant industry or not — It’d be outspoken right now. This is not far away. This is not a CNN story about somewhere across an ocean. (Minnesota) is a two-hour drive from here. We have service daily and we have to put away these feelings and work, but it’s not easy to pretend that everything’s OK.” 

Still, comical moments were sprinkled throughout the ceremony. 

The Wieners Circle’s infamous foul-mouthed Roberta “Poochie” Jackson presented Best Hospitality to Feld’s Nathan Ducker. 

“I better be nominated next year,” she said to roars of laughter. 

And the Banchet’s executive director Michael Muser poked at food influencers, made fun of the rising popularity of alcohol-free wine and jabbed at some restaurants using AI for creating recipes. 

“AI can have a part of what we do,” Muser said. “But I promise you, Chicago restaurants are made with human hands, human hearts, and that is something that no robot can replace.”

On Monday, Muser said being in that room was a reminder that food brings people together, especially in moments when emotions are running “high beyond the walls of our restaurants.” 

“Chicago’s chefs and restaurant teams have always shown up for one another with empathy, generosity and mutual respect, and that sense of community was palpable throughout the night,” Muser told the Tribune. “The awards exist to celebrate excellence, but they also reflect the way this industry supports people first and that is something I am deeply proud of.” 

During the ceremony, organizers played a projected slide showing local restaurants with “Hands Off Chicago” signs in their windows. The moment drew intense applause.

In the fall, restaurants and cafes in neighborhoods like Bridgeport, Pilsen and further south, to ones in the northwest such as Logan Square and Avondale, put up signs barring immigration agents from entering. Those solidarity signs continue to be a quieter approach to denouncing ICE, but a powerful display of businesses knowing their rights. 

Chef John Manion at El Che Bar, 845 W. Washington Blvd. in Chicago, June 7, 2018. (Terrence Antonio James/Chicago Tribune)

John Manion of El Che and Brasero, who was named Chef of the Year, said in his acceptance speech that Chicago is a city known for standing up for each other. 

“There’s so many people in this room that I don’t know (who) have dropped everything to help people they don’t know,” Manion said. “When people come in from out of town, they always ask, ‘What makes Chicago different?’ And it is that we stand up for each other, we look out for each other. Now more than ever, (it’s) super important, but I’m just proud to be a little part of this.”

Earlier this month, Manion’s restaurants participated in “Todos Ponen: Una Noche de Pueblos y Platillos,” which raised money to provide direct grocery support for Latino families in Little Village, McKinley Park, Pilsen, Logan Square, Hermosa, Avondale and Belmont Cragin. The 125 families who received gift cards to local supermercados have experienced increased food insecurity driven by fear, job loss and limited safe access to grocery stores because of increased immigration enforcement activity in Chicago. 

Other big wins of the night included Justin Lerias of Del Sur Bakery, who was named Pastry Chef of the Year. At 24 years old, Lerias has drawn long lines at his hyperseasonal farm-to-pastry-box cafe in the Lincoln Square neighborhood with his highly coveted Filipino-flavored pastries.

In his heartfelt speech, Lerias said one of his overarching goals is to provide an example of treating restaurant workers with respect and fair wages, while still being financially successful. 

Owners Justin Lerias with his mother Merle Lerias at Del Sur Bakery on Oct. 16, 2025, in Chicago. (Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune)

River North’s Indienne — Chicago’s first Indian restaurant to earn a Michelin star — received the ceremony’s top award: Restaurant of the Year. 

On Monday, Indienne chef Sujan Sarkar, whose recently opened Nadu was just named a James Beard semifinalist for Best New Restaurant, said the Banchet award reaffirms his team’s culinary direction and mission.

“It is truly special and not just for Indienne, but for the evolution of Indian cuisine in America,” Sarkar said. 

This is Indienne’s second Banchet Award. It won Best New Restaurant in 2023. 

“I’m deeply grateful to Chicago for believing in our vision,” Sarkar added. 

And the lifetime achievement honor was given to chef Grant Achatz of Alinea, presented by former longtime Tribune restaurant critic Phil Vettel.

“One could argue that this chef belongs to the world and maybe the ages, but to me, he’s ours,” Vettel said to Achatz. “A Midwestern boy, who for 20 years has been Chicago’s standard bearer for culinary iteration and excellence.”

Accepting the honor with a standing ovation, Achatz held Chicago in high regard.

“It’s an extraordinarily rarefied space to wake up every day and eagerly race to work to make core memories for our guests and ourselves,” he said. “I still do that every day and it makes me very happy, most of the days.”

Alinea chef/owner Grant Achatz on April 23, 2025. The lifetime achievement honor was given to Achatz. (E. Jason Wambsgans/Chicago Tribune)

Complete list of 2026 Banchet Award winners

Related Articles

Bar of the Year or Beverage Program of the Year: Gus’ Sip & Dip – Kevin Beary and Scott Kitsmiller

Sommelier of the Year: Alex Cuper – El Che, Brasero

Rising Chef: Javauneeka Jacobs – Frontera Grill

Best New Restaurant: Feld

Best Counter Service: Sanders BBQ Supply

Best Hospitality: Feld

Iconic Restaurant (25+ years): Gene & Georgetti

Best Design: The Alston

Best Neighborhood Restaurant: Mahari

Best Heritage Restaurant:  Nine Garden (Chinatown)

Pastry Chef of the Year: Justin Lerias – Del Sur Bakery

Chef of the Year: John Manion – El Che, Brasero

Restaurant of the Year: Indienne

Culinary Excellence (Lifetime Achievement): Grant Achatz

Big screen or home stream, takeout or dine-in, Tribune writers are here to steer you toward your next great experience. Sign up for your free weekly Eat. Watch. Do. newsletter here.

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/01/26/jean-banchet-awards-winners-2026/ 

Christine Livingston was born and raised in Northwest Indiana, and when she thinks of the region, she thinks of two things: sand and steel.

“I guess that’s what really motivated me,” said Livingston, president and CEO of Indiana Dunes Tourism. “I feel like this is an authentic telling of our story. … We’re celebrating our industrial heritage, and we’re celebrating the Indiana Dunes and the natural asset in Lake Michigan. It needs to be protected and cherished, but at the same time, there’s more to this destination than just going to the beach.”

The Portage Lakefront and Riverwalk (Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore) in Portage, Indiana with U.S. Steel plant in the background on Tuesday, Sept. 28, 2021. (Jose M. Osorio/ Chicago Tribune)

Through her work as president and CEO of Indiana Dunes Tourism, Livingston started the “Sand + Steel” initiative, which works with organizations, businesses, artists and communities regionwide to create partnerships and a tourism brand.

The initiative highlights the Indiana Dunes and beaches on Lake Michigan and the steel industry that has called Northwest Indiana home.

Livingston started the initiative by having “informal focus groups” with different community leaders, including mayors, business leaders or local organizations.

“What I found was, after a few months of having conversations with people and trying to get merchandise in our gift shop, it was a very strong brand,” Livingston said.

Items from the soon-to-be released Sand+Steel collection, including a special coffee blend from FLUID Coffee, on left, and a clay mug created by Duneland Pottery sit on display on a shelf at the Indiana Dunes Visitor Center in Chesterton on Monday, Jan. 26, 2026. (Kyle Telechan/for the Post-Tribune)

The Northwest Indiana Forum has worked with Indiana Dunes Tourism through the “Sand + Steel” initiative, said Heather Ennis, president and CEO. Her organization has been part of the initiative for about a year and a half, Ennis said.

The Northwest Indiana Forum has worked with Indiana Dunes Tourism to create a new South Shore poster to help advertise the initiative. Ennis is excited to see how the initiative will continue to grow.

“Seeing all the voices at the table and seeing people really excited about the ways to engage the assets along Lake Michigan, whether they be industrial or natural, is really exciting,” Ennis said. “I think this gives us a platform to embrace who we are and the great things that come to our region.”

Kris Krouse, executive director of Shirley Heinze Land Trust, said the initiative is important for his organization. Representatives from Indiana Dunes Tourism asked Krouse to help showcase the natural areas that are preserved in the region.

Items from the soon-to-be released Sand+Steel collection sit on display on a shelf at the Indiana Dunes Visitor Center in Chesterton on Monday, Jan. 26, 2026. (Kyle Telechan/for the Post-Tribune)

Shirley Heinze Land Trust is creating discovery trails that will lead visitors through different areas of the region, where they could find activities and amenities they might not otherwise find, Krouse said.

“It’s nice to have partners that want to highlight and feature these natural areas that are an important part of our region and important to our quality of life,” Krouse said. “We have so many rare and unique ecological gems in the region, and we need to create and bolster a sense of pride in where we live.”

The South Shore Convention and Visitors Authority has been an important partner for Indiana Dunes Tourism, Livingston said.

“(Indiana Dunes Tourism) is a great partner of ours, and we’re excited to support their vision and help tell the story of Northwest Indiana’s past and future,” said Heather Becerra, chief marketing officer for the SSCVA. “We have an area that was shaped by hard work, and we have natural beauty, and we need to own both of them.”

Indiana Dunes Tourism Retail Director Linda Pallo holds a “Sand + Steel” coffee roast from FLUID Coffee as she shows various items that will be part of the organization’s Sand + Steel initiative at the Indiana Dunes Visitor Center on Monday, Jan. 26, 2026. (Kyle Telechan/for the Post-Tribune)

Becerra expects that residents and tourists will see smaller projects throughout the region that support the “Sand + Steel” initiative. The SSCVA plans to install wayfinding signage along U.S. Route 12 that fits the initiative’s design, and the group will install discovery hubs at South Shore train stations that will guide visitors throughout the region.

“Hopefully, in the next six months or a year, we’ll have some different things in place,” Becerra said. “I think it’s something that’s going to happen over many years, just to make it a stronger project.”

The organization’s South Shore Gift Shop, 7770 Corinne Drive in Hammond, also sells “Sand + Steel” merchandise from local artisans, including Jeff Layman, co-owner of RustiX, a small business that creates art pieces out of layering wood.

Layman will use reclaimed, weathered, rustic or new wood for each piece, which is cut out of a solid piece of wood. From that, he will make a frame and use cutouts to create a picture. Layman’s wife will pick colors for the wood before they stain and place it into the frame.

Layman is from Northwest Indiana, and he likes this work to center around the region. For the “Sand + Steel” initiative, he created a piece that shows a beach and a steel mill in the background.

RustiX became part of the initiative after the SSCVA asked him to sell his work in the Hammond gift shop. They connected Layman to Indiana Dunes Tourism to also be included in their gift shop.

“It’s super exciting to be part of this,” Layman said. “The dunes are ingrained in the region, and I don’t think a lot of people take advantage of the dunes as much as they should. Both my grandparents and my dad retired from the mills, so we’re a steel mill family. … They’re a huge part of the infrastructure in this region.”

Through the “Sand + Steel” initiative, Fluid Coffee Roasters is selling coffee grounds in the Indiana Dunes Tourism Center’s gift shop, said Founder Alison Scates. The business, which has six locations throughout the region, plans to open a small cafe in the visitor center, which will also feature the “Sand + Steel” coffee.

The coffee is an organic Colombian roast, according to Fluid’s website, and has notes of apricot, mandarin zest, cocoa butter and blackberry.

“People are really enjoying it,” Scates said. “It’s definitely for a coffee connoisseur. … Our coffee is definitely an experience, and this has some traditional coffee feelings and notes to it, like chocolate and nuttiness, but it also has fruit notes to it, which makes it a really nice, fine coffee. I’m excited about it.”

One community partner working on the “Sand + Steel” initiative is the city of Gary. Christopher Harris, executive director of redevelopment, said the city carries “great responsibility” in acknowledging the history of the region.

“It’s important for us to be able to tell that story and be part of that identity and really reclaim our narrative as a city,” Harris said. “We’re really grateful to be able to participate in that way and curate our story.”

Gary has access to the Indiana Dunes National Park, and it’s home to U.S. Steel’s Gary Works facility, which Harris believes makes the city the intersection for sand and steel, he said.

Through the initiative, the city is updating signage and working on art installations that tie into the “Sand + Steel” theme.

“I think, for so long, we’ve allowed other people to define us,” Harris said. “I think that if you go back through time, you can see that’s how we’ve marketed ourselves. Sand and steel are our roots.”

Livingston is excited to see how “Sand + Steel” will continue to grow, and she believes it will help increase not only tourism, but pride in Northwest Indiana.

“I’ve been here my whole life,” she said. “I’m really passionate about the area, to be able to make a positive change and work with others that are working toward the same positive change.”

mwilkins@chicagotribune.com

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/01/26/indiana-dunes-tourism-links-heart-of-region-through-sand-steel/ 

David Dech was hired Monday as the third president and general manager of the Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District, effective March 16.

“Today is a very historic day in the history of the South Shore Line,” board attorney Chuck Lukmann told the NICTD board.

The agency, created in 1977, has had only two presidents, Jerry Hanas and Mike Noland, in its 48-year history.

Dech is currently executive director of the South Florida Regional Transportation Authority, serving three counties in the Miami area.

Sunday, he rode a South Shore train. “I can tell you it was a much better first impression” than when he first rode a South Florida RTA train, Dech said.

Prior to South Florida, Dech was head of a similar agency in Austin, Texas.

He’s familiar with Northwest Indiana from his days with CSX, when he was an engineer running trains through the region from Ohio to the Chicago area.

“It is really going to be just a fantastic experience” to build on things here, Dech told the board.

“Good people trump good weather. I did lose 100 degrees coming up here,” he said in the comfortable boardroom while the wind chill outside was -3 degrees. When he interviewed with CSX in 1994, it was a polar vortex then, too.

He and his wife are happy to return to the Midwest. “We haven’t been truly happy since we left the Midwest,” Dech said.

“I can’t wait to get started and work with every one of you,” he said.

“I’m a little bit intimidated by the enormous pair of shoes that I’m going to try and fill,” Dech said.

The strong state support for the South Shore Line is ideal, he said. “The sky’s the limit after that.”

Dech comes after completion of the Double Track NWI project to speed travel along the east-west Lakeshore Corridor and as the West Lake Corridor, now dubbed the Monon Corridor, prepares to begin service between Hammond and Dyer.

David Dech takes over as president and general manager of the Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District on March 16, 2026. (Doug Ross/for Post-Tribune)

Dech said he has some ideas to boost ridership, which, like other commuter rail lines, hasn’t fully recovered from the pandemic.

“Leaving this job is difficult,” Noland said, but knowing Dech will succeed him makes him happy. “I’ll have the confidence to sleep at night knowing the railroad is in great hands.”

“It’s now positioned to grow and change direction, whatever you want it to do,” Noland said. “I’ve enjoyed every step of it along the way,”

Noland originally expected to retire last May but postponed it because of delays with the West Lake Corridor project.

Noland is chairman emeritus of the Commuter Rail Coalition, of which Dech is vice chairman. “You can figure out that Dave is now referred to as Mr. High Speed Rail,” Noland said, because of his agency’s proximity to a high-speed rail line and congressional testimony about the industry.

NICTD board chair Lindsay Quist thanked Noland for his service and said she is excited to have Dech come on board.

“A good process will yield a great result,” Valparaiso Mayor and NICTD board member Jon Costas said.

“We have certainly been blessed, Northwest Indiana, with two really great leaders,” he said, and Dech exhibits that same kind of leadership.

St. Joseph County Commissioner and NICTD board member Carl Baxmeyer praised Noland. “The thing that struck me from Day 1 is your organization and your leadership,” he said.

Baxmeyer has been here since just after Hanas was hired, he said. “This organization has been tremendous since the beginning.”

To Dech, Baxmeyer said, “A lot of times you were sent in to repair problems,” but now he gets to build something.

Gary Mayor Eddie Melton, also a NICTD board member, said former U.S. Rep. Pete Visclosky taught him not to try to master all subjects but to find experts in each field. He’s looking forward to working with Dech.

“This is one of the most crown jewel assets in the region that I think is really going to take us to the next level,” as people across the country look to relocate here, Melton said.

“You have a tremendous legacy that you’re leaving behind,” he told Noland,

Board member Jim Arnold, who grew up in Michigan City, said he used to cross that track every day, wondering where all those riders were going.

Arnold was serving in the Indiana Senate when he met Noland. “I knew at that time I met a special individual.”

Having just two leaders in almost 50 years shows the railroad’s success, he said.

“Listening to you has reminded me a lot of Mike,” Arnold told Dech.

“You do get to blame me with all the decisions I’ve made,” Noland quipped in addressing Dech. Noland will stay on as an adviser until June 30, after his term as president and general manager ends March 16.

Lukmann said the search began 10 months ago. The initial 28 candidates were narrowed to six last fall, four internal and two external, then narrowed even further until Dech was hired.

“There are only 31 commuter rail districts in this country, plus Amtrak,” Lukmann said.

The South Shore Line will be Dech’s first railroad running on electricity, not diesel.

Doug Ross is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/01/26/south-shore-line-hires-new-president/ 

NEW YORK — Two artifacts found at a lake shore in Greece are the oldest wooden tools to be uncovered so far and date back 430,000 years.

One is a spindly stick about 2 1/2 feet long that could have been used for digging in the mud. The other is a smaller, more mysterious handheld chunk of willow or poplar wood that may have been used to shape stone tools, according to research published Monday in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Scientists think ancient humans wielded a whole litany of tools made from stone, bone and wood. But it’s particularly difficult to find evidence of wooden tools today because wood rots so quickly. Such tools are only preserved in specific environments like in ice, caves or underwater.

The newest tools, found in Greece’s Megalopolis basin, were possibly buried quickly by sediment and preserved by a wet environment over time. For years, researchers have found other remnants at the site, including stone tools and elephant bones with cuts on them. While scientists didn’t directly date the wooden tools, the site is about 430,000 years old, which provides insight into the objects’ age.

“I’ve always just been thrilled to be able to touch these objects,” said study author Annemieke Milks with the University of Reading.

Human remains haven’t been found at the site yet, so it’s not yet clear who used the tools. The owners could have been Neanderthals, early human ancestors or someone else.

The site in Greece probably has more gems from the past that are waiting to be found, said archaeologist Jarod Hutson with the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History. But the unassuming appearance of these two new tools makes them harder to interpret.

“It’s difficult to get excited about these because they don’t strike you immediately as wooden tools. And we don’t know what they were used for,” said Hutson, who was not involved with the new study.

Other examples of ancient wooden tools include a set of spears from Germany and 300,000-year-old Chinese digging sticks that may have been used to harvest plants.

The new find offers a rare look into the varied collection of tools used to survive — a glimpse at a “little known aspect of the technology of early humans,” study author Katerina Harvati with the University of Tübingen said in an email.

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/01/26/ancient-wooden-tools-greece/ 

Niles mayor George Alpogianis promises the renaissance of Niles will continue in 2026, as the village works closely with Golf Mill mall redevelopers, reimagines the property surrounding the Leaning Tower YMCA and ushers in new residential and retail developments.

Additionally, two advisory referendums will be on the March 17 primary ballot seeking to gauge how residents feel about funding a free bus service and if they would consider autonomous cars in the village.

Pace and free bus service. Advisory referendum to ask about Waymo.

Alpogianis told Pioneer Press that he expects a new contract with Pace bus service soon regarding the free bus service that had been running in the village since the 1970s before it came to a halt last fall. The service stopped in September when it was discovered the village was no longer insured or indemnified by Pace.

Since then, village leaders have been negotiating a new contract with Pace, and Alpogianis hopes to restart the service in late February at a cost to the village of about $600,000 – with Pace paying $1 million toward the transit service, he said.

Meanwhile, he wants to put forth an advisory referendum to determine if the ridership for the free bus service is still there and if any changes to the routes are needed to better serve the community.

A Waymo vehicle sits near a curb Dec. 27, 2025, in San Francisco. The mayor of Niles is considering asking residents, via a ballot referendum, about bringing such autonomous vehicles to Niles. (Armando L. Sanchez/Chicago Tribune)

“I really want our citizens to have a good, solid understanding of where they’re money is going,” Alpogianis said. “I want to be transparent.”

He said he also wants to be innovative in Niles, and is planning a second advisory referendum tapping residential input on autonomous, or self-driving cars.

A recent visit to see his daughter in San Francisco introduced him to autonomous – self-driving taxicabs. Admittedly, he said it was a little weird to ride in one but he knows the west coast trend could eventually make its way to the midwest.

“I want to be a proactive mayor, I want to get ahead of this, what do you think of this?” Alpogianis said of asking residents to put in a vote for introducing autonomous vehicles in Niles.

Waymo, the autonomous vehicles in San Francisco, also operate in Los Angeles, Phoenix, Atlanta and Austin, Texas. The company owner, Google parent Alphabet Inc., plans to expand to more than 20 other cities across the globe, including the U.S. cities of St. Louis, Philadelphia, Baltimore and Miami.

While Alpogianis looks into bringing such self-driving taxis to Niles, Alphabet has met with hurdles in its effort to market Waymos in Illinois. The Tribune reported in December that opinions are mixed on the driverless vehicles. While there is a bill in Springfield that could pave the way for autonomous vehicles to operate in the state, the measure has not moved through the legislature.

Additionally, the Associated Press recently reported that rideshare companies in San Francisco are protesting autonomous vehicles there.

Golf Mill mall redevelopment

Alpogianis remains optimistic that the $443 million retail/residential redevelopment of Golf Mill Shopping Center will move forward as planned in 2026.

Considered the “jewel of Niles for decades,” village leaders have been working closely with the Sterling Organization, the West Palm Beach, Florida-based owners of Golf Mill Shopping Center. Sterling purchased the property in 2014 from the Cuneo Family, who developed the popular mall in the 1950s. However, last May, Sterling floated the idea of selling the property as a way to attract new investors for the redevelopment of the 79-acre site.

“They originally were going to start (demolition) in late September but something happened with the funding,” Alpogianis said.

Easels display renderings of what the redeveloped Golf Mill Shopping Center could look like after renovations are completed. The public had a chance to see them at a June 10, 2024 Open House hosted by the village of Niles and Sterling Organization, Golf Mill’s developer and owner. (Pam DeFiglio/Pioneer Press)

The mayor explained that Sterling notified the village they were putting the property up for sale last summer.

“They were just casting a wider net,” Alpogianis said about the mall owner. “They would be the master developer and bring investors in for the residential and retail components.

The Leaning Tower YMCA building in Niles was demolished April 30, 2025. The Leaning Tower of Niles, left, the 90-year-old half-scale replica of the Leaning Tower of Pisa, remains standing. (Audrey Richardson/Chicago Tribune)

“We did our redevelopment agreement,” Alpogianis said, “it’s in their hands now. I truly believe something will happen this year.”

The Village Board approved a Redevelopment Agreement in 2024, providing a pay-as-you-go tax increment financing incentive up to $96 million for the planned, mixed-use development which village leaders hope will include retail, residential, restaurants, entertainment, medical offices, a hotel and personal services.

Leaning Tower YMCA

Last summer, Alpogianis drove an excavator on the site of the former Niles Leaning Tower YMCA, at 6300 Touhy Ave. It was the first step in tearing down the building constructed in the 1960s adjacent to the village’s landmark Leaning Tower of Niles, a half-scale replica of Italy’s Leaning Tower of Pisa.

The village bought the former 6.6-acre YMCA site at a cost of $2.1 million. The building was shuttered in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic, then the village spent $1.1 million to demolish it.

The property is on the south end of 8 acres of land the village purchased from Grainger in 2019. Alpogianis hopes to redevelop the entire area into a new downtown for Niles.

“We’re in the honeymoon, ‘imagine this’ type of phase,” Alpogianis told Pioneer Press. “We’re trying to figure out what we want to do there. We’re engaging with area building owners; we know we want some green space there, entertainment, shopping, residential. There’s a lot of interest in mixed-use there.”

Although the mayor doesn’t anticipate any building on that site this year, he said there’s a lot of discussion around the “imagination and planning stage” of the property.

Village Hall Plaza

The renovation of Village Hall Plaza is now complete, the mayor said. Village leaders have described it as “a fresh, modern look with a ground level plaza for events, programs and leisure.”

The project, Alpogianis said, cost $2.2 million. However, the village received a $1.8 million grant from the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity for the construction. In October, a new piece of art was installed at the site. “Open Symmetry” is a circular, stainless steel structure designed by artist Virginio Ferrari. The mayor described the art piece as representing togetherness – which he hopes will bring people from the community together at the new Village Hall Plaza.

In addition to Village Hall, he said the family services building is in need of updating, and the senior center is expanding. Village leaders are planning to put the teen center inside the senior center and may explore additional intergenerational programming.

A new nest at the site of the White Eagle

Another Niles institution, White Eagle Events and Convention Center, closed its doors at the end of 2025 after 78 years. It was a mainstay in the Polish community, hosting events for up to 1,500 people, and was visited by late President Jimmy Carter and Pope John Paul II.

Alpogianis said Noah Properties purchased the property and will demolish the building, at 6839 N. Milwaukee Ave., beginning in January with plans to build 18 to 20 townhouses and 334 luxury rental apartments. The same developer recently completed another 180-unit luxury rental apartment complex nearby at 6633 N. Milwaukee Ave.

Elizabeth Owens-Schiele is a freelancer.

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/01/26/plans-for-niles-in-2026/