Bloomington Normal is in the hunt for a massive economic development project.a billion dollar electric battery factory on the west side of Normal. It could bring 32-hundred jobs to the twin cities. There have been rumors for a couple years about what extra business Rivian might bring to Bloomington Normal. Last week there was a hint the community is in the running for a big get. Then today Dick Durbin named the prospect, Samsung. Hear reaction from Bloomington Normal Mayors, economic development and transportation leaders, and a state lawmaker for the community.
The McLean County Emergency Management Agency usually spends a lot of time preparing for disasters. But most of the last year and a half have been consumed by, well, emergencies. And they re shorthanded. A great tune and a little reinvention has kept this opera popular for nigh on 300 years. MIOpera begins its season in Bloomington Normal with the Barber of Seville. And, the band Good Morning Bedlam has close harmonies on stage and in the rest of their lives.
The latest trend in wind power is taller turbines with longer blades. That s important for people near two central Illinois wind farms under construction. And a new mental health concern has emerged in Bloomington Normal, re-entry anxiety. A lot of people are eying the sale of Illinois State University s 26 acre Shelbourne Apartments in Normal as a big opportunity. Normal City Manager Pam Reece says any new housing should probably not all be single family homes nor perhaps dense student housing. Plus, central Illinois scientists have found a way to convert wasted bread into a compound found in everything from food to pharmaceuticals, vitamin C.
The Bloomington Normal NAACP starts a youth council. Hear what dreams those young people have for change. And one of the things caused by the pandemic that will remain is a good thing; summer food programs. A lot of Bloomington Normal people whose homes were flooded last month can t dig out by themselves. The Salvation Army has pleas for help from 200 people in 80 families. And Bloomington has had three police chiefs and two interim chiefs in the last year and a half. Hear an interview with the latest to leave and why.
Some suggest Illinois use pandemic relief money to reduce a massive unemployment trust fund debt. Governor JB Pritzker says you can t do that. The Governor, though, is wrong. Other States are doing just that. Plus hear about the state budget deficit and the pension problem in an in-depth interview with Governor Pritzker. And weeks after torrential rains caused more than a thousand homes to flood in Bloomington Normal health officials warn the backed up sewage might still be an issue. The McLean County Health Department Environmental Health Director has more.