April 23, 2026 Chicago Tonight - Full Episode

0:13 Hello and thanks for joining us on Chicago tonight.

0:15 I'm Nick Blumberg.

0:17 Brandis Friedman has the evening off.

0:18 It's what we're looking at.

0:20 It's a good night.

0:22 Were the people of the state of Illinois.

0:26 Illinois House passes a bill boosting large developments.

0:29 But is it enough to move the Chicago Bears?

0:33 Chicago has seen heavy rainfall so far this spring.

0:35 We explore the impact flooding is having on the region and potential solutions.

0:39 And the bears are about to be on the clock.

0:42 The team's biggest need heading into the NFL draft.

0:45 Former Bear James big cat Williams breaks it down for us.

0:51 First off tonight, the CTA gets ready

0:52 to break ground on the long-awaited REDLINE extension.

0:55 The transit agency is planning a ceremonial groundbreaking tomorrow

0:59 on the nearly 6 billion dollar effort to extend

1:01 the city's busiest rail line south from its current

1:04 and point at 95th Street down to 100 30th Street.

1:07 It'll have stops in between at 100rd Street,

1:12 100 11th and Michigan Avenue near 100 16th.

1:14 The project's fate had been uncertain

1:16 after the Trump administration moved to freeze

1:18 some 3 billion dollars in funding for the extension and other efforts.

1:22 Late last month, a federal judge ordered the U.S.

1:27 Transportation Department to pay up.

1:28 Chicago public schools.

1:30 Leaders are offering details on the May 1st day of civic engagement.

1:33 In a letter to family CEO Macklin King assured parents

1:36 that many teachers and staff are planning to join rallies,

1:39 but network and central office staff will fill in at any schools.

1:42 The shortages King also stressed that it will be a full day of instruction.

1:47 All those students may engage in demonstrations

1:49 at their schools or at civic actions.

1:51 Elsewhere with a large afternoon rally planned in Union Park.

1:54 King also said the district approved

1:57 a civics curriculum for classroom discussion.

1:59 The letter comes amid push back to the district's

2:01 move which came after pressure from the Chicago teachers Union.

2:04 A group of parents presented school board members

2:06 a letter today questioning how CPS came to its decision.

2:11 Got more details on our website.

2:14 Cook County celebrates the 60th anniversary

2:16 of Stroger Hospital's trauma unit elected officials,

2:19 staff and former patients stress the importance of the public hospital.

2:21 Specialized care at an event today, leaders touted that structures.

2:26 Trauma and burn unit is the city's only trauma

2:28 unit verified by the American College of Surgeons and patients.

2:32 Thank medical staff for providing care to everyone who needs it.

2:36 I want to inform you all the trauma recovery is does about fixing broken bones.

2:42 But it's about man and a spirit.

2:42 Those were some those are some really dark days in ICU bit.

2:46 But every time I feel like or someone is

2:49 for Was there to remind me that I had a future.

2:50 We're fighting for.

2:55 Bill that could keep the Chicago Bears in Illinois.

2:59 We explain right after this.

3:01 Chicago tonight is made possible in part

3:03 why the Alexander and John Nichols family.

3:05 The Pope Brothers Foundation.

3:10 And the support of these donors.

3:24 an effort to keep the bears this side of the state line is moving forward.

3:28 The Illinois House yesterday passed a so-called mega

3:31 projects bill by a vote of 78 to 32.

3:34 The economic development measure would apply

3:36 to a potential new Bear stadium in Arlington Heights,

3:38 though, the team says it's still looking for more changes.

3:41 Joining us now from Springfield is Brandon Moore,

3:43 statehouse reporter with Capitol News, Illinois.

3:47 Brandon, thanks for being with us of this.

3:49 Bill is different from a measure that we saw back in February.

3:51 What are the key provisions that folks should know?

3:57 Yeah.

3:58 So while the bill that passed February was a mega project Bill,

4:01 this one is a broader economic development bill

4:03 that has a mega project component to it.

4:07 So I would say the biggest difference in terms of the mega

4:11 project aspect is there's a property tax relief provision in there.

4:15 That means that half the pilot payment would go

4:19 to property tax relief concerning taxing districts to a statewide fund.

4:23 But then they're also a lot of provisions in there

4:27 for other economic development measures such as rail yards,

4:31 which can be used in Chicago for perhaps the one central development parcel

4:34 of field or perhaps in the South loop for a White Sox stadium.

4:37 And there's a start on language in there.

4:40 So it really is kind of a Christmas tree.

4:42 And it will be interesting to see how it is received in the Senate.

4:46 Yeah.

4:47 And that pilot payment for folks who aren't familiar with you know,

4:51 outline for us how that would offer something like the Bears

4:54 pretty several decades of of certainty on how much they be paying.

5:01 Yeah.

5:02 So basically payment in lieu of taxes is what pilots and it would

5:07 allow for the Bears negotiate their property taxes with the local taxing bodies.

5:12 In this case Arlington Heights.

5:13 And it would give them some certainty whether going to be pain

5:18 instead of kind of the every year you kind of the women,

5:22 the assessor, in what your what your payment going to be.

5:26 So it kind of gives them that certainly

5:30 they see as necessary to build in Arlington Heights.

5:34 not go to Indiana.

5:37 You mention, you know, some of what the Bears are looking for.

5:38 In a statement.

5:40 They said they welcome the progress,

5:41 but they're looking for additional amendments.

5:42 Do we have any sense of of what else the team is asking for here?

5:49 Yeah, they didn't specify in that statement.

5:51 But if read between the lines,

5:53 I think they're going to want a change to that property tax provision because

5:58 you're putting 50% of the pilot payment

6:01 toward property tax relief, that is money.

6:03 That's not going to go Nestle to the schools

6:08 or to the municipality's and the other taxing districts.

6:11 So the worry with these that they're going to ask for perhaps

6:13 double what they would have originally asked for because they want to get.

6:21 The money for for their services that they provide.

6:25 And not necessarily have it siphoned away for property tax relief.

6:28 So I think that is something that is probably going to be looked at.

6:32 That was language was added in.

6:33 The house was not a negotiated with the governor with the Senate.

6:36 So I think that is something that's probably not going to be revisited.

6:41 We've got to just about 30 seconds left.

6:43 But this has passed the House.

6:44 Do we have any sense of what folks

6:46 in the state Senate or Governor Pritzker think of this measure?

6:53 Yeah.

6:53 So they were very of the governor's office the time ago

6:57 here in the Senate were measured in their reaction to this bill.

7:00 Passing.

7:01 But it seemed pretty clear that they're going to be some changes coming that.

7:06 While kind of the you know,

7:08 got of the governor Governor Pritzker said last week they

7:11 had tied the staff putting of a deal in place.

7:12 I think that's still true.

7:13 I mean, you still have the pilot concept, but some of the details got changed.

7:20 And network really negotiated with either the governor or the Senate.

7:23 And so I think that when the Senate comes back,

7:25 they're going to be some discussions about,

7:29 you know, what can pass their lets people

7:31 in the House and try to get some agreed language.

7:35 And with the Bears to a try to get some

7:37 great language on something that can pass both houses get Governor

7:40 Pritzker's signature something that the Bears would find acceptable in order

7:45 to put some troubles on the ground in Arlington Heights.

7:48 All right.

7:48 We know you'll be keeping an eye on whatever the changes are.

7:50 Brandon Moore, thanks so much for joining us.

7:52 Always a pleasure.

7:53 And you can read Brandon morris full story on our website.

8:00 It's all at W T Tw Dot com Slash news.

8:17 Flooding has always been a threat during Chicago's warmer months,

8:20 but that threat is more and more present in the spring since March.

8:25 Multiple rounds of severe storms have caused not

8:26 only flooding but hail damage and even tornadoes.

8:29 Joining us to discuss flooding its impact

8:31 and how we can manage them are Kevin Fitzpatrick,

8:34 assistant director of engineering at the Metropolitan

8:37 Water Reclamation District and via zoom,

8:40 Ashish arm of the climate and urban sustainability

8:42 lead at the University of Illinois's Discovery Partners Institute.

8:45 Thank you both for being here to to talk about this with us.

8:49 She if I could start with you, please.

8:51 You know, how is climate change affecting

8:53 the threat of severe weather here in Chicago?

8:56 Yeah, thank you for having me.

8:57 I think it's a good question.

8:59 If you look at damage and impact he's seeing or the ministers,

9:06 a backpack, above normal precipitation checked into a storm track 100 buildings.

9:10 So basically the most is a lot

9:14 more warmer than normal speeding up lot questions.

9:16 And then motion is turning into a bit rainfall because

9:18 of higher instability and getting to a of thunderstorms and tornadoes

9:24 as And if you think of a business has become

9:26 a classic recipe for us to get out there and you're like,

9:28 I would just help needed more often.

9:31 Yeah, certainly quite frequent this spring.

9:33 You know, Kevin Fitzpatrick,

9:34 the NW Rd plays a key role here for folks who aren't familiar.

9:37 What infrastructure doesn't manage to help contain floodwater.

9:40 Most people don't realize we are an independent government agency.

9:47 We serve the city of Chicago and 128

9:49 suburbs and we have a stormwater management authority

9:52 that we gained in 2004 as a as a regional

9:54 stormwater district for all of Kerr County.

9:59 And some of the infrastructure we have the tenure

10:01 as our planner deep tunnel as most people know it.

10:03 And we also have.

10:07 Over 35 a storm water reservoirs that help

10:11 prevent over bank flooding from a exacerbating

10:15 it from I guess I leaving the banks of rivers working its way

10:19 into homes and streets and then we

10:23 do stormwater management partnership projects with several

10:25 different partners around the county to put

10:28 in things like green infrastructure conveyance projects,

10:32 stormwater conveyance storage, underground storage projects.

10:35 So we have several We have a very diverse array of projects.

10:41 And, you know, when heavy rains are in the forecast,

10:42 what sorts of things WR do you do to prepare for that?

10:47 Well, one of the things we about over 100 years

10:52 ago now we reversal for the Chicago in Calumet River's.

10:54 I think most people know about that project

10:55 in Chicago is kind of famous for that.

10:59 But as part of that project recreated 76 miles of manmade waterways,

11:06 which we have the ability to somewhat control the level

11:10 of so in advance of a storm we can reduce.

11:13 We can let more water out of those canals downstream

11:17 and create about 5 billion gallons worth a storage in the canals.

11:19 So that when it does rain,

11:22 a lot of that water can be absorbed within the canal itself.

11:27 And of course, is that level does continue to rise during a storm.

11:30 We have the ability to release some of it to Lake Michigan.

11:33 If the lake level is low enough.

11:36 She Sharma, you know,

11:38 we sometimes call floods 50 year floods or 100 year floods.

11:42 I mean, look what exactly, you know, do those phrases mean,

11:43 you know, is that meaning changing as the climate does?

11:49 Yeah, I think those that are going off of flood pitch happens for a specific

11:55 paint them generally that are turning to really send it over to having to do it.

11:57 it has India.

11:58 But happening these days?

11:59 It is committee of storm on the floor.

12:04 In fact, the kissing is not 100 flood.

12:07 It has become 10 to 20 and even take isn't helping.

12:10 The local happened multiple times over the years.

12:12 most especially in the Midwest right now.

12:15 And you've worked on a project to help

12:18 forecast weather sort the individual neighborhood level.

12:21 How do you hope folks can use that tool?

12:25 Yeah, definitely.

12:26 So we all fish another forecasting for the whole state of At one

12:32 it is a mission and the forecast weather for the next 48.

12:35 I from same time the forecast and throw it being

12:37 fought in doesn't because it doesn't all of its case.

12:41 So the different theft over forecasting.

12:45 If the if you see that a substantial don't offend people happening,

12:49 then the and forecasting model and those that up Bismarck

12:54 get tradition of then a condition marked of the big 17,

12:58 is to go into effect The time 2 point,

13:00 if I was in the collaborative depended largely

13:02 on this and be published a minuscule piece in pay and give

13:05 it a proud of the work to provide much

13:09 more nuanced and had a solution forecasting for the region.

13:12 you can go up to a few feet of the solution, employed debt, as Fed spent.

13:18 That's interesting work.

13:18 You know, Kevin Fitzpatrick,

13:19 some of the sewer systems that feed into NW R D Project,

13:23 they can be quite old.

13:26 What sorts of challenges does that present?

13:28 Yeah, it is a huge challenge so that, you know,

13:31 I mentioned earlier that or a plan project, spent a lot of my career on.

13:36 And it's it's really this amazing engineering project.

13:38 It's got 110 miles tunnels underneath.

13:41 Basically every waterway in the Chicagoland area.

13:43 For most of them.

13:46 And it captures flow from local sewers.

13:48 So combined sewers that have both domestic wastewater and rain,

13:55 water previously would discharge to the waterway and put the waterway

13:58 and then the waterways are back up flood people's homes.

14:01 Now it can drive down into the deep tunnel.

14:03 It over 400 locations.

14:05 And when I say deep tunnel 300 you know,

14:10 about the longest once stretches from on comes

14:12 under the North Shore channel through downtown

14:15 and out of the southwest suburb and discharges

14:19 into reservoir which we saw earlier on the show.

14:21 It's an enormous Corey that has been repurposed into this storm.

14:26 Water reservoir.

14:25 So during a storm we can capture up

14:30 to 11 billion gallons of water in the type system.

14:32 And then we hold it until after the storm and then

14:34 pump it back to one of our treatment plants in clean,

14:39 et before returning it to the environment.

14:40 But the problem we're seeing today with climate change and some

14:44 of these more intense storms is that the water can

14:47 even make its way through the local sewers to the deep

14:51 tunnel system so it can back up within the neighborhood.

14:56 So now we're trying to focus how do keep water,

14:58 where it falls through things like

15:02 green infrastructure or little local storage projects.

15:05 Yeah, she Sharma.

15:05 You know what?

15:05 What is some of that look like to have a climate,

15:07 resilient infrastructure in place?

15:11 Yeah, I can put are going to be a great point that the first

15:16 step for us as it rains hoping to contain and slow down.

15:20 The water are absorbed the water it rains and then think

15:24 about it moves and then feel cable can be managed that stage.

15:28 So first as mitigation is because

15:30 as we think about so infrastructure permeable pavement,

15:33 screamed rules, anything that can be a nice slow down the water flow absolve.

15:36 But again, it infiltrated.

15:37 And then can think of how the water can move to a bike

15:41 foot system that they have could use facility and so on.

15:45 And and then all safety and are able to contain it,

15:47 then it becomes the months outflows, including to the dugout and streams.

15:53 So I think solutions of infrastructure,

15:54 maybe you should have to think getting standards in 2 different houses

15:59 and more public awareness of using less water going and the storms less laundry,

16:10 washing utensils and so on and be conservative.

16:14 But even using water.

16:15 Yeah, some of it is, you know, the infrastructure.

16:17 Some of it is the mindset certainly, you know,

16:19 given with that some of the the waterways,

16:21 the tunnels, the reservoirs, all connected.

16:24 How do you try to make sure that, you know,

16:26 failure at one point doesn't cause problems, you know, across the whole system.

16:31 Yeah.

16:31 Well, we believe in a lot of redundancy in our system so that tunnel,

16:36 for example, where it's pumped out.

16:39 We make sure we have totally separate pump stations at it.

16:42 A couple different locations so that if one,

16:46 if something catastrophic happens at pump station,

16:48 were still able pump it out with with another pump station.

16:52 And other than that, we had been are connected systems where we

16:54 can help relieve one area if if another area has a problem.

17:02 So it's not all for lying.

17:04 On one point.

17:05 We've got just about 30 seconds left.

17:07 We mentioned some of the challenges of age, but, you know,

17:11 just working in an urban environment like Chicago,

17:14 what sorts of challenges does that present?

17:15 Very difficult this highly, you know, in dense area.

17:17 There's not a lot of room to put in a new reservoir.

17:22 So we're after do get creative.

17:23 One of one great example as we work with we partnered with the city of Chicago.

17:27 Department of Water Management and Public Schools to transform

17:33 34 asphalt parking lots that are kind of disrepair.

17:36 34 different schools and turned them into beautiful

17:39 play yards for the kids that they could do.

17:42 Outdoor learning in classrooms and stuff like that.

17:46 But the beauty is they now are permeable

17:48 and we can soak water and to them and stored

17:51 underneath them and we can capture up to 6

17:52 and a half million gallons every time it rains.

17:54 We've got to get creative and think of projects like that.

17:58 Yeah, very interesting approach.

17:59 There.

18:00 All right.

18:00 That's all the time we have for this evening.

18:02 Kevin Fitzpatrick, she Sharma, thank you both for your time.

18:04 Thank you, Thank you for Up next,

18:07 breaking down with the Bears might do in the NFL draft.

19:00 Just over an hour.

19:02 The 2026 NFL draft is set to get underway in Pittsburgh with 7 picks.

19:06 Key roster losses and a pivotal year ahead for quarterback Caleb Williams.

19:10 How the Chicago Bears try to shape the future of the franchise.

19:13 Joining us with his thoughts on that is James Big Cat Williams.

19:18 Former Chicago Bears offensive lineman.

19:20 Good to see you.

19:21 Thanks for joining us so.

19:22 The Bears have 7 picks about 4 of them

19:24 in the first 3 rounds on paper sounds pretty solid.

19:27 But, you know, given some of the holes in the roster,

19:30 do you think that's enough to make meaningful You have you have to.

19:34 You have like a ship.

19:35 4 picks in the top 100.

19:38 Eagles picks to be productive.

19:39 You need to be able to figure out guys that are

19:42 going to work well in their system or be offensive.

19:45 We're defensively and they're going to produce for your very might not starters

19:50 right off the might come in play special teams before they move on.

19:53 But they need to be part of the rotation.

19:55 you've got to find those guys.

19:57 Yeah.

19:58 So you know, the Bears traded wide receiver DJ Moore.

20:00 They lost a number of key defensive players in this offseason.

20:04 do think they should be drafting for need

20:06 something like offensive line or edge rusher.

20:09 Should they just be going for the best guy available?

20:10 I think when you're picking a 25 year trying

20:13 to find the best fit for your organization for your team,

20:19 whether it's an offensive lineman or defensive lineman,

20:21 you have to find somebody can come and be productive.

20:25 New characters bring not gonna bring in from one.

20:28 At that, 25 pick just sit on the bench.

20:31 There were.

20:32 So you want somebody that's going to help you

20:34 out along the way and progress as they go along.

20:35 So that's what they're looking There are a lot of holes that you need to fill.

20:41 So we're going to see what they Yeah, I want to come back.

20:43 Some of that.

20:44 First round, though,

20:45 dropping from 10 minutes to 8 minutes for each team to make their pick.

20:49 Do you think that's going to have an impact on teens?

20:51 Don't know.

20:52 I really I really don't know.

20:54 is going to be a very interesting process because,

20:57 you know, about 2 minutes could make a difference.

20:59 You're talking about teams trying to trade teams time to trade back,

21:02 trying to work with 2 or 3 different teams at the same time.

21:05 And now you have a shorter period of time.

21:07 We have to figure that out sitting at home watching also will

21:15 be great going to what it's like watch people calling around be.

21:18 So will be interesting for the people in those words.

21:20 Yeah, I'm always impressed by the folks who are there to win the Brad.

21:24 Yes, there's a lot of and think, oh, yeah.

21:27 just the NFL announced the Bears are not going to receive

21:28 compensatory draft picks after the departure of the former assistant GM,

21:33 Ian Cunningham went to the Atlanta Falcons.

21:36 The formula for this kind situations seems to indicate they should have what

21:40 you make of Like you the formula says they should have gotten the pick.

21:45 For some odd reason,

21:48 the NFL has voted or the man I Chicago shows that's what should wearing.

21:52 A has said that's what should be.

21:54 don't understand why the NFL won't give up that Interesting.

21:58 Okay.

21:59 Well, we've got Caleb Williams heading into his 3rd

22:01 year how evaluate his development so far.

22:05 It's getting better.

22:06 you know, I'm anxious to see year under Ben Johnson

22:08 to see how very what they are able to put together.

22:12 things that he is able to come down in Cairo.

22:16 You know, some of the things you don't want

22:19 him to come down because that's what makes him great.

22:22 But there are certain platforms, certain schedules.

22:25 ban is going to want him to stay on schedule with.

22:28 And once he was able to do that, I

22:31 think that'll make him and all around better point.

22:33 Yeah.

22:34 And having you know, Ben Johnson now in his second season, Caleb, in his 3rd,

22:38 maybe they've they've sort of settled into that to the world more

22:41 and to their relationship or think told from Jump Street know you

22:45 did well last but it's going to get even a little harder

22:48 because I'm going ask more out of want to do more things.

22:53 I'm going to want you to be more productive from Jump Street

22:56 from having to quite quite turnaround jumpers and helped engineer last year.

23:00 All right.

23:01 So talk about the offensive line great last year.

23:04 But senator dominant higher to 27 I to is expected

23:08 to miss a lot of the season with a knee injury.

23:13 How important is it shore up that line?

23:15 I think it's important have breakfast in.

23:17 Jones is going to coming back in from all indications.

23:20 Everybody's talking about looks healthy.

23:22 He looks smaller, you know, more fit now.

23:26 You don't know anything to put the pads to get him lined up

23:31 at left tackle to figure out how Bradbury is going to work at center.

23:36 You still have questions.

23:37 You know, we came into last year's or with questions just far as how well

23:42 Joe and I think we did a good job of Joey and I think Ben Johnson,

23:46 they're a good job of putting them

23:49 in situations where they could succeed now, yes,

23:53 do it all over depending on how everything works Yeah, I mean, how about that?

23:57 It was such a great run last year.

24:00 Do you think fans should expect them to?

24:01 To build on last season's success or might we see a little backsliding?

24:05 That's a hard question to answer because

24:08 you might see a little bit of backsliding,

24:12 but you also might see them as a team play better not have to come

24:14 from behind and so many games not have to use the last to move

24:20 some a game to figure out exactly where this team So if they're able

24:25 if they only may have 10 wins and it's a win less than last year,

24:31 but they did it in good fashion.

24:32 Then OK with that.

24:33 most of the time.

24:34 But we've talked lot about But when you think

24:35 the biggest need is on the defensive side of the ball.

24:39 I'm not sure you need to safety.

24:40 I you to core you definitely need to edge rusher.

24:44 You need a defensive tackle.

24:46 You have positions on the defensive side of the ball that you need

24:50 to work on, that you need to try and get a little better.

24:53 And you've got a connection to Pittsburgh yourself.

24:58 yeah, I'm glad I'm not the route an exciting see them.

25:02 Get a little bit of the spotlight shine

25:04 from weather holds up to be beautiful down there.

25:06 Big-serving for deserved.

25:09 All right.

25:09 Can be very interesting to see what the Bears

25:10 to James Big Cat Williams, thank you so much.

25:12 Thank you.

25:13 And that's our show for this Thursday night.

25:17 Don't forget, you can stream Chicago tonight

25:18 on our W T Tw YouTube Channel every evening.

25:21 Catch up on any programs you may have missed.

25:24 Join us tomorrow night at 5.37, for the week in review.

25:26 Now for all of us here in Chicago tonight, I'm Nick Blumberg.

25:29 Thank you for watching.

25:33 Stay healthy and safe and have a good night.

26:33 Closed captioning is made possible by Clifford and Clifford Law offices,

26:40 Chicago, personal injury and wrongful death with more than 40 years