Chicago's OEMC races to finish street closures for weekend's NASCAR event
"It's gonna be crazy, to be honest."
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"It's gonna be crazy, to be honest."
City leaders said, for months, they have worked on several exercises and workshops to handle additional crowds and street closures in and around Grant Park.
The streets are always talking, but they'll soon be booming in downtown Chicago, as NASCAR's first-ever street race is set to take place in Grant Park on July 1 and 2. CBS 2's Matt Zahn spoke with one would-be spectator who will now be driving for the checkered flag on race day.
CBS 2 Photojournalist Mark Losiniecki got a sneak peak at the racecourse for the upcoming NASCAR Chicago Street Race.
Sherman is a former NASCAR and Indy Car driver, but he hasn't competed full-time since 2008, and his last race was at Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet in 2016.
CBS 2 crews spotted officers and police tape near the skate park in Grant Park following the incident.
Pride in the Park was under way in Grant Park Friday, and security was tight amid increased anti-LGBTQ+ sentiment around the country. CBS 2's Marybel Gonzalez reports.
At the entrance, every bag was checked, and every ticketholder was scanned.
We are just over a week away from the big race, and driving around Grant Park is about to become more difficult. Kris Habermehl reports from Chopper 2.
The two-day event is billed as the Midwest's largest LGBTQ+ music festival.
Pride in the Park is back for its fourth year at Butler Field in Grant Park. The two-day event is billed as the Midwest's largest LGBTQ+ music festival.
The club says they've decided to close Monroe station until Sunday, July 2.
Most detours will begin next Monday.
It's going to be a summer of racing in Chicago, starting this weekend with SailGP on Lake Michigan, and then in a couple of weeks, the NASCAR street race in Grant Park.
The series at the Pritzker Pavilion continues through Aug. 19.
The biggest upcoming road closure will be southbound DuSable Lake Shore Drive, which will be closed from Randolph Street to McFetridge Road starting June 28. City officials expect to reopen those lanes by July 4.
With 18 days before NASCAR's first-ever street race starts rolling through downtown Chicago, city officials on Tuesday talked more about the restrictions drivers will soon see near Grant Park.
Preparations for next month's NASCAR Chicago Street Race are well underway near Grant Park. Chopper 2 was over Ida B. Wells Drive, which has been closed from Michigan Avenue to Columbus Drive, where grandstands were erected. It's around where the future start/finish area will be.
A reminder for those who drive or walk near Grant Park: starting Friday night, Ida B. Wells Drive will close from Michigan Avenue to Columbus Drive. The sidewalks along the route will be inaccessible too.
You'll notice a few more changes around Grant Park starting this morning as the city prepares to host the upcoming NASCAR Chicago street race.
The NASCAR race and related events are happening the first weekend of July.
Two-time Daytona 500 champ Dale Earnhardt Jr. won't be racing next month, but he gave the course through Grant Park a test run on Wednesday – in an SUV in regular traffic.
In exactly one month, some of the fastest and most skilled drivers in the world will be unleashed on the streets of Chicago. It's all legal, of course, during the first-ever NASCAR street race, which will come to Grant Park on the first weekend of July.
They'll be at Buckingham Fountain near Ida B. Wells and Columbus.
Chicago leaders gathered for a ceremony in Grant Park. A rifle salute paid tribute to those who made the ultimate sacrifice defending our nation's freedom.
Skylar Diggins led Chicago (6-14) with 19 points and Kamilla Cardoso had 16 points and 10 rebounds.
The tree ended up through the windshield, just centimeters from the passenger's face.
Police released a photo of the suspect they said killed one man and injured two others in the Greater Grand Crossing neighborhood on June 29.
Park Ridge police said the worker was caught on surveillance video hitting the child in the chest and stomach while the child was lying on the floor.
Joliet police said officers assigned to the fireworks display at the park responded to reports of a group of juveniles causing a disturbance at the playground near Bluff Street, south of Jefferson Street Friday night.
President Trump hasn't committed to a firm number of people who will receive clemency — he's scheduled to have a meeting on pardons Friday afternoon, sources said.
Dr. Debra Houry, who resigned in protest from the health agency, said the spread of misinformation impacted lives.
David Hearn is accused of ripping out a piece of sealant on the bottom of the Reflecting Pool on June 19, U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro said.
Illinois House Speaker Emanuel "Chris" Welch is making moves to remove state Rep. Harry Benton (D-Plainfield) from office.
Special Agent-in-Charge Douglas DePodesta, who has led FBI Chicago for the past three years, is leaving his post on July 6.
Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul this week warned residents cleaning up from last month's storms to be on the lookout for scams.
Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker on Thursday signed several new consumer protections into law, including a ban on junk fees.
CBS News Chicago has learned that Illinois home insurance premiums are not only higher than the nation's average, but going up faster too.
As an alternative to legalizing video gambling terminals citywide, Bally's offered to open slot machine lounges at O'Hare and Midway, saying the move would replace the $6.8 million the city budgeted from VGTs.
An Illinois law banning "swipe fees" on taxes and tips — already delayed twice by lawmakers — appears to be on life support after a federal judge that once permitted it issued a permanent injunction against it this week.
In a major turnaround in the opioid crisis, overdose deaths are falling across Chicago and Cook County.
The north Chicago suburb of Glenview became the latest Illinois municipality this week to confirm mosquitoes testing positive for the West Nile virus this year.
Environmental and community groups are suing the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for failing to act on a petition challenging U.S. Steel Gary Works operating permit renewal.
In the four years since Roe v. Wade was overturned and Illinois became a destination for abortion care, Illinois providers and advocates have rebuilt the state's infrastructure to support the tens of thousands of people who travel to the state for abortion services every year.
June is National Aphasia Awareness Month, raising awareness of a disorder that affects a person's ability to speak, write, and understand both spoken and written language.
The Chicago Bears this weekend said they are assessing land at Wolf Lake Terminals in Hammond, Indiana, for a possible new stadium.
As an alternative to legalizing video gambling terminals citywide, Bally's offered to open slot machine lounges at O'Hare and Midway, saying the move would replace the $6.8 million the city budgeted from VGTs.
Daley's Restaurant, known as Chicago's oldest, has served Chicago's Woodlawn neighborhood for more than 130 years.
Walgreens is set to close in Chicago's Chatham neighborhood on Thursday, and there's growing concern about where families will get their medications.
The owners of Gene & Georgetti steakhouse are suing a concessions operator over their expansion at Midway International Airport.
Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce were married as they celebrated their wedding with hundreds of guests Friday at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
Renowned singer-songwriter and Chicago-area native John Prine will be honored with a mural at the Old Town School of Folk Music in the Lincoln Square community.
Victor Willis, lead singer of the disco group Village People, whose hit "Y.M.C.A." became a fixture at rallies for President Trump, has died at the age of 74, his wife and the band said.
Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce's wedding plans include a rehearsal dinner and a late-night celebration at Madison Square Garden in New York City, according to sources familiar with the security planning.
Chicago rapper Twista has pleaded guilty to willfully failing to pay income taxes.
Meteorologists Albert Ramon and Mary Kay Kleist are tracking the latest in First Alert Weather.
Tens of thousands are expected to fill the National Mall this evening, ahead of President Trump's speech and a record-setting fireworks display, but the triple-digit heat has been having an impact on some of the festivities, forcing the cancellation of the National Independence Day Parade.
For the first time since the deadly parade shooting in 2022, there was no public remembrance planned. City and park district officials said they are focusing on developing new traditions.
Everything you need to know before heading out what is expected to be its longest show in celebration of America's 250th birthday.
During strong Friday afternoon storms, a mom, daughter, and one other person were inside this blue sports-utility vehicle when an entire tree slammed down on it.
Frequent lightning, damaging winds and torrential downpours may accompany the strongest storms.
It is unclear how the fire started and whether there were any displacements.
The tree ended up through the windshield, just centimeters from the passenger's face.
Two Chicago police officers were shot on the city's South Side Friday evening during a struggle after a traffic stop. The driver was also shot and critically injured.
Three children died on Geneva Lake in Wisconsin after a boat capsized during a severe storm Friday, Lake Geneva police said.
About 13,000 people were treated in emergency rooms for fireworks-related injuries in 2025, and with America's 250 birthday celebration about to start, doctors worry even more people could get hurt this year.
A new AI-powered tool being used by some police departments claims to turn a shell casing into an investigative lead in under 24 minutes.
University of Illinois - Chicago scientists took their lab work to the streets of the South Side during this week's heat wave, checking on tree cover and tree health in some of Chicago's more vulnerable neighborhoods.
In a major turnaround in the opioid crisis, overdose deaths are falling across Chicago and Cook County.
An Uber driver who was assaulted during a ride said he begged Chicago police officers not once but twice for help, but was left to fend for himself.
Skylar Diggins led Chicago (6-14) with 19 points and Kamilla Cardoso had 16 points and 10 rebounds.
Nathan Church and Masyn Winn hit three-run homers and the St. Louis Cardinals had 17 hits overall to beat the Chicago Cubs 17-1.
Brayan Rocchio hit a two-run homer in the bottom of the ninth inning that gave the Cleveland Guardians a 6-5 victory over the Chicago White Sox in the opener of a four-game series between the top two teams in the AL Central.
The Cubs (49-38) have won five straight after sweeping the Padres (43-42), who have lost five in a row.
Dean Kremer pitched six impressive innings in his return from a quad injury, and the Baltimore Orioles avoided a sweep Wednesday with a 6-1 victory over the Chicago White Sox.
Chicago police are looking for three men who targeted four businesses in Bridgeport and Bronzeville overnight, on the hunt for ATMs and cash registers.
Two people are dead, and one is injured after a shooting at Fairlane Town Center in Dearborn, Michigan, on Friday.
A man was ordered detained Thursday after the shooting death of an employee at an Amazon Fulfillment Center in Matteson, Illinois, earlier this week.
A man is charged for sexually assaulting a woman while she was jogging on the 606 Trail in Chicago's Logan Square neighborhood over the weekend.
Burglars crashed a sport-utility vehicle into a convenience store in Chicago's Loop early Thursday morning.
