The project also serves as a platform for new and innovative journalism techniques and practices.
CU-CitizenAccess is a community online news and information project devoted to investigative and enterprise coverage of social, justice and economic issues in East Central Illinois. Through its website and social networks, CU-CitizenAccess offers the opportunity for members of the community - including citizens, journalists, and university students - to share news and information, raise and discuss important issues, and suggest solutions.
Ricardo Diaz joined the Urbana Civilian Police Review Board in 2011, hoping to bring change to policing in the city of 40,000.
At his last meeting on May 29, Diaz said Urbana residents want the CPRB to be able to do more actual oversight of police.
A recent sweeping state criminal justice reform bill was intended to keep people out of jail if they could not afford bail.
However, the new law has exasperated the caseload for the public defenders who represent people who can't afford attorneys.
A recent sweeping state criminal justice reform bill was intended to keep people out of jail if they could not afford bail. But while Champaign County’s jail population numbers haven’t significantl…
Police departments throughout Champaign County paid out over $171,000 in overtime costs to officers who responded to one day of protests at the University of Illinois over the war in Gaza, according to data obtained by CU-CitizenAccess.
Police departments throughout Champaign County paid out $171,457 in overtime costs to officers who responded to one day of protests at the University of Illinois over the war in Gaza, according to …
Monticello resident Caitlin McClain said she's identified 26 county residents who've been diagnosed with a rare brain cancer since 2006.
She shared her findings with the Monticello City Council in February, which prompted the city to test its water.
This past February at a Monticello City Council meeting, resident Caitlin McClain spoke about her father-in-law who died of brain cancer in 2022. “My father-in-law was a smart, strong, witty man,” …
The highest risk area for fires in Champaign-Urbana is Campustown, according to Red Cross data which measures fire risks.
Many of the causes of building fires in the area were undetermined in the past six years.
A cigarette butt flicked out of an open window. A late-night pizza sitting in the oven for too long. A hair curler left on during a night out. These scena…
In the first two months of this year, there were around 10 calls per day to emergency services regarding domestic violence in the county.
“It is a vast majority of the cases we see," Champaign County Public Defender Elisabeth Po***ck said.
In the first two months of this year, there were around 10 calls per day to emergency services regarding domestic violence and disputes in Champaign County. It is the leading statistic for emergenc…
A contract has recently been signed to bring 500 electric bikes from Bird, a bike-share company like Veo, to campus.
While the options provide sustainable transportation for students, University police warn of the injury risks in traffic.
Almost two years ago, Illinois State University administrator Adam Peck was hit by a bicycle. Four days later, he died of his injuries. Peck, the assistant vice president for student affairs, was w…
In the past six years, 257 pedestrian accidents were reported in Champaign and Urbana, police data shows.
In Champaign, the streets with the most frequent pedestrian accidents are Neil Street and Bradley Avenue. In Urbana, it's Lincoln Avenue.
For Patricia Marxmiller, a simple trip became the defining moment of the rest of her life. In February 2015, Marxmiller returned from her lunch break to the Christie Clinic in downtown Champaign, w…
After service struggles during the pandemic, MTD is restoring routes and investing in bus drivers as ridership rebounds to pre-pandemic levels.
Full University of Illinois service is planned for the upcoming fall semester.
After service struggles during the pandemic, the Champaign-Urbana Mass Transit District (MTD) is restoring routes and investing in bus drivers as ridership rebounds to pre-pandemic levels. “In Janu…
Facilities in central Illinois counties are some of the top sources of air pollutants in the state according to latest data from the EPA's 2022 Toxics Release Inventory, which tracks chemicals that may post a threat to human health and the environment.
The Archer Daniels Midland (ADM) facility in Decatur, which processes grain products into food ingredients and ethanol, released 2.7 million pounds of toxic chemicals in 2022, including one that ca…
According to city records obtained in a Freedom of Information Act request, Champaign received $7,032.50 from vacant residence registration fees, late fees and lien fees in last full fiscal year.
Building paint is peeling, junk litters the property and “no trespassing” signs sporadically adorn fences surrounding the approximately 330,000 square feet of property of the mostly vacant C.S. Joh…
The night Monica Milanowski returned home to Seven07, a 14-story high-rise in Champaign, after winter break in January, her apartment was flooded with four to six inches of water.
Then, some tenants were forced to find alternative housing for the year.
The night Monica Milanowski returned to her apartment at Seven07, a 14-story high-rise in Champaign, after going home for winter break in January, her apartment was flooded with four to six inches …
Some residents expressed concern when Champaign passed a June 2022 ordinance to build additional, detached housing on their properties.
But over one year later, none of these accessory dwelling units (ADU) have been built and no permits have been filed.
Some residents expressed concern about a negative impact on neighborhoods when the city of Champaign passed a June 2022 ordinance to build additional, detached housing on their properties. Bu…
Rental property and nuisance complaints have soared in Urbana over the past few years, records show.
Thomas Dwyer, a code compliance inspector for Urbana, said systematic inspections are required per the rental license, but his office is short-staffed.
Rental property and nuisance complaints have soared in Urbana over the past few years, records show. The records, obtained via Freedom of Information Act Request, show a total of 1,002 compla…
Last year, 23 businesses failed a state liquor control underage compliance check in Champaign, some multiple times.
The majority of the failures, about 75%, occurred last fall between August and December.
The state of Illinois Liquor Control Commission has made enforcing and documenting underage drinking on its website a priority since 2021 — and enforcement of liquor laws at Champaign bars and liqu…
Despite an all-time high in the number of Illinois residents possessing a firearm ownership card, the number of gun dealers and businesses registering guns throughout the state has declined over the past five years.
Despite an all-time high in the number of Illinois residents possessing a firearm ownership card, the number of gun dealers and businesses registering guns throughout the state has declined over th…
The Champaign-Urbana Public Health District and local group Advocates for Aging Care have launched a survey to help identify the state of senior services in Champaign County.
The Champaign-Urbana Public Health District and local group Advocates for Aging Care have launched a survey to help identify the state of senior services in Champaign County. Champaign County…
About 80 restaurants failed health inspections in Champaign County last year.
View the full list here:
Last year, as of late November, 10 restaurants in Champaign County were closed and received a red placard because of failed health inspections. But 75 failed an inspection but remained open, receiv…
Last year, 10 restaurants in Champaign County, including Ambar India, were closed and received a red placard because of failed health inspections.
Ambar India failed five inspections in the past two months and is still closed as of Jan. 10.
A moldy bell pepper. Bare hands touching ready-to-eat food. Food that expired over a week ago sitting in the fridge. These are just a few of the health violations cited by a Champaign-Urbana …
Some Champaign residents in Garden Hills have expressed concern over the number of businesses selling alcohol in close proximity to the neighborhood, saying those businesses are more prevalent in their neighborhood than others in the city.
Some Champaign residents in Garden Hills have expressed concern over the number of businesses selling alcohol in close proximity to the neighborhood, saying those businesses are more prevalent in t…
The funding for Champaign's Neighborhood Small Grant Program increased from about $22,500 to $52,000 this fiscal year, meaning it can assist dozens more projects, ranging from neighborhood cleanups to spring picnics.
The funding for Champaign’s Neighborhood Small Grant Program increased from about $22,500 to $52,000 this fiscal year, meaning it can assist dozens more projects, ranging from neighborho…
Concerned about the litter and waste on the streets and yards in their area, Champaign residents living east of downtown formed the Neighborhood Co-Labourers Community Group.
This qualified the group for the small grant program that funds area cleanups.
Concerned about the litter and waste on the streets and yards in their area, Champaign residents living east of downtown formed the Neighborhood Co-Labourers Community Group, a registered neighborh…
Following the takedown of the University of Illinois’s Housing Explorer database, a resource for students seeking housing in Urbana and Champaign, the Off-Campus Community Living office shifted to an education-based approach.
Following the takedown of the University of Illinois’s Housing Explorer database, a resource for students seeking housing in Urbana and Champaign, the Off-Campus Community Living office shifted to …
Latitude, a five-story apartment complex in Champaign, has been the target of at least nine complaints to the city within the past year.
Many complaints state issues with air conditioning or heat going out for weeks and even months.
Latitude, a five-story apartment complex in Champaign, has been the target of at least nine complaints to the city within the past year. Located at 608 E University Ave. and spanning the entire blo…
Persistent bike thefts continue to plague the campus community, with reported incidents surging over the past two academic years.
Since Jan. 2022, 255 thefts have been reported.
Persistent bike thefts continue to plague the campus community, with reported incidents surging over the past two academic years. Between Aug. 1 and Nov. 13 last fall, 85 bike thefts were reported,…
Bicycle accidents on the University of Illinois campus have become more frequent in the past few years, prompting a mass email last fall reminding the community bike riders to follow the rules of the road.
Bicycle accidents on the University of Illinois campus have become more frequent in the past few years, prompting a mass email last fall reminding the community bike riders to follow the rules of t…
Although the number of domestic dispute and violence incidents has fallen in Urbana’s Lierman neighborhood last year, these incidents remain the top reported for the neighborhood — making up one in five reported crimes as of Dec. 4, 2023.
Although the number of domestic dispute and violence incidents has fallen in Urbana’s Lierman neighborhood last year, these incidents remain the top reported for the neighborhood — making up one in…
The next phase for Bristol Place's redevelopment targets a tract of land north of Bristol Place where a 60-unit apartment will be built for low-income seniors over the age of 62.
Development began in Sept. 2023 and construction begins this year.
In 1998, the Champaign police estimated that there was a significant drug problem in the Bristol Park neighborhood, with up to transactions every 2 to 3 minutes. Nine years later, the neighborhood …
It pays to work for the Illinois Farm Bureau.
The nonprofit organization’s three top earners all experienced pay increases between fiscal years 2020 and 2022, according to Form 990s obtained using Candid’s nonprofit database Guidestar.
It pays to work for the Illinois Farm Bureau. The nonprofit organization’s three top earners all experienced pay increases between fiscal years 2020 and 2022, according to Form 990s obtained …
Parking regulation tightened in the downtown Champaign area in the past few years following a trend of illegal street parties.
But one business owner said the regulations were driving out some customers early.
Champaign’s population of about 89,114 only has 1,871 parking meter spaces provided to the public, an average of one parking spot for every 47 Champaign residents — and that figure doesn’t ac…
Be the first to know and let us send you an email when CU-CitizenAccess posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.
Send a message to CU-CitizenAccess:
Want your business to be the top-listed Media Company?
