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New Year's Eve in Chicago: Where to watch fireworks across the city

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:26:00 GMT

CHICAGO — If your New Year's Eve plans are in Chicago, there are several spots to watch fireworks light up the skies across the city.The Chicago Riverwalk fireworks will be launched from six different bridges, including from Franklin Street. All told, bridge closures will be in place at Franklin Street, LaSalle Street, Clark Street, Dearborn Street, State Street and Columbus Drive beginning Sunday, Dec. 31, from 11:45 p.m. until 12:15 a.m.SEE ALSO: These Illinois towns make America’s Most ‘Christmassy’ listThe Wabash and Michigan Avenue bridges will remain open.The fireworks show can be best viewed along the Chicago River from Upper Wacker Drive from McClurg Court to Franklin Street. Admission is free.Navy Pier will also host its own fireworks show that is free to the public beginning at midnight.'Art on the Mart' will carry colorful light projections throughout the evening. A countdown to the New Year will follow, beginning at 11:55 p.m. Read more: Latest Chicago news headlines C...

Ye, formerly Kanye West, posts Hebrew-language apology to Jewish community

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:26:00 GMT

(The Hill) – Rapper Ye, formerly Kanye West, deleted all the content on his Instagram page Tuesday and posted a Hebrew-language apology to the Jewish community after years of antisemitic comments.“I sincerely apologize to the Jewish community for any unintended outburst caused by my words or actions. It wasn’t my intention to hurt or disrespect, and I deeply regret any pain that I might have caused,” he wrote in Hebrew, which is not universally known by Jewish people.“I am committed to starting with myself to learn from this experience in order to ensure greater sensitivity and understanding in the future,” he added.Earlier this month, the rapper was filmed going on an antisemitic rant, including tropes about Jewish ownership of significant institutions. In the rant, he also compared himself to Hitler.Last December, Ye went on conspiracy theorist Alex Jones’s InfoWars show to praise Hitler and proudly declare himself a Nazi. He was kicked off Twitter, now X, the next day after ...

A bright and dry end of the year

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:26:00 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- Central Texas is going to have mostly sunny days and clear nights heading into this holiday weekend. Most temperatures today will peak in the upper 50s to low 60s with winds coming out of the south 5 to 10 mph. This afternoon's normal high is 62°.The morning was cold with many lows at or below freezing. Some areas had a little more cloud cover than others. In fact, downtown Austin had clouded over by 9 a.m.Lows ranged from 27° at Llano to 39° at Luling. Camp Mabry's low was 33°, nine degrees below normal. There was a freeze at Austin Bergstrom Int'l Airport where the low was 31°. The next cold front comes across the area late tonight. After peaking again in the upper 50s to low 60s Wednesday, highs Thursday and Friday will only make the mid to upper 50s.Mornings will be cold, especially Friday and Saturday when area thermometers drop to the low to mid 30s.The weekend ahead, the final of 2023, will find warmer temperatures both days. Highs will peak in the low to mid...

Texas city to open nation's first glow-in-the-dark playground in the new year

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:26:00 GMT

FARMERS BRANCH, Texas (KXAN) -- A normal playground in the day, but a park aglow at night. That's the vision for a new Texas playground set to open in the new year. Farmers Branch, Texas -- a Dallas suburb situated in the northwest region of the metro area -- is home to the nation's first glow-in-the-dark playground, according to the park website. The city announced last week the Joya at Oran Good Park has a grand opening date of Jan. 20, 2024. The city initially anticipated opening the playground in the fall of 2023, but construction was delayed for several months due to a grant review process conducted by the National Parks Service.The playground has garnered lots of media attention, as it's a one-of-a-kind, inclusive, glow-in-the-dark playground. Not only does the over 18,000-square-foot playground have interactive features that glow, allowing for day and evening play, but it also has a 27-foot sphere with six climbing levels, swings, an obstacle course, a zipline with interactiv...

Ice storms and blizzards pummel central US — including North Dakota — the day after Christmas

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:26:00 GMT

From an ice storm in North Dakota that is sealing windows shut, to blizzard conditions in Colorado that caused scores of airport delays and cancellations, a winter storm pummeled much of the central United States on Tuesday, the day after Christmas.“The heavy snow conditions in the Plains should be slowly alleviating today, but it’ll be very slow. Even when the snow ends, the high winds should keep visibility near zero — whiteout conditions — for a decent part of today,” said Weather Prediction Center Forecaster David Roth.The heavy snow is skipping the Twin Cities, though:Widespread rain will gradually end from southeast to northwest on Tuesday, the Twin Cities office of the National Weather Service reports. A light wintry mix will be possible along the back edge of the area of precipitation, primarily across western Minnesota. Temperatures will continue to fall throughout the day. Scattered snow showers are possible Wednesday, with little to no accumulation expec...

Albany Police Review Board sues city and police department, union, chief

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:26:00 GMT

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) — The Albany Police Department (APD) ignores subpoenas from the city's Community Police Review Board (CPRB). The allegations comes from the CPRB's lawsuit against the city of Albany, Chief Eric Hawkins, Sgt. Daniel Kohler, Officer Patrick Guiry, Officer Matthew Friedrich, Officer Salvatore Sturiale, the Albany Police Benevolent Association, and the Albany Police Supervisors Association. Get the latest news, weather, sports and more delivered right to your inbox! In November 2021, nearly 70% of voters approved the proposal to bolster the CPRB's ability to oversee and investigate police activity. Specifically, the vote granted subpoena power. But the lawsuit laments the police "failure to properly comply with subpoenas issued on two separate occasions during the summer of 2023."According to the lawsuit, the officers in question and their attorneys have yet to comply with the spirit or letter of Albany's Local Law J. And the suit has several prongs, the first of...

Storm system returns, this time with snow 

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:26:00 GMT

St. Louis weather from Meteorologist Angela Hutti:ST. LOUIS - It's a colder day Tuesday, and some sunshine is breaking through the clouds by late morning. Colder, with highs in the mid-40s. Clouds thicken back up Tuesday evening and temperatures fall into the 30s overnight.  The same storm system that brought the Christmas rain is spinning and will come back  to us on Wednesday, but this time temperatures will be colder.  St. Louis radar: See a map of current weather here We’ll see scattered rain and snow showers on Wednesday. Temperatures will be above freezing. Where snow does fall, there is likely to be only a very short-lived, minor accumulation on grassy surfaces. Roads should stay just wet. The chance for rain and snow showers continues Wednesday night before tapering off Thursday.  We look dry the rest of the week. Highs will be in the mid-40s through New Year's Day.  

Kansas City Chiefs still in AFC West driver’s seat despite so many blunders, butterfingers

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:26:00 GMT

The AFC West title was ripe to get wrested from the Kansas City Chiefs this season, yet their division rivals dug themselves into big holes once again.There’s still a mathematical chance the Raiders (7-8) or Broncos (7-8) could catch the Chiefs (9-6) following Las Vegas’ 20-14 win at Arrowhead on Christmas Day, but a lot would have to line up for one of them to unseat K.C.The defending but teetering Super Bowl champions have owned the division since 2016, when Patrick Mahomes was still slinging it in Lubbock, Texas, and tight end Travis Kelce was heading into his first All-Pro season.If the Chiefs hold on to claim their eighth consecutive division crown, they’ll nonetheless head into the playoffs with more question marks than they’ve had since Mahomes became their starting quarterback in 2018 after serving a year as Alex Smith’s apprentice.The Chiefs can no longer earn the No. 1 seed and the first-round bye in the AFC, which means in their five-year run as host of the AFC championsh...

Opinion: If leading Colorado’s Republican Party won’t pay, why not aim for the White House

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:26:00 GMT

Desperate times call for desperate measures. Though we’ve all heard it before, it is still striking to me what some people will do when they get desperate. None is more striking and desperate than all Republican State Party Chairman Dave Williams has gone through to earn a living, while at the same time working to grow his power and influence in the political world.Don’t get me wrong, we should all make earning a living a priority in our lives. It becomes a problem though when that priority’s need replaces good judgment and ethical behavior. Unfortunately, after numerous failed attempts to increase stature, status, and pay, this is where Chairman Williams finds himself, desperately focusing on self-interest at the peril of the state’s Republican Party.Dave served in the Colorado General Assembly from 2016 to 2022. Like many, he left this job early because it doesn’t pay a living wage. So, in 2022 he launched a bid to replace his $40,000 per year salary in the state House to pursue t...

California Pizza Hut operators laying off all delivery drivers

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:26:00 GMT

Two large Pizza Hut operators in California are laying off all their delivery drivers ahead of a new state law that raises the minimum wage for fast-food workers to $20 an hour, Business Insider reports.The layoffs impact hundreds of Pizza Hut locations across the state including Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, Ventura and San Bernardino counties and Sacramento, and involve more than 1,200 in-house delivery drivers.The job cuts will take place through February, according to federal employment notices obtained by Business Insider.The new minimum wage law takes effect in April. What happens to the billions spent on unused gift cards? "PacPizza, LLC, operating as Pizza Hut, has made a business decision to eliminate first-party delivery services and, as a result, the elimination of all delivery driver positions," a federal WARN Act notice filed by the franchisee said.The Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (WARN) requires employers to provide notification 60 calendar day...