July 17, 2026

Alderman Reilly Reports

Taste of River North Starts Today!

The Taste of River North festival, hosted by the River North Residents Association, once again returns to Wells Street, between Chicago Avenue and Ontario Street. The festival runs from 5 - 10pm today, July 17 and 11am - 10pm tomorrow, July 18. The free, family-friendly event will feature local restaurants, musicians, and small businesses.

Vehicular traffic will be prohibited on Wells Street, from Chicago Avenue to Ontario Street, during the duration of the festival. Additionally, parking will be prohibited on the following streets from 11:59pm on Thursday, July 16 - 6am on Sunday, July 19:

158 - 212 West Huron Street
158 - 212 West Superior Street
620 - 800 North Wells Street
158 - 212 West Erie Street

Adjacent alleys and parking garages on nearby cross streets will remain open during the festival. For more information on this year’s event, please click here.

You Are Invited to a Ribbon-Cutting at Montgomery Ward Park on July 22 at 9:30am

Alderman Reilly and the River North Residents Association (RNRA) invite you to attend a ribbon-cutting ceremony at Montgomery Ward Park (630 North Kingsbury Street) on Wednesday, July 22, at 9:30am. (Please note the time change.)

As reported in a previous Reilly Report, Alderman Reilly allocated a portion of his Aldermanic Menu Funds to fully resurface the playground's soft playing surface. The new surface provides a safer, more accessible play area by eliminating trip hazards and enhancing the overall experience for children and families.

Please join Alderman Reilly and RNRA on Wednesday, July 22, at 9:30am to celebrate the completion of this important neighborhood amenity and officially reopen the refurbished playground. No pre-registration is required.

Alderman Reilly Invites Residents to New Gunshot Detection Pilot Program Unveiling

Following the City's decision to discontinue the ShotSpotter program, Alderman Reilly identified the need for an innovative technology to improve public safety in the 42nd Ward. At Alderman Reilly's request, SplitSec AI, a Chicago-based company, has agreed to share its gunshot detection technology with 42nd Ward residents at no charge to the City.

SplitSec's proprietary mobile application is compatible with Android smartphones and will be made available at no cost to participating 42nd Ward residents during a two-month pilot program. The application is traditionally not available through the Google Play or Apple App stores. Once installed, the application runs in the background without recording audio, tracking location, or storing any information externally. The app is trained to detect nearby gunshots and can automatically alert emergency responders.

Alderman Reilly and SplitSec will be showcasing the technology at a virtual kickoff event on Monday, August 3 at 11am. At the event, SplitSec will demonstrate their app and distribute the technology to residents as part of a two-month free trial in the 42nd Ward. To register for the kickoff event with Alderman Reilly, please click here. Those who have already registered do not need to register again. The Zoom link will be emailed to residents upon registration.

CAPS Meetings

18th District: (312-742-5778 / CAPS.018District@chicagopolice.org)

Beat 1831 CAPS meeting will be held on Tuesday, Juily 21 at 5pm at 510 N LaSalle Dr.
Beat 1832 CAPS meeting will be held on Tuesday, July 21 at 6pm at 510 N LaSalle Dr.
Beat 1833 CAPS meeting will be held on Thursday, July 23 at 5pm at 303 E Superior St.
Beat 1834 CAPS meeting will be held on Thursday, July 23 at 6pm at 303 E Superior St.

1st District: (312-745-4381 / CAPS.001District@chicagopolice.org)

There are no remaining 1st District CAPS meetings this month in the 42nd Ward.

To find your appropriate beat to attend your CAPS meeting, please click here.

Galloway Lecture at Fourth Presbyterian Church

The Fourth Presbyterian Church of Chicago (126 East Chestnut Street) invites all residents to attend the 2026 Galloway Lecture on Saturday, July 25 at 11:30am. The lecture will be conducted by Rev. David Black of the First Presbyterian Church and immigration attorney Maureen Graves. The presentation will explore the challenges, opportunities, and stories shaping immigrant communities. Admission to the lecture is free. Attendees are encouraged to register in advance here.

42nd Ward Traffic Closures & Construction Projects

State / Lake CTA Station Reconstruction

As part of the ongoing work on the State / Lake CTA Station, CDOT and the CTA will be implementing a full closure of State St, from Wacker Dr to Randolph St. This closure will go into effect at 9pm on Friday, July 17 and will be lifted no later than 6am on Monday, July 20. After the full closure, the southbound lane of State St, from Wacker Dr to Randolph St, will remain closed until further notice. Lake St, between State St and Wabash Ave, remains closed. Please click here for the detour map.

Vehicles will be rerouted to Kinzie St, Clark St, and Washington St to re-access State St. Local business, driveway, and sidewalks access on State St will be maintained during the closures. The underground CTA Red Line train station at Lake will remain open. As a result of the closure on State Street, the following southbound CTA bus stops will be eliminated at State & Lake until further notice:

#2 - Hyde Park Express, #6 – Jackson Park Express, #10 – Museum Science & Industry, #29 – State, #36 – Broadway, #62 – Archer, #146 – Inner Lake Shore/Michigan Express, #148 – Clarendon/Michigan Express.

As part of the ongoing work, the CTA Brown, Green, Pink, Purple, and Orange line trains on the elevated tracks will be out of service downtown during the following times:

Friday, July 17 at 11:59pm - Monday, July 20 at 5am
Friday, July 24 at 11:59pm - Monday, July 27 at 5am

Click here for more information on the service disruptions downtown on the elevated CTA tracks.

Crane Lifts:

355 N Clark

On Tuesday, July 21 and Wednesday, July 22, a crane lift will take place near 355 N Clark St. The crane will be set up at 8am and will be fully removed by 4pm each day at the latest. During the lift, the sidewalk on east side of Clark St, from Kinzie St to James C. Tyree Way, will be closed. The easternmost lane of Clark St in front of 355 N Clark will be closed, but southbound traffic will continue to flow using the other available lanes on Clark St. No parking signs will be installed on the east side of Clark St, and flaggers will be in place to redirect motorists and pedestrians.

300 N Michigan

On Saturday, July 25, a crane lift will take place at 300 N Michigan Ave. The lift will occur between 8am - 4pm. During the lift, the following street and sidewalk closures will be in place:

North sidewalk on Wacker Pl, from Michigan Ave to MacChesney Ct
Two traffic lanes on the north side of Wacker Pl, from Michigan Ave to MacChesney Ct

Flaggers will be in place to redirect motorists and pedestrians. In the event of inclement weather, the lift will occur on Sunday, July 26.

Public Assembly:

100 W Erie

On Saturday, July 18 from 6:30-9:30pm, a public assembly will take place near 100 W Erie. The City estimates an attendance of 50 people.

Utility Work:

Michigan Ave Bridge Sidewalk Repair

CDOT continues to perform sidewalk repairs on the west side of the Upper and Lower Michigan Ave Bridge. As a result of this work, the southbound curb lane on the Lower Michigan Ave Bridge will be closed to vehicular and bicycle traffic and used as a temporary sidewalk. The sidewalk on the west side of the Lower Michigan Ave Bridge will be closed to pedestrians. These closures will be in place until the project is completed.

Grand Avenue - Bally's Casino

To prepare for the new permanent Bally's Casino, utility work is in progress on Grand Ave in River North. As a result of this construction, Grand Ave, between Union Ave and Kingsbury St, will be reduced to one lane in each direction. These closures will be in place until the third week of August 2026.

Randolph St Concrete Repair

CDOT continues concrete repair work on Randolph St, from Michigan Ave to Lake Shore Drive. As a result of this work, CDOT will continue to implement rolling two-lane closures from 8pm - 6am, when necessary, along Lower and Intermediate Randolph St, from Michigan Ave to Lake Shore Drive. CDOT will remove the netting between Upper and Intermediate Randolph St. One lane of traffic will be maintained at all times. Rolling two-lane nighttime closures will be required. This project is scheduled to be completed by the end of August 2026. CTA bus routes will be unaffected by the work on Intermediate Randolph St, and traffic on Upper Randolph St will not be impacted.

Cityfront Plaza

Work has begun to repair steel curbs on both sides of Cityfront Plaza Drive. During construction, both the northbound and southbound lanes of Cityfront Plaza Drive will remain open to automobile traffic, but street parking will not be permitted on Cityfront Plaza Drive. A graphic of the site plan for the work can be found here.

205 W Superior

The Department of Water Management continues its single-lane closure on Superior St near Wells St, at approximately 205 W Superior St. Parking on the north side of Superior St at this location will continue to be prohibited, and vehicles will be permitted to utilize these spaces to continue eastbound. These closures will last until July 23, weather permitting.

Canal St Reconstruction

The closures remain in place on the east side of Canal St, between Adams St and Madison St. As a result, parking on Canal St, between Adams St and Madison St, will be prohibited. Two lanes on the west side of Canal St will be maintained for northbound traffic. These closures will last until late 2026. Pedestrian traffic will be maintained on the west side of Canal St, as well as access to driveways and commercial loading zones.

Weekend Closures: Ohio / Ontario Feeder Ramp

Over the next two weekends, the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) will implement a series of full weekend closures of the Ohio Street and Ontario Street Feeder Ramps at the Kennedy Expressway to perform pavement patching. During the following weekends, the feeder ramps will be closed from Friday at 10pm - Monday at 5am:

July 17-20
July 24-27

Vehicles will be detoured to access the expressway via Orleans St, Division St, and Clybourn Parkway to North Avenue (Illinois 64).

Bridge Construction Updates

Work continues on the Lake St Bascule Bridge. The sidewalk on the southwest corner of the bridge will remain closed until summer 2026. The Lake St Bascule Bridge is expected to re-open by spring 2028. The detour map can be found here. The State Street Bridge is now open. The approximate completion date for the Chicago Ave Bridge is January 2027, and the Lake St Bridge will be completed by spring 2028.