R.I.P. Brendan Scanlon, AKA: SOLVE

FYI for out-of-towners:

Man charged in stabbing death of Chicago street artist

Associated Press
4:24 AM CDT, June 16, 2008

CHICAGO - A Cook County judge has ordered a Chicago man held on $500,000 bond in the stabbing death of one of the city's best-known street artists.

Prosecutors filed first-degree murder charges Sunday against 24-year-old Kirk Tobolski, who allegedly stabbed 24-year-old Brendan Scanlon in the heart early Saturday morning.

Scanlon's parents in Wisconsin said their son worked for a Chicago graphic design and advertising firm.

But Scanlon was best known for the often enigmatic street art he stenciled onto such places as the backs of stop signs and the glass of newspaper boxes -- usually signed with the alias "SOLVE."

On one occasion he installed a television set in a rapid transit train. Its screen bore the stenciled message, "We are experiencing legal difficulties."

Killed U of C Student To Be Awarded Degree Posthumously

Amadou Cisse, an international student completing his Ph.D. degree in chemistry at the University of Chicago, was shot and killed at 1:26 a.m. Monday in the street near 6120 S. Ellis Ave--only one block from the University's campus. Cisse had successfully defended his doctoral dissertation on November 1, and was scheduled to receive his degree at Convocation on December 7. The University will award his degree posthumously. In addition to that fatal shooting, there were two other incidents on or near the U of C campus that very hour. At 12:33 a.m. at 6045 Woodlawn, a man was chased by an individual who fired a shot in his direction. At 1:15 a.m., two women were robbed at 924 E. 57th St. by an individual who said he had a weapon. Police are investigating whether or not these incidents are related. The University of Chicago is reputed to have the second largest private police force in the country, and University officials say they are presently increasing police patrols on campus in response to these incidents.

Chicago Reader Goes Tabloid

Oh, btw, this week The Chicago Reader gave itself a new format--that of a single-fold tabloid, reminiscent of The Sun Times or The New York Post. I, for one, had thought that The Reader's unique "three little sections folded inside of one slightly bigger section" format was pretty much the only cool thing left about it. On the other hand, a one-section tabloid will be way easier to clean up when your girlfriend leaves them all over your bedroom floor.

Ten Things I Love About Chicago

This week's Reader ran a pretty cool, thoughtful article detailing various staff favorites about Chicago as a resource for students moving to Chicago for the new school year. As a nod to The Reader's publishing such uncharacteristically interesting and useful content, I here treat you to some of my favorite things about this fair city:

10) The Drive Between Logan Square And The Felony Courts: you can take Sacramento all the way from LS to 26th and Cali and the drive is both laid-back and gorgeous. For much of the way Sacramento is a boulevard that takes you, sans stop lights, through Frederick Law Olmsted-designed emerald necklace parks with a striking view of the skyline once you get south of Garfield Park.

9) Sam's Wines: this is what liquor stores are going to be like in heaven. The stock is phenomenal, whether you're looking for single malt Scotch, sake, cheap Champagne or any other spirit (although they no longer carry the Mortell family favorite, "Smokin' Dog" halbittern). It's in Lincoln Park, but almost not even, because it's hidden on a little back road by the River, next to a junk yard.

8) The Red Apple Polish buffet: on Milwaukee Avenue near Belmont there is a place where it doesn't matter how many dumplings you eat with your sausage and schnitzel, plus they serve pretty good imported beer and you get ice cream at the end or something.

7) The Swatch Store: is located at 520 N. Michigan Avenue. It's true; they still exist, at least in Chicago. Plus, North Michigan Avenue is always full of people who look like they're going to the beach all year around. If a family of tourists asks you to take their picture for them, go ahead--do it.

6) Smoking In The Bleachers At Wrigley Field: Sorry I have to geek out about this one, but even though I grew up nowhere near Chicago, my dad--a baseball fan in the truest sense--raised me to love the Cubs unconditionally. Plus, as my friend Rob showed me, the bleachers are a really good place to drink a lot of beer, ignore smoking laws, and meet cute girls. Yeah, I know we all hate Lake View. If they ever fuck around with modernizing Wrigley, maybe we can get them move it right behind Lane Tech.

5) University of Chicago Doc Films: the oldest student-run film society in the country, Doc Films plays only the most bad-ass classic, foreign, high-brow, or crazy disturbing movies possible every night of the week. Plus, it's really cheap and the no drinking policy is almost not enforced at all.

4) There Is Mexican Food Everywhere: do you like Mexican food? Then you might want to move here. Chicago is a city where people tell you where they live by telling you which Tacqueria they live near. Some are better than others, but the vast majority are varying levels of awesome. Plus, it's good for you.

3) The CTA: runs like a charm and always will, no matter what the funding-hungry suits talking about service cuts say. If you move to Chicago, leave your parents' car at home; it's not even worth the gas money. I live at a pretty sleepy intersection in a pretty secondary neighborhood, and buses blow by here every which way till the cows come home.

2) Johnnie's: easily the coolest bar in Chicago, Johnnie's has been the preferred locus for all celebrations in my inner circle ever since Rudy's friend Colin introduced us to the place a few years ago. Located at Lincoln/Roscoe/Paulina, the place is huge, is almost always empty, and has a jukebox that features "Careless Whisper," "Nothing Compares 2 U," and "Strokin'" among many other effing awesome songs that I will be playing all night long.

1) The Fact That Every Fall Bazillions Of Teen Girls Move Here To Start Art School: more of them than you can count, than American Apparel can clothe, or than their parents can keep from making huge mistakes. They're all crazy, they all have ridiculous hair, and they all think that the $4.00 bottle of Champagne you bought at Sam's makes you the most intriguing, most sophisticated, tenderest man they have ever met, and there's something they want to show you back at their dorm.

Avondale Mugger: Do You Have 50 Cents?

Someone was mugged at about midnight last night on the sidewalk around 2710 N. Artesian in Avondale. Apparantly the mugger went up to the guy and was like "Do you have 50 cents?" When the victim produced 50 cents, the mugger brandished a gun, and told him "That isn't enough." At that point, the victim produced a dollar bill, then split. No shots were fired. The victim called Police, and they apprehended a suspect about a block away from the scene of the mugging.

Logan Square "Mega Mall" Burns Down

The Mega Mall in Logan Square burned up in a four-alarm fire on Saturday night. The Mega Mall is basically a flea market/pay day loan place in a warehouse, and the Logan Square community has always been divided over its value. Saturday night, as a few of my friends were hanging out on the roof of their place in Avondale, they saw a massive cloud of smoke to the south and opined that it must be coming from somewhere around Diversey. Nope; it was the Mega Mall. Fire inspectors are still investigating the cause of the fire, but the building's owner suspects that it was caused by vandals.

What's The Best Way To Meet Women In Chicago?

These guys are my heroes.

Man Dies In Sheriff's Custody

An inmate at Cook County Jail died yesterday. Sam Wright, 45, had been in custody at Cook County on possession charges since Sunday. Wright's cellmate alerted guards that Wright was unresponsive at about 3:00 PM Monday afternoon. When paramedics arrived, they opined that Wright was in cardiac arrest. Wright was pronounced dead at 3:35 p.m. in St. Anthony Hospital, according to the Cook County medical examiner's office.

Daley: Only 24 Currently Homeless in Chicago

The City of Chicago is presently making the absurd claim that only 24 homeless people live "downtown." One advocate group estimates the number of Chicago homeless at something more like 21,078.

Cops Kill Another Kid In Chicago

Last night a Chicago Police officer shot a teenager dead in Lawndale, leading to what amounted to a small riot as the kid's neighbors heard about the incident. Cops blocked off a four-block area, used pepper spray on some protesters, and even broke a journalist's camera. As for the shooting, the Chicago Police Department is sticking to the trusty old "we thought he had a gun" explanation.

Breaking News: Man Arrested At ORD After Woman's Body Found In Avondale Home

The decomposed body of Deena David, 35, was found last night at about 9:00 PM in a garbage bag in a closet of a residence on the 3600 block of Belmont. Police arrested a man who lives at that residence at about 2:30 AM today at O'Hare International Airport. The suspect was carrying a one-way ticket to Mexico. Chicago police identified the suspect as the former boyfriend of the victim's mother, and opined that the suspect and victim had "a very close, personal relationship."

Logan Square Girl Gunned Down On Playground

A 13-year-old girl was shot in the head yesterday at about 6:45 p.m. while playing near West McLean and North Central Park Avenues in Logan Square. Police believe the girl was not the intended target, but rather was caught in crossfire in a gang-related shooting. Grand Central Area detectives are interviewing witnesses, and police are checking surveillance cameras in the area. Avondale Evening Mail have not been apprised of any arrests made in connection with the shooting.

Avondale Home Among 526 Chicago Homes Flooded Tuesday

Tuesday's torrential rains flooded at least 526 basements in Chicago Tuesday afternoon, according to CBS 2's coverage. The Tuel family's home in Avondale, pictured above, was among the homes damaged. Tuesday evening the Tuel residence was filled with about three feet of water. Brandon Tuel, 14, told CBS 2 that he was sleeping on a sofa in the room when the water came rushing in. “I woke up and my socks were wet,” he said. “Water started splashing up on the couch and then before I could think of a way to get out, I started floating and I started pushing off the walls to get to the stairs.” Gnarly, bra.

Drive-By Shooting In Logan Square

This morning, a 15-year-old boy was shot in the head at the intersection of Fullerton and Pulaski, on the west side of Logan Square. The boy was shot by an occupant of a "silver Mitsubishi with custom rims." Authorities believe the incident was gang-related. No persons are presently in custody in connection with the shooting.

Cheney In Chicago Today

Vice President Dick Cheney will be in Chicago today to speak at a conservative policy group's conference at the Ritz-Carlton. Cheney's image as a snarling war monger with a one-track mind is so out of control that even students at conservative stalwart BYU don't want him as their commencement speaker.

WTF Is With The Orbit Room?

So what is this Orbit Room, located at 2959 N. California Avenue, which I pass every day on the California bus, and whose windows have been covered in signs that say "Coming Soon" for months on end? A google search for "Orbit Room" turned up a pretty non-committal Metromix blurb on the culprit, as well as a web-site for what looks like a pretty lame music venue in Grand Rapids, Michigan. The Metromix blurb, I must say, was a little curious. I'm not exactly sure what to make of the story of the owners meeting at Neo (or the fact that they used to work there), but the real chin-scratcher is Metromix's assertion that the "bar food" is somehow "above average" at a place that has never served a single dish to anyone!

Problems With Mail Delivery Common In Avondale

When, a few weeks ago, local media ran stories on how unreliable Chicago's mail service was, Avondale was singled out among Chicago neighborhoods as having extra-ordinary mail delivery problems.

So, what exactly is Avondale?

Avondale is a residential neighborhood on the Northwest side of Chicago. Delineated by the Chicago River, Diversey Avenue, Addison Street, Pulaski Road and the Metra Milwaukee District North Line, Avondale is located within Chicago's 33rd Ward. Transportation arteries such as Belmont Avenue, Milwaukee Avenue and the Kennedy Expressway (I-90/94) run through the neighborhood, and Avondale is accessible through the CTA's Blue Line train and Metra's Union Pacific Northwest Line and Milwaukee District North Line.

Consisting of an area of about two square miles, located at 41 56.4 N
Latitude, 87 42.6 W Longitude, Avondale had a population of 43,083
when measured for the 2000 census. The buildings in Avondale are 76.9% residential and 11.4% commerical or industrial. When Avondale was
annexed by the City of Chicago in 1889, its population was largely
comprised of German, Scandinavian and Polish immigrants. Presently,
in certain locations in Avondale, it is common for storefront marquee
signs to be rendered in Polish. However, today Avondale's population
is largely comprised Latino families, and a majority of the small
businesses maintained in Avondale are owned and operated by Latinos.

Avondale is presently experiencing rapid and steady growth and
development. Several successful restaurants and taverns opened their
doors in Avondale during recent years, and condominiums are quickly
being developed in several locations in the neighborhood. Avondale is
the home of a small but well-appointed Chicago Park District facility
at Brands Park, 3259 N. Elston, as well as one of Chicago's most
credible live music venues, The Abbey Pub, 3420 W. Grace.

The throes of change through which Avondale labors during the coming years is one of the central subjects of this blog.

Avondale Restaurateur Distinguished As First To Be Cited For Fois Gras Violation

1st fine for flouting 'silly' law
Sausage king pays price for putting foie gras on menu

By Jason Meisner and Emma Graves Fitzsimmons
Tribune staff reporters
Published March 30, 2007

Even as a restaurateur got the bill for the city's first foie-gras citation Thursday, officials said there isn't much bite behind the Chicago ordinance that has garnered national attention.

Doug Sohn, a self-described "encased meat" specialist, became the first person fined under the ordinance banning the sale of foie gras.

Sohn, owner of Hot Doug's in the 3300 block of North California Avenue, agreed to pay a $250 fine for the first-time offense, officials said.

Sohn's lawyer met with a city hearing officer, who agreed to levy the minimum fine, said Tim Hadac, spokesman for the Department of Public Health. Sohn, who was not at the hearing, could have been fined up to $500 under the ordinance, which took effect Aug. 22.

Passing the ordinance may have made a symbolic statement, but city officials said they currently aren't going after any other restaurants and acknowledge that Hot Doug's likely made more than the $250 fine off publicity.

Hot Doug's was the scene of the city's first foie-gras bust on Feb. 16, when city health inspectors found the restaurant openly offering hot dogs laced with the fattened duck-liver delicacy and confiscated the product.

It came as a surprise to no one. Sohn had been itching for a fight ever since the City Council overrode Mayor Richard Daley's veto and enacted what the mayor derided as the "silliest law that they've ever passed."

Sohn had been issued a warning several months before being slapped with the citation, but he stood his ground, continuing to advertise foie gras ingredients on his Web site and on a board hung near his front door.

The letter that the city sent him warning of possible punishment? Sohn framed it and placed it beside the cash register. "I was poking the grizzly bear, and it snapped my head off," Sohn told the Tribune in February. He could not be reached for comment Thursday.

Foie gras is produced by inserting tubes down the necks of geese or ducks and force-feeding the birds, expanding their livers to as much as 10 times normal size. Animal rights activists lobbied the City Council heavily in support of the ban, which was sponsored by Ald. Joe Moore (49th).

In December, the city sent warning letters to nine restaurants accused of serving foie gras, Hadac said. Letters are sent after a complaint and are followed by a visit after a second complaint.

When health officials visited Hot Doug's in February, they found about 30 pounds of foie gras and foie-gras products in the freezer, Hadac said. The citation was issued because the delicacy was on the restaurant's menu with a price, he said.

The list of daily specials on Hot Doug's Web site this week had several exotic offerings, including smoked alligator sausage with Cajun shrimp mayonnaise. But foie gras was nowhere to be found.

Hadac said the Health Department is not actively investigating any other restaurants, noting: "It is most definitely one of our lowest priorities. We do not enforce it aggressively."

Asked about the amount of the fine compared to the free advertising Sohn has received, Hadac said: "He has cashed in, in terms of publicity, make no mistake."