Good afternoon, Chicago. ✶
For the last 100 years, Chiarugi Hardware has served its Little Italy neighborhood.
The store got its start selling paint, nails by the pound and winemaking supplies on Taylor Street — and still maintains its commitment to the area.
Below, we look into this neighborhood institution’s past.
Plus, we’ve got more community news that you need to know this afternoon. 👇
⏱️: A 7-minute read
— Matt Moore, newsletter reporter (@MattKenMoore)
TODAY’S TOP STORY
Chiarugi Hardware celebrates 100 years of culture and community in Little Italy
Reporting by Joanna Marszałek
Staying committed: At almost 77, Paul Rinaldi of Chiarugi Hardware in Chicago’s Little Italy thinks about retirement every day. It is a reasonable idea after 56 years in business and a cancer diagnosis two years ago. Yet six times a week, with his wife, Carole, who has her own health challenges, the couple still drives up to two hours daily from their home in suburban Mount Prospect to their store at 1412 W. Taylor St.
A neighborhood holdout: Chiarugi Hardware, once a bustling-with-life prime destination for supplies on mostly Italian Taylor Street, is not so busy these days. As big-box stores and fast-food restaurants appealing to local University of Illinois Chicago students come and go, Chiarugi has been a part of Taylor Street for at least 100 years — an anniversary that will go without much fanfare.
Origin story: Two young brothers, Olinto and Ermelindo Chiarugi, opened the store in 1924, according to a city resolution and archive photographs. They came to the United States from Italy in 1910. Rinaldi’s father, Eraldo Rinaldi, also an immigrant from Italy, got a job with the Chiarugi brothers after returning from World War II. Later he bought out the aging brothers and became the new owner. In 1968, a 21-year-old Rinaldi returned from the Army to his dad’s store. Years later, Rinaldi took over the business after his father retired.
Legacy continues: Today, the store carries a limited selection of tools and small household items and offers key cutting. Rinaldi can still order winemaking supplies, though he admits, that customer base is shrinking, too. What remains unchanged is the owners’ commitment to the community, the store’s homey feel and the one-on-one help.
Key quote: “I’d like to leave, but I just can’t. My heart is here. These people rely on me,” Rinaldi told the Sun-Times.
WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON?
- 2 charged in deadly shooting: Two boys, 14 and 17, have been charged with killing a Senn High School student and wounding two others in a shooting in the Edgewater neighborhood late last month.
- Highland Park massacre suspect’s trial set: A Lake County judge on Wednesday agreed to push back the trial for Robert Crimo III until February 2025, delaying court proceedings that were scheduled to begin next week.
- Flight makes emergency landing at O’Hare: A United Airlines flight was diverted to O’Hare Airport Wednesday morning after someone found a note in the plane’s bathroom saying there was a bomb aboard, officials said. After the flight was evacuated and a “suspicious package” was found, the FBI said that no one had been injured and nothing exploded.
- Pritzker’s budget proposal: During his State of the State and budget address Wednesday, Gov. J.B. Pritzker unveiled his $52.7 billion spending plan that includes the blueprint for a pension overhaul, funding for migrants and the creation of a child tax credit.
- Remembering Ann Lightfoot: The proud mother of former Mayor Lori Lightfoot raised her family in Massillon, Ohio, where she worked as a nighttime nursing aide and served on the school board. She died Tuesday at age 95.
- Police arbitration saga continues: Chicago’s largest police union is asking a judge to issue a ruling in favor of an arbitrator’s decision that the most serious police disciplinary cases can be heard behind closed doors.
- Tribune publishing layoffs: Tribune Publishing plans to lay off nearly 200 workers beginning April 22 as the newspaper gears up to move printing operations from the Freedom Center to Schaumburg.
- Local Starbucks workers seek union vote: Workers at two Starbucks locations — at Madison and Wells and 58th Street and Western Avenue — filed petitions Tuesday with the National Labor Relations Board seeking to unionize, joining several stores across the country in a single-day organizing effort.
EXPLORING THE CITY 🎭
A look at the newly remodeled Ramova Theatre
Reporting by Courtney Kueppers | WBEZ
When Emily and Tyler Nevius bought the abandoned Ramova Theatre from the city for $1 in 2021, it was in disrepair. Four feet of water stood in the basement due to a leaky roof, and a thick layer of disintegrating plaster coated the floor.
The building had been empty for nearly 40 years, but the husband and wife team had a vision to restore the Ramova to again be the pride of Halsted Street, complete with a concert hall, brewery and restaurant.
The Ramova’s rebirth took more than $30 million, 49 investors and seven red-tape-filled years, but the Spanish courtyard-style entry and theater are finally ready for a new era. After a soft opening on New Year’s Eve with a queer-friendly dance party, Friday marked the inaugural show for the 1,800-person concert venue — featuring South Side native Chance the Rapper, an investor in the project.
Last fall, the Ramova restoration grabbed headlines when some of its more well-known investors went public with their involvement. But Chance the Rapper, Quincy Jones and Jennifer Hudson came on early and had been quietly involved for years.
Before last week’s show, WBEZ toured the site as crews put the final touches on the theater and tended to concession stands, stage and lights. Standing in the restored lobby, Emily Nevius pointed out the original ticket booth, which is once again fully functioning. Throughout the building, other historic pieces, such as old movie projectors and the original lighting control board, are on display.
You can get the full tour here or click the button below.
BRIGHT ONE ✨
Son’s autism inspires Chicago dad’s custom cookies bakery
Reporting by Esther Yoon-Ji Kang | WBEZ
On a recent afternoon, Alvin Green packed cookies over the hum of the refrigerators in a commercial kitchen in Beverly. He gingerly laid out parchment paper at the bottom of a large bin and gave careful instructions to employee Jasmine Glover.
Green is the owner of Al’s Cookie Mixx, which he calls an “online gourmet customizable cookie company. You pick your base — vanilla, chocolate, oatmeal. You go through our list of mix-ins. We say, ‘You mix, we bake, we ship.’”
The “we” includes Green’s dozen or so part-time employees, all of whom have special needs — including 26-year-old Glover, who has Down syndrome.
Al’s Cookie Mixx opened in a shared kitchen last fall and employs people with disabilities in his community. This is personal for Green because his son Aiden, 20, has autism, and Green knows the struggle of many parents with special needs children. They wonder what their kids will do to earn a living once they age out of the educational system. For adults with autism, studies show the unemployment rate ranges from around 40% to 85%.
After working as a caterer for 15 years, Green heeded the advice of his wife: “Combine your two loves: your love of baking cookies and your love for Aiden and his friends.”
YOUR DAILY QUESTION ☕️
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Editor: Satchel Price
Newsletter reporter: Matt Moore
Copy editor: Angie Myers
