1 End of an Ina
Ina’s, the West Loop breakfast spot that pioneered fine dining on an industrial stretch of Randolph Street, will close at year’s end. It will be replaced by a Lou Malnati’s. Chef and owner Ina Pinkney, 70, says it’s time to hang up her oven mitts after 22 years running restaurants. [Crain’s]
2 Schools’ shortfall
Despite protests and complaints from pretty much every direction, the Board of Education approved a $6.6 billion budget for Chicago Public Schools. Of course, it includes a $1 billion gap between revenue and expenses. [Sun-Times]
3 Wage demands
Some hourly workers at McDonald’s, Potbelly and 18 more national chains are walking off the job Thursday to join a downtown rally demanding higher wages. It’s the second such action in a month. A few of the workers say they got raises after the last action; the companies deny it. [Grid]
4 Dodging tolls?
The Illinois Tollway Authority posted a list of 157 businesses that owe more than $1,000 in back tolls. At the top: a Frankfort trucking company accused of blowing through toll plazas to the tune of nearly $215,000. [Sun-Times]
5 Train-station startup
From a single stall in the Ogilvy train station, Saigon Sisters is growing into a mini-chain. The purveyor of Vietnamese banh mi sandwiches will open a third location, at Northwestern Memorial Hospital, next month. [Grid]
6 Kickstart this
This 25-year-old raised $10,000 in five hours-plus on Kickstarter. He’ll use it to fund Chinese production of his gadget for mounting mobile phones and other devices, which will soon be sold by Brookstone. We asked how he did it. The answer involves living with your parents and launching on a Tuesday. [Grid]
7 Competitive lenders
Wanna buy a parking spot in the Gold Coast? Get ready to dig deep. Here’s one that’s listed for $115,000. [DNAInfo]
8 Gay-marriage logic
Cardinal Francis George says his opposition to gay marriage is more rational than religious. Arguing that “nature invented marriage” and “it means something different to be a man that’s different from what it means to be a woman, and vice versa,” George elaborates on his stance in an interview with Sun-Times columnist Mark Brown. [Sun-Times]
