Chris Placek

Christopher Placek joined the Daily Herald in November 2010, and currently covers news in Arlington Heights, Rolling Meadows and Rosemont, as well as Northwest Suburban High School District 214 and Harper College. He is a three-time Peter Lisagor award winner for his coverage of political/government reporting and breaking news. A 2010 graduate of Marquette University, he also attended Notre Dame High School in Niles and Edgebrook Elementary School in Chicago. He is also an Eagle Scout. Placek is a lifelong resident of Chicago's Jefferson Park neighborhood.

A digital billboard advertising the Bears sits near the practice track of the former Arlington International Racetrack near Route 53 and Northwest Highway in Arlington Heights on June 25, 2024. (Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune)

Chicago Bears get OK to keep billboard in Arlington Heights despite stadium uncertainty

July 7, 2026 at 1:00 p.m.

The billboard in Arlington Heights that teases Chicago Bears games will be able to remain in place for another year, village board members agreed Monday.

Dave Grundhoefer, left, belts lyrics while Mark Abate plays alongside during a recent rehearsal at Rough Draft Studios in Palatine, June 12, 2026. (John Starks/Daily Herald)

‘A bucket list item that I didn’t know I had’: Suburban garage rockers prep for first headlining gig since ’60s

June 27, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

The Huns broke up after high school and haven't performed together in public — much less picked up a guitar, for some of them — since the late 1960s. That's...

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