A $1 million grant will help a company start making popcorn in an expansion that will employ 40 people in Deer Creek, a small town between Peoria and Bloomington-Normal.

The Bloomington Bison return to the ice this week after ECHL players and the league ratified their new collective bargaining agreement following a strike that postponed three Bison games.

From heartbreak in 2014 to a historic run in 2025, the Illinois State "road warriors" are headed back to the national championship. Former Redbird stars are passing the torch and heading to Nashville to watch this resilient team finish what they started a decade ago.

A 26-year-old man is dead after a single-vehicle crash early Sunday just southeast of Bloomington. The McLean County coroner's office and Illinois State Police are investigating.

The public is invited to tour Bloomington’s soon-to-open non-congregate shelter village for the unhoused during an open house and ribbon-cutting ceremony next week.

The National Weather Service confirmed three tornadoes in Central Illinois during a severe weather outbreak Sunday. There was damage in Pontiac and near Pekin and Decatur.

After a work stoppage postponed three Bloomington Bison pro hockey games this weekend, players are set to report back to their teams with a tentative labor agreement in place.

Specs Around Town will soon be under new ownership. Julie Kubsch is retiring and has sold the boutique eyewear store to Jenna Bixby-Nehl, who will take over Jan. 6.

Hockey players in the ECHL went on strike Friday over unresolved contract negotiations, postponing at least three Bloomington Bison games and threatening dozens more.

Tazewell County Coroner Charles Hanley said the coroner’s office was called to the 31000 block of Illinois Route 9 east of Mackinaw about 4:30 a.m. Wednesday for a single-vehicle crash.

WGLT.org’s most-read stories of the year include reporting about Bloomington-Normal’s largest employers, coverage of local tragedies that shook the community, and heartwarming stories about finding love and opening a new business.

The Illinois State football team is headed to the FCS national championship game on Monday, Jan. 5, in Nashville. Here’s what fans should know if they plan to watch or travel to the game.