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Nursing homes suffered financially during the pandemic as families avoided putting residents there. Perhaps a quarter of long term care facilities won't make it through the next year. The McLean County Nursing Home might have taken less of a hit than most. Bloomington Normal landlords say a lot of tenants haven't paid rent in a long time. They say they don't want to evict anyone, but will do what they have to. And the Mayor of Normal sayeth the state legislature giveth and the state legislature taketh away. A transfer of firefighters and police from tier two to tier one pension plans wipes out previous efficiencies.

Connect Transit gave more than a million rides during the pandemic. The head of the board for Bloomington Normal's bus system says that alone makes the case transit is a community must have as ridership rises again. Plus, progress to rework the Pantagraph building into a transfer center.Racial violence. Family trauma. The price of security. It's pretty heady stuff for a comic book movie. Scott Jordan is one-half of WGLT's Psych Geeks team -- dissecting the release of Marvel's "Black Widow" and its place in the always changing popular culture. Blues Traveler plays the Corn Crib. Jon Norton has the interview about the group's early dreams and new realities.

A Bloomington attorney and Lincoln scholar has given a letter Abraham Lincoln wrote to a Peoria Attorney, to the Lincoln Library and Presidential Museum in Springfield. It's a window into the mind of Lincoln as a politician and person in transition. Hear a reckoning of the costs of COVID in the things you can't do: lost health and lost opportunity from the pandemic in McLean County. Gardening is good for the body, mind and soul. Sarah Davis sure thought so. The WGLT Datebook takes you on the Glorious Garden Walk at the David Davis Mansion. Hear about the delicious and the dangerous poke sallet. It's tasty but sometimes toxic.

Connect Transit's new general manager says he wants to explore new technologies to build on the sustainability of public transportation. David Braun says he welcomes the addition of electric buses though the technology is not quite mature. The Electrification Coalition is siding with Rivian in a battle whether you can sell cars directly and not through dealers. The Coalition says cars ought to be like I-phones, available everywhere. That has sales tax implications for cities. Congressman Darin LaHood says he's still optimistic about an infrastructure bill.

On today's episode, the owner of a McLean County farm tallies up the damage after last month's historic rain. A pro-EV group makes the case of battery-powered buses and semis. And a new installment of our McHistory series.

On today's episode of Sound Ideas, you'll hear about Heartland Community College's first electric vehicle training program. A leading cybersecurity expert in Illinois talks about what resources will be necessary to protect the country's information infrastructure. Plus, a new installment of Beyond Sports.

The pace of vaccinations has slowed dramatically in McLean County and the health department may soon end mass clinics. It's still a long road from the current 40 percent inoculation rate in McLean County to herd immunity at 70 or 80 percent. Plus, it's garlic season in central Illinois. Learn about the ancient nutritious, even antiseptic herb and how to save your taste buds and tummy from the smelly thing. The identities of creative people can never truly be separated from the things they create, but Black artists often find themselves pigeonholed by White curators. Go behind a Bloomington Normal exhibition highlighting Black freedom of creative expression.

Adults berated and talked over Not In Our Schools leader Yvin Chin at a recent Bloomington school board meeting. The issue of Black History education has become heated in Bloomington Normal. Plus, a man who helped free 18 innocent people from Illinois prisons is retiring. John Hanlon talks about justice, injustice, and truth. The Illinois State University Athletics Director has been watching state lawmakers change gambling rules and gauges the impact on collegiate athletics. And Heartland Community College President Keith Cornille says the college is moving to address an underdeveloped area of the workforce, agriculture.

Bloomington based Hip-Hop artist Darius Williams says his new album was self-therapy during a difficult time. Listen to the new album Left Alone. Plus, a Peoria-based sexual health organization expands to Bloomington Normal. Bloomington Mayor Mboka Mwilambwe says he doesn't want to second guess pulling out of the Metro Zone agreement on west side revenue sharing with Normal just as Rivian was taking off. Republicans don't much like the way Democrats handled legislative redistricting this year, but Illinois is far from an outlier among other states doing the same thing.

The structural deficit for Unit 5 schools is $12.5 million and rising $1.5-2 million a year. Unit 5 Superintendent Kristen Weikle says she hopes to have deficit reduction plans developed by the fall. They will include cuts, new revenue, and efficiencies in existing operations. Plus, the town of Normal will rework zoning rules to allow permanent outdoor on street dining. it proved popular during the pandemic. Hear from City Manager Pam Reece. The prairie state doesn't have a lot of prairie left. Learn more during WGLT's gardening podcast 'Grow.' And Opera Under the Stars comes to an outdoor venue in Normal, courtesy of Prairie Fire Theater.