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Outdoor sculpture is part of the visible history of a town or city. Since 1991, a group called "Save Outdoor Sculpture" (S.O.S) has made its mission the conservation of this history -- from the effects of acid rain, pigeons, and graffiti artists. NPR's Special Correspondent Susan Stamberg spoke with members of S.O.S. when they met in Washington DC recently. Members from Philadelphia; Astoria, Oregon; and Washington, DC, say the conservation efforts have produced beautiful results. And the Mayor of Rock Hill, South Carolina, says the city ended up saving itself by saving its sculpture.

With Major League Soccer playing its championship game this Sunday, sportswriter Stefan Fatsis takes the opportunity to examine the league's overall performance -- both on and off the field. There's been little audience growth, and it appears the league has not yet broken through in popularity. But ownership's deep pockets are keeping it going. On the field, the Kansas City Wizards and the Chicago Fire face off in Washington D.C. this weekend in a game which features Chicago's high powered offense against Kansas City's tight defense. Stefan also makes brief mention of England's difficulty in World Cup qualifying matches and the approach this spring of the new women's soccer league in the U.S.

Harper Lee's Pulitzer Prize winning novel To Kill a Mockingbird is in the news again. The city of Chicago has chosen the 1960 classic for The Chicago reading initiative "One Book, One Chicago." The same day Chicago announced the selection, Muskogee High School in Oklahoma removed the book from its required reading list for freshmen. Guest host Melissa Block talks with Mary Dempsey, commissioner for the Chicago Public Library, and Muriel Saunders, a member of the Muskogee School Board in Oklahoma, about the decisions made by both cities. We also hear excerpts from the audio version of the book as narrated by Sally Darling and produced by Recorded Books.

Intelligence reports warned of Russian provocations along the routes, Ukrainian officials said. Ukraine and Russia have regularly agreed to establish corridors from some of the hardest-hit cities.

In Alaska, the North Pole City Council holds an election on Tuesday. The legally named Santa Claus has launched a write-in campaign. He's one of two contenders for two seats.

The Town of Normal's new city engineer is the assistant engineer in Bloomington.Ryan Otto will join the town staff after 13 years in Bloomington, the last…

In some cities, people have fallen in love with motorized scooters. The Los Angeles Times reports some people in that city have damaged scooters, throwing them off balconies or in the ocean.

Bloomington council members are beginning to narrow down their priorities for the next fiscal year. Aldermen met with Mayor Tari Renner and city staff…

The City of Bloomington is seeking applications for an upcoming city council vacancy.Scott Black has announced plans to resign from the city council this…

Our panelists predict, now that Amazon has selected its new homes, what will be the next thing cities fight over.