Migrants

The Immigration Project and Home Sweet Home Ministries shelter are teaming up to put roughly $700,000 to use in helping recent arrivals in Bloomington-Normal and the unhoused.

The Immigration Project started a support group in July centered on healing migratory grief for Spanish-speakers in the region. There are currently around eight people in the closed group.

Illinois Senate Republicans are accusing the Pritzker administration of not being transparent about how much the state is spending on services for migrants. The governor's proposed budget calls for $182 million to support the influx of asylum seekers.

Gov. J.B. Pritzker and Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle’s funding agreement is noticeably missing a key partner: the city of Chicago. And it comes after Pritzker, Preckwinkle and Mayor Brandon Johnson met in January and this month to discuss how to further fund the crisis.

The letter penned by Democratic governors said political machinations are delaying much-needed help for their states and cities — and they urged the passage of President Joe Biden’s $110 billion request for wartime aid and border security.

The mayor of Bloomington said he's glad the community had the discussion about spending public dollars on services to migrants who might be bused from the border to central Illinois. Mboka Mwilambwe said he's also pleased the McLean County Board rejected the proposed ban on such spending last week.

An immigration rights advocate says more than 75 migrants bused from the southern border since 2022 are already living in McLean County.

The state of Illinois has set up a new intake center in Chicago for migrants brought to the state. McLean County Emergency Management Agency Director Cathy Beck says the county would arrange transportation for migrants to travel to the intake center if buses arrive in McLean County.

Republican Chuck Erickson of Bloomington said the county can’t be sure that all migrants who could be brought to McLean County are seeking political asylum and some may pose a safety threat.

The decision follows the city of Chicago’s release of an environmental report Friday that showed the location at 38th and California required metals and chemicals cleanup.