Latest news with #Aurora-based
Chicago Tribune
12-07-2025
- Business
- Chicago Tribune
Summer Food Truck Festival set for downtown Aurora
Aurora's food truck festival scene is growing again, with the introduction of a summer food truck event on Friday, July 18, in the city's downtown. The city of Aurora's Special Events Division will hold the summer Food Truck Festival beginning at 5 p.m. July 18 on Benton Street between River and Broadway. The summer event will join the longstanding spring Food Truck Festival held a couple of months ago during the first week in May, and the fall Food Truck Festival to be held in September. The autumn version was held for the first time last year. Christina DiCristofano, community events coordinator for this year's fests, said there were somewhere between 4,000 and 5,000 people that came out to last fall's Food Truck Festival, which gave fuel to the idea of expanding the number of food truck events in 2025. 'We're having our new summer fest on the 18th of July and one in the fall on the 26th of September,' she said. 'We've increased the numbers because we want to provide more opportunities for business owners – all the food vendors and trucks that are really trying to get out there in the community and be present and have opportunity. That's one of the main reasons. 'Last year was the first time we had one in the fall, so once we had that one we really reevaluated the event, and realized how successful it was and how much people enjoyed the festival,' DiCristofano added. 'We pivoted after that and started looking into the idea of doing an extra one and giving more opportunity to the vendors and giving people the chance to come down to Aurora and be in our downtown area.' DiCristofano said that 'people in Aurora and outside of Aurora really love this event and food trucks and being able to come out and enjoy some nice food.' The summer food truck fest will feature more than 30 options – the same as the May food truck fest – with a few new vendors replacing some that appeared earlier. 'We have about half a dozen new vendors this time, and we want to offer people another opportunity to gather and have another event where they can do so and have a good time,' DiCristofano said of the upcoming summer fest. 'We do try to showcase businesses here in Aurora and vendors that are Aurora-based, but I do try to mix it up and make sure we don't have things stagnant and keep things fresh and new, so we do have some new vendors. I plan to also have some new ones in the fall.' The event on July 18 will be held rain or shine unless there is severe weather. For more information on the summer Food Truck Festival, go to
Toronto Star
24-06-2025
- Automotive
- Toronto Star
Driverless vehicles have hit Toronto's streets. Here's what you need to know — from secret rules to ticketing confusion
Driverless delivery vehicles have hit the streets of Toronto, as part of a test program by Aurora-based car parts manufacturer Magna International. Though the city had no say in the program, which is regulated by the province, residents in some downtown and midtown wards may have already seen the first of a planned 20 rolling out.
Hamilton Spectator
24-06-2025
- Automotive
- Hamilton Spectator
Driverless vehicles have hit Toronto's streets. Here's what you need to know — from secret rules to ticketing confusion
Driverless delivery vehicles have hit the streets of Toronto, as part of a test program by Aurora-based car parts manufacturer Magna International. Though the city had no say in the program, which is regulated by the province, residents in some downtown and midtown wards may have already seen the first of a planned 20 rolling out. Here's what you need to know about the driverless vehicle program, including what was in the company's application, which the provincial government kept sealed from the public. Up to 20 automated three-wheeled vehicles will be delivering small packages until the end of the year throughout Davenport, as well as parts of Parkdale-High Park, York South-Weston, University-Rosedale and Toronto-St. Paul's. While the vehicles themselves are already out and about, as of Friday Magna has not yet started making deliveries with them, according to a spokesperson for the company. Up to 20 automated vehicles will be delivering small packages throughout all of Davenport and parts of Parkdale-High Park, York South-Weston, University-Rosedale and Toronto-St. Paul's. Magna is training its artificial intelligence through this pilot program, developing its software in a competitive field, though the company declined to shed light on its ultimate goal. Meanwhile, for city staff, it's an opportunity to see what the technology's limits are in a dense city like Toronto. 'It seems clear that pressure will grow over time to deploy vehicles with various types and levels of automation on Toronto streets,' wrote the city's general manager of transportation services Barbara Gray in a report. Magna has vowed their vehicles will only operate on roads with a speed limit of 40 km/h or less because its software caps the vehicles' upper limit to 32 km/h. Each vehicle will be supervised by a 'chase car' with a driver and passenger tailing behind, as well as a remote human operator. However, according to confidential provincial documents obtained by the Star that outline Magna's licence conditions, the vehicles are allowed to operate on arterial roads at certain hours, which in Toronto usually have speed limits of 50 km/h. 'Magna does not plan for these vehicles to cross arterial roads during daytime testing, however, may do so during off-peak hours where less traffic is present,' according to the confidential documents. The use of automated vehicles for various services has increased recently, but mainly in U.S. states with a warmer climate than Ontario. Magna said its vehicles will not operate in Toronto during heavy snow or rain. According to a city report with information mostly from Magna , the vehicles will avoid left turns to reduce the chance of collisions and traffic delays. But this is not mandated by the province. Part of Magna's licence conditions said the vehicles can make left turns if it is at a three-way intersection with traffic lights and no lane of oncoming traffic, and if it is controlled by the remote operator, according to the confidential documents. The confidential documents sealed by the province also include city staff's concerns — among them key requests the Ministry of Transportation rebuffed. For one thing, 'to mitigate safety risks' city staff had asked the province to keep these vehicles off Bloor Street between Avenue Road and Christie Street, and for the vehicles to travel no more than one consecutive block on Bloor anywhere west of Christie. City staff also asked the province to prevent these vehicles from operating during afternoon rush hour on weekdays north of Bloor on Bathurst and Dufferin streets, and any streets south of Bloor. The ministry response said these requests were not 'viable' restrictions, 'as it presents challenges and would make data collection difficult.' Deliveries could include any retail goods such as groceries, meals, pharmaceuticals or clothing. The vehicles, carrying packages stored in locked compartments, will park in a curbside space. If there isn't a free parking space, the vehicle will stop at the nearest legal location, and a person in the chase vehicle will help with the delivery. Customers will unlock the compartment with a multi-digit access code. As for receiving the code, 'we anticipate it will be via retailer application, similar to ride-hailing notifications when a vehicle has arrived,' the Magna spokesperson said. According to the public city report , each vehicle gets its own licence plate and the company has liability insurance of $5 million per incident, as required under the province's Highway Traffic Act. But Toronto police have yet to figure out with the city and the Ministry of Transportation what or who to ticket if there's any infraction because the legislation is drafted so law enforcement writes tickets to human drivers, not autonomous vehicles. 'In the meantime, if there is a scenario in which a driverless vehicle commits a (traffic) violation, TPS officers will engage with the human supervisors of these driverless vehicles,' said Toronto police spokesperson Nadine Ramadan. Since this data is being used to actively train Magna's artificial intelligence, that means the technology will capture people's faces, while licence plates will be obscured. The data, including personal information, is stored on a Magna server in Toronto and certain Magna engineers — in Ontario and in Michigan — may access this data 'for analysis and AI training, from time to time and for a short period of time,' the company said. While the vehicles don't use facial recognition technology, capturing faces on video 'enables the better prediction of where pedestrians are going to move,' Magna said. Coun. Gord Perks (Ward 4, Parkdale-High Park) said he has asked Magna if its AI was ever tested in the sort of complicated transportation environment like downtown Toronto, including any experience interacting with transit vehicles, bike lanes and construction zones or people wearing workers' vests. 'They said 'no,'' Perks said. 'Experience operating where there might be potholes or other interruptions on the road? They were unsure.' Perks also said he was told by Magna they were unsure if law enforcement agencies could get access to their video footage. At council's infrastructure and environment committee this month, councillors asked the city's transportation staff to come back in September with answers to a list of questions about privacy and consent, include getting advice from the provincial and federal privacy commissioners. Also subject to council's approval this week, city staff are to report back by the end of 2026 on the takeaways of the pilot project. Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page .
Chicago Tribune
22-05-2025
- Sport
- Chicago Tribune
A plucky Jessica Pleckham goes from bench to leadoff-hitting star for Aurora Central Catholic. ‘Worked her butt off.'
Is Aurora Central Catholic senior Jessica Pleckham having fun yet? You better believe it. 'Jessica has worked her butt off,' ACC coach Mark Pasqualini said of his right fielder and leadoff hitter who has blossomed this spring. 'It's been a struggle. She's had her ups and her downs. 'Last year, she was behind an all-stater. She had to wait her turn, find the right spot, and I couldn't be happier for her. She worked as hard as she could to put herself in the position she's in.' That position is someplace special. Last week, Pleckham was named the GCAC White's player of the year and joined three teammates — senior center fielder Kate Gambro, junior shortstop Morgan Vaghy and junior pitcher Corina Miller — on the all-conference team. On Wednesday, Pleckham started a six-run rally in the first inning with a leadoff walk and the Chargers made short work of their playoff opener in soggy conditions, topping fifth-seeded Winnebago 15-0 in three-and-a-half innings of a Class 2A Marengo Regional semifinal. Senior third baseman Madalyn Torrance highlighted the outburst with a grand slam and added a double in the six-run third inning for third-seeded ACC (23-9), which advances to a 4:30 p.m. Friday regional final against second-seeded Marengo (26-9). 'That's kind of how it's been all season,' Pasqualini said. 'I don't know who's gonna have their day. Maddie hits the grand slam, and she hasn't hit a home run in two years. 'It was a good moment for her.' Gambro added three hits, including two doubles, and senior designated player Ashley Moore had two hits with a double. It was plenty of support for Miller (16-3), who broke the program record for wins in a season. 'I don't know where it comes from sometimes,' Pasqualini said of the way his team shares the wealth. 'I have the lineup set, then you get (No. 8 hitter) Maddy Torrance with a grand slam.' The 5-foot-7 Pleckham, a speedy, slap-hitting lefty who throws right-handed, may be the team's prime example this season with her turnaround. She had a rare hitless day, going 0-for-2. It all began for her as the courtesy runner for Purdue Northwest-bound catcher Olivia Hernandez. 'Freshman year, I didn't see the field very much, but I was OK with that,' Pleckham said. 'I got to pinch run for one of the seniors, Olivia Hernandez. 'There were only 18 players, so we didn't have a JV team until last year. My sophomore year, I began to get on the field more. That was probably my better season.' Pleckham plays travel ball with the Aurora-based Illinois Hawks, coached by Minooka varsity assistant coach Sydney Singleton. Her twin brother, Brady, plays baseball at Marmion. 'I just love the sport a lot,' Pleckham said. 'I don't know where I'd be without it.' Last spring, however, she struggled. 'I started playing at the start of the season,' Jessica said. 'I didn't perform exactly the way I needed to, so I didn't see much of the field for the rest of the season, which makes sense. 'It just made me work a lot harder over the summer, fall and next winter.' That work ethic was fueled when she was 10. Her dad switched her to hitting lefty and slapping. 'He just turned me around and said, 'I don't care how mad you get, you're gonna learn how to do it,'' she said. 'It's a good thing he did. He thought I was fast, and by then, hitting right-handed wasn't going too well for me. It's worked out.' Has it ever. Pleckham entered the postseason hitting a team-best .451. She batted a league-best .515 in the GCAC White. In the fall, she committed to play at Trinity Christian in Palos Heights. 'Last year, I got in my head a lot and was really lacking confidence,' Pleckham said. 'This year, I think I stopped caring about what could go wrong and more of what could go right and just started hitting the ball.'
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Clayton Muhammad, called the ‘voice of Aurora,' set to leave city government
Clayton Muhammad, Aurora's chief engagement and equity officer hailed as 'the voice of Aurora,' is set to leave his role at the city. Over more than 10 years, Muhammad has acted as one of Aurora's main spokespersons and promoters. At a city meeting on Tuesday, he was honored for his service to Aurora both within and outside of city government. 'The fingerprints that you've left all over the city, and these huge shoes to fill — just incredible,' Mayor John Laesch said. In a proclamation naming 'Clayton Muhammad Day' as July 22, his birthday, Laesch said Muhammad has been a 'dedicated and distinguished public servant' who has done the job 'with unwavering commitment, integrity and professionalism.' Since joining the city as the first Director of Communications in 2013 under former Mayor Tom Weisner, Muhammad has played a 'vital role' in the city's engagement, community outreach and communications efforts, according to the proclamation. Laesch also said during the event that Muhammad has earned the respect of his colleagues, elected officials and community partners because of his 'love of Aurora, institutional knowledge and tireless work ethic.' Videos shown at Tuesday's meeting featuring city employees and community members talking about Clayton backed up the proclamation's claims. Multiple people in one of the videos, when asked for one word to describe Muhammad, said he is 'phenomenal.' 'He is known far and wide, and beloved. I don't know if I've ever come across someone who didn't like Clayton,' Aurora Assistant Chief of Staff Nicholas Richard-Thompson said in a video. Others featured in the video spoke of Muhammad's work ethic, his care for others and the impact he has had on so many throughout the city. Representatives from Chicago area media were also among those who spoke highly of Muhammad in videos played at the Tuesday meeting. 'You really put Aurora on the map locally,' NBC 5 Chicago's Christian Farr said to Muhammad in a video played at Tuesday's meeting. Muhammad said at the meeting that, having been born and raised in Aurora, he loves the city. His 12 years working at the city, plus his 10 years working as the spokesperson of East Aurora School District 131, has been 'the honor of a lifetime,' he said. Before working as the director of Community Relations and district spokesman for East Aurora School District, Muhammad was first a sixth-grade teacher at Waldo Middle School in the district and then worked at the Quad County Urban League. Muhammad also founded the Boys II Men organization, an Aurora-based mentoring group. According to Laesch's proclamation, Muhammad leaves behind a 'lasting legacy of excellence in public service.' For his efforts, the city of Aurora also presented Muhammad with a custom-made brooch officially declaring him 'The Voice of Aurora.' rsmith@
