Urban Current

by Charles Lyons Boston is home of the first public school, the first subway system, the first all female law school, and the first phone call in history. Called the Athens of America because of […]

by Charles Lyons Who can foretell the ultimate poten­tial of one person with an idea? He was born a child of the city in 1735. This son of privilege inherited his father’s successful printing concern, […]

by Charles Lyons Read any books lately that made you go “Wow!”? Joel Kotkin’s The City, A Global History had just that effect on me. How does an author jam so much into such few […]

by Charles Lyons In Waiting for Superman, “Documentary filmmaker Davis Guggenheim explores the tragic ways in which the American public education system is failing our nation’s chil­dren.” – Jason Buchanan, Rovi (www.waitingforsuperman.com) Once again an […]

by Charles Lyons February 22, 2011, will be extraordinary in Chicago history. Voters will go to the polls in a unique mayoral primary. From time immemorial, the primary in Chicago has been the election. There […]

by Charles Lyons Just in from Almaty. Yes, Almaty. You know…. Albany, Atlanta, Almaty. Still not ringing a bell? How about Kazakhstan? Almaty, Kazakhstan. Is that helpful? Okay, could you locate Kazakhstan on a map […]

by Charles Lyons Bob, lanky, with a kind of “aw shucks” demeanor, coked his way through Columbia University in New York City. His father had died. He had to pay his mother’s mortgage while working […]

by Charles Lyons Debbie (D): Having lived in the inner city Chicago 29 years, I can say I never wanted to be anywhere else. I’m speaking with John and Debbie Thomp­son who have two sons, […]

by Charles Lyons Let’s take a look at two articles that caught my eye in the last 30 days. The first is “Beyond City Limits.” “The Age of Nations is over. The new urban age […]

by Charles Lyons “Body found in the Humboldt Park Lagoon,” read the headline from a lit­tle over a year ago. Another one from a few years back, “Man’s body found in Hum­boldt Lagoon.” These are […]