Lake County families are bracing for the fallout of major cuts to Indiana’s On My Way Pre-K, the state’s first full-scale preschool program for low-income 4-year-olds, which advocates warn could severely limit access to early childhood education in communities already struggling with inequity. The program allows families to use state vouchers at participating public and […]
Calvin Davis
Calvin Davis is Capital B Gary's government and politics reporter. You can reach Calvin at calvin.davis@capitalbnews.org.
Posted inLocal Government, Politics & Policy
July 2025 Public Meeting Schedule for Gary
Gary officials will tackle zoning changes, paid parking at the lakefront, and long-planned park upgrades during meetings throughout July. The city’s infrastructure remains a focus as officials advance upgrades to pump stations and other critical systems.The Common Council’s first meeting of July will be held at the Gary Public Library on Fifth Avenue, temporarily moving […]
Posted inEconomic Development, Housing, Politics & Policy, Redevelopment
A Walkable, Mixed-Use Future : Inside the Plan to Rebuild Gary’s Downtown
What began as an opportunity last summer for Gary residents to share their hopes and conceptions for a reimagined downtown has become an in-depth master plan produced by the University of Notre Dame’s School of Architecture in partnership with the city. After weeks of talking with neighbors and months of behind-the-scenes preparations, the final blueprint […]
Posted inEconomy, Politics & Policy
$15B Nippon Steel Deal Is Completed, Bringing Hope and Uncertainty to Gary
After more than a year of off-again, on-again negotiation talks, Nippon Steel’s $15 billion acquisition of American staple U.S. Steel has officially been completed, according to releases from both companies. The details for Gary could be transformative. Nippon’s leadership has already earmarked at least $1 billion for Gary Works, including a rebuild of the aging […]
Posted inCommunity Spotlight
Restoration Project Brings New Life to Hatcher Park and Marshalltown Marsh
Glimmers of the evening sun shining through the trees gave Vertis Shirley all the light she needed to catch a glimpse of a gray catbird through her binoculars. “Right there on that tiny little branch,” said Kayla Lindsey-Fisher, senior stewardship associate for Audubon Great Lakes, as she directed Shirley’s attention to the spot where the […]
Posted inPolitics & Policy, Public Services
June 2025 Public Meeting Schedule for Gary
After voting in April to go forward with a zoning change to the Beckman School property, the Gary Common Council last month overrode a pocket veto from Mayor Eddie Melton that would have blocked the change. The 6-3 vote cleared the way for an industrial business to move into the Midtown neighborhood site near 23rd […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Politics & Policy
Larry Hoover’s Federal Sentence Commuted. How Have Chicago Streets Changed?
Larry Hoover, founder of a notorious Chicago street gang who has spent the past three decades in solitary confinement in federal prison, was granted clemency by President Donald Trump on Wednesday — but his legal troubles are far from over. Hoover’s six life-term federal sentences have been commuted to time served, but he will serve […]
Posted inEconomic Development, Politics & Policy
Gary’s Big Win: Convention Center News Sparks Citywide Excitement
Robert Buggs stood alone amid a sea of applause. Clad in a baby-blue fedora and matching sport coat, he was the only person to rise in the county Government Center’s second-floor chamber as the Lake County Board of Commissioners named Gary the new convention center site. “I’m very ecstatic about it, because now’s the time […]
Posted inBusiness, Economy, Politics & Policy
Trump announces deal between Nippon and U.S. Steel
President Donald Trump on Friday announced a partnership between the U.S. Steel and Japanese steelmaker Nippon that he says will keep the headquarters in Pittsburgh and add billions of dollars to the U.S. Economy. “From Pennsylvania to Arkansas, and from Minnesota to Indiana, AMERICAN MADE is BACK,” Trump said on his social media platform Truth […]
Posted inEconomic Development, Politics & Policy
New Lake County Convention Center Is Coming to Gary
It’s official. The Lake County Board of Commissioners selected Gary as the site for the new Lake County Convention Center. The commissioners announced the decision Wednesday morning to a packed room and were met with rousing applause from an audience that included Gary residents and city officials. What began as proposals for 14 sites across […]