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Retailers are ready to kick off Black Friday just as shoppers pull back on spending

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:26:22 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Retailers are kicking off the unofficial start of the holiday shopping season on Friday with a bevy of discounts and other enticements. But executives are growing concerned with a spending slowdown that could temper sales on the day after Thanksgiving as well as throughout the holidays.Shoppers, powered by a solid job market and steady wage growth, had demonstrated a resilience that confounded economists and ran counter to sour sentiments expressed in opinion polls. Such spending, while cautious, came despite higher prices in the grocery aisle and higher borrowing costs. But consumers are now coming under more pressure from dwindling savings, increased credit card debt and still stubborn inflation. In fact, shoppers cut their buying in October, ending six straight months of gains. Shoppers have gotten some relief from easing inflation, but many goods and services like meat and rent are still far higher than they were just three years ago.The latest quarterly results ...

Police: 5 teens injured outside of United Center in drive-by shooting

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:26:22 GMT

CHICAGO — Five teens were shot outside of the United Center early Thursday morning after a concert let out.Just before 12:15 a.m., officers responded to the 2000 block of West Monroe on the report of a shooting.The shots fired caused a commotion outside of the United Center after left rodwave singer Ari Lennox's concert.CPD believes an unknown gunman fired shots from a vehicle; striking a 15-year-old boy, two 16-year-old boys and two 18 year olds.All of the victims were transported in good condition.No one is in custody. Anyone with information can leave an anonymous tip at cpdtip.com.

Letters: Support for small business redounds in our communities

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:26:22 GMT

The case for small businessesAdvocates for shopping locally use the common plea of “support small businesses,” but why should we risk our hard-earned dollars experimenting with a new product or service primarily because the proprietor is local?Well, the foremost reason is it’s in your best economic interest: Small businesses create a “Local Multiplier Effect” returning more than three times as much per dollar to the local community than a chain competitor, according to the American Independent Business Alliance. Money spent at a small business is invested back into your community by creating new jobs, opening new businesses, and contributing to the local tax base, ultimately benefiting the local economy.Second, a small business’s story becomes a part of your community’s broader story and is something you can participate in. Small businesses identified a missing component to your community, designed a solution, and invested their livelihood to execute the idea and offer their product...

Thanksgiving warm up, followed by chilly weekend

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:26:22 GMT

ST. LOUIS - A chilly start to the day, with temperatures bottoming out in the 20s and 30s area wide. Bundle up if you’re heading out to Turkey Trots Thursday morning! We’ll see a rather decent warm-up by the afternoon, with highs climbing into the mid and upper 50s under lots of sunshine.Another front will move through by this afternoon or early evening, keeping temperatures chilly for the long weekend (highs in the 40s, lows in the 20s or 30s through Sunday). We’re eyeing another storm system to the west that has a high chance of bringing another round of light precipitation late Saturday into early Sunday morning. St. Louis radar: See a map of current weather here Given how cold the air mass will be this weekend, confidence is increasing that the system could bring out the first snowflakes of the season. The best chance for a few flakes mixing with rain will be north of Interstate 70. Road temperatures will be rather warm, so any snowflakes that hit the roads will melt on cont...

Former alderman Brandon Bosley charged with filing false police report

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:26:22 GMT

ST. LOUIS -  More legal troubles for former St. Louis Alderman Brandon Bosley.FOX 2's partners at the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported that he's charged with making a false report to police. Bosley asserted that a woman struck him in December, but later dropped the charges. Investigators say Bosley's story didn't hold up. Another St. Louis resident loses property via Recorder of Deeds Office Bosley is still facing federal charges of insurance fraud for falsely inflating the cost of repairs to his car. He pleaded not guilty in that case.

O'Fallon Ill. High School Band performing in Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:26:22 GMT

O'FALLON, Ill. - The O'Fallon Illinois High School Band is in New York City Thursday for the annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade.It's their first appearance in the parade in more than 20 years. Macy's invited the band last year and gave them $10,000 to cover part of the trip. The words only people in Missouri say The marching panthers band performed in 2022 at the 'Tournament of Roses' parade in California.

Outdoor recreation in Colorado, nationwide packs economic punch, federal numbers show

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:26:22 GMT

The outdoor recreation industry accounted for 2.2% of the nation’s GDP at $563.7 billion in 2022 and made up 2.8% of Colorado’s GDP at nearly $14 billion.The latest federal numbers on the industry also show that Colorado’s outdoor economy grew by 19.9% last year, the sixth largest increase nationwide.For the first time since the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis has released data on outdoor recreation, the industry’s sales crossed the $1 trillion mark.“This is a historic day for the outdoor economy,” Chris Perkins, vice president of programs at the Outdoor Recreation Roundtable, said in a Nov. 17 news conference.Perkins said ORR, a national coalition that represents more than 110,000 outdoor businesses, had a sense from members’ reports and anecdotes that 2022 was a good year. The federal numbers released last week confirm that, he said.The recreation covered by the economic review includes bicycling, boating, hiking, fishing, hunting and sno...

Broncos considering all options at safety following Kareem Jackson’s suspension

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:26:22 GMT

Denver safety Kareem Jackson is suspended for four games. And whether Jackson’s hit on Vikings quarterback Josh Dobbs in Week 11 was worthy of the punishment or not, no longer matters.Nor does it hide the fact that his absence puts the Broncos in a difficult position in the middle of the playoff hunt.Outside of Justin Simmons, the Broncos’ depth at safety is thin. P.J. Locke has been dealing with an ankle injury, Delarrin Turner-Yell has struggled whenever he’s been thrown into the secondary and rookie JL Skinner has yet to play a defensive snap.Despite that reality, head coach Sean Payton insists the solution is in the building.“We’ll rep a few different players there,” Payton said. “We’ll see where we’re at health-wise.”Ideally, the Broncos would like to have Locke back on the field. Locke suffered an ankle injury against the Buffalo Bills, causing him to miss last Sunday’s win over the Minnesota Vikings. His status for Denver’s Week 12 matchup against Clev...

Resurrection Christian’s Ryan and Ty Yoder share basketball passion

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:26:22 GMT

Ty Yoder’s basketball roots can be traced back to Indiana, the home of Larry Bird, “Hoosiers” and hoops madness.His father, Ryan Yoder, was a star at Westview High School in Topeka, Ind., and then played college ball at Colorado State. Ryan, a member of the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame’s 2015 Silver Anniversary Team, is now Ty’s head coach.Ty’s uncle, Russell “Rusty” Yonder, also starred at Westview before playing at South Alabama.No wonder Ty feels he has a destiny to fulfill as the junior point guard for Resurrection Christian High School in Loveland.The Cougars entered last season as the top-ranked team in Class 4A but lost to 17th-seeded Holy Family, 53-43, in the championship game. The loss lingers.“We have the feeling that we let ourselves down,” Ty said.Senior center Jacob Barker, who’s committed to Metro State, was more blunt.“We have a little bit of a chip on our shoulders, so to speak, knowing we sh...

Michael Malone reflects on Nuggets tenure after receiving extension: “The guy doesn’t want to lose”

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:26:22 GMT

ORLANDO, Fla. — Open gym environments in the weeks after the Nuggets’ first NBA championship often involved an energetic 51-year-old man, as one veteran player remembers it.“His work ethic stood out,” said Reggie Jackson, a newcomer during 2022-23 who was still getting acquainted with Michael Malone’s personality and coaching style as the offseason began. “Being the head coach of a team that won the championship and being back in the gym immediately, not only just watching guys but actually rebounding and passing, defending.”Malone’s contract extension as head coach of the Denver Nuggets was officially announced Tuesday, while the team was in the middle of a five-game road trip that has required a great deal of film work by Malone and the coaching staff. The Nuggets (10-5) are 3-5 on the road this season going into the final game of the trip Friday at Houston.“Obviously, just have to give so many thanks to Stan and Josh Kroenke, ...