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SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois Grape Growers and Vintners Alliance today urged Illinois Senators to support Senate Bill 2976 to help provide relief for Illinois wineries that have experienced a drop in tourism and increase in licensing fees during the COVID-19 pandemic and provide an equitable pathway for growth for the industry. SB 2976, sponsored by Sen. Rachelle Crowe, would reduce a significant licensing fee increase imposed on Illinois wineries during the height of the pandemic when many wineries struggled to stay afloat. The bill would also provide balance for wine production and self-distribution limits compared to counterparts in the beer and spirits industries. “With ongoing challenges created by the pandemic, the wine industry in Illinois is still working to bounce back and prove its resilience,” Sen. Crowe said. “By increasing the production cap and allowing makers to sell more wine directly to retailers, Illinois can offer support to one of its

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The mix of weather is expected to make travel tricky all day Thursday.

Alice Windom, a fierce advocate for Black liberation, passed away on Thursday, Feb. 10, 2022, in St. Louis. She was 85. With her passing, we lost one of our greatest leaders, the likes of whom Missouri had never seen.

Our inaugural 2022 Startups to Watch program spotlights the expanding scope of startups that dot the St. Louis region. It profiles companies focused on a range of industries, including renewable energy, software, consumer goods, agriculture and health care. What binds these 10 companies together is their ambition for innovation and change, highlighted by their innovative products and disruptive business models.

The launch of Rebundle’s first product comes as the plant-based beauty market continues to strengthen. As the startup scales up production of its plant-based hair extensions, it is expanding its footprint in St. Louis.

SentiAR contends it has developed the first and only holographic platform for cardiac surgery that uses a wearable headset to enable its technology. The startup is currently at a key inflection point as it scales up its commercialization efforts.

The upcoming year will represent a key transit for Accelerate Wind as it hopes to push its R&D efforts closer to commercialization. That will involve it launching several pilots of its wind turbines, with the company saying it expects to deploy its technology on five to 10 buildings in the next few years.

Intramotev plans to complete its commercial demonstration unit this year and begin testing the vehicle. With that, the company said it could begin sharing videos of the vehicle as it drives itself.

In 2022, Eemerg plans to double its network of roadside assistance providers while also building out a new business line.

With its newest venture, a pair of St. Louis serial entrepreneurs are aiming to help small businesses and "main street" business districts better compete with big box retailers and online shopping giants like Amazon.

Within the past two years, Core and Rind has drastically expanded distribution of its cashew cheesy sauce. At the beginning of 2020, its products could be found in about 100 stores nationwide. Today, it sells its products in nearly 1,000 stores in the U.S. and Canada.

While many companies have placed a focus on combating climate change, the founders of Pluton believe they’re developing products that could have a direct impact on reversing the negative impacts of climate change.

While KSHE picked up a mark of 8.5, country music KSD jumped up to the No. 2 spot with a rating of 8.2. Christian radio KLJY clocked in at No. 3.

Lawmakers are weighing in with support for the people of Ukraine and charting a path forward for the U.S.

With a deadline looming that could cost Missouri almost $2 billion in federal education aid, the bill to distribute the money passed the state Senate on Wednesday after Democrats slammed a zero-dollar funding …

SEE VIDEO: WOOD RIVER - Riverbend Family Ministries is a group of eight local nonprofit organizations operating under one roof to help “families in crisis” - those experiencing violence, addiction, homelessness and/or poverty. That roof is about to get bigger as the group moves into a larger building with a backstory rooted in their own history. The story of this new building begins in a former Wood River coffee and bagel shop, at the time known as T.R.’s Café. Then-owner Tammy Iskarous decided 15 years ago to close the café and begin her journey in the nonprofit world by moving operations across the street and founding Riverbend Family Ministries. Iskarus said the idea behind their collaborative model is to pool resources to ease financial burdens on local nonprofits. “There are some small nonprofits that are doing some great work, but yet they can’t afford the brick and mortar, so they're not being as impactful as they could,”

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St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney Wesley Bell had balked at the idea, citing a potential for conflicts of interest.

Three men pleaded guilty to federal terrorism charges after admitting plans to attack the power grid “in furtherance of white supremacist ideology,” according to documents unsealed Wednesday. Christopher Brenner Cook, 20, of Columbus, Ohio; Jonathan Allen Frost, 24, of West Lafayette, Indiana, and of Katy, Texas; and Jackson Matthew Sawall, 22, of Oshkosh, Wisconsin, each pleaded […]

The post Three men plead guilty to plotting a white supremacist attack on power grid appeared first on Missouri Independent.

JERSEYVILLE – On what seemed to be just another chilly day in February was the celebration of a milestone in the project timeline for Illinois American Water’s new operations center in Jerseyville, Illinois. The 16,000 square foot operations center will consolidate field operations, administrative and operations support staff in a single location at the address of 501 Mound Street. As snow melted, the preparation for construction commenced and excavation equipment began to arrive. Finally, a groundbreaking celebration for all parties involved was underway. Kyle Ogden, Project Director at Helmkamp Construction, welcomed all attendees to the groundbreaking event saying “Thank you to the entire design build team for their work in the design phase and getting us to this point. We are all excited to move into the construction phase and bring this project to life.” Also joining in the occasion was the City of Jerseyville’s mayor, William Russell, who was excited

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Quick note: I'm sure I'll have occasional comments on Russia's invasion of Ukraine over the next few days and weeks, but only if I have something interesting to say. Beyond that, I'm no Ukraine expert and won't be writing about it more generally. You can get that from dozens of regular news sources. My basic ...continue reading "Vladimir Putin is (still) a thug"