OTL: Episode #475- Combating suburban homelessness, Chicago Book Expo preview, Recycling in Chicago the right way

Mike Stephen talks with:   Loaves & Fishes Community Services President & CEO Megan Selck about how her organization is combating suburban homelessness;   Chicago Book Expo co-organizer John Wilson about the literary event of the year that’s happening at Columbia College; and   DNAinfo Chicago reporter/producer Patty Wetli about figuring out the right way to recycle in Chicago.   Meanwhile, Mike reviews Chicago’s rules about how long you have to clear off your sidewalk after a snowfall.   This week’s local music is provided by Common Allies.   OTL host Mike Stephen celebrates the first snow of 2015 before being a good citizen and shoveling the sidewalk.   To subscribe to the OTL podcast, please visit our iTunes page or RSS feed.

OTL: Episode #465- The future of affordable housing in Chicago, Petcoke’s presence on the South Side, Chicago’s best novels by neighborhood

Mike Stephen talks with:   CityLab staff writer Brentin Mock about the future of affordable housing in Chicago;   Southeast Side Coalition to Ban Petcoke member Jim Kinney about how a toxic byproduct of petroleum processing is affecting city residents; and   Local author/lecturer/screenwriter Adam Morgan about the “Best Chicago Novels by Neighborhood” (via Gapers Block).   This week’s local music is provided by Low Swans.   OTL host Mike Stephen practices for the show each week in a studio much like this one in a top-secret underground bunker.   To subscribe to the OTL podcast, please visit our iTunes page or RSS feed.

OTL: Episode #463- How The 606 affects affordable housing, Chicago Baseball fights for its rights outside of Wrigley, 16-year-old Reade Wildman jams in studio

Mike Stephen talks with:   Voorhees Center economic development planner Lauren Nolan about affordable housing issues along The 606 elevated park;   Chicago Baseball editor/publisher Matt Smerge about his magazine’s fight against the city to stay alive; and   Reade Wildman, a 16-year-old guitarist and Chicago Academy for the Arts student, who hung out to play live for the hour! Check out his new record Syzygy.   Reade Widman poses with Mike Stephen at the halfway point of rocking the soundtrack for OTL #463.   To subscribe to the OTL podcast, please visit our iTunes page or RSS feed.   Reade Widman jams a tune from his new Syzygy record on a rainy Chicago Saturday morning.

OTL: Episode #456- Utilizing IL urban wood, Illuminating TIFs in Chicago, The Secret History of Chicagoland’s 60s garage rockers The Riddles

Mike Stephen talks with:   Illinois Wood Utilization Team chairperson Edith Makra and IIT College of Architecture studio associate professor Paul Pettigrew about giving dead urban trees new life;   TIF Illumination Project lead organizer Tom Tresser (support their Indiegogo campaign!); and   Plastic Crimewave (aka Steve Krakow) about late-’60s suburban rockers The Riddles for this week’s edition of The Secret History of Chicago Music.   This week’s local music is provided by Farkus.   OTL host Mike Stephen visits Illinois Wood Utilization Team chairperson Edith Makra and IIT College of Architecture studio associate professor Paul Pettigrew at the IIT Architecture Model Shop.   To subscribe to the OTL podcast, please visit our iTunes page or RSS feed.