A man shovels out his car on a snowy street. (Credit: Spencer Platt/Getty Images)
Updated 2/1/11 10:53 p.m.
The Blizzard of 2011 is prompting officials to close museums, schools and other institutions and cancel events. Here is a list of cancellations and early closings that have been announced.
GOVERNMENT
– Chicago Public Schools will be closed Wednesday. Principals, assistant principals, lunchroom managers, engineers (including roving crews), custodians and security personnel must report to their schools. Teachers, paraprofessionals and other staff will be directed not to report for work. Central and Area Offices will remain open and administrative staff at those offices shall report to work.
– All Early Voting sites in Chicago will be closed Wednesday except the Election Board office at 69 W. Washington.
– The Cook County Jail will be on lockdown beginning at 3 p.m. on Tuesday and lasting until 3 p.m. Wednesday. The jail will be limited to essential movement only and there will be no inmate visits allowed, except by requesting clergy or legal counsel. Staff will also remain on site at the jail, serving dinner early on Tuesday and ensuring proper delivery of all mails to all 11 jail buildings.
– Cook County Circuit Courts will be closed Wednesday. All court cases scheduled for Wednesday will be rescheduled.
– All Cook County Health and Hospital System clinics will be closed Wednesday. Patients with appointments should call to reschedule.
– Chicago Public Schools has canceled after-school activities including elementary and high school sports and driver’s education for Tuesday and Wednesday. Also canceled are third-shift preschool programs and all CPS programs at Chicago Park District facilities.
–All Secretary of State offices, including Driver Service facilities, will be closed on Wednesday due to the storm. The office will resume normal business operations on Thursday.
– Lake County government offices and the 19th Judicial Circuit Court will be closed Wednesday. People with court matters scheduled for Wednesday should contact their courthouse’s Circuit Court Clerk for a new court date.
–DuPage County Government offices will be closed on Wednesday due to weather. The DuPage County Emergency Operations Center will continue to be staffed on a 24-hour basis until the weather threat passes.
– All non-essential employees of the Kendall County Courthouse will leave the courthouse at 2:30 p.m. on Tuesday and there will be regular functions at the courthouse. Any matters set for court on Wednesday will be rescheduled to Friday at the same time in the same courtrooms. Judges will be available for handing emergency matters.
– All flight operation are canceled at Midway Airport. Flights are expected to resume Wednesday afternoon.
– All Lake County (Ill.) government offices and Circuit Courts will be closed on Wednesday.
ATTRACTIONS
– Shedd Aquarium will close at 1 p.m. Tuesday and will be closed all day Wednesday.
– Adler Planetarium is closed all day Wednesday.
– Brookfield Zoo will be closed on Wednesday.
COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES
– The City Colleges of Chicago have canceled all classes and events past 2 p.m. on Tuesday and all classes on Wednesday.
– Columbia College has canceled all classes after 12:30 p.m. Tuesday.
– DePaul University has canceled all classes after 1 p.m. Tuesday and all Wednesday classes at city and suburban campuses. All buildings will close at 3 p.m. Tuesday, with employees dismissed at 3 p.m. All scheduled events at DePaul for Tuesday evening and Wednesday have been canceled.
– At Elmhurst College, all classes that begin at 5:30 p.m. or later on Tuesday and all classes for Wednesday, have been canceled. Administrative offices will be closed Tuesday night and Wednesday.
– Harper College in Palatine will close at 3 p.m. Tuesday.
– Roosevelt University in Chicago has canceled all classes from 1 p.m. Tuesday through noon Wednesday.
– Indiana University Northwest campuses in Hammond and Portage will close at 2:30 p.m. Tuesday and will be closed all day Wednesday.
– At Northwestern University, all classes starting after 5 p.m. on Tuesday have been canceled. This includes all classes on both the Evanston and Chicago campuses. All University libraries will close Tuesday afternoon. Shuttle buses will operate for as long as it is considered safe to drive but delays are likely. A decision on whether to cancel classes and close the University on Wednesday, Feb. 2, will be made early Wednesday morning.
– The School of the Art Institute of Chicago ended all classes at noon and all academic buildings close at 2 p.m. Tuesday. The school will remain closed through Wednesday.
– Aurora University will be closing and canceling all classes at 3 p.m. Tuesday and will be closed all day Wednesday.
– UIC classes will be canceled from 5 p.m. Tuesday until 10 a.m. Thursday. Classes beginning at or after 10 a.m. Thursday will meet as scheduled.
– Loyola University classes after 4:15 p.m. Tuesday are canceled and all classes for Wednesday are canceled.
SHOPPING
– Woodfield Mall in Schaumburg will close at 5 p.m. on Tuesday. It’s not immediately clear if the mall would be open on Wednesday.
EVENTS
– Steppenwolf Theatre has canceled Tuesday night’s performances of “Sex with Strangers” and the Tuesday and Wednesday night performances of “Who’s Afraid of Virgina Woolf?”
– The Chicago Symphony Orchestra performance with conductor/pianist Mitsuko Uchida has been postponed until Monday, February 7, at 7:30 p.m.
The Sun-Times Media Wire contributed to this report.
