Deon Hudson was denied an apartment he had sought so he could live closer to his sister Darlene, for whom he works as a home health aide. [Provided]

Deon Hudson didn’t think much of the low-rise apartment community in south-suburban Chicago Heights where he sought to move last May. It was a dangerous area, and the building wasn’t a “five-star complex,” Hudson said.

Challeger Kari Steele (left) pounced Friday on a Sun-Times investigation that poked new holes in a controversial 2020 assessment policy of Cook County Assessor Fritz Kaegi. 

Cook County Assessor Fritz Kaegi was back on the defensive Friday over the “COVID adjustment” breaks his office gave homeowners and some businesses in spring 2020, as Keagi back hit against a Sun-Times investigation that poked new holes in the controversial decision.

The Encuentro Square development at 3745 W. Cortland St. will eventually include three buildings spanning 187 affordable units along the 606 Bloomingdale Trail. [Canopy via Block Club Chicago] 

Plans for a Logan Square affordable apartment complex, a 40-story Fulton Market residential tower and a Bronzeville Chicago Housing Authority development were among the nearly dozen new planned development applications filed with the City Council this week.

Ald. Anthony Beale (9) speaks about his proposal to establish separate legislative counsel for the City Council during Wednesday’s council meeting. [Don Vincent/The Daily Line]

Aldermen during the year’s first City Council meeting quickly approved three payments to resolve police-related lawsuits, but a rift emerged between aldermen about how to establish independent legal representation for the City Council.

Ald. Brendan Reilly (42) presided over the City Council meeting on Wednesday after Mayor Lori Lightfoot left. [Don Vincent/The Daily Line]

City licensing officials would have new powers to shut down “nuisance” bars and night clubs under a new proposal introduced to the City Council on Wednesday. It was one of dozens of new ordinances, resolutions and appointments submitted to the council this week, including a measure aimed at fighting wage discrimination in city hiring.

Aldermen attend a City Council meeting on Sept. 14. 2021. The first council meeting of 2022 could feature tense debates on the city’s legal defense policy for police misconduct allegations. 

Chicago’s first City Council meeting of 2022 on Wednesday could set the stage for intense debate on a series of controversial police misconduct settlements as well as a pair of long-stalled proposals to reverse a 2021 speeding crackdown and give the council its own legal representation. 

The city collected $76 million for the CTA last year from a real estate transfer tax on sellers. The money will be used to pay down the transit agency’s pension debt. [Flickr/CTA]

Aldermen green-lit a routine budget measure on Tuesday aimed at helping the CTA pay down its pension debt — but not before firing a shot across the bow that the agency’s leaders need to spend more time in the limelight answering for incessant safety and reliability issues.  

Chicago Deputy Corporation Counsel Victoria Benson (left) and Ald. George Cardenas (12) speak during a City Council Committee on Finance meeting on Monday. 

A key City Council committee narrowly voted to reject a legal settlement tied to a fatal 2013 police shooting, setting up a potential standoff over the city’s legal defense policy2 during Wednesday’s meeting of the full council. 

Chicago Department of Housing Comm. Marisa Novara presents details on the “encumbrance ordinance” during a City Council finance committee meeting on Monday. 

Aldermen and city housing officials expressed hope on Monday that a pending ordinance will help spur private efforts to rehab long-abandoned properties on the city’s South and West Sides. 

Illinois Comptroller Susana Mendoza speaks during a virtual event in March 2021.

Illinois Comptroller Susana Mendoza wants by the end of next year to “become a major player in helping craft policy” for the General Assembly through a technological overhaul that could make her office “the most trusted source of financial government data in the country,” she said on The Daily Line’s CloutCast podcast.

The Chicago Police Department was budgeted $82 million for legal settlements and judgements in 2022. [Tingey Injury Law Firm on Unsplash]

A City Council committee is set to approve a $14 million payout to settle a pair of lawsuits stemming from an overturned 1991 murder conviction, already gobbling up nearly 20 percent of the entire amount city attorneys budgeted for police misconduct settlements in 2022.

Republican Senate Leader Dan McConchie rolled out a series of proposed constitutional amendments he said were designed to empower voters. And Democrats lashed a proposal from Republicans to expand the state’s automatic voter registration law.

Rep. Will Davis (D-Homewood) [left] and lobbyist Dan Johnson speaking during a virtual House committee meeting on Tuesday

House lawmakers advanced legislation on Tuesday representing the latest step in their effort to promote diversity in the renewable energy industry — this time by requiring companies to publicly report their contracting records with women- and minority-owned firms. It was one of more than a half-dozen bills that escaped House and Senate committees on Tuesday, including bills designed to improve hospital safety and ease student debt.

Aurora Mayor Richard Irvin emphasized crime, corruption and the economy in his gubernatorial campaign launch video on Monday. [YouTube/Irvin & Bourne for Illinois]

Aurora Mayor Richard Irvin became the latest candidate on Monday to jump into the Republican race to unseat Gov. JB Pritzker. But even with the promise of heavy backing from billionaire mega-donor Ken Griffin, Illinois Democrats and even many Republicans are making it clear his path to the governor’s mansion will be anything but smooth.

Cook County Comm. Sean Morrison (R-17) [right] on Thursday challenged county board President Toni Preckwinkle over a county public health order requiring proof of vaccination at indoor spaces.

Updated 9:24 a.m. Jan. 14: Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle stood firm on Thursday against a mounting backlash — including from one commissioner — against the county’s new vaccination mandate for some businesses, calling the criticism “profoundly disturbing.”

Just 24 percent of Chicago residents feel the city overall is at least somewhat safe, according to the latest Chicago Index survey.

Fewer than one-quarter of Chicago residents feel the city is safe after almost two years of a pandemic and surging citywide crime, and fewer than one-third feel safe in their own neighborhoods, according to a new survey conducted through the Chicago Index.

Illinois Restaurant Association president Sam Toia speaks during a meeting of the Cook County Board of Commissioners Finance Committee on Monday.

Cook County commissioners are poised on Thursday to unlock $257 million in new funding from the American Rescue Plan Act for a range of new programs including everything from violence prevention to business supports, broadband expansion and new health programs.

Rep. Robyn Gabel (D-Evanston) [left] and electric vehicle advocate Neda Deylami speak during a meeting of the House Energy & Environment Committee on Tuesday.

House Democrats on Tuesday advanced a bill designed to speed Illinois’ transition to electric cars by cranking up electric charging requirements for new buildings, steamrolling Republicans who worried about the measure’s potential cost for homeowners and builders.

Senate lawmakers advanced a bill designed to help the spouses of people living in assisted living facilities. And Gov. JB Pritzker announced the rollout of a new ad campaign designed to push up the state’s vaccination rate.

Chicago Department of Public Health Comm. Allison Arwady [right] and Ald. Susan Sadlowski Garza (10) during a City Council committee hearing on Monday

Chicago schools have not been widespread vectors for the spread of COVID-19, the city’s top doctor insisted on Monday as city officials push for a return to in-person learning.