Alex Nitkin is The Daily Line’s reporter covering Cook County and Chicago land use policy. He came to TDL from The Real Deal Chicago, where he covered Chicago real estate news. He previously worked at DNAinfo, first as a breaking news reporter, and then as a neighborhood reporter covering the city's Northwest Side. Nitkin graduated from Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism with a bachelor’s degree.
Bio
Solutions reporter, @IllinoisAnswers/@BetterGov. Formerly of @thedailylinechi, @trdchicago & @DNAinfoChi. Amateur baker. Tips: [email protected]
DEC 18, 2020
The Cook County Board of Commissioners spent about two hours discussing a contract expansion for the county Sheriff’s Office before voting 14-3 to approve the item.Cook County commissioners on Thursday spent nearly two hours locked in a tense and at-times chaotic debate before voting to approve a $13 million contract for the county Sheriff’s Office to expand its stockpile of tracking devices for detainees released on electronic monitoring. The conversation opened into a wider skirmish over commissioners’ scrutiny of the sheriff’s office as part of the county’s murky ongoing effort to wind down its spending on law enforcement.
Brawl over Sheriff’s Office contract exposes rift over future of county jail funding
The Cook County Board of Commissioners spent about two hours discussing a contract expansion fo...
DEC 17, 2020
Fares will be halved on the Metra Electric and Rock Island train lines under the three-year South Cook Fair Transit PilotMore than a year after it was first rolled out, a Cook County plan to boost options for transit riders in Chicago’s south suburbs is on the verge of being formalized by the county’s Board of Commissioners.
Cook County ‘Fair Transit’ pilot ready to leave the station after year-long delay
Fares will be halved on the Metra Electric and Rock Island train lines under the three-year Sou...
DEC 16, 2020
Cook County Comm. Scott Britton (left) and Comm. Kevin Morrison are sponsors of the proposed Cook County Residential Tenant and Landlord Ordinance. [Facebook/Commissioner Scott Britton]Vote deferred on Cook County landlord ordinance following flurry of last-minute changes
Cook County Comm. Scott Britton (left) and Comm. Kevin Morrison are sponsors of the proposed Co...
DEC 16, 2020
News in brief: Aldermen can’t use city accounts to promote prayer events, ethics board rules; Lightfoot blasts downtown aldermen
TDL Chicago Morning Briefs: Wednesday, December 15th
News in brief: Aldermen can’t use city accounts to promote prayer events, ethics board rules; Lig...
DEC 16, 2020
Chicago Department of Housing policy director Daniel Hertz shows a map of the North pilot area where accessory dwelling units may be added under an ordinance set for approval on Wednesday.
The City Council will convene for its last virtual meeting of 2020 to approve dozens of licensing measures, development approvals and new policies while officially discontinuing the controversial Pilsen Historic Landmark District two years after its creation.
Among the ordinances set for approval will be a long-brewing measure to legalize the construction of coach houses and basement conversion apartments, also known as accessory dwelling units, in five “pilot areas” around the city.
Related: Coach house ordinance returns with smaller footprint after hitting City Council resistance
Coach house ordinance, end of Pilsen landmark district to headline final City Council meeting of 2020
Chicago Department of Housing policy director Daniel Hertz shows a map of the North pilot area ...
DEC 15, 2020
Finance Committee chair Ald. Scott Waguespack (32) and SomerCor CEO Manny Flores during a meeting of the City Council Committee on Finance on MondayAldermen voted on Monday to expand a city-backed grant program that officials said could help a growing number of small businesses recover from the economic devastation wrought by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Committee approves tweaks, expansion of small business grant program: ‘a game changer’
Finance Committee chair Ald. Scott Waguespack (32) and SomerCor CEO Manny Flores during a meeti...
DEC 14, 2020
Some property owners along North Michigan Avenue are proposing a special taxing district to help the area recover from summertime looting. [Photo by Stephen Hanafin on Flickr]Michigan Avenue SSA, arrestee legal services ordinance set for consideration Monday
Some property owners along North Michigan Avenue are proposing a special taxing district to hel...
DEC 11, 2020
A coach house on Chicago’s Northwest Side. [Lichter Realty]Officials in Lightfoot’s administration told aldermen in a letter dated Thursday that they plan to introduce the substitute ordinance to a joint meeting of the council’s Committee on Housing and Committee on Zoning, Landmarks and Building Standards on Tuesday, setting it up for potential approval by the full council on Wednesday. The new draft would create at least five “pilot zones” where the added units would be allowed.
Coach house ordinance returns with smaller footprint after hitting City Council resistance
A coach house on Chicago’s Northwest Side. [Lichter Realty]Months after their first proposal hi...
DEC 11, 2020
News in brief: Rules committee to consider police- and domestic violence-related measures; Pappas uses Scavenger Sale report to take another shot at land bank
TDL Chicago Morning Briefs: Friday, December 11th
News in brief: Rules committee to consider police- and domestic violence-related measures; Pappas...
DEC 10, 2020
Members of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District board voted unanimously Thursday to approve a $1.19 billion budget for 2021.The government body responsible for managing more than 1 billion gallons of Cook County’s wastewater and storm runoff each day will see its annual budget grow next year, even as the COVID-19 pandemic forced other government bodies to tighten their belts.
Water Reclamation District passes $1.2B budget, dodging fiscal blows from pandemic
Members of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District board voted unanimously Thursday to appr...
DEC 10, 2020
Diners eating on Balmoral Avenue in Andersonville through the city’s Expanded Outdoor Dining Program in July [Colin Boyle/Block Club Chicago]Stretching expanded outdoor dining through 2021 could help ‘kickstart’ city’s economy post-pandemic, top official says
Diners eating on Balmoral Avenue in Andersonville through the city’s Expanded Outdoor Dining Pr...
DEC 09, 2020
The city’s Expanded Outdoor Dining program will be extended through the end of 2021 under a proposal set for consideration Wednesday. [photo via Brian Galati/Machine Engineered Dining and Drinks]Expanded sidewalk permit program set for extension through 2021
The city’s Expanded Outdoor Dining program will be extended through the end of 2021 under a pro...
DEC 09, 2020
Chicago Department of Housing policy director Daniel Hertz shows a map of results from the Affordable Requirements Ordinance pilot areas.Aldermen on the City Council Committee on Housing and Real Estate voted unanimously on Tuesday to approve a six-month extension (O2020-5750) for a 3-year-old program that attaches special affordable housing rules to new apartment developments in parts of the city’s Near West and Northwest sides.
Affordable housing pilot zones to be extended through June; new ordinance due early next year
Chicago Department of Housing policy director Daniel Hertz shows a map of results from the Affo...
DEC 08, 2020
A map of the three Affordable Requirements Ordinance “pilot areas” created in 2017 [Chicago Cityscape]Affordable housing ‘pilot areas’ set for 6-month extension as citywide ordinance remains in flux
A map of the three Affordable Requirements Ordinance “pilot areas” created in 2017 [Chicago Cit...
DEC 08, 2020
TDL Chicago Morning Briefs: Tuesday, December 8th
News in brief: Cook County expands cash assistance program; Foxx, Wendt sworn into office
DEC 07, 2020
News in brief: Economic development committee to consider trucking proposal; Sandoval dies of COVID-19; Cook County health officials cite ‘Covid barrier’ to contact tracer hiring
TDL Chicago Morning Briefs: Monday, December 7th
News in brief: Economic development committee to consider trucking proposal; Sandoval dies of COV...
DEC 04, 2020
Dr. Cristina Pacione-Zayas speaks during a virtual event hosted by six Northwest Side independent political organizations on Wednesday.Days after she was sworn in as Cook County’s first new clerk of the circuit court in 20 years, Iris Martinez faces a daunting list of challenges, including overhauling the office’s electronic records system and navigating a federal hiring monitor.
But first, Martinez has to help find someone to take her old job in the Illinois State Senate, and she believes she has already found her choice in Cristina Pacione-Zayas, she told The Daily Line on Thursday. Pacione-Zayas has spent nearly five years overseeing policy for the Erikson Institute, a graduate school and community service provider focused on early childhood education, and in 2019 she was appointed by Gov. JB Pritzker to serve on the Illinois State Board of Education.
Education policy wonk emerges as frontrunner in contest to fill Martinez’s senate seat
Dr. Cristina Pacione-Zayas speaks during a virtual event hosted by six Northwest Side independe...
DEC 04, 2020
News in Brief: Lightfoot says Chicago ‘has never really gotten it right’ on recycling; Chicago officials say city is prepared for winter; 1st installment property tax bills go live
TDL Chicago Morning Briefs: Friday, December 4th
News in Brief: Lightfoot says Chicago ‘has never really gotten it right’ on recycling; Chicago of...
DEC 03, 2020
City officials say they plan to issue a Request for Proposals for a casino operator early next year.An eventual Chicago casino should take up at least 10 acres downtown and include a hotel, restaurants and hundreds of above-ground parking spaces, according to nearly a dozen developers and gambling industry leaders.
Businesses push for downtown casino, mixed on viability of temporary gambling site
City officials say they plan to issue a Request for Proposals for a casino operator early next ...
DEC 03, 2020
OIG report finds Streets and Sanitation isn’t enforcing the Chicago Recycling Ordinance; City’s minority- and women-owned business contracting program gains support for extension; Housing Committee meeting canceled
TDL Chicago Morning Briefs: Thursday, December 3rd
OIG report finds Streets and Sanitation isn’t enforcing the Chicago Recycling Ordinance; City’s m...
Bio
Solutions reporter, @IllinoisAnswers/@BetterGov. Formerly of @thedailylinechi, @trdchicago & @DNAinfoChi. Amateur baker. Tips: [email protected]
