A rendering of plans for the old Sears site at 4730 W. Irving Park Road. [Novak Construction/MG2 Architects]

This article was first published in Block Club Chicago.

The massive Six Corners Sears development cleared a major hurdle Wednesday, overcoming disagreement about the lack of affordable units which led to one alderman pushing to halt the project.

Attorney James Franczek (left) and Ald. Michael Rodriguez (22) during a virtual committee hearing on Tuesday

Aldermen voted unanimously on Tuesday to advance an eight-year, $600 million contract with Chicago’s rank-and-file police union, acknowledging the exchange of retroactive pay hikes for a laundry list of new accountability guardrails represented the best bargain the city was likely to reach.

Ald. Raymond Lopez (15) [left] and Ald. Walter Burnett (27) speak during Tuesday’s housing committee meeting. 

Aldermen used a City Council committee meeting on Tuesday to air frustrations with the Chicago Housing Authority to board members before approving their reappointments unanimously.

An ordinance lowering barriers for new cannabis dispensaries to open in Chicago is set for consideration by the City Council zoning committee on Wednesday. [Unsplash]

Updated 9:25 a.m. Monday, Sept. 8: A freshly tweaked proposal to cut red tape for new cannabis dispensaries is set to come before aldermen on Wednesday, potentially easing the path for dozens of new pot entrepreneurs to set up shop in Chicago following this summer’s state-run license lotteries.

A $600 million, eight-year contract with the city’s rank-and-file police union is set for consideration by aldermen on Tuesday. [Kelly Bauer/Block Club]

A years-overdue, $600 million contract with the Chicago Police Department’s rank-and-file union is set for its first public audience with aldermen on Tuesday, setting off a balancing act for city budget officials looking for ways to foot the bill for officer pay raises.

Mayor Lori Lightfoot during a June news conference. 

Aldermen on Tuesday are set to consider the sale of multiple city-owned properties on the city’s South and West sides for various developments, including a plan to bring 100 affordable single-family homes to North Lawndale.

Pictured above is an automated no-touch shop at Midway Airport. A similar shop could be coming to O'Hare Airport.

Aldermen were divided on Thursday over a new concession agreement set to bring vending machines and an automated no-touch shop to O’Hare Airport, as members of the Latino Caucus said the city didn’t do enough to attract Hispanic firms to get involved.  

Potential new commissioners for the Chicago Park District Myetie H. Hamilton [left] and Modesto Tico Valle answered questions during a committee meeting on Thursday.

Aldermen used a Thursday City Council committee meeting to grill newly nominated commissioners for the Chicago Park District Board on the ongoing investigation into sexual abuse by lifeguards and other recent issues facing the park district. 

Ald. Jim Gardiner (45th) looks on during discussions surrounding the creation of a civilian commission overseeing the Chicago Police Department during a City Council meeting on July 21, 2021. [Colin Boyle/Block Club Chicago]

This article was first published in Block Club Chicago.

Text messages between Ald. Jim Gardiner (45) and a former aide show the Northwest Side leader blasting his critics and political opponents — and punishing an employee for helping a constituent who voted against him.

Matt Richards (right) with the city’s Department of Public Health and Ald. Rossana Rodriguez-Sanchez (33) speak during a Wednesday committee meeting.

City officials on Wednesday began briefing aldermen and residents on a “co-responder” pilot program launched Monday that sends different combinations of mental health professionals, paramedics, police officers and recovery specialists in response to residents experiencing mental health crises.  

Travelers make their way through O'Hare International Airport on May 30, 2021. [Colin Boyle/Block Club Chicago]

A multi-part concession agreement would pave the way for a private vendor to set up no-contact “micro marts” at O’Hare Airport under an agreement set for consideration by a City Council committee on Thursday.

Ald. Andre Vasquez (40) speaks during a City Council Committee on Economic, Capital and Technology meeting on Tuesday.

A review of Chicago’s 311 service request system would not only make the tool more useful and accurate for residents but could also help city departments make their case for a bigger slice of the city’s budget, according to an alderman. 

The Chicago Treasurer and Department of Finance aren’t fully taking advantage of city rules meant to crack down on inequitable lending, Chicago Inspector General Joseph Ferguson found in a report. [Heather Cherone/The Daily Line]

City finance officials don’t take banks’ lending patterns into account when investigating whether they’re worthy of holding the city’s assets, ignoring one of the city’s only tools to fight endemic racism in the banking industry, a city watchdog found in a report published Tuesday.

A pilot program underway this week will send mental health professionals to accompany police on answering some 911 calls. [Colin Boyle/Block Club Chicago]

Chicago health officials are set to roll out more details Wednesday on their long-awaited “co-responder” pilot program, which on Monday began dispatching mental health professionals to answer some 911 calls.

Chicago Budget Director Susie Park briefed aldermen on the city’s 2021 year-end balance sheet on Monday.

Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s top financial officials stood firm on Monday amid prodding from aldermen over their plan to use hundreds of millions in federal rescue dollars to unwind a risky pandemic-era financial maneuver instead of plowing it all into social and economic programs.