Cook County Assessor Fritz Kaegi gives a mid-year budget update to the County Board of Commissioners on July 29, 2024. [Livestream]

Cook County Assessor Fritz Kaegi discussed rising tax bills for homeowners when he faced questions from the County Board of Commissioners for the second time in a week on Monday. While he faced questions last Monday about how his office has addressed the “apartment loophole” at a county legislation committee meeting, this past week he addressed how the government could alleviate the burden of higher property tax bills for homeowners.

Then-acting Public Building Commission Executive Director Ray Giderof speaks at the Chicago Build Expo in October 2023. [Public Building Commission of Chicago Facebook page]

Mayor Brandon Johnson on Wednesday announced the appointment of Ray Giderof to serve as the next executive director of the Public Building Commission (PBC). Giderof had been serving as the PBC’s acting director before being tapped for the permanent position.

The city received a bond ratings upgrade, and Republican presidential contender Donald Trump traveled to Chicago Wednesday to speak to a conference of Black journalists.

Ald. Michael Scott during a political event in March 2020 [Colin Boyle/Block Club Chicago]

Former 24th Ward Ald. Michael Scott Jr. will succeed the late County Comm. Dennis Deer on the Cook County Board of Commissioners after a committee of County Democratic Party committeepersons met Tuesday evening and selected Scott to fill the vacant District 2 seat on the board.

Mayor Brandon Johnson announced the appointment of a new chief procurement officer on Tuesday, nearly two weeks after the City Council approved a severance agreement that allowed the mayor to terminate the former head of the city’s Department of Procurement Services. 

Sharla Roberts, former director of procurement diversity at the University of Illinois, was appointed by Johnson to the role, the mayor’s office announced in a news release. 

The Committee on Pedestrian and Traffic Safety holds a hearing on the Better Streets for Buses Plan on July 29, 2024. [Livestream]

Alderpeople asked about the implementation of congestion pricing for vehicles in parts of downtown Chicago and the addition of dedicated bus lanes on DuSable Lake Shore Drive during a Committee on Pedestrian and Traffic Safety hearing Monday.

Cook County Comm. Stanley Moore (D-4) presides over a Criminal Justice Committee meeting last week. [Livestream]

The Cook County Board of Commissioners on Thursday approved a contract to purchase a helicopter for the county sheriff’s office that has long been on Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart’s wish list. The county currently doesn’t have any helicopters for law enforcement.

The $11.3 million contract (24-3697) with the Fort Worth-based Bell Textron Inc. will provide a helicopter airframe and associated equipment. The contract was approved by the County Criminal Justice Committee on Wednesday. The contract will run from Aug. 1 through the end of July 2028.

The flag of Cook County is pictured. [Don Vincent/The Daily Line]

The Cook County Board of Commissioners last week approved an updated five-year Solid Waste Management Plan (24-3201), a policy framework that aims to help divert 45 percent of the county’s waste from landfills over the next half-decade.

Committee on Pedestrian and Traffic Safety Chair Daniel La Spata is pictured in 2023. [Don Vincent/The Daily Line]

The Committee on Pedestrian and Traffic Safety will meet Monday for a subject matter hearing on the benefits of bus infrastructure improvements on mobility and traffic safety. The committee will meet in council chambers at 10 a.m.

A derelict U.S. Steel mill in the city will be home to the first quantum computer center, and the group planning a massive set of protests during the Democratic National Convention next month responded to the unveiling of the security perimeter boundaries.

Ald. Brian Hopkins (2), public safety chair, is pictured at a City Council meeting in April 2024. [Don Vincent/The Daily Line]

The City Council Committee on Public Safety will meet Thursday for a subject matter hearing on transportation logistics surrounding the Democratic National Convention (DNC) next month as well as a recent Office of Inspector General (OIG) report that criticized the Chicago Police Department’s (CPD) preparedness to deal with mass protests planned for the convention, which is taking place at both the United Center and McCormick Place from Aug. 19-22.

Ald. Jessie Fuentes (26), top right, asks questions at a Committee on Immigrant and Refugee Rights meeting on Tuesday. [Livestream]

City officials have reduced by more than half the amount of money being spent on the migrant crisis in Chicago but don’t plan to end the city’s 60-day shelter stay policy any time soon as the city is preparing for a possible surge in buses ahead of the Democratic National Convention (DNC) next month, the Committee on Immigrant and Refugee Rights was told this week. 

Plans for a massive multi-phase development surrounding the United Center were announced this week, and the city announced it had refiled a lawsuit against Glock with three new defendants. Additionally, the county received its latest bond ratings upgrade.

Cook County Assessor Fritz Kaegi speaks to the County Legislation and Intergovernmental Relations Committee Monday. [Livestream]

Cook County commissioners during a committee meeting Monday asked the county assessor for his rationale behind the process for closing a loophole in the county property tax ordinance that allowed mostly commercial buildings to be assessed like mixed-use buildings and receive a significant tax reduction.

Ald. Andre Vasquez (40), chair of the immigration committee, is pictured at a City Council meeting in June 2024. [Don Vincent/The Daily Line]

The City Council Committee on Immigrant and Refugee Rights will hold a subject matter hearing on Tuesday on an ordinance that would eliminate the city’s 60-day shelter stay limit for migrants that have arrived in the city after crossing the southern border.