Chicago News

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    Ald. Matt Martin is pictured at a council meeting June 12, 2024. [Don Vincent/The Daily Line]

    The City Council on Wednesday finally approved an ordinance that codifies an existing ban on lobbyists donating to the campaign accounts of sitting mayors, thus giving the Chicago ethics board enforcement power over the ban. The measure, sponsored by ethics chair Ald. Matt Martin (47), also extends the prohibition to all mayoral candidates.

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    Ald. Gilbert Villegas (36) is pictured at City Council on Sept. 18, 2024. [Don Vincent/The Daily Line]

    The City Council on Wednesday approved a replacement zoning committee chair, an ordinance to incentivize the construction of data centers in the city and the appointment of a new chief procurement officer. The council also gave final approval to an anti-gentrification ordinance for the Northwest Side and a controversial appointment to the civilian police oversight commission.

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    The police and fire committee holds a hearing on Angel Rubi Navarijo's appointment to the Community Commission for Public Safety and Accountability on Sept. 17, 2024. [Livestream]

    A staffer for 48th Ward Ald. Leni Manaa-Hoppenworth is one step closer to becoming a board member of the Community Commission for Public Safety and Accountability (CCPSA) after his nomination was stalled twice over four months over concerns the dual role would be a conflict of interest.

    The appointment of Angel Rubi Navarijo, Manaa-Hoppenworth’s neighborhood services and public safety director, was approved by the Committee on Police and Fire on Tuesday. The City Council will consider Navarijo’s nomination for a final vote Wednesday.

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    Mayor Brandon Johnson is pictured during a City Council meeting in June 2024. [Don Vincent/The Daily Line]

    The City Council on Wednesday is expected to take final votes on a replacement zoning committee chair, an ordinance to incentivize the construction of data centers in the city, the appointment of a new chief procurement officer and an ordinance increasing Open Space Impact Fees. 

    Several alderpeople are also expected to force a vote on an ordinance that would allow the police superintendent to bypass the mayor’s authority and renew the expiring ShotSpotter contract, and they have called for a special meeting to approve it if it’s not passed during the regular meeting. The council meets at 10 a.m.

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    Ald. Walter Burnett (27) is pictured during a City Council meeting on June 12, 2024. [Don Vincent/The Daily Line]

    The City Council’s Committee on Committees and Rules on Monday approved the appointment of a new zoning committee chair. If approved Wednesday by the City Council, it would end a more than 10-month vacancy.

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    Finance chair Pat Dowell is pictured during a City Council meeting on June 12, 2024. [Don Vincent/The Daily Line]

    The City Council Committee on Finance on Monday approved millions of dollars in tax-increment financing (TIF) and other financial assistance for housing developments and a park project and millions of dollars to settle lawsuits involving alleged police misconduct. But the committee delayed a vote on a controversial expansion of the TIF district in Pilsen.

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    Finance Committee Chair Pat Dowell is pictured in March 2023. [Don Vincent/The Daily Line]

    The City Council finance committee on Monday will consider an $11.6 million legal settlement, an expansion of the tax increment financing (TIF) district in Pilsen and millions in TIF dollars to various projects citywide. The Committee on Finance will meet at 10 a.m. in council chambers.

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    Board of Review Comm. George Cardenas, bottom left, testifies at a Committee on Housing and Real Estate meeting on Wednesday, Sept. 11, 2024. [Livestream]

    The City Council’s housing committee on Wednesday held a hearing on a proposal to rein in property tax bills for homeowners that are seeing taxes increase beyond what they can pay.

    Cook County Board of Review Comm. George Cardenas (D-1) presented his proposal for a property tax bill “circuit breaker” program that would link tax bills to a household’s ability to pay and provide state credits to cover the portion of taxes that exceed a certain threshold based on the household’s income.

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    Ald. Gilbert Villegas (36) speaks about his data residency ordinance during a press conference at City Hall on Wednesday. [Michael McDevitt/The Daily Line]

    An ordinance that would incentivize the construction of data centers within state and city of Chicago limits was approved by a key City Council panel Wednesday after it was considered for the third time in four months. 

    The Committee on Economic, Capital and Technology Development voted to approve the latest version of Ald. Gilbert Villegas’ (36) ordinance (SO2024-0008201), which would require city data to be stored within the United States in many cases, with some discretion, and which the 36th Ward alderperson says will attract data centers to the state and city and increase revenue. Ald. Daniel La Spata (1) was the only no vote.

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    City Hall is pictured.

    The City Council Committee on Contracting Oversight and Equity approved the appointment of a new chief procurement officer Tuesday, sending the final confirmation to the City Council next week.

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    The City Council’s housing committee will hold a hearing on an idea to assist property owners burdened by high tax increases, and a data residency ordinance will be considered by the technology development committee for the third time in four months.

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    Ald. Anthony Beale (9) speaks during a Committee on Public Safety hearing on ShotSpotter Sept. 9, 2024. [Livestream]

    The City Council Committee on Public Safety got a look at recent ShotSpotter data on Monday as the end of the contract is coming up in less than two weeks.

    Alderpeople in favor of keeping the gunshot detection technology, which is concentrated on the South and West sides, used the hearing as an opportunity to call on the Johnson administration to act in response to an order supporting ShotSpotter that was overwhelmingly approved by the council months ago.

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    City Hall is pictured. [Don Vincent/The Daily Line]

    The city’s budget director announced the institution of three policies Monday aimed at addressing the projected end-of-year budget deficit and the estimated near-billion-dollar budget gap for 2025.

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    The City Council’s contracting committee will consider the appointment of a new chief procurement officer, and the environment committee will consider a measure to create a new body dedicated to shoreline protection and maintenance.

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    Chicago O'Hare International Airport is pictured in this file photo. [Chicago O'Hare airport]

    The Chicago Department of Aviation on Thursday announced a bid opportunity to fill 112 new concessions locations at Terminals 1 and 3 at O'Hare International Airport, in what the city called “one of the largest concessions bid opportunities in the history of U.S. airports.” The bid opportunity is part of the airport’s ongoing modernization effort.