Ald. Gilbert Villegas (36) is pictured at a City Council meeting in May 2023. [Don Vincent/The Daily Line]

The City Council Committee on License and Consumer Protection on Tuesday approved new regulations for tow truck companies that operate in the city to crack down on bad actors and approved a new geographical ban on hemp-derived intoxicant sales.

Mayor Brandon Johnson speaks at a press conference after introducing his Green Social Housing ordinance on Feb. 19, 2025. [Don Vincent/The Daily Line]

A City Council joint committee on Wednesday will consider a proposal for the city to establish an independent nonprofit that would serve as the developer for the city’s Green Social Housing program.

Ald. Anthony Quezada (35) is pictured during a City Council meeting prior to his confirmation on April 7, 2025. [Don Vincent/The Daily Line]

The City Council voted to confirm the appointment of Cook County Comm. Anthony Quezada (D-8) to be the next 35th Ward alderperson at a special meeting Monday, with the young progressive succeeding former Ald. Carlos Ramirez-Rosa and allowing Mayor Brandon Johnson to maintain a likely favorable vote in that seat for the remainder of his term.

Ald. Gilbert Villegas (36) is pictured at a City Council meeting in May 2023. [Don Vincent/The Daily Line]

Ald. Gilbert Villegas (36) will ask the City Council Committee on License and Consumer Protection on Tuesday to approve new regulations for tow truck companies that operate within the city to crack down on bad actors. 

The license and consumer protection committee will also consider a proposal to ban the sale of hemp-derived intoxicants, such as delta-8 products, in the Pullman-Roseland area. 

The Harris Trust and Savings Bank building at 111 W. Monroe St. is pictured. [Chicago Department of Planning and Development presentation]

The Commission on Chicago Landmarks recommended approval of a landmark designation on Thursday for another downtown building that’s set to undergo adaptive reuse to transform vacant office space into housing.

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

The mayor’s office and Chicago Department of Transportation (CDOT) are asking for public feedback on an electric vehicle (EV) infrastructure framework plan they released this week. The Chicago Moves Electric Framework Plan aims to increase the availability of EV charging infrastructure and e-mobility services like e-bikes and e-scooters and reduce emissions from vehicles on the road, according to a news release.

Cook County Comm. Anthony Quezada (D-8) is pictured at a press conference in May 2023. [Don Vincent/The Daily Line]

Mayor Brandon Johnson on Wednesday announced the selection of Cook County Comm. Anthony Quezada (D-8) to fill the vacant 35th Ward seat on the City Council.

Department of Planning and Development Comm. Ciere Boatright speaks at a press conference about ChiBlockBuilder land sales on April 1, 2025. [Don Vincent/The Daily Line]

The city announced Tuesday it had made more than 400 vacant parcels available for sale and redevelopment, including lots that are meant for Missing Middle housing on the Far South Side, a Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) site that would be turned into mixed-income housing in Lake View and industrial lots that could become mixed-use sites in Armour Square and New City, according to the mayor’s office.

Mayor Brandon Johnson speaks at a press conference at City Hall on April 1, 2025. [Don Vincent/The Daily Line]

Despite the city not receiving a $175 million reimbursement from Chicago Public Schools (CPS) for a portion of its non-teacher pension fund, the mayor and his budget team weren’t sweating the lack of those funds Tuesday.

Chicago Budget Director Annette Guzman speaks at a press conference at City Hall on April 1, 2025. [Don Vincent/The Daily Line]

The city launched new debt relief initiatives Tuesday that will allow many vehicle owners and businesses to pay off ticket debt without having to worry about late fees or other penalties.

Ald. Maria Hadden (49) asks Environment Comm. Angela Tovar questions at a budget hearing on Dec. 3, 2024. [Livestream]

The City Council Committee on Environmental Protection and Energy will meet Wednesday to hold a hearing on environmental regulation enforcement and to set up a future hearing on single-use plastics.

The committee will meet at 10 a.m. in council chambers.

Cook County Comm. Anthony Quezada (D-8) is pictured at a press conference in May 2023. [Don Vincent/The Daily Line]

More than a week after applications closed to fill the forthcoming 35th Ward vacancy on the City Council, the city disclosed the names of six people that applied to fill the seat but said only two applications were valid. 

A selection committee will either recommend Cook County Comm. Anthony Quezada (D-8) or Daniel Tobon, CEO of iVIK Holdings Ltd. and a U.S. Army veteran, fill the seat.

Chicago Department of Public Health Comm. Olusimbo "Simbo" Ige speaks at a press conference on Jan. 29, 2024. [Don Vincent/The Daily Line]

The Chicago Department of Public Health (CDPH) learned last week that the federal government had cut $125 million in COVID-19 pandemic-era grants, imperiling infectious disease prevention work by the city’s public health department.

Renderings for the rooftop of the 79 W. Monroe St. project are pictured. [Provided]

Mayor Brandon Johnson and city officials on Thursday celebrated the groundbreaking for the city’s first conversion of office space to residential units under an initiative to reuse vacant commercial space downtown in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The mayor also used the opportunity to announce a new all-encompassing economic development strategy.

Corporation Counsel Mary Richardson-Lowry speaks at a news conference flanked by Mayor Brandon Johnson on Oct. 9, 2024. [Don Vincent/The Daily Line]

A government watchdog group said current state law doesn’t prevent the passage of reforms to the city’s law department that are the subject of current negotiations between the chair of the Committee on Ethics and Government Oversight and Mayor Brandon Johnson’s administration. But the city’s law department has argued that the law is already on its side when it comes to existing practices.