Chicago News
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After weeks of negotiations to reopen Arlington Racecourse this summer, officials from both the racetrack and the thoroughbred horse racing industry said Thursday they were nearly at an agreement to open the track in late July but needed help from the Illinois Racing Board to get the deal to the finish line.
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JUN 19, 2020
UNLOCKEDNONPROFIT LOBBYING RULES DELAYED, AGAIN — A controversial new rule requiring nonprofit groups that advocate on city legislation to register as lobbyists will not take effect until Jan. 1 of next year, leaders of the Chicago Board of Ethics announced Thursday. It marks the third delay for the new rule, which was included in an ethics reform package (SO2019-5305) approved by the City Council in a 50-0 vote last July. The rule became a source of anxiety for nonprofits, even after the board issued three advisory opinions in January to clarify and narrow the scope of the registration requirements. Board of Ethics executive director Steve Berlin wrote in a statement Thursday that delaying implementation until next year — a full year after it was originally supposed to take effect — is “appropriate,” given the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. “The Board and Mayor’s Office continue to be committed to working diligently with non-profit organizations and stakeholders to understand and respond to their concerns about this law, and on working toward amendments that increase transparency in Chicago,” Berlin added. [Alex Nitkin] -
JUN 19, 2020
UNLOCKEDA broad coalition of Cook County commissioners telegraphed their support on Thursday for siphoning money out of the county’s $1.2 billion criminal justice operation when it comes time to make tough decisions on next year’s budget.
During a nearly four-hour meeting of the Cook County Board of Commissioners Thursday, 14 out of 17 commissioners spoke up in support of a resolution (20-2867) sponsored by Comm. Brandon Johnson (D-1) calling on the county to “redirect money from the failed and racist systems of policing, criminalization, and incarceration” and reinvest the money in areas like health care, economic development and housing assistance. -
JUN 18, 2020
Sterling Bay’s proposal for a 14-story office building at 1200 W. Carroll Ave.
Covid-19 and the ensuing economic slowdown have not been enough to stop the steady progression of new development in the Fulton Market district, where a new 14-story office building is set to key a clear regulatory hurdle on Thursday. -
JUN 18, 2020
One month after the Cook County Board of Commissioners voted to extend Board President Toni Preckwinkle’s emergency powers to respond to Covid-19, commissioners are back this month with more proposals aimed at helping residents respond to the pandemic.
Businesses in unincorporated Cook County will be able to apply for a “temporary beer garden license” under a measure set for consideration Thursday. [DNAinfo/Patty Wetli] -
Mayor Lori Lightfoot presides over a virtual Chicago City Council Wednesday.
The Chicago City Council approved a $1.13 billion Covid-19 spending plan Wednesday that outlines how the city will spend money from the federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act through the end of the year. -
JUN 17, 2020
Related Midwest plans two towers at 400 North Lake Shore Drive
A $1 billion plan to add two new apartment towers to the Chicago’s downtown skyline took a leap forward on Tuesday, heralding an end to the 80-foot hole that has marked one of the city’s most valued pieces of real estate for more than a decade. -
JUN 17, 2020
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JUN 16, 2020
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A years-old proposal to build a 10-story senior housing facility in Portage Park is set to clear a hurdle that hobbled the plan last year, setting it up to fill an acre-sized hole in the busy Six Corners shopping district.
A rendering of The Point at Six Corners, a proposed senior-living facility with ground-floor retail at 4747 W. Irving Park Road. [Clark Street Real Estate] -
JUN 16, 2020
Chicago Department of Housing Comm. Marisa Novara addresses aldermen during a Monday meeting of the City Council Committee on Housing and Real Estate
A City Council committee advanced a measure Monday aimed at protecting vulnerable renters from eviction, despite opposition from some aldermen who worried the ordinance would be too harsh on mom-and-pop landlords. -
JUN 15, 2020
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A non-binding resolution approved by the City Council’s Committee on Economic, Capital and Technological Development Friday will remove tax incentives from companies that are found to be “dishonest actors who have caused economic and environmental harm,” said Ald. Mike Rodriguez (22).
The resolution is a response to an April incident in Little Village where Hilco Redevelopment Partners demolished a smokestack at the century-old Crawford Power station, which sent blankets of dust over several blocks in the neighborhood. The company was fined for a total of $68,000, but many City Council members say the company deserves to have its tax breaks rescinded due to the environmental damage caused by the implosion.
