Chicago News
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MAY 09, 2018
The West Side is a little brighter after the installation of 42,000 whiter, crisper street lights as part of an effort to modernize Chicago’s streetlights, the confirmation hearing for a new member of the Ethics Board is on tap and retiring Cook County Clerk David Orr has one last date with a fish bowl.
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Less than 24 hours after Chicago Police Board President Lori Lightfoot resigned to set up a widely expected announcement that she will run for mayor in 2019, Mayor Rahm Emanuel named her replacement.
Chicago Police Board Vice President Ghian Foreman will take Lightfoot’s place. He has served on the board since 2010, is the executive director of the Greater Southwest Development Corp., and was also former managing partner of the real estate firm Maktub Development, which “focused on inner city development.” He now plays a similar role as managing partner of Washington Park Development Group.
“Ghian Foreman has deep roots in Chicago and has served the Chicago Police Board with distinction and dedication,” Emanuel said in a statement. “I am confident he will lead the board forward responsibly and in the best interest of all Chicagoans, and I thank him for his service to our great city.”
Foreman thanked Emanuel for having confidence in him. According to economic disclosure forms filed with the city, Foreman owns three firms that has done business with the city and serves on the boards of the Southwest Organizing Project, artist Theaster Gates’ Rebuild Foundation and the Chicago Rehab Network.
“As the department continues down the road of reform, I am proud to serve our great city by leading the Chicago Police Board forward and helping to strengthen accountability and build bonds of trust between officers and residents in every community,” Foreman said.
Emanuel nominated Paula Wolff, the director of the Illinois Justice Project, to fill the seat let vacant on the board by Foreman’s promotion. Her appointment must be approved by the City Council. Emanuel also tapped Wolff to lead the committee to find the new head of the Civilian Office of Police Accountability. The three-member committee selected Sydney Roberts, who won City Council approval late last month.
“If confirmed, I look forward to serving every resident of Chicago and continuing to strengthen the bonds of trust between communities and the officers sworn to protect them,” Wolff said. “While the Chicago Police Department continues to make important reforms, I look forward to engaging with Chicagoans in every community and doing my part to contribute to a safer and stronger city.”
At the top of the Police Board’s agenda is the fate of Chicago Police Officer Robert Rialmo, who fired the shots that killed Quintonio LeGrier, 19, and bystander Bettie Jones, 55, in 2015.
Chicago Police Supt. Eddie Johnson overruled a determination by the Civilian Office of Police Accountability that Rialmo acted without justification and should be fired.
Johnson ruled the shooting was justified because LeGrier was carrying a baseball bat and posed a threat to the officers. Jones was standing behind LeGrier when she was shot and killed.
After Chicago Police Board member Eva-Dina Delgado overturned Johnson’s decision, Rialmo’s fate now rests with the entire board. -
Four transit-oriented developments are on the agenda for the Zoning Committee, which is set to meet at 10 a.m. Wednesday. Together, the new buildings would feature 69 units, but just five parking spaces for cars.
- O2018-2324 — A five-unit building would get an additional four units at 314-18 S. Halsted St. in the 27th Ward. The complex would have no parking spaces, since it is close to the Halsted station on the CTA Blue Line.
- O2018-2386 — An 18-unit building would be built at 3500 N. Clark St., not far from Wrigley Field in the 44th Ward. Plans call for a Culver’s to be built on the first floor of the building, which would offer five parking spaces.
- O2018-2298 — A 30-unit building would be built at 1730 N. Greenleaf Ave. in the 49th Ward. Plans call for two stories to be added to what is now the two-story Ethiopian Community Center and the facade restored. The complex would have no parking spaces since it is close to the Rogers Park Metra station.
- O2018-2326 — A 12-unit building would be built at 1812-14 W. Division St. in the 1st Ward. The complex would have no parking spaces — but enough parking for 12 bicycles — since it is close to the Division station on the CTA Blue Line.
Aldermen will also consider:- O2018-2516 — A 62-unit senior housing complex at 4801-59 S. Cicero Ave. in the 14th Ward.
- O2018-2329 — A new two-story field service center for People’s Gas at 4227 W. 35th St. with 417 parking spaces in the 22nd Ward.
- O2018-2298 — A new four-story, 39-unit building with 35 parking spaces and shops on the ground floor to replace a service station at 4757 N. Ashland Ave. in the 47th Ward.
- O2018-3182 — Landmark designation for West Pullman Elementary School, which was shuttered in 2013. The massive structure is set to become affordable apartments for seniors, and the designation will allow those working to redevelop the massive property at 1917-11951 S. Parnell Ave. to qualify for tax credits.
- O2018-2339 — Legislation that would add two alternate members to the Zoning Board of Appeals and allow them to vote on items if a regular member of the five-member board is not present. All members of the board are appointed by the mayor, and have expertise in the building trades or real estate. Department of Planning and Development spokesman Peter Strazzabosco said the alternate members are needed to prevent items from being deferred when only three board members are present. The alternates would be named by the mayor and approved by City Council for four-year terms, Strazzabosco said.
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MAY 08, 2018
Chicago Police Board President Lori Lightfoot clears the decks to run for mayor, while Ald. Ariel Reboyras (31) calls his opponent a “bright young lady” and vows to concentrate on police reform. Charter school teachers join forces with the Chicago Teachers Union to mount a unified contract campaign.
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Less than two months after the City Council passed a measure pushed by several Downtown aldermen designed to protect the privacy of condominium owners, the ordinance is back on the agenda for the meeting of the Housing and Real Estate Committee set for 9:30 a.m. Monday.
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MAY 07, 2018
Chicago Public Schools CEO Janice Jackson announces plans to hold a series of community meetings. Chicago Police Board President Lori Lightfoot gets a boost as she weighs whether to run for mayor, and a political newcomer with a very famous last name is set to challenge an ally of Mayor Rahm Emanuel.
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Correction (Aug 17, 2018): Some of our data used for Garry McCarthy's fundraising were included by mistake, over-representing donations from Illinois and under-representing donations from Chicago and Illinois. We have updated our figures and the chart below.
As former CPS CEO Paul Vallas officially jumps in the fray, Police Board President Lori Lightfoot (maybe) creeps closer to announcing her bid, and mayoral ally Ald. Ariel Reboyras (30) gears up for a potentially formidable fight, it’s as good a time as any to set the baseline for what will be an expensive 2019 cycle.
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Correction: An earlier version of this article misspelled Shomari Legghette's name.
One day after mayoral candidate Paul Vallas called violence in Chicago under Mayor Rahm Emanuel a “national disgrace,” Emanuel spotlighted an effort to crack down on auto thefts and carjackings. Changes at the Cook County State's Attorney's office will bring new leadership to the prosecution of Shomari Legghette. The city is also moving forward with plans to re-hire a four-legged maintenance crew at O'Hare Airport.
Two goats munch on weeds along the fence outside O'Hare Airport. Credit: Heather Cherone, The Daily Line
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The 80 branches of the Chicago Public Library are not staffed sufficiently to meet the needs of library users and community residents, an audit released Wednesday by Inspector General Joseph Ferguson found.
In 2012, budgets cuts proposed by Mayor Rahm Emanuel and approved by the Chicago City Council prompted the elimination of more than 26 percent of the total workforce, including 146 part-time library pages, who were charged with sorting and shelving books, according to the audit.
While some page positions have been restored, total staffing is down 182 positions from 2011, according to the audit. 75 percent of department’s $74 million budget is spent on personnel costs, city data shows.
That has meant that clerks and librarians are routinely forced to do tasks “outside their job descriptions and for which they are overqualified,” according to the audit.
Read the full audit here.
In addition, library officials failed to properly apply their own criteria when determining staffing levels, which is determined by the number of visitors, circulation volume, computer usage level, population and the number of schools in its area, according to the audit.
Nearly 19 percent of libraries were not staffed properly using those criteria, according to the audit. In addition, the audit found that Chicago Public Library officials should consider another 10 factors when determining staffing levels, as recommended by the American Library Association.
Because many branches are understaffed, “many positions perform many roles,” a branch manager told investigators, according to the audit. That results in “personnel spending time on activities that could be done more cost-effectively by employees holding other titles.”
A system-wide analysis of staffing levels is required, according to the inspector general’s office.
In response to the audit, library officials agreed to revise its staffing plan, and adopt a policy implementing its findings. However, library officials rejected the inspector general’s recommendation to share the plan with all employees and involve the library board and community members in developing it.
Chicago Public Library spokesman Patrick Molloy said the library "has made significant strides in recent years, shifting from a uniform branch staffing process to a more responsive approach based on community needs and library usage."
"We appreciate the feedback from the [inspector general] and are always open to suggestions on how to maximize efficiency and effectiveness in our service to the community," Molloy said in a statement. -
MAY 03, 2018
The 2019 mayoral and aldermanic elections are shaping up to be a referendum not only on Mayor Rahm Emanuel's two terms in office, but a debate over the future of the city.
Paul Vallas announces his run for mayor of Chicago Wednesday. Credit: Heather Cherone, The Daily Line
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Chicago officials are doing a better job of making sure that contracts are awarded to firms owned by black, Latino and female Chicagoans — but the effort is still not good enough, three powerful aldermen said Tuesday at the City Club of Chicago.
