Ald. Scott Waguespack (32), top right, addresses Comptroller Michael Belsky, left, and Acting CFO Steven Mahr, second from left, during a finance committee meeting Feb. 9, 2026. [Livestream]

City finance leaders told the City Council Committee on Finance Monday that they intend to make the other half of an annual, supplemental pension contribution in the middle of the year after alderpeople called for a hearing on the city’s decision to split the payment in two, a decision blamed on cash flow issues.

The Committee on Pedestrian and Traffic Safety meets on Feb. 9, 2026. [Livestream]

The City Council Committee on Pedestrian and Traffic Safety on Monday approved a proposal to begin the process of establishing a temporary program to let residents report commercial vehicles blocking sidewalk, bus and bicycle access, allowing city parking enforcement aides to respond in real time to issue warnings or citations.

The committee also approved a measure to require a public hearing before a lengthy bridge closure.

Ald. Daniel La Spata (1), chair of the pedestrian and traffic safety committee, is pictured at a council meeting in March 2023. [Don Vincent/The Daily Line]

The City Council Committee on Pedestrian and Traffic Safety on Monday will consider a proposal to establish a temporary program that lets residents report vehicles blocking sidewalk, bus and bicycle access, allowing city parking enforcement aides to respond in real time to issue warnings or citations. 

The committee will meet at 1 p.m. in Room 201A at City Hall.

Finance Chair Pat Dowell (3) is pictured during a City Council meeting in June 2024. [Don Vincent/The Daily Line]

The City Council’s finance committee on Monday is set to hold a hearing on the cash flow challenges cited as the reason for the city only making a partial advanced pension payment last month. 

The Committee on Finance will meet at 10 a.m. in council chambers.

Cook County Board of Review Comm. George Cardenas (D-1) and Juanita Irizarry are running to represent District 1 on the board. [Provided]

Cook County Board of Review Comm. George Cardenas (D-1) is facing a primary challenge this spring from Juanita Irizarry, the former executive director of Friends of the Parks. While Cardenas has accepted funding from property tax attorneys and consultants, Irizarry has sworn off the practice but is backed by the county assessor, who has frequently criticized the Board of Review.

Mayor Brandon Johnson speaks during a press conference on Jan. 15, 2025. [Don Vincent/The Daily Line] 

Mayor Brandon Johnson this week insisted his office was not trying to usurp decision making about felony charges through the issuance of his “ICE on Notice” executive order, which directs the Chicago Police Department (CPD) to investigate and report alleged instances of illegal behavior by federal agents with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and other agencies to the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office.

Public Safety Chair Brian Hopkins (2) is pictured at a City Council meeting in April 2024. [Don Vincent/The Daily Line]

The City Council Committee on Public Safety on Tuesday approved an ordinance to expand the city’s noise-sensitive zoning process to explicitly allow all places of worship to take advantage, but it declined to vote on a revised version of an ordinance to address and deter “teen takeovers.”

Ald. Timmy Knudsen (43) talks about the rat contraceptive pilot in his ward during a Committee on Environmental Protection and Energy meeting on Feb. 3, 2026. [Livestream]

The City Council Committee on Environmental Protection and Energy on Tuesday approved a resolution in support of the Chicago Area Waterway System reclamation study and another to recognize the launch of a rat population control pilot program on the Near North Side.

Ald. William Hall (6) is pictured during a City Council meeting on Oct. 9, 2024. [Don Vincent/The Daily Line]

Alderpeople at a public safety committee meeting on Tuesday will consider a revised proposal that seeks to increase cooperation between the city and social media companies to monitor and deter “teen takeovers,” an ordinance to expand the noise-sensitive zone restrictions to explicitly include all places of worship and an ordinance to increase the distance that school zone boundaries stretch. 

The Committee on Public Safety will meet at 12:30 p.m. in council chambers.

Environment committee Chair Ald. Maria Hadden (49) is pictured during a City Council meeting on April 7, 2025. [Don Vincent/The Daily Line]

The City Council Committee on Environmental Protection and Energy will meet Tuesday to consider two resolutions — one in support of the Chicago Area Waterway System reclamation study and the other to recognize the launch of a rat population control pilot program. 

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

 The Civic Federation released a report last week that found that while the Chicago’s 2026 budget that was passed by the City Council was better than Mayor Brandon Johnson’s proposal, it still falls short of making sufficient structural changes.

Comm. Michael Scott Jr. (D-2) and Andre Smith are competing for the Democratic nomination in Cook County Board District 2. [Scott photo from county website/Smith photo from campaign site]

Cook County Comm. Michael Scott Jr. (D-2) is running to serve a full four-year term on the county board of commissioners, and he’s facing a Democratic primary challenge instead of a general election opponent.

Republican Elizabeth Doody Gorman and Democrat Elyse Hoffenberg are running to represent District 17 on the Cook County Board of Commissioners. [Campaign photos]

The race to represent District 17 on the Cook County Board of Commissioners opened up in November when Comm. Sean Morrison (R-17), the sole Republican on the board, announced he wouldn’t seek reelection despite filing for the race, eliminating the only competitive primary for the seat this cycle.

Cook County Comm. Bridget Gainer (D-10) is facing industrial engineer Drake Warren in the Democratic Party primary this spring. [Gainer photo from Cook County/Warren photo from campaign site]

Incumbent Cook County Comm. Bridget Gainer (D-10) entered her reelection campaign with a total cash advantage over her Democratic primary opponent but has been out-fundraised by the challenger during the last couple of quarters.

Gainer is facing Drake Warren, an industrial engineer working as a consultant for West Monroe. Gainer was first appointed to the seat in 2009 and has won four full terms on the board.

Ald. Jessie Fuentes (26) is pictured during a City Council meeting in October 2023. [Don Vincent/The Daily Line]

The City Council Joint Committee on Immigrant and Refugee Rights and Committee on Police and Fire on Tuesday approved an ordinance to enable the Civilian Office of Police Accountability (COPA) to formally investigate alleged violations of Chicago’s Welcoming City Ordinance by police.