Chicago News
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The Cook County Board will consider new disclosures on gun violence, more than $1 million in medical malpractice settlements, and a push to provide more access to lactation rooms around the county.
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(Hearing officer Chris Agrella delivers his final recommendations to attorneys Frank Avila (left) and Andrew Finko (right) on Feb. 5, 2018. Photo: A.D. Quig, The Daily Line)
A hearing officer recommended Assessor candidate Andrea Raila be removed from the Mar. 20 primary ballot, citing widespread notarization and circulator fraud among an inner core of campaign staff, including members of her family and the candidate herself. Hearing officer Christopher Agrella said he found a “a pattern of fraud by a clear and convincing standard,” on Monday. Raila and her attorney, Frank Avila, called the recommendation absurd and said Agrella was biased against them from the beginning.
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Cook County commissioners meet for consent calendar items beginning at 9:00 a.m., including a celebration of Black History Month, and honors for Judge William Cousins Jr., activist Paul Booth, and a youth suicide prevention group. Soon after, Cook County Circuit Court Clerk Dorothy Brown is expected to face questions from commissioners over delays in tech upgrades at her office.
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Thanks to all our dedicated readers who sent in tips and mail. Keep them coming--whether walk pieces, mailers, palm cards or voicemails. Our DMs are open @thedailylinechi on Twitter and at [email protected].
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Update: On Friday, we received two emails that said Comm. Richard Boykin (D-1) had incorrectly included their endorsements on his website – from a spokesperson for County Clerk David Orr and Ald. Proco Joe Moreno (1) in response to our story, “First District County Board Race Pits Union-Backed Newcomer Against Established Incumbent.” Boykin’s website listed both as endorsements. We updated the story and informed Boykin’s staff of the error.
The race for the First District seat on the Cook County Board is shaping up to be one of the season’s most interesting–pitting the independent and outspoken Democratic incumbent, Richard Boykin, against a progressive, union-backed challenger, Brandon Johnson. The district covers the West Side of the city and western suburbs, and includes both the wealthiest areas in Cook County, as well as those with the highest rates of poverty and crime.
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A letter sent to constituents in the embattled Sen. Ira Silverstein’s (D-Chicago) district, weeks before a competitive primary, described the conclusion of a recent ethics investigation as “a painful but important lesson” and--beneath the Illinois state seal--asked for his constituents' support as he runs for re-election.
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A fee on stormwater system stressors, a graduated income tax, a change in the city’s recycling contract and new rules for scheduling hourly workers are lead items for Progressive Caucus aldermen in the roughly 390 days leading up to the municipal elections in 2019.
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AFSCME Council 31, which represents public service workers across Illinois, released its endorsement list Tuesday, omitting endorsements to top Cook County races, including for Assessor, Board President, Treasurer, and Clerk. Plus, the last alderman standing in the once-crowded race for the state’s 4th Congressional District dropped his bid Tuesday afternoon.
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A group of aldermen on the city’s Northwest Side endorsed Comm. Jesus “Chuy” Garcia en masse for his congressional bid Monday morning, with one alderman to drop out of the race later that day. Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan released a website with updates on the consent decree with the city and Chicago Police Department, and the Cook County Electoral Board released its first round of decisions, likely kicking some familiar faces off the ballot.
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Aldermen approved the latest of three property tax breaks for Why Not Iron Inc., a metal fabrication company, on Monday. Ald. Jason Ervin (28), who spoke in favor of the 6(b) incentive for the company, said it “taken a series of vacant properties along our Kinzie Industrial Corridor and brought them back to life.”
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The committee on Economic, Capital and Technology Development meets Monday at 1:30 to consider resolutions in support of two tax breaks supported by Mayor Rahm Emanuel and Ald. Jason Ervin (28).
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Update: This story was updated on January 29 to reflect the judge's decision last week to deny a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction in attorney Frank Aliva's case against the Cook County Officers Electoral Board.
Attorneys for two Assessor candidates, Andrea Raila and Frederick “Fritz” Kaegi, battled over the weekend and will meet again today. The stakes: whether Raila will stay on the ballot and join Kaegi in their challenge to incumbent Joseph Berrios in the March 20 primary.
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Late Thursday, Assessor Joe Berrios’ office released a brief update on the “independent, non-partisan review of the property tax assessment process,” promising to publicize its results in late February, before voters head to the primaries. The residential assessment review from the Civic Consulting Alliance has operated in obscurity since July, when President Toni Preckwinkle’s office announced it at the tail end of a hearing focused on Berrios’ office.
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One Chicago Square by JDL Development, set to be built at Chicago Avenue and State Street. (Photo: Chicago Department of Planning and Development)
A plan to replace the parking lot across the street from Holy Name Cathedral with a pair of towers, one of which would be the city’s sixth tallest building, is one step away from final approval after winning the endorsement of the City Council’s zoning committee after a tense hearing.
