The City Council’s public safety committee will hold a hearing Monday on police use of body cameras, drones and other technology to fight crime, and the ethics committee will hear the Chicago inspector general’s latest report.

Ald. David Moore (17) speaks during a budget committee hearing on the progress of spending ARPA funds on Sept. 5, 2024. [Livestream]

The city is on track to obligate all of its American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding by the end of the year and meet a federal deadline, but alderpeople want city officials to provide more specific data on how the money is being spent, accountability mechanisms for the organizations that got money and performance metrics for the programs funded. 

Discussion about more transparency and about whether any uncommitted ARPA funds could be used to help plug a projected $982 million budget gap for 2025 came during a meeting of the Committee on Budget and Government Operations Thursday.

Alex Gallegos, a Crete-Monee Community Unit School District 201-U Board member, attended the DNC in Chicago as a Ceasefire Delegate. [Provided]

Alex Gallegos, a Crete-Monee Community Unit School District 201-U Board member, gained local attention two weeks ago for being the only Illinois delegate to the Democratic National Convention (DNC) to vote “present” during the roll call to nominate Vice President Kamala Harris to the top of the party ticket over the administration’s continued support for arming Israel in its military campaign in the Gaza Strip, which has killed thousands of civilians.

Marlon Everett, left, speaks to the Committee on Special Events, Cultural Affairs and Recreation as it deliberates his Chicago Park District commissioner appointment on Sept. 4, 2024. [Livestream]

The City Council Committee on Special Events, Cultural Affairs and Recreation on Wednesday approved the appointment of a new Chicago Park District commissioner and an ordinance that would raise open space impact fees on residential developers.

The City Council’s budget committee will hold a hearing on the expenditure and management of American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds on Thursday, and the council’s Committee on Transportation and Public Way approved a measure that would require city coordination for permitted pavement work that involves removing significant portions of sidewalk.

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

The City Council Committee on Special Events, Cultural Affairs and Recreation will meet Wednesday to consider the appointment of a new Chicago Park District commissioner and an ordinance to amend the portion of city code pertaining to open space impact fees.

The committee will meet at 1 p.m. in council chambers.

The City Council’s education committee will hold a subject matter hearing on Wednesday on increasing childcare affordability and availability, and the transportation committee will consider an ordinance to regulate sidewalk restoration following permitted pavement work.

Mayor Brandon Johnson is pictured at a City Council meeting in April 2024. [Don Vincent/The Daily Line]

Chicago is facing a nearly billion-dollar budget gap for the upcoming fiscal year, a tough financial situation that will necessitate “collaborative solutions and strategic planning,” Mayor Brandon Johnson announced Thursday morning as the city unveiled its 2025 budget forecast.

NASCAR will return for a street race in the final year of its multi-year deal with the city, and the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) announced the debut of a new system to crack down on gun crime.

Cook County on Wednesday announced the launch of the Water Affordability Program, an American Rescue Plan Act-funded endeavor to assist residents with past-due water bills and leak repair costs and to help municipalities make it easier for residents to afford their water bills.

The $11.5 million program is a partnership between Elevate Energy and the Cook County Bureau of Economic Development.

Ald. Carlos Ramirez-Rosa (35), lead sponsor of the CCPSA referendum measure, is pictured at a council meeting in April 2024. [Don Vincent/The Daily Line]

Though the Community Commission for Public Safety and Accountability (CCPSA), Chicago’s civilian police oversight board, received its first batch of mayor-appointed commissioners in May, some Chicago alderpeople are already pushing to alter the structure of the board and expand its powers through a proposed ballot question. 

Ald. Carlos Ramirez-Rosa (35) introduced an ordinance (O2024-0009670) in May that would place a referendum on the ballot to increase the headcount of the board and choose the majority of its commissioners via election. The referendum would also ask voters to approve delegating some new powers to the CCPSA. Numerous progressive alderpeople are signed on as co-sponsors.

City Hall is pictured in this file photo. [Don Vincent/The Daily Line]

The city of Chicago is looking for an organization to administer a program that will help local nonprofits impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic become more impactful and fiscally sustainable.

Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle gives her 2024 budget address on Oct. 5, 2023. [Don Vincent/The Daily Line]

Cook County will hold the first of four community meetings this Wednesday to gauge feedback from residents on which American Rescue Plan Act-funded programs they would like to see continued past the expiration of federal funds in 2026. 

The first of these “Community Voices” events will be held from 6-7 p.m. at 69 W. Washington St. in Chicago on the 22nd floor in Rooms G and H.

Police Supt. Larry Snelling speaks at a DNC news conference on Aug. 23, 2024. [Livestream]

The city’s 26th political convention did not end up resembling the 1968 Democratic National Convention (DNC) as some had feared, but party divisions still became more apparent later in the week.

Democratic Mayors Michelle Wu, Kirk Watson and Lauren McLean speak on a panel about affordable housing on Aug. 22, 2024. [Michael McDevitt/The Daily Line]

The Democratic Mayors Association hosted a panel discussion on the final morning of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago Thursday on addressing the affordable housing crisis. Mayors from three cities in vastly different parts of the U.S. spoke about the successes and challenges they’ve experienced trying to increase housing stock and make the process of building new residential development more efficient.