Ald. Bennett Lawson (44) chaired Thursday’s meeting of the City Council Committee on Zoning, Landmarks and Building Standards. [Erin Hegarty/The Daily Line] 

Despite a full agenda, Thursday’s meeting of the City Council Committee on Zoning, Landmarks and Building Standards finished in under two hours as alderpeople approved dozens of developments including a proposal for a new six-story, 43-unit affordable housing development in South Shore.  

Ald. Bennett Lawson (44), the committee’s vice chair, helmed his first zoning committee meeting following Ald. Carlos Ramirez-Rosa's (35) resignation earlier this month from his chair position. Ramirez-Rosa remains a member of the committee. 

MWRD President Kari Steele, top left, presides over a Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago Board of Commissioners meeting in November 2023. [Livestream]

Four of the nine incumbent members of the Board of Commissioners for the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago (MWRD) will run for reelection next year, with two other candidates having filed with the Cook County Clerk to run for spots on the board so far.

MWRD commissioners are elected at-large, and the nine members serve staggered six-year terms. While three commissioners are typically up for election every two years, there is also a special election next year to serve out the remainder of former commissioner Kimberly du Buclet’s term. 

Amundsen Park in the 29th Ward will no longer be considered as a possible shelter for migrants. And the city’s transportation department and the CTA released a plan to bring faster and more reliable bus service to the city.

The housing and real estate committee met Wednesday. [Erin Hegarty/The Daily Line] 

A City Council committee on Wednesday delayed a vote on a proposal to lease additional space in a building near City Hall for the city’s Community Commission on Public Safety and Accountability and the newly created Department of Environment.

A rendering of the affordable housing development proposed for South Shore. [City of Chicago presentation]

The City Council Committee on Zoning, Landmarks and Building Standards during its 10 a.m. meeting Thursday is set to consider a variety of developments proposed across the city including a proposal for a 43-unit affordable housing development in South Shore.

Chicago’s Midway Airport marked completion of nearly decade-long modernization project Wednesday, and two county bodies will meet Thursday to hear reports on the county’s juvenile detention center and an ordinance that prohibits housing discrimination against convicted individuals.

The City Council Committee on Education and Child Development met Tuesday. [Erin Hegarty/The Daily Line]

Chicago Public Schools officials on Tuesday answered questions from alderpeople about the school district’s budget, enrollment and how the officials are handling the constant arrival of new migrant families and children to the city.

Cook County Circuit Court Clerk Iris Martinez speaks to reporters after giving her “State of the Clerk’s Office” address in 2021. [Don Vincent/The Daily Line]

The local Democratic Party’s pick for the clerk of the Circuit Court of Cook County on Monday officially filed her candidacy to take on incumbent Circuit Court Clerk Iris Martinez.  

Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago (MWRD) Comm. Mariyana Spyropoulos filed nominating petitions with more than 27,000 signatures to launch her primary challenge against Martinez March 19. 

Work began Monday on the Brighton Park site that will soon be set up as a basecamp to house migrants. The City Council Committee on Housing and Real Estate is scheduled to meet at noon Wednesday. 

Cook County Comm. Tara Stamps, who filed to campaign to keep her appointed seat Monday, is pictured during a Cook County Board of Commissioners meeting in September 2023. [Don Vincent/The Daily Line]

Competitors in multiple county races to be held this spring filed nominating paperwork with the Cook County Clerk’s Office Monday on the first day of candidate filing. Candidate filing lasts through Dec. 4 for Democratic and Republican party contenders running in the March 19, 2024 primary election. 

After the filing deadline, candidates will have until Dec. 11 to file challenges to other candidates’ nominating petitions.

The City Council Committee on Education and Child Development during a September meeting. [Erin Hegarty/The Daily Line]

Chicago Public Schools officials on Tuesday are expected to detail to alderpeople how the school district is addressing asylum seekers, transportation and its budget this school year. 

Tuesday’s meeting of the City Council Committee on Education and Child Development will begin at 4 p.m., much later than council committee meetings that usually begin in the morning or early afternoon. 

Members of the Committee on Economic, Capital and Technology Development met earlier this month. [City of Chicago livestream] 

A Chicago alderperson is working with the mayor’s office in hopes of establishing a permanent a guaranteed basic income program after a yearlong pilot program that has since expired showed the additional payments to households across the city helped people stay in their homes and pay for utilities and food.

The Cook County flag flies over the county government building in downtown Chicago. [Don Vincent/The Daily Line]

The Cook County Bureau of Human Resources is hoping the Board of Commissioners authorizes an extension and possible expansion of a $25 million pilot program that provides additional pay to certain jobs within county agencies to help alleviate the hiring challenges the county has faced since the pandemic.

The human resources bureau has reported the Recruitment Incentive and Retention Bonus Pay Program, which is just over a year old, to be a success so far in increasing interest in some of the county’s vacant roles. 

A group of aldermanic and mayoral staffers sent a letter to Mayor Brandon Johnson and members of the City Council Tuesday urging them to support a call for a ceasefire in the Middle East.

While the letter was sent by at least 35 staffers Tuesday, by Wednesday morning 54 staffers from aldermanic offices, the mayor's office and other city departments had signed the letter, according to an email from the group.

County Board President Toni Preckwinkle, pictured in October, declared a local disaster following the flooding in September in parts of Cook County. [Don Vincent/The Daily Line]

President Joe Biden on Monday approved a disaster declaration for parts of Cook County that experienced severe flash flooding in September, opening additional avenues to receive financial assistance for those affected in addition to existing state and county assistance.