Cook County Board of Review Comm. Tammy Wendt (D-1) alleged during a virtual public hearing on June 29 that the board regularly violates the Illinois Open Meetings Act.

A bitter internal dispute at the Cook County Board of Review has widened to include State’s Attorney Kim Foxx and Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul, as both offices have been enlisted to weigh in on accusations from one commissioner that the board routinely violates state transparency laws.

Ald. Maria Hadden (49) speaks during the February news conference unveiling the proposed Anjanette Young Ordinance.

Aldermen are scheduled on Tuesday to discuss measures designed to codify new search warrant procedures and the rein in the police department’s use of gang databases.

The city of Chicago and the Fraternal Order of Police have reached a tentative agreement on an eight-year labor contract, officials announced on Monday. And the city is scheduled in August to host a series of three community engagement forums meant to solicit public input on the 2022 budget. 

Ald. Carlos Ramirez-Rosa (35) and Jazmine Salas speaking during a news conference on Friday. 

Aldermen last week approved a measure creating civilian oversight of the Chicago Police Department, but some grassroots leaders say there’s more work to be done to ensure Chicago residents participate in the oversight process.

A rendering of the six-story development proposed for 4730 W. Irving Park Road. [Novak Construction/MG2 Architects]

A 208-unit redevelopment of the closed Sears building in Portage Park, a 316-unit apartment tower in Fulton Market and a nearly 40,000-square-foot Uptown theater building were among more than a dozen new planned development applications submitted to the Chicago City Council last week.

(From left) Ald. Patrick Daley Thompson (11), Ald. Ed Burke (14) and Ald. Carrie Austin (34) saw more tepid campaign contributions than many of their colleagues during the second quarter of this year.

Incoming campaign donations ground to a near-halt between April and June for the three members of the Chicago City Council who are under indictment, state campaign finance records show. But the aldermen continue to spend cash from their committees on legal fees, “thanking residents” and business luncheons. 

Cook County Circuit Court Clerk Iris Martinez would be open to presenting a “status report” on her efforts to overhaul the beleaguered office, she told commissioners Wednesday.

Cook County Circuit Court Clerk Iris Martinez is on track to avoid the mistakes of her predecessor in a scheduled technology upgrade aimed at making the court’s sprawling network of records more accessible to everyday users, she assured commissioners this week.

Cook County Chief Judge Timothy Evans speaks during a county budget hearing on Wednesday.

Therapists could be more a “far superior tool” than ankle bracelets at preventing people from committing new crimes while under pre-trial home confinement, Cook County Chief Judge Timothy Evans told county commissioners this week.

Ald. Jason Ervin (28) speaks during a news conference celebrating the passage of a civilian oversight ordinance

Aldermen on Wednesday approved a long-awaited framework for civilian oversight of the Chicago Police Department, satisfying demands of a grassroots coalition while also delivering on one of Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s major campaign promises. 

Mayor Lori Lightfoot speaks in a news conference after Wednesday's City Council meeting. [Alex Nitkin/The Daily Line]

A series of key legal restrictions designed to control the proliferation of new pot dispensaries in Chicago would be lifted under a new ordinance proposed by Mayor Lori Lightfoot on Wednesday, one of dozens of new ordinances and resolutions tossed into consideration in advance of the City Council’s August recess. 

The Chicago Police Department and Chicago Public Schools were among the least-popular city institutions identified in the latest Chicago Index quarterly poll. [Colin Boyle Block Club Chicago]

Fewer than 40 percent of Chicagoans are satisfied with the performance of the city’s police department and barely one-in-four are happy with Chicago Public Schools, according to the latest quarterly findings of The Chicago Index poll sponsored by Crain’s and The Daily Line.

From left: Ald. Roderick Sawyer (6), Ald. Harry Osterman (48) and Ald. Chris Taliaferro (29) speak during the public safety committee meeting Tuesday.  

The City Council is primed to decide on Wednesday whether Chicago will adopt a mechanism for civilian oversight of the Chicago Police Department, potentially fulfilling a long-delayed campaign promise of Mayor Lori Lightfoot and a years-old call from grassroots activists. 

Aldermen during the June 23 City Council meeting [Don Vincent/The Daily Line]

A modified plan to expedite business permits, approval of a $4 billion mega-development on the Near South Side and a years-in-the-making civilian police oversight plan are among dozens of items set for consideration by the City Council on Wednesday during its last meeting before the council’s August recess. 

Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx and Comm. John Daley (D-11) during a preliminary budget hearing on Tuesday

Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx asked commissioners on Tuesday to fund a boost to her office’s payroll next year, saying the crush of cases facing prosecutors as the courts return to pre-pandemic capacity will be “unlike anything we’ve seen in the history of Cook County.”

Lincoln Property Company is seeking to turn a surface parking lot at Weiss Hospital into a 12-story apartment building. [46th Ward]

This article was first published in Block Club Chicago.

UPTOWN — Plans to replace a Weiss Hospital parking lot with a 12-story apartment building won approval from the city’s Zoning Committee Tuesday over some aldermanic objections, setting up the controversial project for a final vote in the City Council Wednesday.