Cook County leaders will use preliminary census data to draw their 17 new district boundaries by the end of summer. Chicago will hire a full-time adviser on water policy thanks to new private grants. And a potential overhaul to the city’s plumbing code will be the topic of a zoning committee hearing Thursday afternoon.

 

 

Cook County Comm. Deborah Sims (D-5), consultant Peter Creticos and election data scientist Kim Brace during a hearing on Thursday

Cook County commissioners on Thursday solidified the team they’ll use to redraw all 17 of their districts as they look to complete a no-drama remap with enough time to kick off their reelection campaigns this fall.

During the first-ever meeting of the county board’s 2020 Census Redistricting Committee, commissioners voted unanimously to approve a $193,000, one-year contract (21-1963) with consultant Peter Creticos, putting him in the driver’s seat for the county’s fourth consecutive redistricting cycle.