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Alderwoman Harris. Alderwoman Harris is present.
Alderman Beal, not president in chambers.
Alderwoman Ramirez, not present in chambers.
Alderwoman Gutierrez not present in chambers.
Alderwoman Coleman, not President Chambers, alderman Curtis.
Curtis is present. Al the person.
Fuentes Fuentes is present.
Alderman Burnett, not president in chambers.
Alderwoman Rodriguez Sanchez, not President Chambers,
alderman Conway Conway is present.
Alderwoman Mitts, not President Chambers, alderman Vasquez.
Vasquez is present. Alderman Gardner.
Gardner is present. Alderwoman Clay.
Clay is not President Chambers.
Al Woman Silverstein not President Chambers
Alderwoman Ju Ramirez is present in Chambers.
I got you. Alright. Anyone else?
Okay. The quorum is now closed.
There are 42 members that are present,
so we do have a quorum.
There are three members of this body that wish
to participate in today's meeting remotely
for reasons stated in Rule 59.
Madam Clerk, can we confirm the online presence
of Vice Mayor Burnett, chairwoman Silverstein
and Chairwoman Rodriguez Sanchez.
Alderwoman Rodriguez Sanchez.
Here Alderman Burnett Present
Alderwoman Silverstein Present
Very well. Can I get
a motion to approve the
remote participation of these three members?
All those in favor signify by saying Aye.
And opposed Say No. In the opinion
of the chair, the ayes have it.
Please, um, record those three members
as participants remotely.
Let us stand for the Pledge of Allegiance.
Aye. Pledge allegiance to the flag
of the United States of America
and to the republic for which it stands,
one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty
and Justin Peral.
If you could remain standing for the invocation,
which will be delivered this morning by Pastor Jamie Frazier
of Lighthouse Church.
Spirit of the Living God, we come this morning asking
for an outpouring of your wisdom, justice, equity,
and wholeness upon this legislative body.
Bless our elected officials,
strengthen our elected officials.
Hold up our elected officials on every leaning side
in the face of fascism.
Keep your commandments ever before us.
Do justice, love, mercy,
and walk humbly before you.
Oh God. During this LGBTQ plus pride month,
let this August body learn from the powerful organizing
of Bayard Rustin moral vision of James Baldwin,
ancestral wisdom of Nikki Giovanni
and holy boldness of Marsha p Johnson.
I pray this prayer in Jesus' name.
As others pray to different deities
and with other belief systems, may we all say amen.
Amen. Thank you. You may be seated.
Uh, it looks like we got seven on that one. 10
Public comments.
The council will now begin the public comment period,
which is limited to a maximum of 30 minutes.
Each speaker is limited to three minutes.
Speakers cannot yield
or transfer their time to another speaker.
Any written comments that have been submitted will be posted
and made available for all the medic review.
The first speaker this morning is self Fred.
Hello. Can you hear me? We can hear you. Welcome.
O Okay. Uh, good morning, mayor Johnson and City Council.
I have come here today to tell y'all
to vote no on this trash snap curfew ordinance.
There have been legitimate concerns
with this ordinance since it was introduced into committee,
including the ordinance is unconstitutional
and will incur debt to the city when we have
to pay court fees
and payouts to those affected
by this trash PO policy to the police.
The Chicago Police superintendent spelling said he would not
enforce or use it
because he two believes it is unconstitutional.
Three, there is zero input from the teenagers
who this policy will impact.
They deserve to be brought to the table
and heard just like the Chicago Police Department was
during the hearing on said trash ordinance.
Curfews have never been proven effective in any way.
Suggesting a curfew to fix a public safety issue is as old
and aggressive as the mines who introduced this POS policy.
I'm extremely disappointed in those serving on the Committee
of Public Safety who advanced this policy as a solution
to said trained 10 treat teen trends.
I find it hard to believe that the Chicago Police Department
who handled the thousands of protestors this weekend
and arrested one person out of 20,000, are unable to serve
and protect our city's children instead
of criminalizing our youth.
I have a few ideas for the Committee of Public Service
to focus on one pass and expand the Peace Book ordinance
and Peacekeeper program.
Two, meet all with all 22 of the police district councils
to make sure they are functioning
and have an open line of communication
with the police active in their districts.
Four. Support the referendum for community Power of leasing.
Five. Start looking for revenue
to fund the care program for the entire city.
Six. And finally, the committee can start
to hold the Chicago Police Department accountable
to the consent decree and to the people of Chicago.
Let's finish that workforce allocation study.
And Mayor Johnson, don't think
because you decided public safety is your number one
issue that we're cool.
The City of Chicago is counting on you
to hold the adults in this room accountable.
No more playing games. I know you've got,
I know you've got the resources
and I've got my eye on you To my comrades
and young Aston in the room, keep up the good fight.
Again, alders, please vote no on this bogus snap curfew,
ordinance, all power to all people.
Thank you very much for your comments.
Our next speaker is Lee Barri.
Lee Bar is not here.
Our next speaker, speaker is Rita Pritchett.
R Rita Pritchett is also not here.
Our next speaker this morning is Rachel Gross.
Yes. Yeah. Our next speaker is Rachel Gross.
Hi everybody. Um, sorry.
Um, hello Mayor, uh, Chicago City Council members.
My name is Rachel Gross
and, um, I'm here with the, um,
Sheffield Neighborhood Association as Vice President.
Um, I joined president of SNA Brian Comer
to talk about, uh, the Snap curfew
and to show our support of it.
Uh, the, the takeovers.
They've, um, they become a real issue for, uh,
for the safety of residents.
And as a mom more,
I'm more concerned honestly about the teens.
Um, there was a, a, a teen that was shot
during the last event.
Um, and I just, there has got to be a way
that we can keep them safe while keeping the community safe.
And although there's lots of pros
and cons for curfews, I know that they don't always work.
I know they haven't worked in other cities.
The snap curfew seems a little different.
It seems like it's a tool, just a tool
that can assist police in stopping, not not arresting,
but addressing the teens and dispersing
before it becomes an issue.
Um, I, I know
that there's many concerns about civil rights,
but if we use it and see it as a preventive measure, I
with also, of course, trying
to cause the root, trying to address the root cause.
I, I don't see how, um, it could be anything
but hopefully successful.
And if it's not, it can always be repealed.
And that's, that's all I have to say. Thank you. Thank you.
Our next speaker this morning is Ayana Simba.
Good morning City Council.
My name is Ayana Simba
and I'm here to comment on behalf
of the Illinois Environmental Council
as our city Government Affairs director.
If you're not familiar, IEC,
we represent about 130 environmental orgs across the state,
including many that are here today, like Neighbors
for Environmental Justice and Southeast Environmental Task
Force and others
that are focused on strengthening environmental
justice here in Chicago.
When we talk about the life expectancy gap there,
or in other words, the difference
between the life expectancy for white and wealthy residents
and black and brown and low income residents, we often refer
to crime stats and access to healthcare,
but we often ignore the amplifying effects
of the environment that can ha
that it can have on someone's life.
Living, working in, playing next
to industrial facilities can have impacts ranging from
asthma, low infant in low infant birth rates,
increased cancer risk, and even premature death.
So when we're talking about the life expectancy gap,
this is what we are talking about.
For decades, Chicago has allowed heavy industry
to con concentrate in the most vulnerable communities,
putting health and wellbeing of residents at risk,
or in other words, creating sacrifice zones.
Even now in 2025, black and brown
and low income Chicagoans are likely
to live in neighborhoods that are surrounded
by industrial pollution.
After years of environmental advocacy,
we finally have a pathway forward.
It is the Hazel m Johnson Cumulative Impacts ordinance.
This ordinance will require new industrial projects
to consider report their total impact.
It'll require them to hold community meetings
before a new development,
and it would create an environmental justice advisory board.
And finally, it would give a voice
to community, community voices.
I wanna be clear in what this ordinance does not do.
It does not take away power from city
officials and city council.
It is not ban industry in the city of Chicago,
and it does not bury developers in red tape.
Chicagoans. The overburdened areas deserve clean air.
They deserve clean water, they deserve safe soil,
and they deserve a say in what gets built in their backyard.
It's time that we protect every neighborhood,
not just the wealthy few.
I urge you to support the Hazel m Johnson
Cumulative Impacts Ordinance.
Thank you for your time.
Thank you for your comments. Our next speaker is
David Barboza.
Good morning. Good morning. Hello, my name is, excuse me.
Hello, my name is David Barboza
and I live in the ten four res research shows
that in cities across the country,
industrial siting policies have disproportionately
concentrated the burdens of pollution onto
particular communities.
Communities that had already been disadvantaged
by economic conditions
and by racial discrimination that cut them out
of the decision making process.
Many people benefited and profited from those industries,
but in the communities I'm talking about, instead
of benefits we stacked an accumulated harm on top
of harm in ways that our laws did not equip us to solve.
Chicago has been no exception,
but Chicago does have the opportunity
to become an exception in a moment where environmental
and health protections are under attack.
Chicagoans from the very communities at highest risk have
organized to make our city stronger, safer,
and healthier than ever the city.
Excuse me. The story of these communities is a story
that goes back to Hazel m Johnson,
an honor name in city council's halls, thanks to her work
to lift out Guild Gardens out from the burden
of industries cumulative impacts.
Ms. Johnson saw
how far too many beloved people in her community had been
harmed or even killed by pollution linked diseases.
And she knew that this was not, could not be normal.
She was right. In fact,
citing decis decisions all over the city had concentrated
pollution in such a manner that
for a resident in the epicenter,
each individual facility made its own contribution into a
cumulative toxic stack
that increased a community member's health risk
and shortened their lifespan.
Hazel m Johnson fought
for these communities' rights to a clean environment.
Years later, organizers now carry on her legacy to push
for a Chicago that is free of sacrifice zones.
I am here to support the Hazel m Johnson cumulative impacts
ordinance being introduced.
Today, the ordinance would form an environmental justice
advisory council and would require a wide, a wide range
of permits seeking facilities to carry out
a cumulative impact study before attaining approval.
Rather than viewing every source of pollution in a vacuum,
we would now context contextualize facilities in the
existing environment and help to build a city
where no more neighborhoods become a nexus of sacrifice.
Frontline communities as well
as environmental groups like my own, provided their sweat
and expertise to give our city this chance.
I urge the city council to pass this ordinance
and to become a model for a sacrifice free city.
Thank you.
Thank you very much for your comments.
Our next speaker this morning is Tise Yari.
Good morning, mayor Johnson, city Council
and fellow community members.
My name is Talia Yari
and I'm the Youth Leadership Coordinator at the Jewish
Council on Urban Affairs.
I'm here today to urge you
to vote no on the Snap curfew ordinance,
which is overly punitive, reactionary,
and ultimately ineffective.
Let's be clear, this ordinance doesn't protect young people.
It criminalizes them for existing
young people should not only be allowed
to exist in public spaces, but encouraged to do so.
I don't disagree that there is a problem here.
Teen takeovers are, are
how young people in Chicago have drawn attention
to an unmet need between COVID
and our increasingly virtual world.
Chicago's young people have demonstrated
that they crave face-to-face community connection.
They need spaces that are theirs where they can be engaged
and mentored and appropriately challenged.
As someone who works with teens every day, I can speak
to the powerful effect that telling them you believe in them
and are invested in their growth can have.
I urge you to prioritize community-based initiatives
that offer young people opportunities to grow
and learn and explore together.
Look to the work of organizations like Good Kids, mad City
and My block, my hood, my city,
whose programs demonstrate the power
and untapped potential of our young people.
There are so many things wrong with the approach
that this ordinance takes.
CPD has a documented discriminatory history
of targeting black and brown people.
And this ordinance would simply give cover
to perpetuate racist profiling
against our city's young people.
This ordinance, as has previously been mentioned,
clearly violates constitutional rights.
And frankly, it's a lawsuit waiting to happen.
Who will have to pay when the city gets sued?
The Chicago taxpayer, when we could be using that money
to build community centers, create programs,
or reopen mental health clinics, all things
that actually address what young people need to today.
What will happen when these kids
and their parents inevitably can't pay the fine?
Why are we trying to entangle more families in
systems that don't serve them?
What kind of message are we trying
to send to our young people?
The only logical solution
to this problem is community investment.
Please vote no on the Snap curfew, ordinance,
and redirect your energy
and efforts to build people-centered solutions
that prioritize our young people and their futures.
Thank you.
Thank you very much for your comments.
Our next speaker is Jamie Vero Torres.
Good Morning City Council and
Mayor Johnson.
Thank you for the opportunity to share a comment on behalf
of the Hazel m Johnson cumulative Impact Ordinance.
My name is Jaime and I'm a lifelong resident
of Chicago South Side here to speak in support
of this ordinance.
I'm here on behalf of the Annette Collective
and the Pilsen Environmental Rights
and Reform Organization Reform A Grass,
a grassroots organization that has signed in support
of this or ordinance.
These organizations among others present today,
are dedicated to environmental justice
and demand action for communities of color
who are disproportionately affected
by pollution and its effects.
I would like to express my reasons for why the city
of Chicago should pass the Hazel m Johnson
cumulative impact ordinance.
Historically, Chicago has been known
for the segregation based on race and income.
People of color and community members living in lower income
neighborhoods have long been victims
of environmental injustices.
We are at higher risk for health issues such as respiratory
and heart disease, and are also at higher risk
for environmental impacts such as lead poison,
drinking water, and polluted air.
To this day, we lack a voice
and developments coming into our communities despite the
cumulative impacts they may bring.
I feel these effects firsthand as I come from a family
with a history of severe mental
and physical health issues such as asthma, lupus,
and cancer, most likely linked to industrial pollution
and other cumulative impacts.
My family members past and present deserve to live in peace
and know that their health and wellbeing is important.
All Chicagoans disproportionately affected by pollution
and environment environmental impacts deserve justice.
The Hazel m Johnson cumulative impact ordinance will
create a path for that justice.
It would recognize sacrifice zones, areas whose heir water,
soil health, and wellbeing are sacrificed
for the economic benefit of others.
The ordinance will prevent the construction
of industrial facilities that would
otherwise be built in sacrifice zones despite the
potential health concerns.
Lastly, this ordinance will ensure
that community members can be included in future plans
by hosting public community meetings so that their stories
and concerns can be heard.
While we can't go back in time
and save those who lost their lives sooner than most
as a result of long-term pollution,
we can still seek justice for those still alive today
and protect future generations from the suffering our
communities have long faced.
Please help us pass the Hazel m Johnson Ordinance
for Environmental Justice and Community Healing.
Thank you.
Thank you very much for your comments.
Our next speaker this morning is Chloe Butler Jones.
Uh, good morning, mayor Johnson and City Council.
My name is Chloe and I'm a Chicago resident.
Chicago must lead not lag in protecting public health.
We live in a city where black
and brown working class neighborhoods have been treated
as sacrifice zones for decades.
This is not accidental.
It's the result of zoning policies
that prioritize industry profits over our health.
While I served as co-chair of the communication
and an engagement working group
for the Chicago Commun Cumulative Impacts assessment,
we heard hundreds of residents echo
what they have been asking for for decades.
Protection from the toxic pollution that continues
to accumulate as we speak.
The Hazel m Johnson Cumulative Impacts Ordinance is an
opportunity for Chicago to lead the
country in environmental justice.
It ensures that our communities are no longer dumping
grounds for toxic industries.
No more sacrifice zones
For too long neighborhoods like the Southeast side Little
Village, Pilsen, McKinley Park, Inglewood
and Keld Gardens have been overburdened with pollution.
These are the same communities with higher rates of asthma,
cancer, and respiratory illnesses
that is environmental racism in action.
The city council must stand up
and reject the false choice between jobs and our health.
Responsible zoning means protecting residents from the
cumulative and burden of pollution, not adding to it.
What's at risk if we fail to act?
If this ordinance is not passed, the cycle
of environmental racism will continue.
More toxic industries will move into our communities
increasing already dangerous levels of pollution.
Our children will keep developing asthma at at some
of the highest rates in the country.
Our elders will continue
to suffer from respiratory illnesses at
a disproportionate rate.
Our families will keep dealing
with the devastating health impacts
of polluted air, water, and soil.
And once again, the message from City Hall will be clear.
People come before profits come before people, and black
and brown communities are expendable.
Hazel Johnson, founder of People for Community Recovery,
the organization I very proudly work for, fought
to stop toxic pollution in Chicago.
She led this movement decades ago
and today we are demanding that her legacy be honored
with real policy.
We are calling on City Council to pass this ordinance
and to put an end to the policies that have been,
that has sacrificed our communities.
No more delays, no more excuses. This is about our survival.
Thank you for our time. For your time.
Thank you very much for your comments.
Our next speaker is Ethan El Albo.
Good morning fellow Chicagoans City
Council and Mayor Johnson.
My name is Ithan or Ito Ovo,
and I'm speaking today in solidarity with the young people
of Chicago and a myriad
of organizations invested, invested in their wellbeing.
I was born to African immigrant parents in the year
that Mayor Harold Washington made Chicago a sanctuary city
between working multiple low wage jobs,
navigating xenophobic and anti-black racism
and continuing their education.
My parents didn't have much time to learn the complexities
of Chicago's public school system.
They walked us to the nearest school, not realizing
that they had crossed the boulevard,
leaving our apartment in Austin and entering Oak Park.
Upon hearing we couldn't go to school there unless we moved.
My parents made the sacrifice of staying with friends
until they could afford to rent on their own.
I like to call myself a displaced Austin resident
because everything I did was still in the city
as a latchkey kid and creative.
It was Chicago's youth poetry scene
that grounded me in the summers.
I took the train to attend programming
by young Chicago authors competed in louder than a bomb,
opened mics, did babysitting jobs,
and sang in my church's gospel choir.
We had family from uptown to Beverly.
I could not afford to be restricted as a young person
and a family that depended on me, not only to take care
of myself, but often other members of my family
and community getting stopped
or pulled over by police for no apparent reason
as a young person is terrifying.
We don't need a snap curfew.
We don't need $300 million in police slush funding.
We need public safety solutions that are proven to work
youth jobs and programming like peace book,
non-police crisis or care teams on our streets
and public mental health centers.
We need real investments in real solutions.
And the youth in our city need freedom.
My ability to navigate the city freely gave me an education
on the geography and history of this great city
that money cannot buy.
And as a proud arts educator, mentor
and organizer, I can say Chicago's youth are some
of the world's most formidable innovators.
They navigate the difficulty of growing up in a city
that people are constantly trying
to turn into their personal cash cow
with unmistakable brilliance
and an unbreakable self regard, elected officials
of the city business owners, no one has the right
to betray them by restricting their ability to grow,
explore, and gather in any
of Chicago's 77 neighborhoods simply because they are young.
I am personally asking the alders
and wards that I have lived in Talia, Pharaoh,
Fuentes Taylor, and Mi,
to oppose any new snap curfew ordinance.
And to those of you who advocate for the sick, the young,
the poor, those considered the least of these in your wards.
Thank you. We love you.
We celebrate you as we hold you accountable to that promise.
Thank you.
Thank you very much for your comments.
Our next speaker is Lee Bari.
Our next speaker is Rita Pritchett.
Your honor, there are no further speakers
who have timely signed up for the public comment period.
Very well. This concludes our
public comment portion of the meeting.
Thank you to all of our public speakers.
Next up we have resolutions, but
before we get to those resolutions, um,
there are six acknowledgements that have been brought
before me this morning.
The first acknowledgement will be
by Alderman Byron Sig Cho Lopez, who would like
to celebrate the Les
Brothers and family
and their contributions to our city.
The chair recognizes Alderman Sig Cho Lopez.
Thank you Mr. President
and is with a great pleasure that I have the honor
to recognize a, a real, um,
a real, a real institution in our neighborhood.
In the 1960s, Ignacio Gilberto Villasenor,
two newcomers from me to account Mexico came
to the United States with American Dream
and founded a company specializing in fresh cheese from the
countryside of Central Mexico.
They came in with $500
and a dream, three employees, now the same company
employees over 300 people.
And there are indeed
what we talked about, the American dream.
And with so many narratives out there dehumanizing
immigrants today, it is great
to celebrate the great accomplishments
of immigrant families like Debi family.
I have the honor to represent an immigrant port
of entry like Pilsen.
So wanna give a special recognition to a family
that is your family.
We have the, the match of the family here as well.
So I would like for them to stand up so
that we can recognize them in city council
for your great contribution to the city of Chicago.
Thank you Mr. President, 50 years
and going strong. Thank you so much.
Thank you very much. Our next acknowledgement again,
thank you Aldermans Cho Lopez.
Our second of six acknowledgements will be by Alderman
Curtis, who would like to honor the laborers of local
10 92 of the Department of Water Management.
The chair recognizes alderman Derek Curtis.
Thank you, uh, Mr. President.
Uh, also, I I will be honoring actually the, uh,
entire Cruz and, and I, and I'll get to that in a moment.
But first, I would like to, uh, take this opportunity to,
uh, for us to recognize real leadership of, uh,
Chicago's workforce.
Uh, he has over, uh, two decades of,
of leading the city.
Uh, workforce, uh, came up through the, through the ranks.
And, um, it was, uh, he was one of the reasons why I decided
to, uh, do this, uh, acknowledgement.
I would like to say happy birthday
to our commissioner Randy Con.
Hey, Randy.
No, um, so many, so many times, uh,
especially, uh, during the pandemic,
we always recognized our first responders that, uh, when,
when we were, uh, supposed to be isolated at home instead
of being on the beach or something like that, uh,
those workers had to, uh, go out.
First responders had to go out, stay at work
to keep the city safe.
Um, I have looked around and,
and, and I didn't, I didn't see anything that we've done for
our labor force.
Uh, one thing that brought me to this was, uh,
in the winter, this past winter, I was driving around, uh,
I think I was on my way downtown.
And in the Sub-Zero weather, uh,
what we take basically probably for granted, we see our
city water department fixing these water main breaks
or, or ADEs
or, um, if, if, uh,
these water mains break, basically we just drive
by and we see the city working.
But if our water go off
and they don't fix these, at that time,
you won't have any water.
What amazed me, I I even drove up north
to look at many crews.
Uh, what excited me about one crew was,
um, I think I was at maybe 83rd and Vince
and they were working on, um, on a water main.
And I saw the water crew there.
I saw this big guy.
And, and, and these are not just this labor force
and not just guys in their,
in girls in their twenties and thirties.
This guy had to be in his fifties
or sixties bald head, big stomach.
It had to be a micole weak.
But, um, I saw him jump right in that hole.
When they sixties holes, there's water inside the hose.
I just found out today that the water is
so cold when they're down fixing these water main breaks
that they have to stick their hands in the sub
zero degrees water just to keep them warm
because it is hotter than the air.
It's amazing. But, um, I would like to honor them today,
If you would, if you would stand, this is our Chicago.
So, uh, Mr.
President City Council, uh, you know, you need the heavy,
uh, equipment operator one 50.
You need the, the plumbers to fix them.
You need the brick layers
and the laborers that actually have to jump in
that hole and fix it.
And I wanna honor all of them today,
uh, for doing a great job.
'cause we've never done it.
I've never seen it. I want to thank you all.
Thank you so much, Mr. President p
Thank you Alderman Curtis, uh, alderman
Alderman David Moore would also like
to speak to this acknowledgement.
The chair recognizes Alderman Moore.
Thank you so much. Um, Mr.
President, I know we are gonna, we are not gonna be able
to speak to every resolution,
and I'm gonna try to hold my remarks on some
so we can get out here at a decent time today.
But, um, I just wanted to make sure that, um, I highlight
and recognize, um, these workers for the work that they do.
One thing I know, when I call this department,
I can't call everybody's name,
but under the leadership of, um, um, Randy Connors, um,
they, they hold team has been responsive to my constituents.
And I cannot say enough about them.
And just to say thank you for the work that you do.
So, um, I echo everything my colleague said.
I don't wanna repeat everything for the sake of time,
but thank you all so much for all that you do.
Thank you. Alderman Moore.
Thank you Alderman Curtis for bringing this acknowledgement.
Our third acknowledgement, um, will be by
Alders Rodriguez and Gutierrez.
They would like to celebrate Doce Land's 30th anniversary.
The chair recognizes Alderman Rodriguez.
Uh, thank you Mr. Chair.
Uh, today we celebrate 30 years of culture, community,
and entrepreneurial spirits.
Um, urban legend.
And I believe fact, uh, uh, has it that 26th Streets
is the second highest tax revenue generating business
district only.
Thank you. Only second to the magnificent mile.
But I tell folks we are second to no one.
We're the magnificent two miles on 26th Street, and that is
because of the spirits of the Rodriguez family and Slanda.
Give them a round of applause,
Uh, uh, briefly, Mr.
President, as you take a picture. That's nice.
Very well done. I like that.
Uh, Eduardo and ve Rod, excuse me, Eduardo
and ve Rodriguez tu slanda from the ground up.
And in doing so, they built a piece of home for generations
of Chicagoans.
D Slanda is a celebration of Mexican heritage in Chicago.
And over the years, it has become a neighborhood landmark.
We are so proud to recognize DSLand India's impact
as a successful business
and as exemplar of the entrepreneurial spirit
of Chicago's immigrant community.
And, and alders you have in front of you here, uh,
d says from D Landia, Mexican candies for your enjoyments.
Um, you know, the clerk says,
and made sure that I made sure to mention that d
the clerk made sure that I mentioned
that Slanda is a strong partner
with the city key program here in the city of Chicago.
And, uh, the children, uh,
Eve worked a very long time here in the city of Chicago.
Marco, Julio and Eduardo Jr.
Are leaders of our chambers of commerce, our SSA.
And they do so much for our community.
They are exemplars of what this great city is.
I'm proud to honor their hard work
and, uh, for filling our lives
with a little bit of sweetness.
Thank you so very much. Thank you.
The chair recognizes Gutierrez.
Thank you, Mr. President.
I would like also to join my colleague on congratulating
Slanda on those 30 years.
And I know there'll be many, many more successful years.
It's a family that works together, that stands together.
They hire a lot of our community members. They protect them.
They give good wages and good work opportunities for them.
So we wanna congratulate you all.
I know your, uh, warehouse sits in 14 wards, so we're
so honored to host the, the warehouse
of this incredible business.
I wish you many, many successful years.
Thank you for all what you do for our communities.
And as you may know, Luanda is Candy Land.
So when you go in those stores,
kids go happy, as you can tell.
And thank you for bringing those sweetness,
as Rodriguez said,
but also bringing families together
to celebrate not only birthdays
and milestones from our families, graduations for also Ava,
and bringing that culture that it's really important
for our communities, especially being an immigrant
and setting the example
that you could be successful when you work hard
and you provide to our communities.
Thank you so much.
You the chair
recognizes Alderman Viegas. Thank
You, Mr. Thank
you, Mr. President Allison, stand to be associated
with this resolution, uh, highlighting the accomplishments
of 30 years for Mr.
And Mrs. Uh, Rodriguez and Dia.
Um, when we talk about immigrants,
this is exactly what we're talking about.
We're talking about people that have come to this country
looking for an opportunity, looking for an opportunity
to thrive, create jobs, create revenue in the form of taxes,
in order to contribute to the fabric
of society here in this great country,
in this great city of Chicago.
You know, I mentioned that, uh, Eve worked for the city.
You're right, Michael. She worked 15 years
and then she found some common sense
and then went to go to the private sector.
Uh, we want, we wanna acknowledge, uh, her as well.
But listen, the Rodriguez family has
not just been business leaders.
They've also been civic leaders as well.
Not just talking about business,
but also putting their money where their mouth is
as it relates to causes that really amplify the Latinos,
uh, Latino community.
And so I just wanted to be associated with this resolution.
Chairman Rodriguez. Alderman Gutierrez, thank you
for bringing forward this resolution
and congratulations on another for your 30 years,
but also for another 30 years.
Thank you. Thank
You.
The chair recognizes other quesada.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Um, I also wanna congratulate,
uh, Slanda and the owners for 30 years of great business,
and especially, uh, in the 35th Ward.
You know, we have the best slanda in the 35th Ward.
No, no shade to my colleagues,
but at 38 55 West Fullerton,
you'll find a great price for great candy.
And also you'll find some amazing pinatas
with some relevant, uh, kind
of figures in the public sphere.
Uh, so if you ever wanna make sure you're, you're, uh,
getting your candy out
and you're getting some stress out, go
to 38 55 West Fullerton
and you'll find a nice, uh, pinata
for your, for your parties.
But no, and, and in all honesty, thank you so much, Luanda,
for being such a great partner in the 35th Ward.
I know that you have partnered with our office previously,
uh, for our events like OSA Halloween, you've donated a lot
of candy, uh, for our, uh, events.
So just great, greatly appreciate your partnership in
our community and the city of Chicago. Congratulations.
Thank You. Chair recognizes
Alderman Sig Show Lopez.
Thank you, uh, Mr. President.
And I would also like, uh, to rise in support
as Al is also a constituent of mine.
And, uh, what a great day today
to celebrate two great businesses in particular,
because my triples are gonna turn three this weekend,
so we know where we're gonna be.
Going to get some, some of the duals this, this weekend.
So celebrating the spirit of our immigrant community,
the resiliency of Chicago.
I would like to raise in support and celebrate with you all,
and thank you D Landia and also also, uh, b
and B for the great saving engagement.
This is what Chicago is about. Thank you so much.
Thank you. Thank you all. Rodriguez and Gut.
Our fourth acknowledgement will be by Alderwoman Nugent.
She would like to welcome the North River
Commission's Youth Council.
The chair recognizes Alderwoman Nugent.
Thank you, Mr. President.
It's my pleasure today to welcome the North River Commission
Youth Council to City, city Council.
If you guys could please stand up.
The North River Youth Council is a dedicated group
of young leaders from the northwest side of Chicago.
They're committed to civic engagement, community service,
and developing a strong voice for the youth of our city.
They address issues like sustainability, public safety,
access to public transportation, and school programming.
I'm incredibly impressed by their passion to learn
and to uplift their community.
On behalf of the city council, thank you
for your involvement, your initiative,
and your leadership. Thank you, Mr. President.
Thank you.
Chair recognizes Alder Vazquez.
Thank you very much. Mr.
President also, uh, wanna rise in support
of the North River Commission Youth Council.
I wanna thank you all. Um, uh, earlier this year, they had,
uh, uh, a 40th Ward, 33rd Ward, 39th and others, uh,
and really got a chance to hear and engage
and understand their leadership.
Thank you so much for the work that you all do
and for holding us accountable.
We had conversations about what actual entertainment and,
and, and other opportunities look like
besides a Snap curfew.
And to have the youth actually tell us what's important
to them is something that I think we should value.
And always listen as members of council.
So thank you all for your leadership.
Thank you for challenging us.
Thank you very much, Mr. President. Thank you.
Thank you, Alderwoman Nugent.
Um, our next acknowledgement will be
by Alderman Mosley.
He would like to celebrate the 40th anniversary
of Gatting's Chapel.
The chair recognizes Alderman Mosley.
Thank you so much, Mr.
President and colleagues into the Gatlin family.
Uh, uh, humbly rise today for 40 years.
Gatlin Chapel right in the heart of the 21st Ward,
has done more than bury the dead.
They have uplifted the living.
Just a second. In fact, just a
Second.
I would ask that the Chamber remain quiet
and respectful as, uh, this acknowledgement is being made.
Thank you, alderman Mosley.
For 40 years, Gatlin Chapel right in the heart
of the 21st Ward, has done more than bury the dead.
They have uplifted the living.
It is Galen's Chapel that insists even in grief,
you are worthy of beauty.
Even in loss, you are worthy of dignity.
This tradition was born out of necessity.
There was a time not so long ago when our people,
black people, were excluded from white-owned
funeral establishments.
And so we built our own.
We made a way with excellence,
with innovation, and with faith.
Mr. President, as we mark Juneteenth, the ongoing struggle
and promise of freedom, let us be clear that this is
what freedom can look like.
A black family building, leading
and sustaining a legacy of excellence in our community.
Lafayette Gatlin, Sr. And Mrs.
Marguerite Gatlin carried that torch.
And 40 years later,
their legacy shines bright here
throughout the city of Chicago.
So, to Mrs. Gatlin, to Cheryl, to Marquita,
to Aaron Lyric and Melody, we see you.
We honor you. And on behalf
of this council in the great city
of Chicago, we say, thank you.
May your next 40 years be even greater than your
first Thank you, Mr.
President.
Thank you, alderman Moore.
Applause. But I know I'm trying to be nice
and not talk through everyone,
but there are some people in life you just
have to stand up for.
Um, this is my family and it's my family
because they become family for the way
that they serve, um, this community.
I echo every word that Alderman Mosley, um, has said.
And I'm telling you all, if you can make it by
what Saturday is it Ms.
Gatlin, when we have the, um, concert in December,
we'll, I'll tell you all about it,
but they can sing if y'all want
to hear some great singing, they can sing.
And then also Facebook, um, Marquita, Gatlin, man,
you talking about needs to be on America's Got Talent
and one of our greatest stars that young lady can sing.
And so I wanna thank this family for all that you all do.
It is a great family and, um,
they got a great business in our community.
And what's something that I wanna point out that, um,
Ronnie, uh, Al and Mosley stated,
but a lot of people didn't capture the excellence.
They taught other business in this city.
Not just funeral businesses, but other businesses.
How to be excellent. Thank you so much.
Thank you very much.
The chair recognizes Alderman. William Hall. Thank
You so much, Mr. President.
I too stand
and rise, first of all, to, uh, echo
what Alderman Moore said, the, uh, Gatlin can sing.
Uh, and I know that because every Sunday Marquita leads
worship at my church, um, what she calls home and to,
What's the name of your church? Alderman.
Oh, St. James. Um, secondly, for as many families
as the Gatlin have put on their backs in the hardest times
of their life, Chicago was better because of it.
And so thank you to the Gatlin family for 40 years
of holding it down and lifting us
up. Thank you, Mr. President.
Very well. Thank you all for the acknowledgements.
Just one more acknowledgement.
You all may have heard the news that, uh,
the infamous in the most iconic voice, um, in broadcast
and radio, uh, covering politics for an entire generation.
So I would like to offer up, um,
a congratulations on the retirement, uh, for Craig Delamore
of WBBM News.
Um, so let's just celebrate He is not in the room,
but we can still stand even though he is not in the room.
Craig Delamore,
that was, yeah, that's as close as you're gonna get
to a standing ovation, uh, Craig Wall.
Uh, but yeah, but we thank him for his incredible legacy.
And so now we have two resolutions, um,
celebrating Pride Month
and Juneteenth, the chair recognizes Alderman Mitchell.
Good morning, Mr. President.
I move for the temporary suspension of rules, uh,
for the immediate consideration of these resolutions.
Hearing no objections. So ordered in the interest of time.
Uh, we will not read through the resolutions,
but we will go straight to the remarks from members
of the city council.
We'll give folks a few moments to clear.
Chair recognizes Alderwoman Mitchell.
I'm sorry, Alderwoman, uh, mi
Mr. President, I'd like
to be recorded for, uh, president
for the purpose of Quorum Roll
Call. Thank you. Alderwoman
Mitts.
Uh, Madam Clerk, please add Alderwoman mitts to the quorum.
Are there any members who wish to speak to this resolution?
The chair recognizes Alderman Lawson.
Thank you, Mr. President. Good morning.
Colleagues, uh, proudly join, uh,
in support of this resolution.
Um, I will start by, uh, uh, being thankful
that I have my guest in the box today.
Uh, principal Joshua Marberg
of Nettle Horse School in the 44th Ward.
Um, he's the one with the little guy who,
who decided right now to be loud.
Um, um, uh, he was the principal of March of last year
and has served in many vital roles at the school since 2014,
including ap, the school's case manager
and teaching middle school math.
I brought you a middle school teacher, huh?
Thank you, mayor. All right. Thank you.
Um, and Iowa native and always wanted
to serve his students in our community as best as possible.
He received a BA in elementary education from Mount St.
Clair College, continued his education at Jones
International University, DePaul University,
and the University of New England.
Nettle Horse has been one
of the great community success stories
for both Lakeview and CPS.
The building is full of colorful art, unique stories,
and even has its own chicken coop.
The school continues to thrive
with a focus on strong social, emotional learning,
belonging, and rigorous differentiated instruction.
He's a strong advocate of social justice and equity issues.
Dr. Marburger takes great pride in ensuring all students
and families feel seen, heard,
and known within the stallion community.
And that is particularly true.
Fort plus parents
and students who find an accepting
diverse home at Nettle Horse.
I'm thrilled to have Principal Marburger today as my guest,
as we celebrate Pride.
He's joined by his husband Mark, who is, uh,
there with Baby Louie.
Um, they just celebrated their first
Father's Day, uh, last week.
So congratulations to both of you. And thank you Dr.
Marburger, for everything you do for our community.
Um, I will just also continue, uh, you know,
we're having a little parade, uh, the end
of the month, and you're all invited.
Um, and want to thank, uh,
especially all the city departments,
they don't get enough credit for the work
that they put into that parade.
I know. I mean, you, you think water is involved, guys.
I mean, every, every, you name it our sister agencies,
especially CTA, there's a tremendous amount of work
that goes into keeping us safe.
I think this year as much as any other, we know that we need
to, uh, hunker down and keep an eye on everyone.
The parade theme this year is United in Pride,
and I think we should take that with us.
Uh, I have throughout this month, um,
and really draw on the strengths in every aspect
of our community, which comes together in
that great moment at the end of June.
So, um, the first time in parade history,
a local community group will lead the parade is the
inaugural out front leader, um,
that is Task Force Prevention and Community Services.
Youth, LGBT, youth Focused
and Wellness Organization located on the west side
of Chicago will lead the parade.
It's being honored for its decades of unwavering service,
providing critical, cool resources, advocacy,
and support to LGBTQ plus youth,
particularly those in underserved communities.
We're also joined by Dr.
Maya Green, who's appropriately wearing green.
She, along with Dr. Katherine Credico
and Ally are our community Grand Marshals.
Both honorees were selected
through online nomination processes reflecting the profound
impact on healthcare advocacy and the L-G-B-T-Q community.
Um, I wanna lift up Victor Salvo,
who's in the box from the Legacy Project
and the Legacy Walk.
Um, you can't miss it.
On the first floor of this building is the
legacy traveling wall.
Um, legacy tells the story of LGBT folks throughout history,
and the appropriate hashtag for this year is
that we will not be erased.
And so we're going to tell our history,
we're gonna say it proudly,
and we're gonna say it in the halls of this building.
I want to thank, um, the organizers
of the parade who are here.
Steve Long, Tim Fry, Tara Campbell, Daniel Ortiz.
It's way more work than anyone realizes
for a volunteer role, guys.
Uh, and they've, they've rolled with, uh,
the changes from last year, the updates from this year,
and I want to thank them for it.
Um, and then, uh,
Devin Hanley is here from Task Force as well.
So thank you all very much. Um, happy pride to you.
We look forward to a safe affirming, welcoming parade.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Thank you.
Chair recognizes older woman Taylor.
Thank you, Madam Chair. Um, Dr.
Maya Green doesn't belong to you.
She belongs to the south side of Chicago.
And so to this amazing black woman who saved us
during COVID, she not only talked about vaccinations,
she talked about how to make ourselves safety,
wearing our mask,
and how important it was to make sure
that we are paying attention to the city.
And so this woman who at the time worked
for Howard Brown made sure our young folks and black men
and women were given access to you.
Dr. Green, thank you. Our community Luggages. Thank you.
Thank you. Mr. President
Chair recognizes Alder.
Manal. Howorth.
Thank you, Mr. President.
Thank you Principal for being here.
Net work from the 48th Ward, uh,
principal again from Net Force.
Um, thank you Mr. President.
I rise in support of this resolution.
I'm the first ine
and first openly queer elder woman
to represent the 48th Ward,
and that includes Edgewater and Uptown.
And today I honor my past, present,
and future as we celebrate Pride Month.
My indigenous roots are in the mountain province
of the Philippines, where in pre-colonial times
women ruled the roost.
And spiritual and community leaders were acknowledged
to have both masculine and feminine qualities.
Gender fluidity was affirmed for both mortals
and deities as a holistic representation
of our shared humanity.
Today, the 48th Ward is a beacon for
lgbtqia plus people in Chicago
and beyond as one of the most diverse wards across race,
class, ethnicity, gender, identity and orientation.
Today I'm proud to recognize a prominent LGD
LGBTQ plus community leader in Andersonville,
someone essential to the neighborhood who leads with heart
and humor and keeps our neighborhood vibrant and humming.
Her name is Laura Austin
and she joins us with other Chicago lgbtq plus leaders.
In the box today, there's Laura.
As the executive director for the Andersonville Chamber
of Commerce, she has a daunting task
of defending Anderson v's.
Title as the second coolest neighborhood in the world.
According to Timeout magazine, Andersonville is also known
as Girls Town because of its historically high number
of lesbian owned businesses.
Today, Andersonville Chamber boes over 130
LGBTQ plus owned businesses in its membership under Laura's
direction for nearly a decade.
With upwards of 20 events a year, Laura has fought
for precious resources to protect the small town charm
and feel of our neighborhoods.
As a queer mom, such as myself, she understands that strong
and resilient communities are built by caring
for others like your own family.
Through the pandemic, where lgbtq plus owned businesses
reported higher rates of financial losses
with some studies indicating 27% more losses than non
LGBTQ plus businesses.
And my own business included Laura
and her team kept us all connected via the Chamber
newsletter, where we reliably found timely
resources and information.
But most importantly, hope.
Although inclusivity is a hallmark of Andersonville,
our neighborhood is far from perfect understanding
that black trans women are the most unprotected
and disrespected individuals in society Today.
Laura's continued collaboration with organizations such
as Chicago Therapy Collective and Higher Trans.
Now on equitable hiring practices, as well as hosting How
to Be Ally Forums is to be commended after the disappearance
and death of our dear friend
and trans activists, Elise, Mallory, Laura
and her team were there with us working towards healing
with community on the 40th and Forti eighth wards.
Laura was instrumental in the push
to dedicate Elise Mallory Way and Plaza.
This welcoming space will not only help bring the community
together for decades to come,
but will also serve as a reminder for the accepting
and inclusive world that Elise Long to live in.
Laura, thank you for your friendship
and love for our community.
You're an inspiration to me
and the young lgbtqia plus people who follow behind you.
You're an embodiment of the community values
of not only diversity and inclusion,
but of true equity for all.
I know you still may be recovering from this past
Midsummer Fest weekend.
I am sporting a fabulous cowgirl hat
that I got this weekend, and I wear this for pride
and also in solidarity
and celebration of Juneteenth marking the end
of slavery in the United States.
And to honor black cowboy freedom fighters, the people
United will never be defeated.
Laura, thank you for letting me honor you today.
And everyone, happy pride.
Thank you. Chair recognizes all the woman head.
Thank you Mr. President.
I too rise to be associated with this resolution.
And, um, thank you to everybody in the box.
Um, thank you for your work, your service to our community,
not just the L-G-B-T-Q community,
but of course all of Chicago.
Um, it was, um, really a highlight.
June's become my favorite month, so January's my birthday.
So by default, January has just
kind of been a good month for me.
And since taking this job, January's a little slower,
fewer constituent requests.
Were coming off the holidays.
So I've, uh, fallen more in love with the month of January.
Um, but June over these last couple of years,
as someone who was black
and gay, June, you just can't beat it.
Black and gay, right? Black and gay.
Celebrating pride, celebrating Juneteenth
the beginning of summer,
the Solstice graduation Father's Day.
We had a great festival in the neighborhood
over Father's Day weekend.
There's so much to celebrate in June.
I appreciate our city, our efforts, your organizations,
and the opportunity that we have.
And I know, um, I know we've got a long day.
We started late, y'all, we got resolutions.
We had six acknowledgements all very worthwhile.
And I know we are probably digging in a little bit for, uh,
some rule 40 ones and debates and conversations.
Um, but I'll say that I am very honored
to serve the 49th Ward
and to serve in the city council where we honor pride month,
where we honor the contributions of our L-G-B-T-Q community,
where we fight and stand up for our lgbtq, uh,
plus residents.
And where we get to celebrate that in the same day
and the same week that we celebrate Juneteenth,
where we raised our Juneteenth flag on Monday.
I would ask those in the chambers to remain quiet. Please.
If you feel disrespected, then you should, uh,
maybe question why that is.
Um,
we good?
All right, we're on Monday.
We got to raise our Juneteenth flag up next
to our pride flag up next to our Chicago flag, up next
to our county flag.
We live in a nation where every day what we see on the news
and and what we might experience in talking
to family members is one that seems
to be ripping itself apart, where people
with hate in their heart are getting all the attention.
I'm so tired of hateful people getting all the attention,
guys,
Because that's not the majority of Chicago,
the Chicago ones I know the neighborhoods I've had the
opportunity to work in, from Rogers Park to hew
to Sleepy Hollow to South Shore, uh, Portage Park,
Jeff Park, Albany Park, Lakeview,
Lincoln Square, south Shore.
I've found friends in every single
neighborhood in this city.
People who love our city, they love their neighbor.
They stand up for one another.
So the folks in the box today,
and I promise I'm just gonna speak once,
I'm just gonna speak once, okay?
You're final. Um, we'll make this juneteenth
and pride all in one.
But, um, Juneteenth
and pride all in one embodying
and the representation of intersectional identities,
I am interested at the reaction this is getting.
Um, but yeah, Chicago's such a wonderful city.
We will keep each other together.
We will keep our city together. We will be united.
And I think that's the theme, right?
The theme for the Pride march this year.
It was the theme for our Father's Day artists
of the Wall Festival at Loyola Park this year.
It was all together now.
And I think that as we faced a vision, as we stare down,
hatred, bigotry, people moved by their hatred
and bigotry to the point of assassination,
of assassinating political leaders who are standing up
for our rights, people who can't figure out how
to act within the really generous confines
of our democracy.
So to clarify, this is a second.
Hold on, hold on. Pride month
On, hold on a second, please.
If those of you who continued to outburst,
I would ask The Sergeant in Arms to remove You.
I. Okay, Mr.
Sergeant at arms, could you please remove this woman
Teenth?
Just wanna remind the folks
who are visiting us today in Chambers.
We appreciate your public participation.
However, the outbursts are, are not only provocative,
but they are disruptive.
And it doesn't speak to our sensibility as a,
as a body of government.
So if you cannot respect the general rules
and ideas that are being expressed,
but either ask that you remove yourself
or I will ask that you be removed,
chair recognizes all the women hadn't.
Thank you, Mr. President.
As I was saying altogether, now
we don't all have the same experiences
and we don't all agree with the same things.
But we live in a fantastic city.
We're fortunate, we're blessed, we're honored to live here.
Whether we were born here, whether we moved here,
whether we immigrated here, this is a fantastic city
and it's ours to keep.
So it is my honor
and a joy to be able to live in a city
where my multiple identities, I'm black every day
and I'm gay every day.
And I'm a woman every day,
Every day, every day.
I wake up, even on council days.
Um, it's one of the things
that I hear from constituents in the 49th Ward
and around the city about why it's so important
to have our representation.
Um, for those who may have been confused,
there's a whole resolution for Juneteenth.
It should have its own day,
and it should have its own moment.
Um, and there are a lot of us for whom, you know,
we we're here, we're Americans, we're Chicagoans.
We have complex identities,
and we get to celebrate all of that together.
And it is meaningful to me as it is meaningful to all
who would celebrate freedom with Juneteenth
and all who would celebrate diversity, inclusion
tolerance with pride.
Um, to be able to celebrate that together, to have a month,
to have days, to have flag raisings, to have parades.
Um, it's important for our young people, it's important
for our elders, and it's important for all of us to
unapologetically lean in, stand up,
celebrate it, own it, wear it.
And I thank you all for celebrating with me.
Thank you to our guest. Thank you, Mr. President. Thank you.
The chair recognizes Alder Fuentes.
Thank you, Mr. President.
We're, we're gonna hear of a lot of firsts today.
I'm the first, uh, queer masculine presenting lesbians
to ever represent the 26th Ward.
And the beauty about first is that we paved the way
for many other individuals
to feel comfortable about being in their own skin.
And so, I wanna thank the leaders in the box today,
particularly for leading in many different sectors.
The L-G-B-T-Q community is a beautiful one,
but one that has a lot of intellect, a lot of creativity,
and a lot of resistance.
We have been able to pave the way for a community in a way
that we haven't seen across the globe.
And I wanna remind folks that pride
and celebrating pride is an act of resistance.
That's how it started.
And so to love one another radically is
an act of resistance.
To be gay parents is an act of resistance.
Who seek gender affirming care is an act of resistance.
To wave the pride flag is an act of resistance.
To be here as an elected representative, a part
of the L-G-B-T-Q community is an act of
resistance in this current political climate.
We cannot forget that.
We cannot forget that there is a federal administration
that is seeking to terrorize trans women,
to terrorize our community, to remove our right
to marry one another.
To in this moment, I ask our community
to remember to continue to love one another
and to not let fear consume you.
And I ask my colleagues here, who are our allies,
to remember just how important solidarity is in this moment.
To remember how important solidarity is in this moment,
when individuals are asking not to ban books,
when individuals are asking for the right to bodily autonomy
and gender affirming care.
Just remember that over 60 years ago, we fought
for these rights in the moment in which they're
trying to be taken away.
And so I'm proud, just like my colleague Maria Hadden,
to be from the city of Chicago.
I'm proud to live in a city where people love me for
who I am, but I also recognize that the media still gets,
gets my pronouns wrong, that people still ask me if I'm in
the right bathroom, that people call me.
The he, she it alderman all the time on media.
We still live in a political moment in which my right
to be here is still questioned.
So there's a lot of work to do.
And the rhetoric coming from the federal government is
emboldening a narrative that is dangerous to our livelihood.
And so I ask us to be in community with one another.
Yes, to celebrate pride month.
And I'm gonna join our alders
and particularly Alderman Bennett Lawson for Pride month
and March right in front,
because I am unapologetically lesbian
and no one's taking that away from me.
But I also recognize that we have a moral obligation
to keep doing the work
and to keep people safe in a moment where a lot
of us wonder, uh, how long we can ensure our own safety.
And so I wanna thank folks who have been a part of this body
for a long time, that have supported ordinances
to advance the work of the L-G-B-T-Q community
to protect the L-G-B-T-Q community
to allow us the right to celebrate.
And I encourage all of us to continue to do the work, uh,
on behalf of our community.
Thank you, Mr. President. Thank
You.
Chair recognizes Altman Knutson.
Thank you, Mr. President.
And I wanna echo and thank everyone in the box
that Bennett did a really good summary of everyone.
And we're so grateful for the work you do, um,
in different ways and representing our community.
What I would say is, as the, this, um,
conversation today has really carried on,
and I appreciate everyone's words.
We hear a lot in the back row of this body.
And often it's, you know, do we, do we hold our tongue?
Do we give it more attention? How do we respond?
As a member of the L-G-B-T-Q community,
this isn't a new situation.
This is a situation we've all found ourselves in for years,
but in a way hate
and hate, quite frankly, under this administration,
the presidential administration, how it's been normalized,
is seeping back in, in a different way.
There's not a single queer kid who's not being infiltrated
by hateful symbols
and language on social media in schools when they come
to visit the city council,
which should be a safe space for everyone.
And that is absolutely not acceptable.
That's what pride's about.
Pride is a symbolic celebration
after years of so much work to show everyone
that whether they feel unsafe in their home,
in their community, in their school, there are so many of us
who have their back
and will stand up for them and will fight for them.
That's why, why I'm proud to be, you know, one
of us nine members of the L-G-B-T-Q, um, caucus,
arguably the most L-G-B-T-Q City Council
in American or world History.
And that's why I'm proud to be surrounded by
so many allies in this council.
It's not the caucus doing the work on its own.
I felt so supported, as we all have
with everything we bring forward.
And I thank you for that. 'cause this is all of our work.
And at times we need to show up for your communities.
We're in this together.
We're making this a stronger, safer, and happier city.
And I just wanna say thank you to that.
Thank you to everyone in the box and just happy pride
Chair recognizes Alderwoman Dow.
Uh, thank you Mr. President.
Before I start, I just wanted to, uh, tip my hat
to Alderman Knutson.
Um, I think what you said is, uh, taken to heart.
I hope everyone heard that. Thank you. Um, Mr.
Mayor, I wanted to stand and, and support this resolution
and thank everyone in the box for living your authentic life
and for being here, uh, this morning.
Um, I wanted to stand specifically to take an opportunity.
I haven't had the opportunity, Dr. Green to, uh, thank you
for, um, the work that you did in my ward during COVID,
when nobody would come out, when nobody wanted to talk to,
uh, our residents, especially the seniors.
Um, the work that you
and Shannon Parker did, um, was really very, very important.
And I just wanted to take the opportunity to thank you,
even though, uh,
you're sitting in the box for a different reason.
Um, I also wanted to, um,
congratulate you on the opening of a clinic
that I hear your opening on the south side, the floor,
uh, in the seventh Ward.
Yep. Watch him.
Um, but, uh, to congratulate you
and, uh, thank you so much again. Thank you, Mr.
Mayor. Thank you, Alder woman.
Dow the chair recognizes Alder Lasa.
Thank you very much, Mr. President.
Very glad to rise in support of this resolution.
And as this is an annual conversation in council, I thought,
do, do you have something new or different to say?
And I realized I did because I, I just recently watched a
documentary on Rock Hudson,
all the heaven allowed on online.
And it was very interesting to me
because this is someone who was very important to my dad,
who my dad actually knew briefly, their
careers crossed paths.
And to learn more about his life
made me reflect on how unimaginable
the circumstances of his life were.
To me, the idea to live
and not feel like you could be in public with your partner,
go out to eat with your partner
because it would terminate your career,
is something I can't, I literally cannot imagine that
to not be able
to raise my daughter would be animatable to me.
And when I reflected on his passing, the idea
that people were actively rooting for his death
is such a grim reality.
And I thought about that as the reality that
as my colleagues have pointed out, so many would like
to see us go back to it.
That is where they would like to see us slide back to.
And to hear Ottoman Lawson talk about the theme,
this year's united in pride,
I think he, he's talking to somebody else.
It made me reflect on everyone is united with something.
And I, I feel like that is a call out to the, to the 41
straight members of this council.
You're always united with something and you're silence.
You're united with something.
If you're sitting in your chair,
you're united with something.
And that is united with complicity in the direction
that this country is sliding into.
So when I hear the calls for solidarity,
when I hear the calls for unity, I want to take
that seriously, and I wanna be held accountable for what
that unity looks like as a straight member of this council.
So thank you so much
to everyone in the box to our colleagues.
Deep, deep gratitude. Thank you.
Thank you. Alderman Sada, the chair recognizes
Alder Quesada,
Mr. President
today as we honor the Spirit of Pride month,
I want to thank and honor all of our guests.
We are recognizing today, pride is not a time
or pride is a time for joy, celebration, and visibility.
But it is also a time to remember our roots.
Pride began not as a parade, but as a protest.
The first Pride parade was a riot led by trans women
of color like Marsha p Johnson and Sylvia Rivera.
Against police violence
and the criminalization of queer existence,
their courage lit a fighter that has never gone out.
I'm also thankful that this body passed, and our city
and county is working on a working group
to address the tragedy of trans femicide
and gender-based violence,
especially toward black trans women.
Our struggles and destinies are,
as working people are interconnected,
and we must never allow the ignorance of a few
detract us from the liberation of the many.
But at this time, I want to take a moment
to recognize the extraordinary contributions
of Robert Castillo, whose impact on the
lgbtqia plus movement in Chicago
and beyond is both profound and enduring.
By the time Robert Castillo was inducted into the Hall
of Fame at just 33 years old,
he had already devoted over a decade
to grassroots organizing and defense of sexual
and gender minorities, particularly within Latino
and Latina communities.
A proud queer Latino man.
Robert's work has embodied the intersection of identity,
justice and activism from queer nation Chicago
to act up from the Association of Latin Men Action
to the Chicago Commission on Human Relations,
Robert's presence has been felt in nearly every meaningful
lgbtqi play IA plus effort in our city.
Robert has helped build, lead,
and transform our queer movements
and organizations in the city of Chicago.
His leadership is bold and his activism is personal.
Robert's vision was, is
and always will be one of true inclusion and equity.
Everyone in no one out.
So Pueblos is the vision of Robert Castillo.
Robert reminds us that pride is not just about celebration,
but it is also
and forever will be about struggle and resistance.
Thank you very much.
Thank you. So I just,
I have two more speakers.
Um, alderman Lamont Robinson has requested to close.
So I have Alder Vasquez and then Alderman Lamont Robinson.
Uh, the chair does recognize Alder woman, Stephanie Coleman,
do you wish to be added as the Quorum roll call?
Uh, Madam Clerk, could you please add Alderwoman
Stephanie Coleman to our quorum?
Right? The chair recognizes Alder Vasquez.
Thank you, Mr. President.
Um, I rise in solidarity, uh, pride
and love, uh, with this resolution.
Chicago is an amazing city
because of its LGBTQIA plus community.
When you think about the strength
and why, part
of the reason why the flag is a rainbow one is in the power
of what that coalition means.
There are a few coalitions in the country
and in the world that are so intersectional
that they touch every part of other community.
And it allows us, sometimes to get outside
of our own identity and learn what oppression can look like.
It is something that has empowered so many.
We've got good news for folks
who might have felt a certain way about some of the comments
that we've heard publicly.
Ignorance is a temporary status with education,
with exposure, with understanding
how many family members we all have
that are members of the community.
It dissipates, it goes away.
People forget about how
traumatized they are in their own pain,
that they don't understand that
they're causing harm to others.
And Chicago has been proof of that.
When I think about all the amazing
powerful organizations here that do
so much work like Equality Illinois,
like Brave Space Alliance, affinity Community Services,
Chicago Therapy collective, they've grown,
they fought when needed.
They've defended people who need defense
and continue to do so.
And the thing that we wanna make sure everybody understands
is you're never going to be alone in that fight.
We're always going to be here
because we're watching as a federal government is literally
attacking everyone, literally taking away history.
When you hear Defense Secretary wanting to remove the name
of Harvey Milk from a ship, right?
It may be something that they do to speak to their base,
it is removing history.
They don't want us to understand
that we're all under attack,
because if everyone's
so focused on their own community being attacked,
they don't understand that we all are.
And when you understand that we have a shared oppression
going on, there's a shared struggle that we're fighting in
and a shared prosperity we can find together.
And so I want you all
to always make sure you're challenging us to do better.
I want to shout out some amazing 40th ward
organizations of businesses.
We got nobody's darling, uh, beard's nominee, absolutely
40th Lord in the house.
That's right. We've got Whiskey Girl Tavern,
we've got Howard Brown Health,
we've got Gerber Hart Library,
which is gonna be celebrating his 45th
anniversary coming up.
Uh, and and if you go now,
and I would advise y'all to go now,
they're celebrating Windy City Times 40 years
of their anniversary.
And if you think about the work
that they've done historically,
when you think about the work of the L-G-B-T-Q community
and keeping all of us safe,
being the only ones fighting when there was an AIDS
epidemic, and making sure the rest of the public understood
what needed to be done, we have to,
at our core understand
that we are all the same family and in the same fight.
So I want to make sure to thank you all for the work.
Uh, shout out Laura Austin
as well from Andersonville Chamber.
Andersonville in the House. Pride gets a lot of support.
Midsummer Fest should get its name up
there as well as competitive.
And wanna make sure we, we shout that out as well. Yeah.
As well as Mark Lieberstein 40th word neighbor
who organizes, uh, a lot of these events and Pride Fest, uh,
and Bryant Johnson, also 40th word neighbor.
So again, I look forward to the time where we don't have
to think about all the fights
because we've gotten past it all
and understand that we can all be who we are.
We can all love who we love,
and we can all each love each other for it.
So thank you so much and thank you, Mr. President.
You're welcome.
And I would be remiss if I did not shout out Mayor Lori
Lightfoot, L-G-B-T-Q.
We voted to be our mayor as well. Thank you very much.
Thank you. Alright, so I have two final speakers,
unless there are any other alders that wish
to speak to this resolution.
Our two speakers,
the chair recognizes old woman Stephanie Coleman,
The president. Uh,
I could not be remiss seeing, uh,
in supporting this resolution.
And then welcoming
and seeing 16th Wars on Ms. Terry Campbell,
who's the newest board member of the Pride Committee,
and then also Southside own Dr. May Green.
And the amazing work that you have done,
not only in this community,
but in the Inglewood community that Alderwoman Taylor
and I share, as well as Alderman Lopez Moore
and Hall, uh, in the Inglewood community.
And just to highlight, uh, the amazing work
that you all have done in Dr.
Gales and so many others,
but also want to, um,
bring forth the Chicago Urban Pride Picnic in the Fifth
Ward, uh, in celebrating our people and, uh, the culture.
So God bless you all. Thank you so much. And happy pride.
Thank you Al Woman Coleman.
Alright, our final speaker, alderman Lamont Robinson.
Thank you, Mr. Mayor. As we come to close
on this resolution today, I want
to once again share my immense gratitude.
I want to thank my colleagues on the
LGBTQ plus caucus, our allies on the city council,
and you mayor for being true leaders in helping us
celebrate Pride month.
I want to thank Victor Salvo, whose art
and activism are actively on display here at City Hall,
and whose work has benefited countless Chicagoans.
Most importantly, I want to thank the members of the
lgbtq plus community who've come
before us who have paved the way for not for us, not only
to exist openly as our true selves,
but to be accepted, protected,
and truly celebrated leaders like Lorraine Hansberry,
who was the first black woman to have a show
produced on Broadway
and whose tireless work
A Raisin in the Sun, helped educate our nation
on what it is
and what it's like to live under racial segregation.
James Baldwin, whose work profoundly shaped conversations
around race, sexuality, and identity,
and whose passion continues to impact our work today.
Bayard Rustin, who organized Freedom Rides the Southern
Christian Leadership Conference
and the March on Washington, whose work has taught us
the inviable lessons about nonviolence.
Friends, let us not forget our history.
These are the very men
and women who've made it possible for me to stand here today
as I thank Chairwoman Dow
and Chairwoman Harris for this opportunity to support me
as we celebrate Pride Month today,
we must take a moment to reflect on the fact
that it coincides with Juneteenth.
I'm especially grateful for the black members of the
LGBTQ plus community who fiercely
and selfishly fought for our rights and our freedoms.
They paved the way for people like me
to become the first openly ga black gay man elected
to serve in the Illinois Journal Assembly
and the first openly black gay man to serve in this body.
They paved the way for my beloved colleague Maria Hadden,
the first queer black auto person in this body
for state Senator Mike Simmons,
the first openly black gay man in Illinois State Senate
For Commissioner Precious Brady Davis,
the first transgendered woman to be appointed
and later elected transgendered woman
to be appointed in the water reclamation the state
in the county
at a time when homophobic, transphobic,
xenophobic and, and outright racism.
Rhetoric comes from Washington, it's funneling attacks
on all of our communities.
Let us look at the leadership of those who came
before us for the courage, the inspiration to keep fighting
for equity and keep preserving,
keep pushing through the bigot,
and keep loving in our community.
May their work remind us of pride.
It must be intersectional
and it is incumbent to us to continue their legacy.
Again. Victor, I want to thank you for your work,
not only being the architect
of the Legacy Wall here in City Council,
but for your activism
and the key role you helped to play in the efforts
to combat HIV AIDS here in the city of Chicago.
And for your right, for your work, excuse me.
And equal Rights Chicago, my friends,
is undoubtedly better, more inclusive,
and more proud place for all
because of your dedication to our community.
Victor, as Alderman Dow
mentioned, I was there.
I was in Illinois Journal Assembly when folk did not want
to come and test our folk
for COVID didn't wanna come.
Our seniors were at risk.
And of all the great healthcare institutions in
Chicago that Mr.
Mayor, I'm not gonna name, we had to have an organization
that their basis is in the L-G-B-T-Q community
that came to the south side
and tested our folks Ottoman Dow, thank you for bringing
that up today, Maya, thank you for the work that you did
to protect our folks in the city of Chicago.
I wanna close today by asking a favor of my colleagues.
There are members of the LGBTQ plus community
in all 77 neighborhoods of this great city.
Regardless of the
politics I see somebody's missing.
It's interesting they're missing. And the demographics,
there are LGBTQ plus
citizens in all 50 wards of this city
And represented by all 50
aldermen in this body.
I ask that you spend some time downstairs
reading the Legacy Wall
and learning about the beauty, the strength, grit,
and devotion of the LGBTQ plus community.
I ask that you spend time truly
colleagues embracing the value
and the impact of the lgbtq plus history
and how it has made Chicago better, safer,
and how you can contribute to their work by serving the
LGBTQ plus community.
Thank you, Mr. Mayor, and happy pride.
Thank you. Uh, Victor Salvo, Robert Castillo,
Joshua Marburger, Laura Austin, uh, Devin Hanley,
Steve Long, Ron Thomas,
and all of the members that are in the box today.
You know, this entire body speaks in a United Voice,
not just for a resolution, but for a people.
Chicago has a proud
and vibrant lgbtq plus community
who have made indelible contributions
in every corner of our city.
Their influences can be felt around the city.
They're recognized
through North Halstead Legacy Walk the AIDS Garden, Chicago,
the Progress Flag and Daily Plaza and the Belmont
and Andersonville community is just to name a couple.
Every June we come together to celebrate the story,
the history, and the resilience of the
LGBT lgbtq plus community.
Pride Month has been articulated, already born out
of resistance traced to the Stonewall riots of 1969,
where the community fought back during a late night raid
at the now historic Stonewall Inn.
A year later, hundreds of LG LGBTQ plus people
and allies gathered to march in New York, Los Angeles,
and right here in Chicago.
Today, pride welcomes thousands of residents,
visitors from various communities
and advocacy group to advocacy groups who continue
to support the ongoing fight for not just recognition,
but for the right to continue
to show up in your most authentic self.
And while there are many great strides that we have made the
lgbtq plus community, we know
that there is still much work to be done.
We have to continue to fight for equal rights
or safety, marriage rights,
and accessible gender affirming healthcare.
Please know that my administration
and I are proud to be strong allies.
Allies of people
lg b lgbtq plus community have a right to feel safe
and secure and welcome in Chicago.
And even as we deal with rates today,
Chicago is a very powerful place of resistance
and we owe a lot of that to the LGBTQ plus community.
Happy Pride Month Mitchell.
Get a motion to approve this resolution.
What, Mr. President, I move Passage in the omnibus hearing.
No objections. So ordered Happy Pride Month
as the members of the box, um, exit.
As we prepare for our final resolution, I do want
to give special acknowledgement to
the Cook County Commissioner
of the first district representing the West side
and the west suburbs of Cook County Tower Stamps is here.
You all give her a nice round of applause. Thank you.
Our next resolution is honoring Juneteenth.
And with this resolution, uh,
today we are officially announcing
the reparations task force.
And Alderwoman Coleman, um, has asked
to provide the opening remarks
for the Juneteenth resolution.
The chair recognizes Alderwoman, Stephanie Coleman.
Thank you Mr. President.
On behalf of the Chicago Automatic Black Caucus,
we would like to welcome the Reparations Task Force.
It's been a long time coming
and I'm so grateful to this administration
for, uh, to you, Mr.
President, for being receptive and your leadership
and ensuring that there we weren't, uh, watered down
to a subcommittee, but in fact, a task force.
I have to acknowledge Pastor Congressman, he,
you were the first pastor, pastor, uh, and,
and, um, elected official, uh, to, uh, even
have the blueprint for people like my mother
and Pastor Leonard Deville and now Pastor Will Hall.
So I'm so grateful for you Congressman Rush.
And then of course, our former Commissioner
of the Water Reclamation District McGowan is in the house,
the west side is in the house.
And just seeing the diversity here
of the business community, of our clergy community,
our civic community education, uh, I'm just really grateful
and thankful under leadership of, uh, chairman Desmond Yancy
as he'll be co-chairing this task force.
But just thank you.
And we're looking forward to, uh, right repairing
and righting the wrongs
of black people here in the city of Chicago.
Thank you, Mr. President.
Thank you. Alderwoman Coleman,
the chair recognizes Alderwoman.
Michelle Harris.
Thank you, Mr. President.
Um, I too rise to support this resolution.
And Id like to thank everybody who's in this box,
who has fought hard for people of color,
who has taken on the fight, put on your Superman, uh,
cape, and have gone across the city of Chicago
to help us in a fight and often do things
and say things that as elected officials,
we cannot sing and do.
So today. We embrace you, we love you.
Um, my superwoman, uh, Gwen Jones over there, um,
who keeps it down for me in the South Shore grid.
I wanna thank her for her leadership
and everything that she does.
Um, and serving our community
and giving back to our community.
Many times people don't get to say thank you,
that they care about you.
You are thanked, you are appreciated
for your all your hard work.
And there is so much more work to do, uh,
to everybody in that box that I know.
On a personal level, I thank you for your commitment, uh,
for staying in government, Congressman for such a long time
to get down in, uh, the federal government and fight.
I appreciate you and commissioner, uh,
Barbara McGowan for your leadership.
And I could go on and on.
So make me name everybody in the box.
I'm gonna get in trouble. So thank you. James Compton.
I see you sticking your head from back there for your many,
many, many years of fighting for African Americans.
So I thank everybody in that box. You are truly leaders.
You are appreciated in ways that I cannot begin to, to say
or to think or to repeat.
I appreciate you and I thank you for your, for your
unselfish giving back to the city of Chicago. Thank you.
Thank you. Old woman Harris
Chair recognizes all woman Pat Dow.
Uh, thank you Mr. President.
I too rise to being, uh, support of this resolution.
Um, first I want to, uh, acknowledge everyone in the box.
I want to thank you for putting forth the best efforts
to maintain and uplift our communities in the,
in the tradition of our ancestors.
Um, we thank you. Um, I also want to, um, acknowledge, uh,
my neighbor, Congressman Rush, um, my friend
and pastor, um, Reverend Berry, um,
commissioner Barbara McGowan, uh,
and the great artists, uh, Mr.
Rami. Um, I know a lot of other people in there,
but those are the ones that I want to acknowledge.
But I'm here specifically to uplift James Compton
and I uplift James Compton and congratulate him.
He is the former CEO and President of the Urban League.
And, uh, Jim's civil rights history,
um, speaks volumes.
He has served Chicago effectively
and professionally over many, many decades.
Um, he's one of those leaders who has wielded knowledge
and influence to foster
and create partnerships that have pushed the boundaries of
what the city of Chicago could be.
He played a key role in the election
of Mayor Harold Washington.
And his public policy advocacy has changed the conditions
of urban Chicago.
He has a strong voice, you know, that voice like EF Hutton.
When he speaks, you listen.
And people often seek his counsel and advice.
Jim, I wanna thank you for your contributions
to the city of Chicago.
I would ask you to stand so that people can see you Yeah.
And congratulate you.
We wanna give you your congratulations today.
And I'm proud to claim you as a resident of the Third Ward
who continues to still be active. Thank you.
Thank you. Alderwoman Dow
the chair recognizes Alderwoman Jeanette Taylor.
Thank you, Mr. President.
Brother Rami has a mural dedicated in my ward.
Thank you for always teaching us our history,
but also being in the present.
You know, too often we walk away from what is happening
because we done done our due diligence.
So thank you brother, for not walking away.
Um, we gather today to celebrate Rashan Sanders Ward,
a visionary leader in the heart
and soul behind Red Clay Dance Company.
ASHA's journey is a testament to our passion for dance
and her commitment to cultural exchange.
Her work is not only enriched in our
community, but is extended.
It's reached across continents.
ASHA's impact is profound from her founding Red Clay dance
company to her international engagement, she has performed
and taught in Senegal, Rwanda, Uganda,
and South Africa, leaving an undeniable
mark on each country.
Her vision to build Arts Center in Uganda within the next
few years speaks volumes about her dedication
to fostering artistic expression
and profounding opportunities for communities abroad.
Moreover, Rashan is a proud business owner in the 20th Ward,
contributing to the economic
and cultural, cultural vibrancy of our local community.
Her leadership and entrepreneurship spirit serves
as an inspiration to us all.
Let us honor Rashan v Rashan Sanders Ward
for her artistic achievements, her global impact,
and her unwavering commitment to our community.
Thank you. Rashan. Stand up sister so people can see you.
This is an honor who opened up
during COVID despite being told
that ain't the community you want to be in.
She has not left. She invites us in.
You wanna learn a line dance?
You wanna learn to do African van,
red Clay is the place to be.
Thank you, Rashan. Thank you, Mr. President.
Thank you. Thank you. Alderwoman Taylor, the,
the chair recognizes Alderman.
David Moore.
I'm not at my mic, I'm sorry.
I, um, thank you so much, um, Mr. President.
Um, as we about to embark on the 23rd on the hundredth
birthday of Reverend Clay Evans, I'm remanded of something,
he's to say, um, you don't have to get up and preach
after the sermon has been spoken.
So thank you Alder and Taylor.
I will not try to but ho um, hold you all long.
But something else he was just saying, look over as,
you know, um, constant rush.
My my, my, my, my what?
A body of work in this box right here.
And I just want to say thank each and every one of you.
Um, when we think about Juneteenth, we think about, um,
reaching back, going back
and get some people that were left behind.
And I have no doubt that many of you have done that.
But today, I, um, ask that, uh, from the 17th Ward
that Pastor Maurice Dishman from Zion Temple,
come down here today, you may stand.
Um, the reason why,
um, because he's out there, um, reaching back, making sure,
um, that our young people
and our residents are not left behind.
Um, you all may not know him totally now,
but you're going to know him.
Um, he's a voice out there.
He's out there, um, praying, um,
when no else else can do anything out there,
reaching every Friday, um, in our community to make sure
that we keep that violence down.
So everything that you talk about, mayor, not only just CPD,
we have people on the ground making sure that, um,
we can do other things and, and help other people.
So that, uh, that's all contributed, um,
to bringing these numbers down.
So thank you so much. Thank you all, um,
because we're standing on many of your shoulders,
and for that, I appreciate and respect
and honor each and every one of you. God bless.
Thank you. Alderman Moore,
chair recognizes Alderman Hall.
Thank you, Mr. President.
I stand too, to rise not only this
celebration, but this resolution.
And there's just so much black history in that box that
makes not only Chicago proud, but the world proud.
And I want to, in particular, um,
shine light on the Sixth Ward resident who makes all
of us proud every single day.
Um, there's not a day that she doesn't not only pray
for her ward if the weather's right, she's walking an ward.
If it's a issue, she calling her alderman in Ward.
Um, but most of all, when she closed her business, she
and her family, uh, at their long journey
of serving the ward with a great medical business,
she stayed in the ward.
And so her loyalty to her ward in her city is
what makes us celebrate not only her,
but celebrate the entire city
today. Thank you so much, Brendan.
Thank you. Alderman Hall
Chair recognizes Alderman Yancy.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Uh, the Juneteenth holiday
is observed annually on June 19th, commemorating the end
of slavery in the United States.
The combination of the words June the 19th,
the holiday also called Freedom Day,
has been celebrated since 1866, is
and is considered one of the oldest continuing
African American holidays.
Um, In 1863
during the Civil War, Abraham Lincoln, of course, uh,
issued the Emancipation Proclamation,
which declared more than 3 million
of slave people living in the Confederate states to be free.
Chattel slavery remained legal in border states, loyal
to the union like Delaware, Maryland, Kentucky, Missouri,
and West Virginia, and was not officially abolished
until the 13th Amendment was passed.
Uh, today on June 18th, 2025.
As co-chair of the Mayor's Reparation Task Force,
I'm honored to rise in support of this resolution.
I'm excited for the progress the reparations task force has
made thus far in this tremendous moment for our city.
And I look forward to continuing
and partnering, uh,
with my colleagues in the Chicago Aman Black Caucus.
To continue this work, uh, I'd like
to recognize Fifth Ward resident Russell Pike,
a homeowner in Jackson Park Highlands
and member leader of the Jackson Park Advisory Council, uh,
who celebrated his 75th birthday yesterday.
Some of y'all might know his, uh,
famous son Russell Amazing r and b singer here in Chicago.
Uh, I also like to acknowledge Congressman Bobby Rush
and his family as the first revolutionary
to serve on Chicago City Council.
Uh, also like to acknowledge artist P**n Rami, um,
the first African American film casting director in Chicago.
Y'all may have seen his work.
He provided talent for Blues Brothers, mahogany Cooley High,
the Spook who sat by the door in uptown Saturday night.
So,
And, uh, of course, uh, south Shore resident, uh, founder
of Chicago Votes, hip hop luminary all around.
Good guy. TJ Crawford. Thank you.
Thank you, thank you. Alderman Yancy,
the chair recognizes Alderman, Jason Irvin.
Thank you, Mr. President.
And again, to, uh, all of those, uh,
great individuals in the box.
Uh, I think we have
a great legacy here in the city of Chicago.
Uh, from the political atmosphere, from arts
and culture, uh, for all of the things that make a city go,
uh, I, we see it all, uh, right here in this time
of the year in Juneteenth, as we celebrate freedom.
Uh, we must also not forget the path that brought us here.
Um, again, I wanna recognize, um, uh, Reverend Walter Jones,
uh, who's a West Garfield Park, uh, resident
and works with young people.
And I've thought of befitting today that
Reverend Jones come here
because what we're the subject matter of what we're dealing
with a little later and how it impacts our young people.
But what I can tell you is that, uh,
Reverend Jones is in the trenches
with our young people on the daily basis, uh,
has a show on canned TV that deals specifically, uh,
with our youth and is doing things, in my opinion,
that is helping, uh, bridge the gap between our youth
and our, and ourselves.
And so, uh, I think it's, uh, a great honor
and Reverend Jones, if you would, stand up
so people can recognize and see you.
So the point over there,
I, I know, uh, your work, uh, many times, uh, you,
you're not one that, um, that jumps up
and says, me, me, me, uh,
but I thought it was befitting the day that we recognize
and give your flowers as you,
while you can still smell them.
God bless you, and thank you, Mr. President.
Thank you, alderman Irvin,
the chair recognizes Alder Hadden.
Thank you, uh, Mr. President. Sorry guys.
Sorry, um, said I wasn't gonna speak again.
Then I realized, um, uh, a lot of us don't necessarily,
especially women, take up a lot of space.
And we're here anyway.
So I want to thank every single person in the box.
And I, and I wanna focus on, um, especially the members
who have signed up to be on our reparations task force.
Um, alderman Moore, I know he stepped out here,
but he mentioned the importance of, uh,
sometimes reaching back and bringing people forward.
Um, I've got, uh, a lot of, you're familiar
with, uh, Sankofa.
Uh, it's a meaningful, uh, not just symbol,
but to me, a practice.
I've got it tattooed on my arm.
Um, the Sankofa principle, right,
is about learning from our past, going back
and getting it, learning from our past
and bringing it forward to have a better future.
And I, I think, you know, when I, I love the,
the bird symbol one with the bird reaching back.
I know we've got a couple versions of it,
but it's feet are pointing forward.
And to me it's about our history
and the importance of our past
being a prerequisite for progress.
If we don't remember, if we don't learn from, if we don't
become students of our history,
we won't move forward.
We can't progress that. That's what I've seen.
And every single person in this box is, you're here
because you've put yourself in service
to our broader community.
You don't do things just for yourself.
It's about our broader community
and the reparations task force.
Um, I wanna commend our, uh, chairwoman
of our Black caucus, uh, Alderwoman.
Stephanie Coleman, I wanna thank you
for your tireless efforts,
as you mentioned in your opening statements
to move this forward.
Members of our body, uh, former Alderman Rod Sawyer, right?
Members of our task force have worked for decades
to make this an effort, and you've helped
to make this a reality.
So I wanna really give you your flowers on
that, and thank you for that.
I wanna thank the colleagues in our black caucus,
but of course, everyone in city council
who supported this in moving forward.
And I wanna thank of course, our mayor.
Um, thank you Mayor for your commitment to this effort
because the work is just beginning
and for us, the city of Chicago,
and for you right, members of our reparations task force,
especially to be, um, embarking on this stage
of the work in this moment in our country.
Um, I can't quite wrap my head around actually
how radical that is.
Um, which is a good thing. We
got Congressman Rush here, right?
Um, how revolutionary that is
and also what that does in putting yourself
and your families and your communities at risk.
But I don't think anybody in this box is new to that.
You're standing up for our city, for black Chicagoans,
for black Americans, and we're gonna do something historic
in a time when we are literally,
our history is being erased, right?
When you've got folks taking down exhibits
in national museums, you know, just as we talked about
during our pride resolution, our history, our leaders,
our legacies, we've got, uh, uh, you know, uh,
an organization in the White House,
a criminal organization in the White House,
and a bunch of radicals
who wanna pretend like it doesn't exist.
Um, but we exist. Our history is there.
Chicago has always been a leader
in the black civil rights movement,
and I'm just so proud to be a part of the council,
this body in this city
during the time when our reparations
task force is beginning.
So I look forward to supporting your work.
Um, I can't think of a better way to honor Juneteenth.
Thank you. Thank you, Mr. President.
Thank you. Chair recognizes
Alderman Talia Farro.
Thank you, Mr. President.
I too rise in support of this resolution
and, um, want to congratulate
and honor, uh, the heroes that are in the box.
Um, you know, your actions
and your works over the last decades have really lent
to the legacy of Juneteenth.
Um, and that's a legacy of equity, a legacy of freedom,
and a legacy built on civil rights.
Um, I particularly want to acknowledge,
acknowledge my good friend, uh, from the West side
and the 29th Ward, and I think she needs no introduction.
And that's my good friend commissioner Barbara McGowan.
I, I first met Commissioner McGowan in, uh,
December of 2014.
I had decided to run for Alderman at the time,
and my good friend, Ike Cruthers said,
go take a picture with her.
And I had never met her before.
And she, I said, Hey, can I take a picture with you?
And she said, what are you gonna do with it?
I said, campaign. And she said, okay.
But she had become, she,
she was a little bit more harsh than that,
but she has become, um, nothing short
of a great friend, um, over the years.
And, and she has fought for civil rights
and equity, um, for many, many decades, beginning
with her volunteerism, uh, for Chicago's Mayor,
Harold Washington, all the way through being, uh,
a great supporter of mine.
And in fact, um, has been
and played a very instrumental role in everything I've
done as an alderman.
Um, her accomplishments are somewhat
two numbers to talk about.
Um, and you could always read about it,
but she's taken water reclamation district in the time
that she's worked there and has really revamped, um, the way
that they look at things from an equitable perspective.
Um, her program was well known throughout the city,
and that's a program where she brought a lot of attention
to Black History Month with creating one
of the best programs, um, black History Month programs
that is seen throughout the city.
Um, I congratulate you, commissioner McGowan.
It's an honor to be your friend.
Um, and then it's an honor to have served with you.
Thank you so much. Thank you, Mr. President.
Thank you. Thank you.
We just have a few more people that wish to be recognized,
uh, before, uh, we pass this resolution.
With that, the chair recognizes Alder Vasquez.
Thank you very much, Mr. President.
Uh, stand, uh, proudly in solidarity with this resolution,
uh, celebrating Freedom Day.
I think, as we all know, we ain't free
until everybody's free, and there's a lot more work
to be done, but it is an acknowledgement
of at least some level of recognition
by the federal government of progress.
Um, I think in understanding the history and,
and thank you to al
and Nancye for sharing it, even in that moment,
it took two years from it occurring
to the message being delivered in Texas.
This government has a lot of work to do.
It had a lot of work to do.
Then even more so now,
we are seeing an attack at every level.
When you hear Republicans talk about critical race theory
or DEI, it's
because the folks who are not so subtle
in fu in past decades try to find ways
to masquerade their racism now.
And what we understand
and know is
that no one has seen more oppression in this
country than black folks.
It's not a competition.
It should never be a competition,
but there should always be an acknowledgement.
And whether you look at it at the federal level
or you look at it at Chicago with its history of,
of segregation, it is an attack that is constant.
Chicago history is black history.
Black history is American history.
Any attempt to separate that is
one ignorant, but also an intentional attack,
an an intentional attempt to divide a bunch, a group
of people, all of us who are in
solidarity with that movement.
When you think about Chicago
and you think about the the Black Panther Party,
and another shout out to Congressman Rush,
uh, for leadership.
When you think about Chairman Fred Hampton,
when you think about the work that Chicago has done
and continues to do, we should be immensely proud.
Not just of the history that we're learning
from, but the history we're gonna get.
You're gonna continue to make in honor
of what's happened before.
When, when we see the federal government doing what it does,
Chicago is gonna stand the way Chicago does.
Even more proudly, even defiantly understanding that
we are democracy in this moment.
And so anything that we ever need to do,
whether it's in legislation, whether it's in spirit,
whether it's showing up in person, we are going to do
as the, uh, former vice chair
of the subcommittee on reparations, um,
gladly you take a back seat
to make sure we've got leadership there,
but the spirit doesn't leave.
We are more than happy to make sure that people are made due
because they're owed.
That when you build this country, you deserve to have paid
for the work being done
and for the trauma that's been inflicted.
And Chicago's gonna do what it needs to do to catch up.
It's a little bit of an embarrassment
that Evanston's beaten us to it.
Uh, we're gonna make sure we make that right as well.
And so, really want to thank you all in the task force
for work they're doing to, uh, thank Chairwoman Coleman
for her leadership and moving it
and making it, um, more than just words
and putting some money to it.
And thank you to Mayor Johnson for also, um,
making it something with weight
and substance that leads to more than just lip service.
So thank you very much for your leadership.
Thank you for your leadership.
Uh, and thank you very much, Mr. President.
Thank you. The chair
recognizes Alderman, Derek Curtis,
President, uh, uh, as we
talk about Freedom Fighters, uh,
I wanna thank everybody, uh, in the box today.
Thank you so much for paving the way for so many of us.
Mr. McGowan retirement. Look really, really good on you.
Um, I wanna, and then I'm gonna do this real quick
'cause we're gonna make it a short city council today.
Um, this young man needs no introduction.
Um, and I, and short, I'm just gonna lay his highlights out.
Um, number one, that means the most to me.
He spent, um,
he spent five years in a US army, so he's one
of our veterans, fought for this country, civil rights
activist, co-founder of the Black Panther Party.
Spent 10 years in city council, uh, second War Alderman,
uh, before being elected to Congress, uh, for the rest
of his 30 years of service,
which he's still serving actually right now.
Uh, he's a great pastor, uh, introduction
to you, uh, honor you.
Thank you for being my friend for years
and years and a mentor.
We talked about so many things and I really appreciate that.
Uh, ladies and gentlemen, uh, I give to you our
legendary Congressman Bobby Rush.
He won't stop. Thank you. And your family.
Thank you, Mr. President.
Thank you. Thank you. Alright.
Unless there's anyone else, our final speaker
for this resolution will be Alderman Lamont Robinson.
Closing again? No. Hey, Mr.
Mayor, thank you very much.
I don't want to the labor of the point
of the wonderful folks that are in the box, um,
but I want to acknowledge
a few folks that are here with us, uh, this afternoon.
There's a sister that in, that's in the box that
we are now celebrating Juneteenth,
but this sister has been celebrating Juneteenth
for over 10 years, as well as championing,
championing black businesses, uh, in the city of Chicago.
Sister Meekins, can you please stand up
and just be recognized
again, not only for your great remarks
for our city of Chicago Juneteenth celebration,
but again for the work that you do, 365 days
for our community.
Thank you. And God bless you,
Alderman.
Yancy, uh, mentioned, uh, his resident.
Um, I have been watching this young man, uh,
for all my life.
When we think about, uh, black excellence, uh,
we think about Russell Pike, uh,
and his wife, who Mr. Mayer, uh,
was my grammar school teacher at McDade, uh,
before I was kicked out.
But that's in another, another conversation for another day.
Mr. Pike. Good to see you. God bless you.
Congressman Rush has been recognized, uh, to Dave.
I realized that watching his
work over the years
and as Alderman Dow watching him as my neighbor,
the reason that Congressman Rush looks so great
and is moving so swiftly is
because of the woman next to him.
And that's Ms. Rush. Ms. Rush, thank you
for helping us preserve our national history maker.
Yes, he is a Chicagoan.
Yes, he's a black pop, black Panther,
but he has been recognized across the country.
And so I want to thank you for, again,
preserving our great historian, our great congressman,
city council member, pastor Congressman Bobby Rush.
Thank you very much,
Mr.
Mayor. Uh, there is a gentleman behind me
who always teases me when I go visit the West side.
Uh, most folk don't realize that my family
as a south sider comes from the West side.
Absolutely, absolutely.
But there is a sister that's in the box Who
has a building named after her in the Gold Coast,
and that don't get no better than that.
Uh, and it is
because of the work that she has done
for the City of Chicago.
Commissioner McGowan, good to see you, and God bless you,
TTO End.
Dow mentioned Brother James Compton.
Brother Compton, thank you for giving us Harold,
and thank you for giving our community
economic self resilience.
Thank you for what you have done
with the Chicago Urban League
and making the lives of black folks better.
God bless you, and we appreciate you,
Mr.
Mayor. As I wrap up my remarks, with all
of the cuts that we're seeing in government,
we have to have folks in our community
that help us do our jobs to be able to
take care of our citizens.
I want to thank, uh, my high school colleague who has
given us his father, Earl Granberry Jr.
Who has for, I wanna say 30 plus years,
has given us his father, pastor Earl Grandberry,
senior pastor.
Can you please stand? N
Mr.
Mayor? I, prior
to being an Illinois General Assembly, um,
had a very successful insurance practice.
I mean, if, you know, I'm no longer there, um, because
although this job is a part-time job, whoever said
that is a a dog gone lie.
This is also, this is a full-time gig,
but I learned the recipe of being an insurance agent
and being a successful insurance agent, uh, by
my pops pastor Earl
Granberry Sr.
You see, pastor Granberry was also a successful insurance
agent here in the city of Chicago,
had a master great wealth,
but at some point of his life, he wanted to give back truly
to his community, not just becoming a pastor,
but by starting a ministry by,
that's called acts of Kindness.
I want to give acknowledgement, uh, to Altman Dow
where his church sits,
but again, with all of the cuts
that we're facing in our communities, pastor Grandberry
does a full Thanksgiving meal at his church for all
of Chicagoans,
just not in the third ward or the fourth ward.
He gives food at Christmas time.
Food at Thanksgiving has
feed the migrants, which is interesting
because that's another conversation for another day.
We have an African American pastor that feeds everybody
because he understands the importance of God's love
and feeding everybody.
But also, when Mr.
Mayor, I had two families in my ward, two separate families
that got burned out of their home,
lost everything.
I didn't call the Red Cross.
I didn't call the Department of Housing.
My first call was to Pastor Earl Grandberry.
And I said, pastor, this family has lost everything.
And he said, son, gimme their number.
Those two people, families called me to thank me
for not only the food, food items, Mr.
Mayor, but Pastor Granberry furnished their
entire apartments.
So when we think about Juneteenth,
we think about our ancestors.
The legacy continues
because of not only folks in the box,
but folks like Pastor Granberry
that understands the importance of giving back
to everybody.
And so Pastor, I want to thank you for your service,
not only to me as my mentor and my pops,
but to the citizens of the city of Chicago.
We're grateful for your service
and we love you. Thank you very much.
Thank you. Well done everyone.
Well done. Again, Jackie Taylor, pastor Maurice Dishman Jr.
Pastor Marvin Hunter, uh, Reverend Walter Jones,
Rashan Ward, James Compton, Russell Pike.
Again, pastor Earl Granberry.
Uh, commissioner Barbara Jean McGowan, uh,
Congressman Bobby Rush and Mrs. Rush,
his children, Gwen Jones.
Uh, professor, uh, Brenda.
Um, Housley, uh, Casio Pekins.
I don't, not sure if Carol Johnson was able
to be here today, but all the individuals
that are in the box today that, um, represent the best part
of who we are as as a people.
You know, you know, over the years,
as we have celebrated this holiday, it's important to note
that, uh, we were a free people who were enslaved
and we're not just descendants of slaves.
And over the years, as we celebrate this holiday
and commemorate the era
of independence here in these United States, it's important
that we are constantly reminding ourselves
of the greatness from once we come, as well as the evolution
of this democracy does not take place without the
liberation of black people.
So as southerners who migrated from the South,
seeking better lives, scientists, artists,
innovators, leaders, organizers,
creating prominent black neighborhoods,
whether it's Hyde Park, Bronzeville Austin on the west side
of Chicago, black people
were freed from our constraints of slavery.
And all of those years, it did not break our spirit
as we still continue to confront systemic racism
and inequalities that we unfortunately see still
existing today as been articulated, I made a promise
to drive reparations in this city, becoming the first mayor
to actually dedicate funding towards
this important endeavor.
And reparations are how we confront the legacy of slavery.
But it is also how we respond to the historic harms
that have fortunately been repeated
against black Americans.
And so the incredible task
of the Chicago Reparations task force will be responsible
for producing reparations study that will outline remedies
of repair and focus on wealth building, housing, education,
healthcare and health, health equity and so much more.
And so as we celebrate Juneteenth,
let's always remember the spirit of why we do it.
It's about reflecting on our past,
but it's also about addressing the harms
of systemic disinvestment, reclaiming the present
through investments and reimagining the future
by planting roots that will grow
and thrive for generations to come.
So today we celebrate and recognize juneteenth
and always remember it's
not a criminal act to invest in black.
So with that Alderman Mitchell, I need a motion
for the approval of this resolution.
Mr. President, I move passage in the omnibus hearing.
No objections. So ordered. Happy Juneteenth y'all.
Thank you. As the box clears Alderman Mitchell, uh, motion
to move back
and return to the regular order
of business move that we return to the regular.
Gary, no objections. So ordered.
WO Woman Clay is here. We do recognize you.
Please add her to the quorum roll call.
Thank you Madam Clerk,
Are you ready for the next?
Okay.
All right. Thank you all very much
for your patience today.
Um, next up we do have communications, Madam Clerk
Communications from his Honor, the Mayor
to the Honorable the City Council, the City
of Chicago ladies
and gentlemen, request the
commissioner planning and Development.
I transmit here with an ordinance authorizing the execution
of a t redevelopment agreement
with Black Ensemble Theater Corporation to provide funding
for improvements to the Black Ensemble Studio Theater.
In favor of consideration, this ordinance will be
appreciated veered to years.
Brandon Johnson, mayor for the Committee on Finance.
Ladies and gentlemen, request a commissioner of housing.
I transmit here with an ordinance authorizing a city owned
land sale and provision of TIF assistance
for the development of Southbridge phase IC
project favorable.
Consider should this ordinance be appreciated.
Mayor, truly yours, Brandon Johnson
Mayor referred the committee on finance.
Ladies and gentlemen, request
of the budget director I transmit here with an ordinance
amending revenue related provisions
of Title three of the municipal code.
Your favorable consideration of
this ordinance will be appreciated.
Very truly yours, Brandon Johnson
Mayor referred the committee on finance.
Ladies and gentlemen, request the
Commissioner of planning and Development.
I transmit here with an ordinance amending the Municipal
Code of Chicago regarding lien assignments.
Your favor, favorable consideration
of this ordinance will be appreciated.
Very truly yours, Brandon Johnson
Mayor referred the committee on finance.
Ladies and gentlemen, the request the comptroller I transmit
here with an ordinance amending the municipal code
to align the senior sewer exemption of the senior refuse.
Refuse discount programs.
Your favorable consideration
this ordinance will be appreciated.
Very truly yours, Brandon Johnson
Mayor referred the committee on finance.
Ladies and gentlemen requested Commissioner
of Housing a transmit here
with an ordinance authorizing bond inducement
of the Homan Square Apartments phase four project.
Your fav favorable consideration
this ordinance will be appreciated.
Very truly yours, Brandon Johnson, mayor
for the Committee on Finance.
Ladies and gentlemen, the request
of the budget director a transmit here
with a 9 25 budget amendment.
Your consideration that this ordinance will be appre
would be appreciated.
Very truly yours, Brandon Johnson Mayor referred the
committee on budget, government Operations ladies
and request the commissioner planning
and development I transmit here
with an ordinance authorizing Class eight property tax
incentive for a property located at
4,000 West Diversity Avenue.
Your consideration of this ordinance be appreciated.
Very truly yours, Brandon Johnson, mayor
for the Committee on Economic Capital
and Technology Development.
Ladies and gentlemen, at the request the Commissioner
of planning and Development I trans here
with an ordinance authorizing a Class L property tax
incentive for properties located 900 West Lake Street in
200 North Peoria Street.
Your consideration of this ordinance be appreciated.
Very truly yours, Brandon Johnson,
mayor referred the committee on Economic
Capital and Technology Development.
Ladies and Jonathan request the commissioner planning
and development I transmit here.
Transmit here with ordinances authoring the sale
of city owned properties.
Your consideration of these ordinances will be appreciated.
Very true. Yours, Brandon Johnson, mayor
for the Committee on Housing and Real Estate.
Ladies and gentlemen, the requested commission of housing
and transmit here with an ordinance amending the city lots
for working family prog families programs.
Your consideration, this ordinance will be appreciated.
Very truly yours, Brandon Johnson, mayor
for the Community on Housing and Real Estate.
Ladies and gentlemen, request the Commissioner
of Housing I transmit here
with an ordinance authorizing the sale of city owned lands
and permit fee waivers under the city lots
for working Families program.
Your consideration of this pro
ordinance will be appreciated.
Very truly yours, Brandon Johnson, mayor
for the Community Housing and Real Estate.
Ladies and gentlemen, the request of the Comm Commissioner,
fleet and Facility management.
I transmit here with an ordinance authorized
and execution of extended right of entry agreement.
Lincoln Park Zoo's Urban Wildlife Institute
for research at Lori Garden within Millennia Park.
Your consideration of this ordinance will be appreciated.
Very truly yours, Brandon Johnson,
mayor Further the Committee on Housing and Real Estate.
Ladies and gentlemen, request the Commissioner
of Transportation I transmit here
with an ordinance amending the right
of way acquisition ordinary ordinance,
the Burley a Avenue roadway
improvement improvements project.
Your consideration this ordinance will be appreciated.
Very to yours, Brandon Johnson,
mayor referred the Command housing and real Estate.
Ladies and gentlemen, request
the Commissioner of transportation.
I transmit here with a ordinance amending the right
of way acquisition ordinance
of the Archer Avenue in Belt Railway Company
of Chicago Grade Separation Project.
Your consideration this ordinance will be appreciated.
Very true years. Brandon Johnson May referred the Committee
on Housing and Real Estate Ladies
and Jonathan requested the commissioner of transportation.
I transmit here with an ordinance authorizing acceptance
of grant easement from Union Pacific Railroad Railroad
Company for the construction
of pe pedestrian safety facilities.
Your consideration this ordinance would be appreciated.
Very truly yours, Brandon Johnson, may,
I referred the Committee on Housing and Real Estate ladies
and gentlemen at the request
of commissioner business affairs and Consumer Protection.
I transmit here an ordinance amending the municipal code
to add license provisions re regarding window obstructions.
Your consideration this ordinance will be appreciated.
Very truly. Your yours, Brandon Johnson, mayor.
Further the committee on License and Consumer Protection
Ladies and gentlemen, at the request
of the corporation Council transmit here the ordinance
amending the municipal code
regarding assault against public officials.
Your consideration this ordinance will be appreciated.
Very truly yours, Brandon Johnson, mayor referred
to the Committee on Public Safety at the request
of the budget director Trans here
with the ordinance amending the municipal code
regarding the composition
of the city's emergency tele telephone system board.
Your consideration of this ordinance will be appreciated.
Very truly yours, Brandon Johnson referred
to the Committee on Police and Fire.
Ladies and gentlemen, at the request
of the commissioner are planning a development I transmit
here with an ordinance authorizing the expenditure
of open space impact fees, funds
for garden development at 26 16 North Albany Avenue.
Your fa, your consideration
of this ordinance will be appreciated very two years.
Brandon Johnson May referred the committee on special
events Cultural Affairs and Recreation.
Ladies and gentlemen, request the Commissioner Planning
and Development I transmit here
with ordinance authorizing execution
of an adopt a Landmark agreement
with Greenstone United Methodist Church.
Your consideration of this ordinance will be appreciated.
Very true. Yours, Brandon Johnson,
mayor refer the committee on zoning
landmarks and building standards.
Ladies and ladies, gentlemen, at the request of Commissioner
of Streets and Sanitation, I transmit here
with an ordinance many of the municipal code
regarding Parkway trees.
Your consideration of this ordinance will be appreciated.
Very true. Yours, Brandon Johnson Mayor
referred the committee on zoning
landmarks and building standards.
Ladies and gentlemen, I have appointed
Michael Belsky comptroller.
Your consideration of this appointment will be appreciated.
Very truly yours, Brandon Johnson, mayor
for the Committee on Finance.
Ladies and gentlemen, I transmit here with appointments
to various special service areas.
Your consideration of these
appointments will be appreciated.
Very truly yours, Brandon Johnson,
mayor referred the Committee on Economic Capital
and Technology Development.
Ladies and gentlemen, transmit here with appointments
to the Residential Investment Corporation.
Your consideration of these
appointments will be appreciated.
Very truly yours, Brandon Johnson,
mayor referred the Committee on Housing and Real Estate.
Ladies and gentlemen, pursuant
to section two dash eight zero dash seven zero sub, uh, C
of the Municipal Code of Chicago, I have appointed Luis Bur
Erez as a member of District Council 0 1 7.
To, to succeed Steve Spanno. He has resigned.
Your consideration of this appointment will
be re be appreciated.
Very clear. Yours, Brandon Johnson, mayor
for the Committee on Public Safety.
I can. I ladies
and gentlemen, I transmit here with appointments at
to the Chicago Emergency Telephone System.
Your consideration of this appointments will be appreciated.
Very truly yours, Brandon Johnson, mayor referred
to the Committee on Police and Fire.
That one
oh Louis Ber, uh, the appointment
of Luis EZ will go to the Committee on Police and Fire.
I city clerk Anna Valencia hereby informed the city council
that the following documents were filed in my office
relating to the respective subjects designated as follows.
Determination, certificate of City of Chicago
regarding revolving line of credit agreement by
and between the city of Chicago and Wells Fargo Bank,
national Associ National Association as to note
of June 28th, 2020 24.
An aggregate outstanding amount not
to exceed $265.5 million.
Comprehensive annual financial report of Metropolitan Water.
Recommend commend Rec Reclamation Thank you,
district of Greater Chicago for year end.
December 31st, 2024.
An Office of Inspector General's report concerning city
of Chicago's implementation
and enforcement of gun offender registration Ordinance
I city Clerk Lencia informed the city council
that all those matters, which we were considered
by the city council at the regular meeting held on
May 21st, 2025
and for which we required by statute to be published in book
or pamphlet form or in one
of more newspapers were published in pamphlet form on
June 18th, 2025 by being printed in full text
and printed pamphlet.
Copies of the Journal of the Proceedings of City Council
of the City of Chicago I City Clerk Valencia also transmit
here with the following miscellaneous communications
and reports requiring city council action zoning re
reclassification of particular areas which referred
to the committee on zoning landmarks
and building standards claims against the city of Chicago.
Referred to Committee on Finance Amendment of Title 17
of Municipal Code of Chicago by re reclassification
of area shown on map number one J dash J at 3 32 50 dash
32 56 West Franklin Boulevard,
five 19 dash 5 23 North Spalding Avenue
and five 20 dash 5 22 North Sawyer Avenue, which is referred
to the Committee on Zoning landmarks and building standards
and amendment of ordinance,
which reclassification area shown on map number five dash G
at 20 22, 20 20, 22, 25 North Dayton Avenue, which referred
to the committee on zoning landmarks
and building standards, your Honor,
that concludes the reports and communications from
the mayor and other city officers.
Mayor. Thank you much Madam Clerk Committee reports.
First committee finance chair recognizes Chairwoman Dow.
Thank you Mr. President
and members of the city council reporting
for the City Council's Committee on Finance, which held
a committee meeting on June 3rd, 2025
and June 16th, 2025.
The following items received a due pass
recommendation from the committee.
Item number one is the substitute ordinance amending
municipal code chapter 2 32 dash 85
concerning voluntary charitable payroll deductions.
Mr. President, unless someone wishes to speak on this item,
I move passage of it by a roll call vote.
See no hands. Um, there's a request for a roll call vote.
Um, please members use the EVO application
to record your vote at this time.
The vote is now open. The vote is now open.
Please use your e device. The vote is now open.
I will not take a voice vote that for folks
who have not used the Eev device system
and those online Alderwoman Coleman,
not President Chambers, alderman Moore.
Alderman Moore is a yes.
Alderman Curtis Curtis is a yes.
Alderman O'Shea not in chambers.
Alderman Burnett. Yes. Burnett is a yes.
Alderwoman Rodriguez Sanchez. Aye.
Rodriguez Sanchez is a yes.
Alderman Conway not President. Chambers.
Oh, Alder. Alder Alderwoman Coleman is a yes.
Okay. Alderman O'Shea is a yes.
Alderman Conway. Okay. Not here. All right.
The voting is now closed.
Thank you Madam Clerk. There are 49 Yays zero nays.
This motion passes Alderman
Mitchell on a motion to reconsider.
Motion to reconsider the vote.
All those in favor of the reconsideration
of this vote signify by saying aye.
Any opposed? Say no. This motion fails.
Chair recognizes Alderman Riley,
Mr. President.
Um, I wanted a point of clarification.
Uh, as, as the clerk was reading into the record, uh,
introductions by the administration, um,
it's my understanding that one such ordinance was not
properly read into the record to
identify the subject matter.
I believe it was the third item
that would've allowed members of this body to, uh,
send it to a different committee.
Um, I understand that's the grocery tax that, uh,
your administration's considering on foisting upon the
people of Chicago, but we didn't get
that read into the record as such,
and had we been given the opportunity,
I would've called a different committee.
The clerk is supposed to clearly read the ordinance into the
record, and that was glossed over.
It's supposed to be a descriptive title.
Read into the record. It's a major
substantive piece of legislation.
The item was read into the record, um, as an amended,
um, item for revenue for Title iii.
It was read into the record correctly.
It was not read into the record properly.
No one here would know what that means
unless there's a title, it's
unless it's included in the title,
what the actual subject matter is.
Okay, so I mean, that was a cute
trick by the law department.
Yeah. Listen, first of all,
let's not make any considerations of
what anyone's intentions were.
In fact, this item. Why
Not Facts Mr. President.
I mean, that's what it is.
Why isn't it? Read into the record that
Way. It was read into the
record correctly.
If you have an issue with the content
or the context, that sounds deeply personal,
but it was read correctly, deeply,
and this is, this is,
I don't know what that means, means amendment,
But I would've referred this to
the rules committee where it should,
Well, what you would have done or could have done.
You had an opportunity if you, you
Violated the rules, Mr. President
all would've had this done
Properly. Thank you very much.
The chair recognizes Alder woman
Dow. Yes. Thank
You. Item number,
The chair recognizes Alder Woman Dow.
Just a moment here, please.
Item number two is an ordinance amending the vehicle
violation debt relief ordinance of 2025
to extend the debt relief period.
I move passage of this item
by the first most favorable roll call vote on the Committee
on Finance report
and the associated unsuccessful motion to reconsider
Hearing no objections, see other hands.
So ordered.
Item number three is the substitute ordinance authorizing
the execution of a tax increment financing redevelopment
agreement, and a renewed lease agreement
with the Chicago Children's Advocacy Center
for the property located at 1240 South Damien Avenue
in the 28th Ward.
I move passage of this item by the same motion
Hearing. No objection.
So ordered.
Item number four is an ordinance authorizing the expansion
and funding of the Corridor Manager marketing program
in the Bronzeville priority Corridor
by adding 47th Street from Cottage Grove
to Prairie Avenue in the third ward.
I move passage of this item by the same motion hearing.
No objection. So ordered.
Item number five is the substitute ordinance authorizing
the execution of the 65th Amendment to the service agreement
with Summer Core 5 0 4 Inc.
To extend the small Business improvement Fund program
to the Foster Eden's
and the Little Village East redevelopment project areas,
and to amend the program rules
and provide additional funding to 16 redevelopment projects
areas in the first, third, sixth, seventh, 10th, 15th, 16th,
19th, 20th, 22nd, 24th, 25th,
26th, 27th, 28th, 30th, 31st,
33rd, 34th, 35th, 36th, 37th, 39th,
and 45th wards.
I move passage of this item by the same motion
Hearing. No objection.
So ordered
Item number six is an ordinance authorizing the
restructuring of the loan agreement
with Argyle Neighborhood Development Corporation
to forgive the principal amounts of the city loan
and the sale and transfer
of the San Miguel apartments at 9 0 7 West Argyle Street
to 9 0 7 West Arga,
LLC in the 48th Ward.
I move passages of this sole order motion
Sole ordered.
The chair recognizes Chairwoman Dow.
Item number seven is an ordinance
authorizing the restructuring of the loan agreement
with Leland Limited partnership
to forgive the principal amount of the city loan
and the release of the regulatory agreement
for the Leland Apartments at 1201 through 1213
Wes Wesland Avenue in the 46th Ward.
I move passage of this item by the same motion,
So ordered Item number eight is the substitute
ordinance concerning the execution
of a redevelopment agreement
and the issuance of financial assistance
to Le Claire Partners, a north JVLP
for the Le Clare project at 48 0 9 West 44th Street
and 44 42 South Cicero Avenue in the 22nd Ward.
Alderman Gilbert Viegas
of the 36 Ward recused himself from voting on this matter
under Rule 14, as his son has a paid summer internship
with Cabrera Capital, which is part
of the financing team for this project.
I move passage of this item by the same motion,
Sole order Item number nine is the substitute
ordinance introduced by Alderman Bennett Lawson to
of the 44th Ward to enter into an agreement
with the Chicago Cubs Baseball Club LLC
for the Security enhancement project at 10 88 West Waveland
Avenue in the 44th Ward.
I move passage of this item by the same motion sole
item number 10 is the substitute ordinance.
Second,
If you raise your hand,
the chair recognizes Alderman Moore.
Thank you. Yes, sir. So ordered.
I I'm not, and I'm not voting against it.
Um, and I I think it's a good ordinance,
but I want, I want to make sure as we, um, supporting this
and, um, you know, yes, we want the World Series
to come here and all of that, and we wanna support,
but I also encourage, I know the Cubs do some, um,
things in the community, toys, all that,
but we have some parks, um, like Ogden Park
and others that they can, um, help donate, um,
some infrastructure dollars too.
So as we help them, we wanna make sure that they're, um,
helping our community and our young people.
I just wanted to add that in. Mr.
Thank you. And it's already
so ordered Chair recognizes Chairwoman Dow.
Item number 10 is a substitute ordinance
authorizing the issuance
of Chicago O'Hare International Airport General Airport
Senior Lien Revenue Bonds,
and the Chicago Midway International Airport Senior
Lien Revenue Bonds.
Um, I move passage of this item by the same motion,
with the exception of Alderman Guild Viegas
of the 36th Ward,
who has recused himself from voting on this matter under
Rule 14, as his son has a paid summer internship
with Cabrera Capital, which is part
of the financing team for this project.
Very well, the chair recognizes Alderman Riley.
Thank you, Mr. President
Alderman Riley and Alderman Lopez moved
to defer and publish this item
Very well. Thank you.
The chair recognizes Chairwoman Dow.
Item number 11 A is an order
authorizing the corporation council to enter into
and execute a settlement order in the case
of Raphael Alcantara versus City
of Chicago et al in the amount of $400,000.
I move passage of this item by the same motion,
And for the record, I should have confirmed
Alderman Riley, who was the other
person that wished to defer.
Hey Lopez, alderman Lopez.
You're given a thumbs up to that this motion for 11 A.
Yes, very well hearing no objections, so ordered.
Item number 11 B is an order
authorizing corporation counsel to enter into
and execute a settlement order in the case
of William Carter versus Ronald Watts etal in the amount
of $2.1 million.
I move passage of this item by the same motion,
Hearing, no objections, seeing no hands, so ordered.
Item number 11 C is an order authorized incorporation
counsel to enter into
and execute a settlement order in the case
of Bernard Williams versus Kristen Cato at all in the amount
of 7.5 million, I move passage
of this item by the same motion,
So ordered Item number 11 D is an order authorizing the
corporation counsel to enter into
and execute a settlement order in the case
of James Gibson versus City of Chicago at all in the amount
of 14 $14,750,000.
I move passage of this item by the same motion,
Hearing no objections, seeing no hands, so ordered.
Item number 12 is a communication transmitting reports
of cases in which verdicts, judgements,
or settlements were entered into for the month of May, 2025.
This will be placed on file with the clerk.
Item number 13
and 14 consists of orders of authorization for the payment
of various small claims against the city of Chicago
and the denials of payments
of various small claims against the city of Chicago.
If there are no objections, I move
that these items be placed in the passage in the omnibus.
So ordered Item number 15 is two proposed orders
authorizing charitable solicitation on the public way,
permits for Worldwide Wildlife Foundation
and Planned Parenthood Federation of Americas.
These are citywide from July 1st, 2025
to December 31st, 2025.
These will be placed on file with the clerk.
The Committee on Finance also held a subject matter hearing
on June 3rd, 2025 at 10:00 AM
and discussed the resolution introduced
by Alderman Anthony Beal of the Ninth Ward,
and others regarding the impact
of the recent credit rating agency downgrades.
No votes were taken. Mr.
President, this concludes my report.
Thank you, Madam Chair for budget
and government operations.
The chair recognizes Chairman Irvin.
The chair recognizes Alderman Riley.
Thank you, Mr. President.
Um, I I wanted to go back to the item
that we just discussed,
and I believe you were assisted with by, uh,
corporation counsel,
and I wanted to mention
that the Open Meetings Act in Illinois
when introducing legislation, uh, merely describing it
by title number is not sufficient.
Uh, the key principle of the OMA is transparency
and the public's right to be informed about the business
of public bodies, and here's why.
Relying solely on a title number is problematic.
Insufficient notice.
It doesn't provide an enough information for the public
to understand what the proposed legislation is about
lack of public knowledge.
The public may not be familiar with the numbering system
or have access to information linking title numbers
to the specific content of the legislation
agenda content requirements.
The OMA requires the meeting agenda set forth the general
subject matter of any resolution
or ordinance that will be the subject
of final action at the meeting.
This implies a more detailed description than a simple title
number, the intent of the act.
The intent of the OMA is to ensure that actions
and deliberations of public bodies are conducted openly
and that citizens are given advanced notice of
what will be discussed or acted upon,
providing only a title number hinders this purpose.
Therefore, to satisfy the OMA, it's necessary
to provide a description that gives the public a clear
understanding of the general subject matter
of the introduced legislation.
This could include a brief summary
of the proposed legislation's purpose and key provisions,
and I know that, um, members
of your legislative team are very familiar with the OMA.
I've discussed it with one member over the last 18 years,
so it's my hope that he will share this with you
and perhaps we can revisit the way that that item
was introduced to this body without any discussion
of the actual subject matter that it contains.
This is about transparency. Mr. President,
Thank you. Thank
you, alderman Riley,
the chair recognizes Chairman Irvin.
Thank you, Mr. President
and members of the city council reported
for the committee on the Budget
and government operations,
which held a meeting on June 16th, 2025.
The committee has a series
of report recommending passage of the following items.
Item one is a communication recommending a proposed
ordinance concerning an annual appropriation ordinance year
2025, amendment within fund nine to five, A move passage
of this item by the first favorable roll call
of the Committee on finance
and the associated unsuccessful motion to reconsider
Very well hearing no objections, so ordered.
Item number two is a communication recommending a proposed
ordinance concerning a redevelopment agreement
with Twisted Egg Roll LLC for the provision
of neighborhood opportunity funds for the renovation
of commercial property,
generally located at 6 57 East 75th
Street in the sixth Ward.
I move passage of this item by the first favorable roll call
of the committee on financing the associated
unsuccessful motion to reconsider. Here
Are no objections to order.
Item three is a communication recommended
and amendment municipal code section three dash five six
dash five by amending subsection E regarding waiver
of fees imposed by the chapter.
I make the same motion. If there's no objection,
Hearing none so ordered.
Item number four is a transfer
of funds within the 40th ward wage allowance
and automatic expense account for year 2025.
I make the same motion. If there is no objection, hearing
None so ordered.
Mr. President, that concludes my report.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. Committee
on contract oversight and equity.
The chair recognizes chairwoman mi.
Thank you Mr. President and members of the city council.
I'm reporting for the Committee on Contracts
Oversight and Equity.
We held a meeting on Tuesday, June the third, 2025,
and the following item was passed by the committee.
Item number SS oh
2 0 2 4 dash
0 0 1 4 4 7.
A substitute ordinance for the amendment
of the municipal code section two dash 92 dash
9 55.
To permanently establish a veteran owned small local
business participation goal program sponsored
by aut MD dga, Mr.
President, um, my colleague would like to be recognized,
uh, AUT m DGAs.
Very well, thank you, chairwoman.
The chair recognizes Alderman vga.
Thank you, Mr. President. Thank you Madam Chair.
Um, good afternoon, colleagues.
In, in 2017, we took a bold
and important step by creating the program
for veteran-owned business enterprise.
What we now proudly call the VBE program.
It was a first of its kind,
a true milestone for the city of Chicago.
This program opened a pathway for veteran-owned businesses
to apply and win city contracts.
Recognize not only their service to our country,
but also the enormous value they bring to our local economy.
Lemme tell you, it's been a game changer.
Veterans bring with them unmatched,
tenacity, discipline, and grit.
They know what it means to lead under pressure,
to adapt quickly, and to never give up.
These are not just qualities of good soldiers.
They're the hallmarks of great entrepreneurs.
Veterans just don't start businesses.
They, they build resilient ones.
They create jobs, drive innovation,
and strengthen our communities nationwide, hundreds
of thousands of veteran owned business contribute over
200 billion in payroll annually,
over 200 billion in payroll annually.
Most are small businesses,
but there is impact is anything but small.
They employ millions and provide essential goods
and services In nearly every sector
of our economy here in Chicago,
we've seen the success firsthand and we're not done yet.
VBE currently has a sunset date in 2025,
but we need this program
to remain permanent, hence the ordinance.
That's right, no expiration date,
no question about our commitment to veterans
codifying the VBE into law means veteran entrepreneurs will
always have a place at the table in Chicago's economy.
Chicago is open for business
and we are especially open to those
who have worn the uniform
and now want to serve communities in a new way.
By investing in veteran-owned businesses,
we're investing in lasting strength, resilience,
and prosperity for years to come.
Thank you colleagues for your support.
We truly means a lot, and I look for passage.
Look, uh, for your passage of this item. Thank you. Very
Well. Thank you, alderman Vegas.
The chair recognizes Chairwoman MITs.
Thank you, Mr. President.
I move that the city council Concur Concur in the
recommendation of the Contracts Oversight
and Equity Committee and pass this item by the same
roll call as item number one
of the Committee on Finance report
and the associated unsuccessful motion
to reconsider hearing.
No objection. So ordered.
That concludes my report. Thank you.
Thank you, Madam Chair for Economic Capital
Technology Development.
The chair recognizes Chairman Viegas.
Good afternoon, Mr. President, members
of the city council reporting
for the Committee on Economic Capital Technology
Development, which on Thursday,
June 12th committee held a meeting.
And items, items, items one through three are series
of SSA appointments and reappoint and, and a reappointment.
Items one and three are appointments of Anthony Clark
and Sean D. Harris as members
of special service area number eight,
Lakeview East Commission
and number 25 Little Village Commission respectively.
Item two is a reappointment of Elena Durran as a member
of special service area number 25 Little Village Commission.
I move for pass of these items by the first favor
of a roll call of the Committee on Finance
and the associated unsuccessful motion to reconsider
Hearing. No objection.
So ordered
Item four on the report is an amendment
to the 2025 special er, I'm sorry.
Um, it's an amendment to 2025 service provider agreement
and budget for SSA number 34 in uptown in the 46th,
47th, and 48th wards.
I move for pass of this item
by the first favorable roll call of the Committee on finance
and the associated unsuccessful motion
to reconsider hearing. No
Objection. So ordered
Item five, uh, through seven are tax incentive ordinances.
They were approved by the committee.
Item five on the report is a Class L tax incentive ordinance
for a property at one 11 West Monroe in the 34th ward.
Item six and seven on the report are Class six B tax
incentive Ordinance ordinances at 3,100 North Branch Street
in the 27th ward
and 4,300 West Roosevelt Road in the 24th ward.
I move, uh, for pass of these items
by the first favorable roll call of the vote
of the Committee on Finance and the associated unsuccessful
motion to reconsider hearing.
No objection. So order. Thank
You Mr. President. That concludes
my report.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. For the Committee on Environment
Protection and Energy,
the chair recognizes Chairwoman Hadden.
Thank you Mr. President, Mr.
President and members of the city council reporting
for your committee on Environmental Protection
and Energy, which held a committee meeting on
June 13th, 2025.
The committee has four reports
and recommends the passage of the following items.
Item one is a 2025 dash
0 1 7 5 3 1.
The appointment of Catherine Elias.
As a member of the Shoreline Advisory Board, I move passage
of this item by the first favorable roll call vote
of the Committee on Finance and associated unsuccessful
motion to reconsider hearing.
No objection. So ordered
Item two is a 2025 dash
0 1 7 5 3 2, the appointment of William Schweizer.
As a member of the Shoreline Advisory Board, I move passage
of this item by the first favorable roll call vote on the
Committee on Finance and associated unsuccessful motion
to reconsider hearing,
No objection. So ordered
And item three is a 2025 dash
0 1 7 5 3 3, the appointment of Joel Zavala.
As a member of the Shoreline Advisory Board, I move passage
of this item by the first favorable roll call vote
for the Committee on Finance and associated unsuccessful
motion to reconsider hearing,
No objection, so ordered.
And item four is the com is the Commonwealth Edison
comment, annual summer
preparedness hearing, no votes were taken.
Mr. President, this concludes my report.
Thank you, Madam Chair for the Committee
on Housing and Real Estate.
The chair recognizes Chairman Sig Cho Lopez.
Thank you Mr. President, uh,
and members of the city council reporting
for your committee on Housing
and Real Estate, which held that meeting on June 11th, 2025.
The committee has a series of reports recommending passage
of one appointment and 12 ordinances.
The ordinances include lease agreements,
redevelopment agreements, and various
negotiated property and land sales.
Item number one is an appointment 2025 dash
0 0 1 7 5 3 4 appointment of Kenneth Burnett as member
of the Chicago Low Income Housing Trust Fund Board at move
passes of this item by the first most favorable roll call
vote on the Committee on Finance
and associated unsuccessful motion to reconsider
Hearing. No objection,
so ordered.
The next two items are i'll demanding introductions
for the designation of low affordability communities.
First, the ordinance 20 25 0 0 1 7 4 3 9 in
the 27th Ward.
I move passes of this item by the same motion
Hearing. No objection,
so ordered.
Next is a, a substitute ordinance 2025 dash
0 0 1 6 6 4 9 in the 48th ward, which pass as a substitute
and move passage of this item by the same motion
Hearing, no objection, so ordered. The
Next two items. Ordinance
2025 dash 0 0 1 7 5 2 2
and 0 0 1 7 5 0 5 are grouped together from the
Department of Fleet and Facility Management for amendments
to lease agreements in the 25th and 10th wards
and move passes of these items by the same motion
Sole ordered.
The next three items are from the Department of Housing.
Item six is the land sale and redevelopment agreement.
Item seven is a land sale with an amendment
of redevelopment agreement
and item eight is the sale
of city owned property in the 10th, fifth and 27th
and 27th wards respectively.
The ordinance numbers are ordinance 2025 dash
0 0 1 7 5 7 4 0 1 7 5 6 9
and 0 0 1 7 5 9 2.
I move passes of these items by the same motion,
So ordered.
The following items are did from the Department
of Planning and Development.
Item nine is an ordinance, uh,
0 20 25 0 0 1 7 5 9 6.
And item 10 is Ordinance
20 25 0 0 1 7 5 9 7, uh, for the sale
of vacant city owned property under the CHI Block Builder
Platform's missing Middle Infield Housing Initiative.
These are the first cluster of lots being sold
through this program founded through the housing
and economic development bond,
which will bring more than 40 new units to the 24th ward.
A move passage of these two items by the same motion.
Congratulations so ordered
And congratulations to the 24th ward.
Um, then last three items, uh, from DPD are item 11,
ordinance 2025, thus
0 0 1 7 12 is ordinance
20 25 0 5 5
and item 13 is an ordinance
20 25 0 1 7 8 7 8 for the sale
of city owned vacant law LA vacant land to various buyers.
In the third 24th
and 21st words, I move passages
of these items by the same motion
Hearing. No objection.
So ordered.
Mr. President, this concludes
My report. Thank you Mr. Chair
for the committee on license as well
as consumer protection.
The chair recognizes Chairwoman Silverstein.
Thank you Mr. Thank you Mr.
President and members of City council.
I'm reporting for the Committee on License
and Consumer Protection.
We held a meeting on June 11th, 2025
and the following items were passed by the committee.
Oh 2 0 2 5 0 7 1 9 1
a substitute ordinance to amend chapter nine
regarding impoundment of petty caps.
Mr. President, I move
that the city council concur in the recommendations
of the license committee by the same roll call
as item number one of the,
of the Committee on Finance report
and the associated unsuccessful motion to reconsider.
So ordered oh 2 0 2 4 dash
0 0 9 6 6 5, a substitute ordinance
regarding public places of amusement and sidewalk cafes.
Um, with the exception of Alderman Moore, I move passage
of this item by the same motion.
If there is no objection,
Does she wanna be recognized?
Chair recognizes Altman Moore.
Thank you so much. Um, Mr.
President, I want to thank, um, my colleague, um, Altman,
um, and chairman Matt Martin for, um, you know, reaching out
to me on this, um,
and trying to, I think he was ultimately trying
to do the right thing and it's, it is,
it's an ordinance I do support, especially as it relates
to the cafes.
Uh, just to be on public record.
I had a, um, issue, um, with these, um, gaming machines
and them able to begin get additional, um,
machines in their, um, stores.
Uh, right now, as we know with these coupons,
so-called coupon machines that, um, it's supposed
to be coupons, but we know in many
of these communities people are betting
and getting real money, it's gambling going on there.
And so, um, that's revenue one that we're not getting.
Number two at some point, um, um,
it gambling for, um, slot machines is going to come online
and my fear is that, um,
African Americans are not gonna be able
and other minorities are not gonna have an opportunity
to be in this space if many of these, um, other stores are,
um, leaps ahead of bounds
of them having machines in these spots.
And so I'm thinking about the future, not just right now.
And so that is why I'm voting no on this item.
Thank you. Very
Well. The motion has
been made despite the division.
This item has passed. So ordered chair
recognizes Chairwoman Silverstein
Oh 2 0 2 5 dash 0 0 1 7 5 5 0
and ordinance prohibiting ping in
portions of the first ward.
I move passage of this item by the same motion.
If there is no objection,
oh 2 0 2 5 dash 0 7 5 5 6 an ordinance
prohibiting sale of cannabinoid hemp products within the
O'Hare residential area.
I move passage of this item
by the same motion if there's no objection
Hearing. So ordered
Four ordinances regarding liquor moratoriums in the 13th,
20th, 25th, and 30th wards.
The committee has recommended passage
of e each of these items.
Oh 2 0 2 5 dash 0 1 7 180 6
and others ending
0 0 1 7 4 0 4 0 1 7 5 5 7
and 0 0 1 6 9 7 6.
I move passage of these items by the same motion.
If there's no objection,
Hearing none. So ordered
Oh 2 0 2 4 0 0 8 9 5 4
and
0 2 5 0 1 7 1 43
were held in committee a subject matter hearing on
congestion fee overcharging
by Rideshare Companies was held, no vote was taken.
Mr. President, this concludes my report.
Thank you Madam Chair for the Committee on Pedestrian
and Traffic Safety chair recognizes chair LaSpada.
Thank you Mr. President reporting
for your committee on the pedestrian
and traffic safety for which a meeting was held on Thursday,
June 12th, 2025.
Before the committee, there were 217 routine traffic
items, all of which passed.
If there are no objections, I move past of these items
by the first most favorable roll call vote from the
Committee on Finance and the associated unsuccessful
motion to reconsider the vote
Hearing no objection. So ordered
The committee also passed a substitute
ordinance sponsored by myself.
So 2025 dash 0 0 1 7 5 5 2 amendment
of municipal code title nine
by modifying traffic code definitions, clarifying the star
and endpoint of bus stop zones
and clarifying the elements of offenses related to parking
and standing in bus and bike lanes.
If there are no objections, I move, move passage
of this item by the same motion. Hearing
None. So order
That concludes my report. Thank you.
Thank you Mr. Chair. Committee on special events cultural
affairs and recreation Chair recognizes chair Podo.
Thank you Mr. President.
Um, before I give my uh, report, I'd like
to temporarily suspend the rules for a point
of personal privilege and I had two points,
but one of those points you recognize Craig already.
Uh, an awesome individual.
Um, I was in, in my office in a meeting,
but we also forgot one other person
and that's Officer Johnny Binion.
I dunno if everybody knows,
but Officer Johnny Binion. So the motion
To suspend the rules, all those in favor
signify by saying aye.
Any opposed, say nay. The motions are suspended.
The chair recognizes Alderman. Sp
Sorry Mr. President,
I was to, to everybody, I apologize,
but I just wanna make sure everybody knows about
Officer Johnny Binion.
Johnny's been here for over 10 years.
Johnny was an awesome individual, always looked out
for all of us, not just me.
So I just wanna make sure everybody knows if you want,
reach out to Johnny and wish 'em happy Retirement with that.
That's it for my suspending of the rules. Mr. President,
There will and a motion to go back to the regular order
of business signify by all
those in favor, Senator by saying aye.
Aye. Anybody opposed? Say no. All right.
We are back into regular order of business.
The chair recognizes Chairman Spto
Once again, thank you Mr.
President and members of the city council, uh, reporting
for your committee on special events Cultural Affairs
and Recreation, also known as the Happy Committee.
Uh, meeting was held on June 11th, 2025.
The committee recommends passes
of the following appointments to the special Events
and Cultural Affairs Advisory Council,
what a 2 0 2 5 dash
0 1 7 5 3 5 Billy Ocasio,
a 2 0 2 5 dash
0 1 7 5 3 6 Jan Feldman,
A
2 0 2 5 0 1 7 5 3 7
Kimberly Bears a
2 2 5 0 1 7 5 3 8
Caroline Eng and
8 2 2 5 1 7 5 3 9.
Jorge Perez, I move passes of these items
by the first favorable roll call vote
of the Committee on Finance
and the associated unsuccessful motion to reconsider.
So ordered. Thank you Mr.
President. That concludes my report.
Thank you Mr. Chair. The Committee on
Transportation and Public Way.
The chair recognizes Chairman Mitchell,
Mr. President and members
of City Council reporting
for your Committee on Transportation
and Public Way, which held a meeting on June 11th, 2025.
The following items passed
by the majority of the members present.
Page two includes Item ordinance
2 0 2 5 0 0 1 7 5 4 5.
The Committee on Transportation
of Public Lay Public Way recommends this item
to be re-referred
to the committee on zoning landmarks and building standards.
Page two includes items substitute ordinance
2 0 2 5 0 0 1 7 5 68.
An amendment of municipal code section one one dash four
dash 60.
Page two includes item substitute ordinance
2 0 2 5 0 1 7 5 5 9
and amendment of municipal sections nine dash seven six dash
69 9 2 3 and nine.
Pages three through five includes 20 ordinances from
miscellaneous items introduced
by the local alderman from Wards
3, 4, 6, 9 23 25, 26, 27, 28, 40,
and 40.
Page six includes item ordinance
2 2 5 0 1 5 5 3 a re subdivision
ordinance for a property located in the 11th ward.
If there is no objection, I move passages
of these items about the first most favorable roll call vote
of the Committee on Finance
and the associated unsuccessful motion to reconsider hearing
None so ordered.
Mr. President, this concludes my report.
Thank you Mr. Chair. Committee on Workforce Development.
The chair recognizes Chairman Rodriguez.
Thank you Mr. President.
Members of council reporting
for the Committee on Workforce Development,
which held a meeting on Thursday, June 12th.
There were two items on the agenda.
The first item was an ordinance authorizing the execution
of a collective bargaining agreement
between the Teamsters Local 700 Union
and the city of Chicago.
The item passed by unanimous vote of all members present.
I move that the first most favorable vote on the committee
in finance and the unsuccessful, uh, motion
to reconsider be applied to this item. Very
Well hearing no objections, so ordered.
The second item on the agenda was a subject matter hearing
on the Chicago ride share and living wage ordinance.
I wanna thank all of you, uh, who came to our committee
to learn about the working additions in the rideshare
industry and share you with you some good news.
On Monday, we mark, uh, we mark the breakthrough, not just
for the 80,000 rideshare drivers in Chicago,
but for the more than a hundred thousand drivers across
Illinois who've been demanding something
simple and long overdue.
A voice on the job.
For far too long, these workers have been treated
as disposable, but they didn't stay silent.
They organized, they'd rallied and they built power together
and they refused to back down here in Chicago,
I've been proud to stand with the Chicago Gig Alliance, uh,
regarding the fair share ordinance.
That ordinance was never just about policy,
it was about building power.
It was about shining a light on the struggles of drivers
and demanding the biggest corporations in the world be held
accountable for how they treat people
and how they treat the people who keep our city moving.
And while the ordinance may not be moving forward in city
council right now, let me be clear, the work mattered
that organizing force changed.
It helped bring the largest ride share company to the table
and it laid the groundwork for what we announced Monday,
a statewide push for union rights backed
by a commitment from Uber not to stand in the way.
That is what real progress looks like.
It starts when workers stand up.
It grows when communities
and elected officials stand with them
to every driver who's been a part of this movement.
Thank you. Your courage
and persistence brought us to this moment,
and I promise you that we will continue to stand
with you in Chicago and Springfield
and everywhere else this fight takes us.
This concludes the report on the Committee on
Workforce Development, your Honor.
Thank you Mr. Chair.
For the committee on zoning, landmarks
and building standards,
the chair recognizes Vice Chair Lawson.
Thank you Mr. President, members
of the city council presenting a series of reports
for your committee on zoning landmarks
and building standards, which held the meeting on
June 17th, 2025.
Following items were passed
by a majority of members' presence.
And our group four convenience.
Page one contains document number oh 2025 dash
0 0 1 7 3 3 8, the historical landmark designation
for Morningstar Baptist Church of Chicago,
located in the third ward.
And with passage of this item by the last most favor,
roll call vote of the finance committee report
and the associated unsuccessful motion to reconsider so
Ordered Page one also contains document number oh 2024
dash 0 1 0 3 78,
the historical landmark designation for St.
Abert Parish located in the 25th Ward.
I will passage of this item by the same motion.
If there is no objection hearing,
The chair recognizes Alderman Lopez. I wish
To be recorded as voting no on this item
Very well despite the division.
This motion passes. So ordered
Page one also contains document number oh 2025 dash
0 0 1 7 3 3 4.
The historical landmark designation for Harris Trust
and Savings Bank, located at one 11 West Monroe Street
in the 34th ward.
And we passage of this item by the same motion.
If there is no objection,
Hearing none so ordered
Page one also contains two fee waivers
for landmark properties in the first and 24th wards.
I move passage of these items by the same motion.
If there is no objection,
Hearing none so ordered.
All right, moving on. Pages one
through 11 contain various map amendments in the first,
second, third, seventh, 11th, 19th, 21st, 24th,
26th, 27th, 28th, 29th, 31st, 32nd,
34th, 35th, 36th, 37th, 38th,
39th, 46th, 49th, and 50th wards.
Uh, before I make a motion,
I understand Alderman Conway wants to say a few words
Very well. Thank you, uh,
Mr. Vice Chair,
the chair recognizes Alderman Conway. Thank you.
First of all, I wanna be added to the, uh,
favorable roll call vote on item number
one on finance committee.
First off, some acknowledgement that that's okay. Would be
Good. Yes. Um,
Madam Clerk, please add Alderman Conway
to the most favorable roll call in the finance committee
and the associated motion to reconsider failure.
Thank you. The chair recognizes
again, alderman economy. Yeah,
This what really what I wanted to say is
that I am particularly proud of the due dispensary
that is going in, uh, not too far from here, uh,
at the corner of, um, uh, Clark and Madison last year.
You all may recall that we, that, uh,
I put forward an ordinance
that essentially allowed dispensaries in the central
business district without distance regulations
and, uh, that are irrelevant downtown
or going through the ZBA.
And as a result of that, we are here today to
bring about a dispensary that is going
to fill a long vacant storefront
and create 25 jobs downtown as well
as additional security jobs.
So I wanted to thank you all
for helping us cut some red tape
and thank you all for your help in creating some
nor good jobs downtown across
all of you. Thank you very much.
Uh, you're welcome. Thank you.
Alderman Conway, the chair recognizes Vice
Chair Lawson. Thank
You. Uh, so I move
passage
of the previously listed items by the same motion.
If there is no objection,
I'm sorry. Apologies.
Uh, please repeat your motion. Um,
I move passage of the previously stated
items by the same motion.
If there is no objection, I'm
Hearing no objection. So ordered.
Lastly, page 12 contains various large signs over 100
square feet, an area 24 feet
above grade in wards
14, 27, 32, 34, 36, 41, 42,
and 50.
I will passage of these items by the same motion.
If there is no objection, hearing
None so ordered. Thank
You Mr. President. That includes
my report.
Thank you. Vice chair for the agreed upon calendar,
chair recognizes Alt Woman Harris.
Thank you Mr. President.
For the um, I've received from clerk I Valencia, a total
of 147 items proposed to the agreed con ca
calendar consisting of congratulatory,
commemorative tri resolution.
Wo, do you mind, uh, raising your mic just a little
bit? Very
Well. Thank
You. There you go. You can period.
Uh, from the following Alder persons,
would you like me to start from the beginning?
Would you like me to start from the beginning or no?
You don't. Okay, good. Thank say that last part.
Alderman Hopkins. Alderman Hopkins.
Alder per, um, Alder person.
Dow Alder person Hall, Alder person. Harris, Alder person.
Chico. Alder person. Quinn Alder person.
Lopez, Alder person. Coleman Alder person. O'Shea person.
Rodriguez, all the person. Ccho Lopez or the person?
Fuentes. All the person. Irving. All the person.
Conway all the person mi all the person. Sdo.
All the person Riley, all the person Nuen.
All the person Lawson and all the person. Gardner.
Um, I move these in the omnibus hearing.
No objections. So ordered
well for a new business.
Thank you Mr. Clerk.
Uh, we will call the wards beginning with the first
Zoning amendments, which are referred
to the committee on zoning landmarks
and building standards, traffic regulations,
traffic control signals and traffic signs,
which are referred to the Committee on
Pedestrian and Traffic Safety.
An exemption from physical barrier requirements
for commercial driveway alley access for parking facilities,
which are referred to the Committee on
Transportation and Public Way.
Alderman Hall has a proposed ordinance
for an honorary street designation
as Ryan Har Ryan Harris Way, which is referred
to the Committee on Transportation and Public Way.
All the person, Mitchell and others,
have a proposed ordinance for amendment
of municipal code Title 17 by modifying section
17 dash three dash 2 0 7 to strike permit requirements
for gas stations and by modifying section 17 dash nine dash
zero nine, restricting expansion
of gas stations in certain C circumstances,
which is referred to the committee on zoning
landmarks and billing standards.
Alder person Lee has proposed orders for the issuance
of permits for signed sign boards at 24 24 South Halston
Street, which are referred
to the committee on zoning landmarks and building standards.
All the person Ramirez has a proposed ordinance
for an honorary street designation as Angie f Berkowitz
Way, which is referred to the Committee in
Transportation and Public Way.
All the person Ramirez also has a proposed ordinance
for an honorary street designation
as Roberto Carlos Velasco Jr.
Way, which is referred to the Committee on Transportation
and Public Way, while the person Lopez
has a proposed ordinance for amendment of Ms.
Mc code section four dash 60 dash 22
to allow additional alcoholic liquor licenses on portion
of West 47th Street, which is referred
to the Committee on License and Consumer Protection.
All the person. Lopez also has proposed ordinance
for an honorary street designation as Jamal Jimmy,
a Aish Way, which is referred
to the Committee on Transportation and Public Way.
Other persons, Curtis Moore
and Tabba have proposed ordinance
for an honorary street designation as Mamie till Mobley Way,
which is referred to the Committee on
Transportation and Public Way.
All the person, Mosley
and others have proposed resolution to call
for hearings on enforcing prohibition
of solicitation on the public way, which is referred
to the committee on, uh, public safety.
All the person Rodriguez has proposed resolution
for expression of support for Paul Simon Job Corps Center
and for continued federal funding for the Job Corps program,
which is referred to the Committee on Workforce Development.
All the person Burnett has proposed ordinance for amendment
of Ms B code section four dash 60 dash 22
to allow additional alcoholic liquor licenses on a portion
of North North Ogden Avenue, which is referred
to the Committee on License
and Consumer Protection DER person.
Burnett also has a proposed ordinance for a support
of Class seven C tax incentive
for the property at 4 0 4 North Armor Armor Street,
which is referred to the Committee on Economic Capital
and Technology Development.
DER person. Burnett also has a proposed order for the use
of a permit for signed signboard at 1132 West Blackhawk
Street, which is referred
to the committee on zoning landmarks and building standards.
All their persons, Irvin
and RO have proposed resolution to call for hearings on call
for hearings to examine felony review,
bypass program expansion, oversight structure,
legal outcomes, and IMP implementation.
I implications, uh, for public safety, which is referred
to the Committee on Police and Fire.
All the person tele Fiero has a proposed order for the issue
of permits for signed sign boards at 1625 North Harlem
Avenue, which is referred
to committee on zoning landmarks and building standards.
All the person tele Firo has a proposed resolution to call
for the regional transportation authority
to create a pilot program to provide safe transportation
to minors with pickup
and drop off services at public events within the 29th Ward,
which is referred to the Committee on
Transportation and Public Way.
All the person Cruz has proposed an ordinance
for an honorary street designation as honorary Roy Diaz Way,
which is referred to the Committee on
Transportation and Public Way.
All the person Cardona has proposed ordinance for amendment
of miss code chapter eight dash four
by adding a new section eight dash four dash 1 24
prohibiting unauthorized video recordings of dwelling units,
residential properties and yards.
This is referred to the Committee on Public Safety.
All the, all the person, Conway has the proposed ordinance
for amendment of municipal code section four dash 60 dash 23
to allow additional packages licenses on portions
of West Madison Street, which is referred to the committee
as License and Consumer Protection all all the person.
Conway also has a proposed resolution
to call on Chicago Transit Authority Board
to increase enforcement of non-smoking ordinance
and to install a new CTA precedent
with public transit experience, which is referred
to the Committee on Transportation and public way.
All the person. Conway also has a proposed ordinance
for amendment of municipal code chapters 17 dash four
and 17 dash eight, authorizing the zoning administrator
to approve exemption from minimum lot area
for Chicago Landmark Buildings, which is referred
to committee on loaning
zoning landmarks and building standards.
Ley person Viegas has proposed ordinance for amendment
of municipal Amendment of ordinance,
O 2024 dash 0 0 1 3 0 5 6
to waive outstanding and fiber optic network fees
for permits filed by the Chicago Board of Education,
which is referred to the Committee on Finance.
All the person Viegas also has proposed resolution to call
for hearings on the process for awarding vendor contracts on
for city, for the Chicago River Walk, which is referred
to the Committee on Contracting Oversight.
All the VIEGAS also has a proposed resolution
for establishment of the Chicago Charter Committee,
which is referred to the Committee on Committees and Rules.
All the person. Viegas also has proposed ordinance
for amendment of municipal code Title two
by modifying various sections of governing city asset leases
and sales, which is referred to the Committee on Finance.
All the persons Vegas
and Cardona have a proposed ordinance for amendment
of Ms Mc code section 17 dash seven dash 5 9 1
to expand predominance of black of block 6 0 6 district,
which is referred to the committee on zoning
landmarks and building standards.
All the person Viegas
and all the person Moore have
proposed ordinance for amendment of Ms.
Mako chapter two dash 92 by modifying various sections
regarding duties of chief procurement officer related
to city contracts, which is referred
to committee on contracting oversight.
All the person Viegas has proposed resolution to call
for hearings to examine uses and projected short
and long-term impacts of eight
of the $830 million General obligation bonds,
which is referred to the Committee on Economic Capital
and Technology Development.
All the person Viegas also has proposed ordinance
for amendment of Ms mc code section three dash 56 dash 40,
allowing qualified veterans to renew valid
and current wheel tax licenses
to the city Clerk's online platform, which is referred
to the committee on the budget and government operations.
All the person admits has a proposed ordinance for amendment
of municipal code section four dash 60 dash 23
to disallow additional package licenses on portions
of West North Avenue, which is referred
to the Committee on License and Consumer Protection.
Older person admits and others have proposed ordinance
for amendment of municipal code chapter four dash four
by adding a new section four dash four dash 0 75 requiring
installation of surveillance cameras at licensed premises
open to General Public, which is referred
to the Committee on License and Consumer Protection.
While the PERSONDO has proposed ordinance
for an honorary street designation
as honorary Jerry Superman, Casper Way, which is referred
to the Committee on Transportation and Public Way,
all the person, Vasquez
and others have proposed order
for the Chicago Police Department, the Office
of Emergency Management and Communications,
and the Mayor's office to provide city council all reporting
data and communications related
to any police presence at intensive supervisor appearance
program, BI incorporated building on June 4th, 2025,
which is referred to the community
Immigrant and Refugee Rights.
All the person Vasquez
and all the person Martin, have proposed resolution to call
for hearings by the Chicago Commission on Human Relations,
on patterns of anti-Jewish hate crimes, hate instances
and hate based tensions, which is referred
to the Committee on Health and Human Relations.
All the person Vasquez has proposed orders for amendment
of municipal code section four dash 60 dash 22
to allow additional alcoholic liquor licenses on portion
of North Lincoln Avenue, which is referred
to on license and consumer protection.
All the person Vasquez also has
proposed orders for amendment of Ms.
Mcco section two dash 96 dash zero 40,
requiring an executive director
of Public Safety Administration to submit monthly reports
of Freedom of Information Act requests
and responses to the Committee on Immigrant
and Refugee Rights chair, which is referred
to the Committee on Public Safety Other Person.
Vasquez also has proposed resolution
to call on all city departments
and officers to res that respond to freedom
of information request to discuss internal training,
response policies and public maintenance of FOIA records,
which is refer to the committee on ethics
and government Government oversight.
All the person Napolitano has proposed ordinance
for the issuance of permits for signed sign boards at 8,700
West Brenmar Avenue, which is referred
to the committee in zoning landmarks and building standards.
All the person Napolitano also has proposed ordinance
for donation of police department explosive magazines
to the city of Waukegan Fire Department Bomb Squad,
which is referred to the Committee on Public Safety.
Other Person. Riley has proposed ordinance for amendment
of Miss MCC code section four dash 60 dash 0 23
to allow additional packages licenses on portions
of West Chicago Avenue
and North Clark Street, which is referred
to the Committee on License and Consumer Protection.
All the person Riley also has proposed orders
for the issuance of permits for signed sign boards at
five thirty nine North Dearborn Street, which are referred
to committee on zoning landmarks and building standards.
All the person Knutson has proposed ordinance for amendment
of municipal code section four dash 60 dash 0 22
to allow additional alcoholic liquor licenses on portion
of West Diversity Avenue
and North Lincoln Avenue, which is referred
to Committee on License and Consumer Protection.
All the person Lawson has proposed an ordinance
for honorary street designation
as Herbert nuts on Clark Kenny Way, which is referred
to the Committee on Transportation and Public Way.
All the person Clay has proposed ordinance
for honorary street designation as Ronald Kaiser Way,
which is referred to the Committee on
Transportation and Public Way.
All the person Martin has proposed ordinance for amendment
of the annual appropriation ordinance,
the transfer funds from the 47th Ward,
automatic expense account to the wage allowance account,
which is referred to the committee on the budget
and government operations der person.
Martin also has proposed ordinance for amendment
of municipal code section seven dash 28 dash seven 15
prohibiting restrictions on residential composting,
which is referred to the Committee on Environment
DER Persons Silverstein
and others have proposed resolution to call for hearings
by the Chicago Commission on Human Relations on pattern
of anti-Jewish hate crimes, hate instances
and hate based tensions, which is referred
to the Committee on Public Safety.
All the person, Lopez
and Fuentes have a proposed order that the Commissioner
of Planning and Development immediately released All Promise
tax increment financing dollars to the back
of the Yards Council, precious Blood Ministries,
which is referred to Committee on Finance.
All their person, Lopez and others have proposed ordinance
to initiate and authorize the following referendum question
to be submitted to the voters of the city of Chicago
at the regularly scheduled primary election
of March 17th, 2026.
Quote, shall the people of Chicago establish a 100 day
non-salary office of Chicago Reform Commission made up
of 25 delegate elected of city elected by city voters
and reform and improved government
by drafting a city charter proposal that shall be submitted
to the city voters for the referendum approval
for at the next election was referred
to the Committee on Committees and Rules.
Two committees call the Committee on Committees and Rules,
and the Committee on Finance the Matters referred
to the Committee on Committees and Rules.
Your Honor, that concludes the all uh, presentation
of all the medical introductions.
Thank you, Mr. Clerk. Uh, apologies.
There was a joint committee, uh, that we neglected, uh, to,
uh, report out.
So with that, for the Joint Committee on Environmental
protection and, and energy Health
and Human Relations, the chair recognizes chairwoman had.
Thank you, Mr. President, uh, Mr.
President and members of the city council reporting
for your joint Committee on Environmental Protection
and Energy and Health and Human Relations,
which held a committee meeting on April 23rd, 2025.
The committee has one report
and recommends the passage of the following item.
Item one is resolution 2023 dash
zero zero zero two nine three six.
It was a call for hearing on the impact
and reduction of single use plastics.
I move passage of this item
by the first favorable roll call vote
of the Committee on Finance, an associated unsuccessful
motion to reconsider hearing.
No objections. So ordered.
Mr. President, this concludes my report. Thank
You, Madam Chair.
Uh, for rules.
Her rules stated in, in Rule 59, um, Alderwoman,
Jeanette Taylor wishes to participate in the final portion
of this meeting remotely.
Could, um, clerk confirm
Alder Woman Taylor's presence online?
Alderwoman Taylor. I'm here. Madam Clerk.
All right, Taylor is present.
Can I get a motion, uh,
to approve the re remote participation, uh,
for Alderwoman Jeanette Taylor?
It's been moved. All those in favor signify by saying Aye.
And opposed say, know what and opinion.
The chair, the ayes have it for the approval of the journal
chair recognizes Alderman Mitchell.
Mr. President, I am not aware of any corrections
to this journal from the May 21st, 2025 meeting
and move that it be approved.
Hearing, no objection.
So ordered for unfinished business, alderman Mitchell,
President. I am
aware of one piece of unfinished business.
It was filed by Alderman Irving, and I defer to him.
Thank you, Mr. Uh, alderman Mitchell.
The chair recognizes Alderman Irving.
Thank you, Mr. President.
Um, the, uh, item we all are, are aware of, I will ask, um,
once the debate concludes, we ask for a roll call vote.
I'm gonna defer at this point to Alderman, um,
Hopkins, right?
Hopkins, your name right? Yeah. Very well.
I'm sorry, Al Hopkins. And I reserve the right to close
Very well. Alderman Irvin
has reserved the right to close with that.
The chair recognizes Alderman Hopkins.
Yeah. Thank you, uh, Mr.
President, and, uh, thank you, uh, alderman Irvin,
and, and thank you Alderman.
Do, uh, as my two co-lead sponsors on this measure.
Uh, I just wanna say
that I've really enjoyed working with the two of you.
I, I think, uh, the three
of us really did an outstanding job collaborating on
a very difficult issue.
Uh, there was a lot of effort that went involved in this
to get us to this point where we're actually going
to have a vote on this matter.
Uh, and and I really enjoyed, uh, the good faith
that went into this even during the times that we disagreed.
Uh, and we did, we disagreed.
Uh, the, among the three of us, uh,
we disagreed quite a bit.
Um, but from that process, um,
I believe emerged a a very sound policy, uh,
that I hope will pass on a roll call vote here today,
despite the fact that at the end of it, we weren't able
to get to unanimous consent.
Uh, and that's the nature of the legislative process,
ladies and gentlemen.
Um, it's rare that you take something difficult
and controversial and respond
to every objection successfully, uh, bring everyone
to the same table at the same time in the same way,
and get to unanimous consent.
It, it simply is, uh, a very high bar to clear,
and frankly, we didn't clear it this time.
And, uh, alderman Irvin, I'm, uh, I'm offering my, uh,
genuine appreciation to you right now, despite the fact
that I'm somewhat aware you're gonna vote differently than
Alderman Dahl and I, uh, at the end of this process.
Nevertheless, what I wanna do right now is not
focus on our differences.
I wanna focus on the agreement
that I know exists among this body.
I'm confident that some of what I'm about to say
has the full support of all 50 of us.
We are all 100% on the same page when I say
that we've seen the videos of the events
that inspired this ordinance,
and no one here is okay with that.
No one here thinks it's perfectly acceptable
for large groups of teenagers, some as young as 12,
to gather anywhere in the city, downtown or anywhere,
and get out of control,
and to take guns out of their backpacks,
and to engage in violent behavior and mayhem and chaos.
No one is okay with that.
I think we're all on the same page there,
and I think we're actually all on the same page with the two
main goals of this ordinance.
The first goal of this ordinance, the primary goal is
to prevent those events from happening.
Do we all agree that we should be seeking
to prevent those events from happening?
I think we do, and this ordinance would actually
lean in to tactics and techniques
and tools that are already being used by our deputy mayor
of public safety in collaboration
with the police department.
I would argue, ladies and gentlemen,
and in the last two months since this our,
this ordinance came to light, I am aware of two
potential teen trends that didn't happen.
They didn't happen because of intervention measures taken
by the Deputy mayor of public safety
and his outstanding leadership team
of street interventionists and the Chicago Police Department
and the Chicago Public Schools, who went so far as
to communicate with CPS parents
and said, don't let your kids go to this event.
It's not safe for them.
And because of all those efforts,
at least two potentially dangerous
and violent teen trends that were going
to happen didn't happen.
This curfew ordinance is simply one more tool in
that particular toolbox.
It will work because the techniques
that are currently being employed actually do work.
And we have recent evidence of that.
The secondary goal of this ordinance,
and again, I think we all agree when those moments happen,
when all attempts at intervention
and prevention do not work for whatever reason,
and you have 200 plus teenagers taking over an area,
kicking buses, blocking traffic, running into the stores,
throwing things around, lighting, fireworks,
and god forbid, shooting guns, which happened twice
so far this year in my ward.
When it gets outta control, we must stop it.
We can't sit back and watch it happen.
We can't just go, we'll let it run out of its, uh,
energy on its own volition.
We have to stop it. We must take steps to stop it.
And that's the second part of this ordinance.
It allows for the Chicago police to take steps
to interdict these events when they're taking place,
and to bring them to an end as soon as possible.
And again, it works.
Some people wanna say, curfews don't work.
I can tell you, ladies and gentlemen, they work,
and I know that because I've seen them work.
We currently have a curfew. It kicks in at 10 o'clock.
I've been out there in these events.
I've been on the street
during these teen trends when they turned violent.
And I was out there with the deputy mayor at the last one.
And it wasn't until 10 o'clock
when the police had the ability
to enforce the curfew ordinance
that the event finally was brought to a conclusion.
Because the teens know when they hear the police say,
we're gonna start enforcing the curfew.
They know they mean it, and they'll do it.
They don't treat the threat of arrest the same way,
because we all know the police do not
wanna arrest teenagers.
I don't blame them. They don't wanna do it.
They would much rather not have to be put in
that position to do it.
The curfew ordinance, on the other hand,
is a much easier thing to enforce
on the street in those chaotic conditions.
And the teenagers know when they hear
that announcement from the PA speaker inside the patrol car,
we're gonna start enforcing the curfew.
The crowd disperses. It works. It works. I've seen it work.
One more thing that I'd like to point out
that I think we all could agree with your comments, mayor,
your comments quoted in today's edition of The Daily Line,
and I just wanna read it.
The police department already has a provision to call
for a dispersal order.
If someone is committing a violent crime,
you can be arrested at 4:00 PM
or at 3:00 PM They don't have to wait for 10 o'clock
to arrest people if they're doing something
that's in violation of the law.
Mayor, you said that you're right. I agree with it.
I think we all do this.
Curfew ordinance is a better alternative
to arresting teenagers.
The police can arrest them.
Let's give them something better where they don't have to.
They'll simply take them out of this volatile, dangerous
situation, remove them from it, end the chaos in mayhem,
and let the teenagers be safely returned to their families.
When a parent or guardian comes
and gets them, that is much better than having
to arrest them for doing the things
that are in fact, criminal acts.
You see the video, these are criminal acts.
These are not innocent hijinks.
These are dangerous, threatening
criminal acts, and they're violent.
And it happened again last night.
It happened in my ward, alderman Knutson's Ward,
alderman Lawson's Ward last night starting about 10 o'clock,
we had a teen gathering on the
lakefront that turned violent.
A police officer wound up in the hospital
because he was attacked last night.
If we don't pass this curfew ordinance,
it's going to happen again.
And I know you don't want that. I don't want that.
Again, the goal is to prevent it from happening.
This ordinance will do that,
and the goal is to stop it from happening once prevention
efforts have failed before someone gets hurt
or God forbid, killed.
For those of you who that have committed
to supporting this ordinance,
and I've talked to all of you, thank you for your support.
Please stay with us.
If everyone who's told me they're gonna support this does in
fact vote yes, this ordinance will pass today.
Not because I've said so, not
because the superintendent has said so, but
because it's the right thing to do,
I urge and I vote. Thank you.
Thank you. The chair recognizes Alderman David Moore.
Um, thank you, Mr. President.
Um, while I, um, stand in support of this ordinance,
um, mainly for the reasons I believe in, uh, first
and foremost, saving lives
and in too many incidents, um, one, um, person
and sometimes two innocent, um, victims
and our young people lose their lives.
I would rather save a life
and deal with something, um, you know,
and making sure that they're put somewhere safe
where they're parents will come
and get them, whether in someone lose a life.
And so my main purpose is for saving lives.
But I also wanna state this.
I hear young students from Urban Prep, um, to come down, um,
here, um, these past few months, months to, um, listen in.
And I just wanna make sure their voices are heard.
Um, they actually did a petition, um, I don't know if I,
I want to do it with police officer,
but they circulated a petition, um,
for additional police officer to address truancy
and curfew issues.
Um, I don't want, I don't know if we want police officer
to address truancy, but, um, the curfews issues, yes.
So they circulated, um, um, those petitions,
and we'll talk about that further,
but there's something that they also put together.
They said that they want a youth-focused outreach
and early notification system.
And I, and I hope, and I think this is what this does, and,
and some, um, conversations that I've been in.
We, uh, proposed a development,
and this is from the Youth Voices.
We proposed a development of a citywide digital alert system
that sends out curfew reminders
and community updates through SMS social media
and school communication apps.
These alerts should be youth friendly
and informative, helping teams make responsible choices
and avoid last minute conflict with law enforcement.
Um, they, number two, um, they wanted to expand after school
and evening programming.
Uh, rather than pushing teens outta public spaces,
we recommend expanding access
to evening programming at park districts,
libraries, and community centers.
Where I know places like Arden Park
and Marquette Park, um, we are o we are open for that,
and we, we have to make sure that our, um,
children know about this, these safe
and super fast activities, including sports leagues,
music programs, job readiness workshops,
and creative art spaces will reduce loitering
and all for positive alternatives.
Um, this one is important for me.
And again, we're talking about wards.
Their voice establish teen safe zones in each ward.
And so we can talk to legal and the park district
and others about that, because I think we say in our minds
that these are safe spaces,
but there's gotta be some type of marketing program
or something to let teens know
that these are space, uh, safe spaces.
Um, they said each ward should de designate at least one
accessible, well-publicized teen safe zone
where youth can gather
before curfew hours without feel harassment.
These safe zones could be hosted at schools, churches,
or community centers and staff by trained youth advocates
or local volunteers.
Um, I'll just read, um, two more for the sake of time
that they have totally highlighted.
We urge, uh, the city to require all officers assigned
to cur enforcement to complete training
in conflict mediation, adolescent psychology,
and trauma-informed engagement.
This will reduce the risk of over-policing
and build a foundation of mutual respect, um, and safety.
Um, they talked about the CRE c creating a
Citywide Youth Advisory Council.
They didn't know it was going already, so I, um, um,
told them about that and, and, and connected them to that.
Um, and they said, hire more officers
with specialized youth engagement training, um, their voice.
We recommend, we recommend the City
of Chicago hire additional police officers,
specifically trained to handle youth related concerns.
These officers receive ongoing education
and youth deescalation, community policing strategies,
and cultural competency.
Increased staffing would allow
for a more visible presence in neighborhoods
during the hours leading up to curfew, helping
to prevent large gatherings before they occur,
and creating positive relationships with the community.
Their conclusion. We believe these recommendations present a
balanced, community focused approach to youth safety
that respects the voices
of young people while addressing public concerns
By investing in trained personnel,
youth programming, and inclusive policy.
The city of Chicago can lead with accountability,
prevention, and care
where the city council consider these alternatives, um,
as they prepare to prepare, um, this, um, legislation.
So I just wanted to make sure, um,
that these voices were heard.
Um, they talk about, which I didn't know, in Baltimore
and la, there are curfew centers that provide a safe space
instead of, um, arrests.
And I think that's what we're talking about as well,
not just arresting,
but we gotta make sure these, um, centers,
or I don't know if it's at the station,
provide these safe spaces.
So we encourage our youth to be involved,
and I'm gonna continue
to make sure they are involved at these, the things
that they wrote down here,
that we are following up on those things.
So as we pass this ordinance, the many people that's, uh,
uh, I, I think it's, um, a tool that's needed.
But when we start passing these other items
that our residents are talking about, I want the same energy
and I want the voices to help support, um, these items
that these young people are talking about.
Thank you so much, Mr. President.
Thank you. The chair recognizes Alderman O'Shea. Thank
You, Mr. President.
This issue's been talked
about for several months.
Appreciate the work that some
of my colleagues have put into it.
In a few months, we're gonna have Superintendent Snelling
sitting here, probably for the better part of a day,
and nearly every one of us
is gonna question him and his leadership.
This piece of legislation is a tool
that the superintendent in the Chicago Police Department can
have in their toolbox to try to make situations safer.
If you're gonna vote for this, then vote in support of it.
If you're gonna vote against it, then vote against it.
But in closing, mayor, I am sick
and tired of people talking about public
safety in this room.
And then when it comes time for a difficult vote,
sneaking out the back door.
Own your vote today and sit in your chair and cast it
or sit on that screen, but no more walking out of the room
and dodging the issue.
This is a real public safety problems in
several of our neighborhoods.
I had one of these situations in my neighborhood two weeks
ago, and every single weekend, I'm losing tactical officers
detailed to these horrible situations
that are absolutely out of control.
Those are police officers
that aren't serving in my neighborhood,
making my neighborhood safer.
We need to stop talking about partnering with the police
and supporting the police, and we actually have to do it.
Give them this tool
that if it's decided from Superintendent Snelling
that he needs this at a given time,
at a given hour, that he has this. Thank you.
Thank you. The chair recognizes Alderwoman. Scott,
Good afternoon, everyone.
Um, I wanna throw out a few words.
Decency, respect, manners,
law abiding citizens.
I don't speak much.
I have a 17-year-old daughter that I have restricted,
do not go downtown.
She's not going downtown because it's safe.
She can't go because it's unsafe.
I refuse to put, I am a, a i, I have
to use one of your quotes, mayor.
I am a black woman raising a black child
in the city of Chicago,
and I refuse to allow my 17-year-old daughter
who is being reared by a single mom myself, that has a
for ride to Stanford, go downtown
because I wanted her to come home to me safely and alive.
So she can't go downtown. And why?
Because the streets are not safe for her.
And we're arguing because these are not the regular kids
like my daughter who can go downtown and, and,
and mayor, like your son who can go downtown,
your daughter and your sons.
These are people, these are children
that are wreaking havoc.
These are children that are shooting tourists.
These are kids that are stumping on cars
and twerking on cars.
And these are the ones that we're protecting.
Yeah, they mom need to protect them too.
Because see, we forget the big picture.
We put everything on the politician,
but forget that they have a mom.
I'm a single mom. And disadvantage, or unprivileged
or black does not mean that you give a license to Rome
and wreak havoc.
It does not give you a license to do that.
Being a black child,
working in the Chicago Park District,
being a park kid, there are things to do.
But when they're structure the havoc,
wreaks don't want structure.
They want to roam.
And so if we are allowed our police officers a tool
to give them the opportunity to enforce a curfew when they,
before they see it starting, that's a tool
in their toolbox, and they should be able to use it.
We're not saying Go get your Billy clubs and,
and beat the kids upside the head or arrest them.
No, we're giving them a tool so that, you know,
because they say you can't corral crowds, but this is a tool
before the crowd starts that we can shut it down.
It happens in my neighborhood.
So I'm glad that we can do this
because they're, they call them the two 90
express parties, right?
That happen on the west side too.
These same things happen on the west side.
So it's important that we create this kind of environment
for the entire city of Chicago.
So, would it be different,
had a black man been the sponsor of this?
So had it been all Alderman Irvin, who was the sponsor
of this, would it make a difference?
But because a, a white man is speaking out on our black
kids, and for the safety of us, it's an issue.
See, I'm not looking at black and white,
because we all wanna go downtown.
We all wanna afford the opportunity to go downtown,
but it shouldn't be restrictive
because our kids are not feeling safe.
I don't if, if I have to send my kids to Oak Brook
to have a good time to go shop
and eat, then that's what I'll do.
Until the cities are till the city streets are safe.
I don't want her in a area where there's no control
and the kids are doing what they wanna do,
and they're running up and down the street.
We see the videos, everybody sees them.
So we're gonna ignore and, and,
and take a blind eye for the sake
of, I don't know what it is.
Uh, because the same people who are against it,
were the same ones against shot spotter,
which there's no more control now of if a gunshot is coming.
'cause we don't know. We don't know.
So safety looks like it's doing great,
because we don't know, but we see those videos.
And I, and, and again, I have a 17-year-old,
a full ride to Stanford.
I refuse to send her downtown.
And this is the city that we live in.
And this is the environment that we are creating
because we like to, um, safeguard BS
and crime and all of that.
Gotta be real with yourselves.
Will you send your kid downtown?
Curfew's not into 10. Will you send your kids downtown?
Will you let them roam? And, and it is.
We have a beautiful city. Will you send your kids downtown?
It's my final say.
Thank you. The chair recognizes Alderman Curtis.
Thank you, Mr. President.
Um, no, there was a, a poll that went out
to the entire city of Chicago.
Uh, and they asked about what was the,
what was your priorities?
The entire city said that public safety
was their number one priority,
and those came from all of our constituents.
Um, uncle knock on wood, I've been blessed, uh,
to be in a community where I have, uh,
basically a low violent crime rate.
Uh, when Alderman Hopkins came to talk to me,
I was the first one to jump on board with him.
I, um, I, uh, in the last two years,
I've had three, uh, team takeovers,
the last being May 31st of this year.
Uh, when I talked with, uh,
when I talked with the, uh, superintendent,
he told me they were on their way because the day
before, the day
before, seven people at a team takeover
was shot on the 30th,
seven people were shot at 78th and Lake Loomis.
I don't mind if kids coming together at all.
Um, Alman Moore talked about a safe space,
but that sounds like in the daytime.
What are they doing? What, what are they supposed
to be at at 10 o'clock at night?
Uh, you have to really see this.
Not only did it happen in my ward, it happened on my block
because I'm right across the street from the school
when it gets to the point of being disrespectful, uh,
jumping on top of cars and, and, and the shooting start.
I had five gunshots, two went in my neighbor's window, uh,
one in one of my, uh, other neighbor's vehicle.
Again, when it comes to I, I'm, I'm, I'm so grateful
that no one got shot that night.
Maybe we should talk to the parents of those kids
that actually got shot.
Uh, but I'm four kids coming together,
but I do believe that they're being influenced by
some greater person that have, uh,
and they may be older than them, but,
but I do believe that they are being influenced.
They're coming together and they're wreaking habit.
Uh, I am in full support of this
because again, I'm not gonna sacrifice
what I believe in kids coming together,
but for the safety of my community.
Thank you, Mr. President. Thank you. The
Chair recognizes Alderwoman Dow.
Uh, thank you, Mr. President.
Uh, proud to be a co-sponsor of this ordinance.
And I think that this issue has been set up
as an either or proposition.
Either you're for the curfew
or you're against the curfew,
and instead, wanna invest in youth.
I believe that we can and should do both.
And I'm not down here doing lazy governance.
I'm down here to actively work
and do what is necessary to protect my community,
uplift my community, and the entire city of Chicago.
And working with you, Mr.
Mayor, we have prioritized
and increased funding for youth jobs.
We have increased summer employment.
We've made some park improvements.
We've opened up new entertainment venues.
We've opened up some mental health centers,
or reopened up some mental health centers.
And we've given teens an opportunity
to find fun, enjoyment, things to do.
That's why we have my shy my future.
It could be more robust, but we have it.
And we could get our new park supervisor in this room
and find out what he's gonna do
to make our parks more interesting to our children.
You know, how about some food trucks
or, um, making sure that we have some games, uh,
and teams and things for our young people
to be involved in for free.
We have, um, expanded in our 2025 budget alone,
increasing to over 50 million for youth employment
and an additional 17 million for out of school programming.
Now, we could do more,
but to do more, we have to have the funds to do more,
which means we have to grow our city.
And in growing our city, we have to make sure
that public safety is top of mind,
because nobody's gonna wanna come into your community,
my community downtown, and open up a business
and generate tax revenue when they have
to be concerned about public safety issues.
I think the updated curfew ordinance is a preventative
and a proactive approach to address these teen trends.
These are teen trends,
which have resulted in property damage, fights,
traffic disruptions,
and at its worse, serious acts of violence.
And sometimes shootings.
I've seen the impact of these 10 teen trends, groups
of kids Maring down 31st Street
or King Drive, damaging local stores,
jumping on cars, breaking windows
on the 31st street beach alone
between the first and the second district.
They have secured 28 guns just this year alone.
Fun, peaceful gatherings are not the subject
of this ordinance.
Stopping these potentially chaotic
and violent gatherings will help everybody,
including our teens, including your daughter, alga
and Scott, to feel safe that they can come downtown
or go into a community or attend a parade.
What we're talking about today,
we're not talking about the majority of teens.
The majority of teens are good people, good children.
We're talking about a small group
that is wrecking havoc on this city.
So I am asking you to
not just say that you want public safety,
let's do something about public safety.
And I urge your support for this ordinance,
and I hope that every single colleague in here will vote.
Vote yes. Thank you.
Thank you. The chair recognizes Alderwoman Nugent.
Thank you, Mr. President.
You know, as as we continue to discuss
and debate this policy, I think we've let a, a crucial part
of this conversation fall by the wayside.
We continually talk about the rights.
Young teenagers have to congregate
and potentially wreak havoc across our city,
but we don't talk about the rights of Chicagoans
and what they, how they should have the ability
to live without fair in the very communities they reside.
Like many of my colleagues, I've had constituents reach out
to express how they are nervous,
how they're scared getting home from work,
or pushing their kid in a stroller
or heading back from the grocery store when they find
themselves stuck in one of these intense situations.
Their ability to live without fear should
matter to us as well.
Um, and as a few of my colleagues have said,
and particularly Alderman just now, this doesn't need
to be an either or scenario.
I just don't buy into this premise
that we can't protect the rights of young people
and their ability to express themselves
and congregate, while also contemporaneously
having a policy in place
to manage a situation if it gets out of hand.
And ensure the safety of our residents.
We can institute this policy while also recognizing
that we need to give our young people additional
programming and opportunities.
And I do believe the administration has done a,
a good job promoting summer youth
programming and summer jobs.
Um, we can institute this policy, uh,
while ensuring it's done responsibly and fairly.
And, uh, alderman Hopkins has made it very clear
that we can amend
and change this policy if we find that,
um, we need to do that.
But I, I think it's, it's crucial that we move forward.
Um, this all
or nothing mentality we continue
to take isn't helping us find solutions
that work for our residents.
Multiple things can be true at once.
And, you know, I've put a lot of thought into this ordinance
and in how we've gotten here.
And, you know,
I believe the administration has worked with Alderman Hopkins.
I believe Alderman Dowell and Alderman Hopkins
and Alderman Irvin have put a lot of time into this,
as has the police department, the superintendent,
and the Deputy Mayor of Public Safety.
This is an ordinance with standard operating procedures
and processes, and that's important.
That is governance, having those checks and balances.
And I am, I will be supporting this ordinance today,
and I encourage my colleagues to do so.
Thank you, Mr. Thank
You. The chair
recognizes Alderman Raymond Lopez.
Good afternoon, Mr. President
and members of the city council.
I rise to, again, stand in support
of this effort led by our colleagues to try to reign in some
of the chaos that we see being unleashed in our cities,
communities, not just downtown as, as sometimes is alluded
to, but throughout all 77 neighborhoods.
And I want to commend the sponsors
and those who worked on this
because it's important to recognize,
to recognize that this is not treating
our youth in broad strokes.
This is at its very heart problem
oriented policing, which is
where we are seeing law enforcement go
and pivot in the 21st century.
Rather than provide an archaic
and overly intrusive curfew ordinance
that would impact all youth throughout the entire city.
This deals with specific situations as they arise
wherever they may arise, whether it's the west side,
south side, downtown, north side, southwest side,
you name it, we can deal through our police superintendent,
bless you, with whatever's arising in
that speci specific location.
This does not impact the overwhelming number of youth who by
and large have a value system that reflects our own.
But this does acknowledge, as our colleague
and chairman of the finance committee
and sponsor of this, mentioned that there is a small youth
that is committed to committing the chaos that we see,
the anarchy that we see their warped sense
of values is very different
because right now, they are not concerned
with uplifting our city.
They're not concerned with whatever free programs,
opportunities or safe spaces that you think that they want
or, or we could even offer.
They're concerned with none of that
because they are more concerned with becoming TikTok,
Snapchat or Instagram famous.
That is their new God.
And appeasing their faith in social media.
It means for them to destroy our city
and our way of life in so many neighborhoods.
And if you think that I'm wrong,
if you think I'm exaggerating, take a moment
and look at any one of those reels that are on social media
where they could laugh hysterically as a friend is run over
when there's a car takeover, or where they're bringing guns
and having people shot in neighborhoods.
All in the name of fun.
I don't know about you, but that's not the kind of fun
that we should be espousing.
There are things that people will say
that this is criminalizing our youth.
That this is an assault on black and brown.
It is not. This recognizes
that there's a small group of individuals who are choosing
to do bad things no matter what we offer.
And that the question
that taxpayers will undoubtedly ask us is this,
where do you draw the line on what you're willing
to give away for free to appease those
who don't care what you're giving them?
When do you recognize that no matter what you offer,
no matter what you provide, that there are individuals
who oftentimes, as my colleagues said from the 18th Ward,
are being organized by people
who don't even live in this city to do bad things.
They are following people who are inspiring them, thinking
that this somehow will bring them some notoriety,
some infamy on social media,
because that is where they solely exist.
That is what we are up against. Ladies and gentlemen.
Should the youth of Chicago as a whole be punished?
Absolutely not. They should be applauded regardless
what neighborhood we they come from.
If a hundred of them come downtown
and know how to be respectful of their city
and enjoy everything that's here, God bless them.
Bring a neighbor and make it 200.
Because that's the kind of Chicago that we all expect.
That's the kind of Chicago that we fantasize having here.
But that's not the Chicago
that matches the reality when we see a hundred individuals
descending because a social media post said, come on down
to Lake Street and let's tear this up.
That is what we are fighting against.
And that's what this tool allows us to do.
And I applaud the sponsors and everyone who signed on
because it recognizes that we can deal
with a very specific problem
with a very specific tool in a very specific way,
in a surgical strike against those who would choose
to wreak havoc in our neighborhoods.
I don't want to criminalize an entire generation.
We don't need to. And anyone who says we are
is gaslighting this room for the performance to try to say
that they're standing up for something
that they're not standing up for.
We are dealing with those who are choosing
to act in a very specific and dangerous way.
And this allows us to do that.
And I urge all of my colleagues to vote in support of this.
Thank you. Thank
You. The chair recognizes
Alder. Nicole Lee.
Thank you, Mr. President.
Um, I wanna thank my colleagues who worked on this,
uh, this ordinance.
I know it wasn't easy, um,
and we spent a lot of time on this.
I don't serve on the public, uh, safety committee,
but I participated in the, in the debate, um,
and appreciated having that opportunity.
We worked hard on this, um,
and I appreciate that you were, uh, open to some
of the feedback that I had and some of my concerns.
Um, I'm the alderman of the 11th Ward. I have Chinatown.
Uh, I have Sox Park.
We also share 31st Street, alderman Dell.
Um, and when the 31st Street Beach incident happened a
couple weeks ago, um, one of my gas stations got looted
as people were filtering out.
Um, my proximity
to downtown also has put us at risk, um, in Chinatown.
And Chinatown is a place, if you haven't been
lately, you should come see us.
Um, it's popping. A lot of people come
and a lot of teenagers come and hang out there.
Um, and we wanna keep it safe and sound.
Um, and oftentimes what has happened in the past is
that there's stuff going on downtown that gets outta control
and people are filtering south.
It does have an impact, um, on surrounding communities.
In fact, we have this not having
to do with anything downtown.
But this, as we've noted with some of my colleagues,
this happens all over the city.
Um, and the 11th Ward is no different.
We had one just a Easter weekend, um, in,
in one of my neighborhoods.
I really do feel like this is something
that is needed in terms of a tool for the police to have
and used on a very judicious basis.
And I have every confidence, um,
that our police department will will use it in that way.
Um, it's not intended to be a blank check by any means,
but it is something that I believe is going
to help provide the kind of preemptive, um, action
that the police can take to prevent things from escalating.
When there is evidence to say that there's a good chance
that it's going to happen, um,
I will be supporting this today.
I appreciate all the work that my colleagues have done
and urge my colleagues to do the same. Thank you.
Thank you. The chair recognizes Alderman sdo.
Thank you, Mr. President.
Uh, first I wanna start by, uh, thanking Alderman Hopkins.
Uh, you really took the high road in your opening speech,
and it was very eloquent and very well said.
So I wish I could just carbon copy it,
but I just have a, a few things I just wanna touch on.
You know, we talk about, um, you know, kids feel that they,
they, they can't go downtown.
Well, you know, yeah. They can't go downtown for a reason.
They have to worry about the
knuckleheads that go down there.
And a lot of kids don't wanna go downtown.
And, uh, Monique, as much as I love you,
but you're not the only parent
that won't let their kids go down there.
So, uh, I'm a parent of 40-year-old daughters,
and believe me, they talk about they never go downtown.
They don't wanna go downtown.
And I hear it from constituents all the time that they,
they feel they can't send their kids downtown.
And we're just talking about downtown.
I know this covers the whole city,
but you know, we're just, I know
we've been focusing on downtown.
'cause that seems to be where a lot of it is.
You know, we talked about kid surveys.
Kids don't want this, kids don't
want this, kids don't want this.
Well, I, I beg to differ.
I bet a lot of the good kids would say they want this.
And also, you know, we never hear from the businesses.
I mean, I bet, I bet if chamber commerce is, were down here,
they'd be overwhelmingly
and businesses saying, we want this.
We wanna, we wanna keep our stores open.
Uh, we're losing business.
You know, we're losing tax dollars in this city.
Um, and we're also, we're also protecting some people here
that maybe some people don't feel too sorry for,
but we're also protecting bad kids.
And there's a lot of bad kids
that change their lives at some point in their life.
And, and we want those kids to have an opportunity to, um,
to change their lives and, and,
and be around to change their life.
So, um, some kids, you can offer things to do whatever,
and they're just gonna wreak havoc.
No way, no matter what. You can offer 'em basketball games,
you can offer 'em movies, you can offer 'em, whatever.
They're just not gonna accept it.
You know, just some kids are just
gonna continue to be knuckleheads.
But this is all about making Chicago a safer place.
And like I say, I believe it's not gonna be used that often,
but just once again, another tool in the toolbox.
So I 100% support this
and thank those of you that do support it.
Thank you, Mr. President.
Thank you. Are there any other alders that wish
to speak to this item?
The chair recognizes Alderman Riley.
Thank you, Mr. President.
And I want to thank my colleagues for speaking up in support
of this ordinance, um, especially Alderwoman Dowell.
Uh, I thought your, your comments were spot on.
Um, what's been frustrating here today is hearing from
colleagues from all over the city, um, talking about
how either they or their friends
don't feel comfortable allowing their
children to come downtown.
Um, which is an area that Aldo Menal and Alderman Hopkins
and Conway
and others Burnett represent, our constituents live here.
Um, and so when there's a perception among parents
that it's not safe to send their their kids
to the central business district
of the third largest city in the country,
that's a big problem beyond the kids in the families.
Um, let's think for a moment about what used
to be a robust convention and tourism economy here.
Um, that's how that revenue is, how we pay for a lot
of the programs ironically, that we use to serve our youth.
Um, how do you think the tourists feel
when they're down here dodging bullets
at one of these teen trends?
Um, we, we had a, a woman in town with her daughter
require competition who was hit by a bullet
shot at one of these teen trends.
What do you think her experience was, uh, visiting our city
and, and, and what do you think she shared with her friends
and family when she returned home?
How was your trip to Chicago? How was the choir competition?
Should we visit Chicago?
Um, these are major issues and, you know, beyond convention
and tourism, people wonder why we don't have all these tower
cranes in the air like we used to.
Uh, I had more than 30 in the air at one time, uh,
under a couple administrations ago.
And we used to see tire cranes throughout the city,
not just in the central business district.
Now you can count 'em on one hand. And why is that?
Um, it's not because developers here
don't want to build more stuff.
They sure do. And it's not
because our friends in the building trades unions don't want
to go to work, feed their families.
'cause I could tell you, they sure do.
Um, there is a giant red line drawn like a circle
around the city of Chicago by the finance community.
And I don't just mean the Chicago finance community.
Um, there are serious misgivings with our lack
of political leadership
and frankly, uh, our, uh,
business unfriendly policies.
But most importantly, an issue that, uh,
alderman Curtis brought up, which is public safety.
There's very little confidence in the
city's ability to provide for that.
And all of those factors lead to
that big red line being drawn around this beautiful,
fantastic city.
And who's eating our lunch right now?
Nashville, Tampa, Miami,
Scottsdale, Charlotte, our tower cranes
and the investment money.
And the, frankly, the developers
who would build these buildings in this city are doing it in
those cities because those cities
know how to handle their business.
And I can tell you, this is one of those key factors
that plugs into the back of envelope equations that decide
where the money is invested.
And this is how you see the decline of great cities.
When the investment dries up
and people shift their focus to other municipalities,
it's very difficult to rebuild that confidence.
It's, it's, it's very difficult to get that investment back.
And we're losing it and we're continuing to lose it.
And so if nothing else,
and this is certainly not a symbolic vote, this is a vote
that has consequences.
If we don't get this right
and we continue to make the other mistakes we've been
making, this city was absolutely guaranteed to decline.
And we won't hold the, the distinction
of being the third largest city in America.
We'll be one of the former largest cities in America.
And so take this to heart.
No, no one wants to to villainize children.
You know, last count, I think there are over
300,000 kids at CPS.
They're not all engaging in this ridiculous activity.
The vast majority of our kids are behaving
and they're engaging in healthy,
productive activity when they're not at school
or at work or with their family.
This is a small group of people
who are doing incredible damage to our city's reputation
and frankly to the safety
and stability of our neighborhoods.
And again, as was mentioned
by other eloquent speakers here today,
this is not a downtown problem.
It is a problem downtown.
But this is a problem throughout the city of Chicago.
And god forbid, this type of activity visits upon your ward.
And you have to field the phone calls from the scared
grandparents and the young families
and others about how they're supposed
to navigate their neighborhoods on a Tuesday
or Wednesday evening when they should
be enjoying the summer months.
Um, so I'm really glad that everyone got up and and
and spoke to this today
because it's been characterized as something it is not.
But most importantly, as Alderman Hopkins,
the sponsor mentioned, this provides the police department
with an opportunity to disperse crowds.
So they don't need to arrest juveniles.
Nobody wants to see that when a kid gets arrested,
that goes on their record for a time.
And with that can come lots of issues. Let's avoid that.
I think as a deterrent,
this can help us prevent the problem.
Um, so I'll be voting yes
and I encourage my colleagues
to do the same. Thank you, Mr. President.
Thank you. Alderman Scho Lopez
for reason stating in Rule 59, um, has expressed the desire
and the need to participate in this portion
of our meeting remotely.
Madam Clerk, could you confirm that he is actually online?
Um, alderman Scho Lopez, are you there?
Yes. Yes. Thank you, Mr. President.
Can I get a motion for the approval
of his participation remotely?
All those in favor signify by saying aye. Any opposed?
Say no. And being the chair, the ayes have it.
Are there any other alters that wish to speak?
We have two final speakers,
unless anyone else wishes to speak to this item very well.
Seeing other hands. Our final two speakers will
be Alderwoman Clay.
And then, uh,
alderman Irvin has preserved the right to close.
The chair recognizes Alderwoman. Clay,
Thank you so much Mr.
President, for this opportunity,
and I appreciate my colleagues
for us having such a civilized conversation
on this floor today.
So proud of us for getting here.
Um, I think that this topic is really near
and dear to my heart, Mr.
President, because as the youngest black female council
member on this floor, I have a very diverse ward
that has a ton of young people.
Um, and I thought I was still young, but I'm not.
And by listening to them, um,
I think I've taken away a couple
of things from this conversation.
Number one, this body does care a lot about public safety.
All of us here want to make sure that no matter
what ward you reside in, that you're able
to get home safely, that your babies have access
to great resources,
and that you are also able to flourish as a business.
We also wanna make sure that we are listening to
the lifeblood of our communities, which the next people
who will be voting for Our next
leaders are our young people.
Um, I have been toying with this question
for quite some time
because we keep using the word tools
tool is so broad, you all that it can't just be, uh,
siphoned into one thing,
which I feel like we're doing right now with a curfew.
The tools that we know work are sometimes the tools
that some of my colleagues never even want to use.
We had to fight for the Peace Book ordinance.
We had to fight for more youth job.
We had to fight for the tools that now everybody wants
to use in their toolbox.
But they weren't just tools that were handed to us,
these were tools that we had to fight for.
I also find it a little funny
that we never talk about these tools outside of the context
when our young people don't look like black and brown youth.
It bothers me that we have a room full
of young people back here
and nobody has asked them their opinion on this issue.
I'm very much so dedicated that the people who are mostly
impacted by what we are discussing should be at the table,
making sure that they are also given their observations
and opinions on the matter.
And we have neglected to talk to anyone today. This morning.
I'm so, uh, ecstatic
that my alma mater uplift community high school,
go Titans delivered to me an entire, an entire folder
of handwritten letters.
You all, I love this so much
because I love handwritten letters.
And I just wanna share with you some of their statements
that they said to me this morning.
Um, I feel like they're mostly targeting the black community
because they might think that they cause a lot
of the issues, but teens need places to just be themselves
and feel like they are a part of a community.
I think they should take away guns.
I, what I learned about the snap curfew is that it is trying
to shut down trends for safety purposes.
But to me it sounds unfair to us teens
because what mostly is the problem is firearms.
You all. We talk about public safety so much that we think
that our young people are oblivious
to what's going on in this city.
The tool that I feel like we really aren't even talking
about is how are we continuing
to let our young people get guns?
How are we still talking about this?
And this is something that's been talked about
since I was a young person.
How are our young people in the city of Chicago,
you all still getting access to firearms
but they can't get access to jobs?
The issue that we are discussing here
is a broader conversation that a lot of us are too afraid
to have, which is what are the tools that we really are,
that are preventing some
of these instances from happening in the first place?
We never bring up single parent households,
or we never bring up the parents after Lollapalooza.
We never talk about who raised you,
and why don't you have decorum after Pride Fest?
We never talk about people's upbringing,
only when it contains young, black and brown people.
And so I wouldn't be me
and I wouldn't be representative of the war
that I represent, which is one
of the most diverse wars on this entire planet.
If I didn't stand up
and speak for the young people
who we are talking over right now,
they too want to have a safe place in the city of Chicago,
in my neck of the woods.
We used to have rainbow skating rink.
Y'all, some of y'all been there, you ain't too old.
And as soon as Rainbow was closed down,
we had a direct correlation of public safety issues going up
because our young people had nowhere else
to go growing up.
I'm 10, 15 minutes away from downtown.
Me and my friends took the red line every summer down here,
everywhere we could go in downtown, the water tower,
the Bean, the lakefront, we were there.
Now, did all of my friends behave how we want them to?
No, absolutely not.
However, that never stopped us from having access,
access to this beautiful city.
No one wants your neighborhoods torn up.
No one wants anyone to get shot in this city.
But what we are also avoiding is the hard conversations as
to what are we giving our young people?
Let's talk about the tools you all,
we can't just talk about let's, let's have a curfew,
but then what are you gonna do after the curfew?
As a lot of our young people know, it's summertime.
The sun is still out at about 9:00 PM
you all, and it's beautiful.
What are we expecting them to do to just sit on their phones
and, and go through screen time for eight hours?
What we are doing right now, again, is not listening
to the young people of this city who are the ones
that are gonna be directly impacted by this law.
So I want to encourage my neighbors
and my fellow, um, colleague to have the hard conversation,
have the hard conversation about what it looks like
to be a disinvestment, um, in your community.
You have nowhere for your young people to go.
Everybody's not going to the Boys and Girls Club.
Everybody's not going to the parks.
And I appreciate you, Mr.
Mayor, for having midnight basketball with our young people
because that is something that they wanna do.
I still got it. You see, you tried.
Okay, you tried.
I know a couple young people that was out there, okay?
But that type of relationship
and that type of commitment to our young people goes, well,
farther than what we are trying
to accomplish with this ordinance.
So I just wanted to speak my piece
because again, um, I feel like
what we are doing is we're just not listening.
We all wanna have the conversation
about how do we make us safe.
You all, we all wanna get home to our families, you all,
especially our young people,
it pains my heart every time one
of our young people is impacted by gun violence
because their future is cut at the knees.
But what are we doing as a body, as a city
to not just protect them, but to propel them forward?
So I'm a no thank you.
Thank you.
Okay. So thank you.
I previously see stated. Thank you.
All right, thank you very much.
I previously stated that there were two speakers left,
Alderwoman Clay and Alderman Irvin.
However, there are three other alders
that have expressed the willing to speak to this item.
So it's Alders Rodriguez, Fuentes Rodriguez,
and re Are there any other alders that wish
to speak to this item?
All right, we'll add Vasquez and Napolitano.
Alderwoman Clay. Alderwoman Clay is longest
as Vice Mayor is part of this body.
You are always young. So
the chair recognizes,
the chair recognizes Alder Fuentes.
Thank you, Mr. President.
Uh, first, uh, I wanna start by saying that I have a deep,
a deep respect for Alderman Hopkins and Alderwoman Pat Dow.
This is not about who sponsored the ordinance.
This is not about the color of your skin
or what word in, in this city you reside in or represents.
Um, and, and I, and I wanna say that right,
because there's gonna be some clear disagreement,
but that doesn't take away the fact that
I wanna be partners in the work with you all.
Uh, and the public safety is important to me.
I wanna say that I'm proof of concept.
I'm proof of concept that when we invest in our young
people, when we radically love our young people,
and when we give them opportunities to lead,
they can be agents of change in our city.
I'm an older person that has a juvenile record
and an early in and an early adult record.
I wasn't always the best community organizer
and activist in Humbolt Park.
I was 16 years old when I first had my first encounter
with the juvenile justice system
for getting into a school fight at Carl.
She's high school. I grew up in a household with a father
to spend an overwhelming majority
of my life in and outta prison.
And a mother that suffered from substance abuse.
At 16 years old, I had no idea how to socially,
emotionally regulate
or even be a good person for my community.
All I knew how to do was survive.
And that meant I made terrible decisions.
I made terrible ones.
And my lived experiences
and an excuse for the decisions I made, I had
to pay the consequences.
I assumed responsibility for my decisions.
But I wanna tell you what was the turning point for me.
I was 17 years old, walked into a high school called Dr.
Pedro's, Puerto Rican High School,
and there was a mentor there who chose to see me
and love me despite my faults.
And then he chose to invest in me, giving me a summer job,
making me a youth leader
for a youth organization called Bat Bono.
He gave me a pen, paper and a mic.
He allowed me to perform poetry to be an actor and a play.
He opened up resources that were down the block for me
that I didn't even know existed.
And I lived from them my entire life.
My entire life. But you know what didn't help me?
What didn't help me was being in handcuffs.
What didn't help me was telling me that I was misbehaving
or that I wasn't worthy of resources.
What helped me was a community investing in me.
And I know that to work, not
because we're seeing crime go down currently on the news
because of our investments in violence
prevention and youth employment.
I know that because I've lived it.
I get to be the older person of the 26th Ward
because my community chose to invest in me.
And so my no vote today is not
because I just disagree with the chief sponsors or,
or that I disagree with the points that were made
with people who are supporting this ordinance,
because I do agree with the concerns that even those
who are supporting this ordinances have.
What I don't believe is that this ordinance seeks
to solve the problem we are seeking to solve here today.
The amount of guns
that our young people have access to is criminal.
I wanna address that. The lack
of resources in many communities in the city
of Chicago is criminal.
I wanna address that.
The fact that young people only believe
that they can authentically be themselves on TikTok.
I wanna address that too.
Young people deserve to authentically show up in every space
that they're in, and we have to cultivate the environment
for young people to feel that way.
I also have serious concerns around the general
language in this ordinance that I believe is going
to open us up for lawsuits.
We spend millions
of dollars in settlements just here in this body.
I don't wanna spend more money in
settlements with bad policy.
I don't want us to come back a couple months from now
and we have to settle something
that we could have avoided due
to the general language in this ordinance.
There are many attorneys
and civil organizations that have already articulated to us
the constitutional violations they already believe
to be in this ordinance.
And so I'm a no vote today,
but that does not mean that I'm not willing to work
with my colleagues in this body
or that, you know, I have to
not like folks who are voting yes.
Right? That's not about that.
We all believe that our city should be safer.
We are all invested in our public safety.
We just believe in two different routes to get there.
And I do think that that's okay.
So I'm not walking away from this vote today.
I'm probably gonna vote No. Thank you, Mr. President
Mayor recognizes Alderman, Mike Rodriguez.
Yes. And, and I'm gonna do my best to, to, I I like
to brag about being brief,
so I'm gonna try that again, folks.
I hope that's okay. Um, look, I,
I think my two other colleagues spoke
very eloquently to the heart.
So, um, I'm gonna leave that to that.
I'm gonna speak to directly to the policy
and a bit to the head, if you will.
Um, I, I concur with my colleagues, the folks, uh,
voting for this ordinance.
I think they're trying to help our city.
I, I don't, um, have a problem with that.
My issue is in some of the lack of clarity in this language,
and I, I'm just gonna bring two things up in Section 21,
uh, B one, the public of the curfew imposed, uh, forgive me,
uh, by the public spaces,
such a declaration is made including a feasible causing such
information to be posted around public places.
Which, which places? Like, how is that gonna get done?
Uh, C two defines a parent
or guardian as being a fence.
Uh, uh, I really, to what extent, like where does that go?
Where is that limited?
What are we gonna do with these parents?
Are we locking them up as well for something
that they didn't necessarily do?
Um, you know, in the 1980s, we had a war on drugs
that really was a war on inner city communities.
We spent a lot of time in the eighties
and nineties figuring out how to incarcerate people
and how to make sure that drug, uh,
mandatory minimums were raised and crime just increased.
I think the amount of time that we spend on this issue, uh,
is an important amount of time.
I would much rather be spending that time
and figuring out from the front end on
how we're investing in our young people versus
how we are planning to incarcerate them.
And look, I I, I'm not saying that the proponents
of this are just trying to incarcerate youth.
I've, I've heard you loud and clear.
This is an in deterrent effort.
I think there are better ways to deter this type
of negative activity that none of us want.
I I'm with you on that. I do not want
these takeovers as well.
I, I, I agree wholeheartedly.
I just don't think this is the right way to do that.
I will be, I will not be supporting this effort.
And I do call on my colleagues to join us in
that, in that, in that vote.
Thank you, Mr. President.
Thank you. The chair recognizes all the women Tamba.
Thank you. I will be supporting this measure
because curfews are about safety.
They're not about punishment. They're about preventing harm.
And we've seen violence erupt at these events.
Not, not every kid is violent, but, but when one
or two act out, every kid is at risk.
And these large teen gatherings
that have been threatening downtown safety not only hurts
our businesses, but it also makes every
resident feel unsafe.
Every, every neighborhood, including downtown
and our wards deserves to be safe.
And if we don't take action, these events will only increase
and people, including kids, will get hurt.
So to do this right, we need to provide kids
with opportunities, but also enforce clear rules.
These teen events often turn violent.
And this measure gives the Chicago Police Department the
ability to act to prevent large teen gatherings.
Our kids need to understand
that there are repercussions for their actions.
Discipline and rewards are both essential.
But right now, there are no consequences
for kids acting recklessly in downtown.
So it's true that we must invest in
kids in our neighborhoods.
And statistics show that when you,
when you implement a curfew paired with opportunities
for kids, it works.
You look at cities like San Antonio, Texas
that do both curfews and investing for kids opportunities.
So, like my colleagues mentioned earlier,
this isn't either or situation.
We need both opportunities and expectations
or are two pieces of the same puzzle.
So for all, for Alderman who want more funding for kids,
I certainly agree, I a hundred percent agree with you,
but we achieve that by safeguarding downtown
and the wards that we each represent.
So I urge my colleagues to vote. Yes. Thank you.
Thank you. The chair recognizes Alder Vazquez.
Thank you very much, Mr. President.
Um, I'll try my best not to repeat what some
of our other colleagues have mentioned.
I think everyone here is clearly invested in a safe
and affordable city, a Chicago that
everyone can feel comfortable to, to walk around
and to travel and to appreciate, uh, anywhere in the city.
And I know that there are often challenges, um, not as young
as I used to be, but there was a time where I was young
and it was the ability to go downtown.
That actually changed my view about the city as a whole.
We know the history of how segregated Chicago is,
and it was my ability to actually go downtown as somebody
who was looking to, to meet other kids, to get involved,
create music, to express ourselves, that allowed me
to learn about the experiences
of other youth everywhere in the city.
It's what helped me learn what different parts
of town like to go visit the point.
And to go to Navy Pier
and other places, I wouldn't have even taken those steps.
But not for the ability to go downtown
and meet other youth, uh,
and try to convene as a community, even as we're all
high school kids, still trying to figure out
who we were and trying to do that.
Even back then, we would get kicked outta places
with or without a curfew.
Every single weekend at Navy Pier, you would watch scores
of young kids all getting kicked out.
Police telling us to get the heck out of there, right?
But you would also see who would not get kicked out.
And it would also be youth that would not get kicked out.
Typically, they were more affluent.
Typically they weren't black and brown.
And all that did to us is make us feel like we weren't part
of a community, make us feel like we were less than anybody
else around and actually led more of us
to engage in further activity we shouldn't be engaging in.
'cause when you don't feel like you're a part
of a community, you tend to lose some of that connection
and some of that investment in
what it means to be part of a city.
You feel like you've gotta go wherever else the kids are
sneaking around you, as opposed to feeling proud
of being in your own city in places
to actually enjoy yourself.
Um, that was in the nineties.
Not much has changed about the tools
that we talk about when it comes to public safety.
Um, I appreciate that our colleagues who,
who very much are invested in a safer city, talk about, um,
just as alder women to bars just did, like the balance.
You have to figure out what accountability looks like when
somebody is engaged in activity that they shouldn't,
and also figure out what it means to invest in, in someone
and, and reward proper behavior.
So the fact that we talk about one without the
other is part of the challenge.
Not because people don't believe we should do both,
but we don't seem to be moving in tandem on both.
We say, Hey, let's do one,
and then we'll talk about the investment stuff later.
And then budget comes and they go, well,
we don't have the money to do the other stuff.
And so we, we still have the one in place,
but we're not doing the second one.
So it would be, I think, in all of our best interest
to write legislation that actually encompasses both
as we're doing it, rather than leaving one behind
because it doesn't lead to the kind
of solutions we all wanna see, right?
Um, more often than not, I've heard from our colleagues,
and I appreciate it, that like, this is a tool for CPD,
this is something that they need.
It's been pretty clear that the tools
that the officers have now are the ones they can use
for dispersal when it comes to communication about, Hey,
we found out that you all plan are, are planning
to be on this corner next week.
You can just say, guess what?
We're gonna be there first as CPD,
so maybe you don't want to be there.
It it, a curfew doesn't empower CPD any further
to do the things that they can already do.
And just as recently as last week,
superintendent Snelling said publicly on the record things
that he's told us on the phone
and talked to us individually that he didn't ask for it,
and he wouldn't use it because it wasn't the
curfew that he's seeking to do.
He's seeking to prevent the activity with com,
which communication could do.
So when we had the hearing about it,
I asked if CPD asked about it,
and I take my colleague, uh, alderman Hopkins
as moving in good faith.
So when he stated that there was a conversation about it,
I'm gonna understand that maybe there's a miscommunication
as to what was intended.
I don't, I don't believe anybody was
being facetious about it.
But ultimately the superintendent said,
it's not a tool I would use.
I didn't ask for it. I also asked for it
through the chair any instances of
how many times it's been used as a far
as our current curfew at 10:00 PM
I didn't get that information.
I asked, can you get any information on settlements related
to any of the cases that might have involved curfew?
I didn't get that information.
And so it's challenging for me to support something
that on its face, CPD said, they don't want,
and they wouldn't use and didn't ask for.
It's something that doesn't empower them
to do anything further than they already can do.
And I don't think it would change the results.
And so I, I don't, I, I try not to be cynical,
but sometimes when you have neighbors who are rightfully
and justifiably afraid
because they're seeing this activity weekend after weekend,
and you're the older person who has to answer for it,
and you can't figure out another way to answer,
because CPD has, has all the tools that they already have,
then the next step you take is say, well,
I'm writing a legislation and this is gonna be the thing
that's gonna solve a problem.
I think the challenge is this, if this were to pass,
it's not gonna stop the activity from happening.
It's just not. So you're just passing something to say
that you passed something as opposed
to actually solving the problem.
I would definitely wanna partner not just
with other colleagues here,
but like, let's have the youth involved.
They've been asking for legislation to get passed,
so why not write it together
and have that kind of investment.
Um, again, I I,
I think everyone here in good faith is trying their best
to keep their community safe
and make sure people can enjoy it.
I just think there's better ways to do it, which is al be a,
which is why al be a no.
Uh, thank you very much with president.
So there are, there are two more speakers
before the final speaker.
So Napolitano is no longer the speaker
before the final speaker, sorry, Napolitano,
but Alderwoman, Stephanie Coleman.
I'm gonna just ask again, are there any other alders
that wish to speak before our final speaker?
All right, in the meantime, the chair recognizes
Alderman Napolitano.
Thank you, Mr. President.
Um, before I even start, what a great debate.
What a great calm debate between, between us all, um,
where we've kind
of gone off the rails in other directions, on other debates.
I guess this is something important and,
and we're all treating it that it's important.
And to add to what my colleague said to to my right here,
um, I was a downtown kid too.
I think most of us all were, we all had the ability
to travel downtown, experience the greatest city in the
city, uh, in the country.
That's why we all wanted
to represent it in city council at some point in our lives.
Uh, to defend it and to make it grow.
And to, to make Chicago put Chicago on the map is not one
of the best cities, but the best city.
Um, unfortunately where we've gone in recent years is
what I could attribute to
what my other colleagues said, alderman Scott.
I I, I have three kids, um, teenagers and,
and I refuse to let them go downtown.
Um, I, I just don't want them, you know, to,
to stumble upon something that might not go the right way
and to witness something that they might not wanna see.
I've got a lot of demons in my head
of things I've seen over the years.
I don't want my kids to witness that
or to see it or to be a part of it.
You know, who's to say that they're not gonna
partake in it, they're not perfect.
Um, but what worries me here is
we're all seeing the exact same thing happen
on TV every weekend.
And it's getting outta control.
It's getting worse every week.
And I, I, I believe the spirit here is we're looking
to create something that could maybe make it a little bit
better, uh, and to make our city a little bit safer.
And one thing we're not taking into account here is
how times are changing so much right now.
And we're looking for tools,
but this is what's changing the times
so quickly for us right now.
This gives kids, well, actually let's not put it on kids.
Let's on everybody. The ability to assemble
and disperse at the drop of a hat like that.
So where, where you're,
where you're saying one thing's gonna happen,
this gives them the ability to,
to assemble in a different location.
This gives them the ability to disperse
and assemble in another location.
And I, I what I, what I like about this, this ordinance is,
this is not a blanket curfew.
It's ara, it's a drop in, it's a lay, it's a drop it
and pick it up type of, uh, ordinance.
So it doesn't mean that we're blanketing
curfew everybody all the time.
Uh, you know, it gives you the ability
to hit areas at certain times when things are going wrong
and then lift it and raise it and lift it and raise it.
It, it's another tool.
Um, I I I just think that if
like, like my my colleague said here, it's gonna,
it's gonna happen again, right?
Absolutely. It's gonna happen again. But if we're not doing
our job to create something
that might not make it happen again,
or like my other colleague said
that we could possibly save a kid that's there in the wrong
by just shutting it down immediately.
Maybe the bad kid got hurt that day.
Maybe the good kid got hurt that day.
But if we're not thinking of something
in real time right now to get ahead of this,
we're gonna hurt the city of Chicago.
We're gonna hurt our business corridors.
We are keeping people from going downtown.
We're not creating more tax dollars.
'cause people aren't enjoying the city
of Chicago as much anymore.
I've got friends that live outside the city,
as I'm sure all of you do.
They refuse to go downtown anymore.
They're staying in the surrounding suburbs.
Unfortunately, they're staying in the surrounding suburbs
just outside of where I live too.
But they're staying in the surrounding suburbs
'cause they don't want to go downtown
and deal with what Chicago has to offer right now.
I think we're all smart enough
to figure out how to get ahead of this.
Like a lot of my colleagues said as well,
this is something we can amend, make better as we go along.
But let's create something, vote for it
and put it in, in enact it and see how it works
before we destroy it and give our city a chance.
Give our youth a chance.
Let me let my kids go back downtown again.
You know, that's the way it should be. I grew up down here.
They should grow up down here too. Thank you, Mr. President.
Thank you. Alright,
the chair recognizes wo and Stephanie Coleman.
Thank you Mr. President.
I'm gonna be very, very, very brief.
I was not going to even make any comments.
But, uh, chairman Vasquez, you had stated that, um,
there are some comments
that were made via the WBEZ, um, article.
And I just want to say in his absence
and also his alderman's absence, I know Commander Snelling,
I know Lieutenant Seth Snelling, deputy Snelling,
and now Superintendent Snelling.
What he says he means, he means
what he says and says what he means.
I think we can all say, uh, at some point of our career,
we have either been misquoted
or the entire story wasn't told.
So in his absence,
superintendent Snelling is a man of integrity.
He was misquoted.
Those comments were not, in fact what he says.
And in private conversations,
he has shared, uh, that with us.
So just in his absence,
I just wanna make it very clear on record
that he is a man of integrity.
So what he says, then he's not gonna switch it up
and say to us a different message.
Uh, thank you so much. I just wanted to speak in his
Absence. Thank you. Thank you
Alderwoman Coleman.
Are there any other alders that wish to speak?
Alright, the chair recognizes Alder Vazquez.
Thank, thank you. I just wanted to appreciate,
uh, uh, they called. My name is
Alder Va Vazquez just directed to me.
I agree fully, yes. Directed,
I agree fully about Superintendent Snelling's integrity.
I don't think anybody here questions his integrity.
What I stated was what I stated.
I had the same conversation with him on the
phone. Thank you Chairman.
Very well. Thank you. All right, see you.
No other hands and no other names being
mentioned outside of the next one.
I'm gonna call for the final, uh, word on this debate.
The chair recognizes Alderman, Jason Irvin.
Thank you, uh, Mr. President.
Um, I, um, wanna thank, uh,
co-sponsors of this legislation, the Alderman, the Second
and the Third Ward.
Um, this was a, a very interesting, uh,
and sometimes I think difficult conversation.
Uh, and I,
I've been in Chicago all of my life.
Um, only time I wasn't in Chicago.
I spent four years in Carbondale.
And they say that outside
of Chicago was a place called Illinois.
Um, and I say that to say that
I spent time in southern Illinois
and I learned some stuff that I didn't learn
here in the city of Chicago.
One evening I found myself in a town
called Mounds, Illinois.
Little small town in Pulaski County.
Uh, put four accountants in a car
and we landed in Mounds, Illinois, found ourselves,
went to a hole in the wall.
Friend from towns, Illinois, took us to,
just wanted to get out of town.
But on the way back, I ended up in a town called Anna.
You all look up the history Union County, Anna, Illinois.
And when we stopped there, the young lady
who was from Tam said, we can't be here.
It was two o'clock in the morning. We can't be here.
And I didn't know this, I didn't understand this.
And that was something I never forgot.
When our first, this ordinance first hit,
it was eerily familiar to saying that black kids
could not go downtown's.
What I took from that ordinance, I'm gonna be very honest
with you, I understand the Alderman is trying
to protect his community to do
what he felt was the proper thing to do.
However, I think that
us taking a position limiting
anybody's ability to traverse this city in a way
that everybody else can, I took issue
and that's why I I got involved in this conversation
and I got involved in a sense of trying to create something,
understanding the challenge that
downtown Alderman were facing
and trying to come to some conclusions, uh,
in relation to that.
And unfortunately, what we have now is worse
than what we started with.
Meaning that not only can it happen downtown,
but it can happen all over the city, right?
Secondly, this power is bestowed
in one department whose interests
may not necessarily be totally aligned with the interest
of our entirety of the, of the city.
And again, giving authority
to a department that historically
has not had the best interest of black kids in,
in its place is not a, something that I wanna sign up for.
Now, granted, try to create a situation that, that, that,
that gave some balance to the situation,
but that was rejected by members of council.
Now we don't have a crystal ball to see what's gonna happen,
but check this out.
I've never seen law enforcement take power
and want to give it back again.
I've never seen law enforcement not want
to keep power that it's having.
So if we were to say, today, let's go back
and re-implement the Disorderlies, stop
and frisk other items that
granted might, people might feel safer.
Safer. But those are the same policies that led us
to the crime bill in 95 that we know historically was wrong.
Today was interesting that Bobby Russ was here,
and he spoke to this specifically about
how the knee jerk reaction of
what was happening in the eighties
and nineties led us to that point
that today we know is wrong.
This is one of those potential crystallizing moments.
It's our job as legislators to put up guard rails, right?
We don't execute. We put up guard rails.
And our job is also to balance the interest.
And this particular test of balancing the interest
squarely at the determination
and the mindset of the Chicago Police Department,
whose interest don't necessarily balance the entire
of all interests, is not something I think that we need
to be allowing for in this in this moment.
Again, knee jerk reactions lead
to challenges.
And here we have a situation where
we've got a chief executive and a superintendent and I,
and if I'm speaking outta turn, I am,
that is clearly in conflict on this issue.
And why would we wanna put him in a position
to be in conflict with the chief executive of this city?
Because he is the one that's gonna face the consequences of
that particular decision.
Should it go wrong? Or should it go in a, in a, in a way
that is not in agreement with the head of the city
of Chicago, that the people elected, that is the mayor.
And so it's kinda, I don't understand why we would want to
put the superintendent that everybody pretty much is in
varying degrees saying is doing a decent job in that line
of fire, a consequence.
Because the next question will be, why didn't you do this?
And creating conflict unnecessarily.
This is something that is unneeded.
It is something that there are tools in the box.
And as I said before, I've never seen law enforcement
not continue to want more authority.
And this authority is gonna land squarely on the kids,
on the so and west side of Chicago.
Now, granted, we got some bad jokers, we understand that.
But again, those are things that we have other tools
and need resources to help challenge and manage, right?
They say that the neglect is not cost free.
These are some of the things
that happen when we don't take care of our young people.
And again, everything we are trying
to do, we talk about criminal acts.
Police department doesn't need a
curfew to deal with criminal acts.
They have the ability to do that today.
Again, I know it's challenging and I know it's easy.
This is easy to just say, let's do this
and put this behind us.
But this is not the right decision.
Our young people need help.
Our young people need assistance.
Our young people need people that are going to love them.
This is the same methodology
that was brought about in the nineties.
We know it was wrong then and still wrong today.
Unfortunately, there's more work to do
and it's not just in policing.
And when we get the idea
that public safety is more than policing,
then we will be able to move forward
because public safety is more than just
the police department.
As the alder from the 46th Ward talked about,
as everyone has talked about,
our communities need investment.
Our communities need assistance.
We got enough police officers,
we don't need more power for the police department.
We need no more power for the people with that.
Ask for a roll call, vote.
Very well. Thank you Alderman.
And thank you to all of those who have spoken.
There's an item on the floor, uh, there's a motion
that has been made for this item.
The item has been motion for a roll call vote.
Uh, please use your your EVO application
to record your vote at this time.
Thank you Madam Clerk.
The voting is now open. The voting is now open.
Please use your eev device. The voting is now open.
I'll now call on those, um, that did not use the Eev device
for a voice vote.
Alderwoman doo Yay al do is a yes.
Alderwoman Taylor. No Alderwoman
Taylor is a no.
Alderman Ccho Lopez.
No Ccho Lopez is a no Alderman brunette.
No Alderman Burnett is a no.
Alderwoman Rodriguez Sanchez, no.
All right. And Alderwoman mitts
is not in chambers.
All right, the voting is now closed.
There are 27 yays. 22 nays.
This motion passes Alderman Mitchell on the motion
to reconsider Move,
Move the reconsider vote.
All those in favor of the reconsideration
of this vote signify by saying Aye.
Those who oppose say no. This motion fails.
Alderman Mitchell, are you aware of any other business?
Unfinished business rather? Yep.
Uh, I am aware of one piece of unfinished business.
Oh, no, no, no. I'm not aware
of any further pieces of unfinished business. Very well,
Thank you. Now for miscellaneous
miscellaneous business,
however, alderman Mitchell,
I'm aware of four pieces of miscellaneous business filed
by Alderman Viegas, alderman Ramirez, Altman Martin,
and Altman Lawson.
The first two pieces of the miscellaneous business notices
of intent to discharge were filed
by Altman Viegas and Altman Ramirez.
Both, but, but both have withdrawn their notices.
The third piece of miscellaneous business was filed
by Alderman Martin and States
and intent to discharge in the committee on
committees and rules.
For further consideration of the re re-referral
of Ordinance 2 0 2 5 0 0 1 5 5 8 3.
Very well, the chair recognizes Alderman Martin.
Thank you Mr. President.
I move to discharge this matter from the Committee on
Committees and Rules and re-refer to the Committee on Ethics
and Government Oversight.
I There, there I believe are two motions. This is the first
Very well. So there's the first
motion to discharge, uh,
this item from the Committee on rules.
Um, is this a vote we can do by voice? Is that okay? Voice
Is fine. Alright.
All those in favor of the discharging
of this item signify by saying aye.
Aye. Any opposed? Say no.
And the opinion of the chair Ayes have it. Auman Martin,
Thank you. I
lastly move to re-refer this matter
to the committee on ethics
and Government oversight by voice. Vote
Very well. If there is no
one that wishes to speak to this item,
the chair
recognizes Alderman Gardner.
Thank you, Mr. President.
Um, in light of some, some recent news
and rulings that came out within the last 48 hours, um,
I would just like to speak on this very briefly.
Um, I'm gonna start by thanking all my colleagues today, uh,
and how well you, you spoke
and eloquently about different issues that we had in front
of us regarding curfews, uh,
regarding L-G-B-T-Q-I-A.
Um, and,
and I'm very grateful, uh, for all that you have said,
because I tried my best to listen to your passionate words.
And I ask that you take a minute to listen to some
of the words that I wanna share with you.
And it's not for me, um, as much
as it is for every single person.
Here I am, the son
of Margaret and Joseph Gardner, two immigrants who came here
as teenagers and worked their way up
and raised seven children to be strong and to be brave.
There was two things that they drilled into our head,
which was to serve others
and respect, respect your peers,
especially the people that you serve.
I've spent 24 years serving the, serving the people
of this city where I was born and raised.
I love this city.
I have worked.
You need a minute, alderman
Gardner. You have a minute, sir.
I've worked in the parks.
I've worked in schools.
I've been a coach. I've been a mentor to hundreds
of people in this city on the north and the south side
and the west side of Chicago.
I've worked as a firefighter. I've worked as an alderman.
I've done my very best to serve
the people, the people of this city.
It is very difficult for me to talk about
what has happened within the last four years.
And, and I can't put it into words.
Um, but in 2023,
after I won reelection to represent the people 45th Ward,
I was accused of violating 10 ethics codes.
Something that I would never do.
I was fined $2,000 for each violation
for a maximum fine
of $20,000.
I couldn't believe what I heard.
I couldn't believe what I read.
I I, after 24 years of serving this city,
I was accused of gross malpractice.
I was devastated. I was depressed.
It shook me to my core.
And only because of my faith, definitely,
and the love of my wife,
I was able to fight.
So I picked myself up off the ground,
started to reach out to some lawyers
and ask for some legal advice.
'cause as a kid who grew up in the city of Chicago,
in a blue collar family, you don't know your rights.
So I reached out to some lawyers
and all of them said, just pay the fee.
Move on. Can't fight the system. Can't fight the city.
When they got you, they got you. Even if it ain't true,
I found one lawyer, Steve Lapinski,
who was crazy enough to take it on
and say, Hey man, this is wrong.
This is wrong In so many different ways,
these allegations are totally bogus.
And so we fought it. We went to war with the city.
And I mentioned war
because the city hired some, some guns
to come after me, outside law firm.
Big a well-respected law firm.
And they didn't just get some kid outta college,
they got a partner of a law firm come after me
and shove this down my throat said,
we're gonna shove this down your throat, whether you like it
or not, whether you did it or not.
That's pretty intimidating. It's very intimidating.
But they were nice enough to say, if you take a plea
and you pay only a portion of this fine
and admit to your faults you can move
on, what would you do?
Would you risk 10 times that amount in legal fees
and then also have the $20,000 fine staring down,
staring you down to pay at well
over a hundred thousand dollars?
Would you sell yourself out?
What price can you put on your reputation?
What price?
I'm the son
Of Margaret and Joseph Gardner.
They taught us to serve others and respect others.
That's exactly what I've done for 24 years.
But don't trust my, my words.
Bill Conland, the chair of the Board of Ethics.
I handed it out to you, all of you today, as many
as I possibly could.
Please read his words in here.
Please read his findings.
And I know a lot of us, some of us are lawyers,
so you'll understand it.
It'll be easy for you to understand.
Some of you, some like myself, we're not.
We're street kids, right? We grew up in the city of Chicago.
We're tough kids, but sometimes we're not educated as far
as legal, uh, words are concerned.
And I had a hard time even understanding this.
I'm a street kid. But it says,
the investigative bodies failure
or refusal to disclose all exculpatory
material in its possession from the investigation.
Do we, for those of us who are not lawyers, do we know
what exculpatory evidence is?
Exculpatory evidence is something that tends
to be beneficial to the defendant.
Something that could maybe rule in their favor to say, Hey,
he or she is not guilty of something,
Failure or refusal
to disclose exculpatory material.
I'm having a hard time understanding that
I'm having a hard, hard time.
How? 'cause at the core, as you guys know
of any investigative body,
and correct me if I'm wrong,
is transparency and accountability.
Right? We say that a lot. We said it a lot today,
I heard, right?
So if you have information, exculpatory evidence,
it's your duty, your basic duty to share that information.
If that body cannot live up to its most basic principles,
how in God's green earth can we come down here
and ask to give her or her department more unchecked power?
Again, I'm not, I'm, I'm, I'm just a street kid.
I don't have all the, you guys have all the degrees.
You guys are very smart, educated people.
I'm just learning on the fly as I go.
But I'm just, luckily Margaret
and Joseph Gardner raised a kid that was just tough enough,
gritty enough to stand up and, and,
and thankfully to God, I I came across
Steve Zelinski as well.
And, and we took on the city, we took on the gorilla,
if you will, the undefeated gorilla, right?
That you can't beat the city.
You can't, you can't take them on. We did.
And out of 10 violations, not a single one stood.
That's all for 10. I'm, I'm not a great baseball player,
but that's 0.0 0.0000.
That's horrible. Not one.
Oh, Ladies
and gentlemen, I come on.
I mean, we are just gonna blindly give away more power,
if you will, or more leverage
to do whatever it is that you wanna do.
And you can't prove to us
that you can't fulfill your most basic principles.
What I mean,
this is this, this alone.
If you guys have not taken the time, don't,
again, don't trust my words.
Bill Conlin. He is the head of the Board of Ethics,
well-respected attorney in this city for decades.
Please read it. I highlighted it for you guys.
I made it real simple. There's a footnote.
It's footnote number four, page three.
Please, please, please read it.
And I will leave with this.
The people of the 45th Ward elected me
to represent my community.
I have done that from the very, the day
that I have been elected to do so in 2019.
I have never
nor would I violate the trust that the people
of the 45th Ward have given me to represent my community.
And anybody who says otherwise, anybody who says
otherwise, you should seriously
reconsider their validity.
Thank you for your time, mayor.
Thank you. Um, alderman Burnett has his hand raised,
so I will recognize him.
The chair recognizes Alderman Burnett.
Thank you very much, uh, Mr. Chairman.
And, uh, uh, I'm sorry that that happened
to my brother, ma'am.
Um, but I'm glad you were able to get past it.
So we have to have checks and balances, guys.
I don't know what's wrong
with the law department representing us.
Uh, initially we all, we're trying to get our own lawyers,
now we going to settle for no lawyers.
I don't understand that.
Um, like, like, um,
alderman Gardner said a lot of us aren't lawyers.
So we rely on lawyers to be able to do things for us.
And if you don't have your,
if you don't have the city representing you, then you have
to go and pay for a lawyer.
I don't know how many folks are able to pay for lawyers,
even if people make acquisitions,
um, against you.
So we need to be able to have some type of, um,
defense on our behalf.
So we need to consider that.
Um, I don't understand why we would
even say that.
Uh, corporation Council, the Department of Law
shouldn't represent us.
I, I don't understand that.
I mean, those guys get paid to represent us.
Uh, we put it in the budget every year.
It just, it just baffled me that, uh,
we would even be considering this kind of thing.
Uh, the Department of Law is legal, is legally required to
safeguard attorney client privileges
and work product protections on
behalf of the city of Chicago, including us.
Why would we give that up?
Um, so, um,
it is like saying a lawyer.
I, I don't, I I wouldn't do that. Uh, thank you.
Uh, alderman,
there are two other alders that wish to speak.
Were you about to offer a, a, a clarification? Okay.
For a a point of clarification,
the chair recognizes Alderman Martin.
Thank you. And that's specifically in response to
what Vice Mayor Burnett shared.
So the Corporation Council
and I have met on a number of occasions, both
with the Inspector General as well as one-on-one.
I have shared a substitute, uh, draft
with the law department that clarifies, uh,
and of course this is a proposed substitute, uh, that, uh,
an indivi individual in the city, uh, would
of course in any investigative interview retain their right
to private counsel, uh,
or to the counsel of the law department, assuming they agree
to represent that person in their individual capacity.
As many of you are aware with regard to complicated, uh,
CPD related misconduct allegations, it's not uncommon
to actually have a firewall within the law department
to have certain individuals for the purposes of certain in,
uh, uh, proceedings
or interviews represent a member
of CPD in their personal capacity.
And then separately have members of the law department
who are working on behalf of the city who owe a duty
to the city and not to that particular individual,
especially when those duties may collide.
And so I wanna make sure that our colleagues are aware
that we are not proposing that, uh,
covered members say individuals who are, are represented
by union, which is 90% of our workforce
or uncovered, uh, members, uh, including members
of this body, would, uh, give up their rights entirely.
What is proposed right now is simply to re-refer this item
from the rules committee to the Ethics Committee
for continued consideration, including
for continued opportunity to modify a substitute
that was shared a month ago
with the law department. Thank you.
Thank you. Alder Vazquez, you still wish to speak
very well, the chair recognized Alder Vazquez,
Uh, thank you Mr. President.
Um, first I want
to thank Alderman Gardner for his comments.
I don't think any of us can appreciate, I'm sure none
of us can appreciate what you've had to go
through the last number of years because even the
accusations were enough that members of this body,
that the general public had a certain
opinion already
before everything actually ran through the court system,
and you were able to find your innocence.
But we all know in Chicago,
sometimes it doesn't even matter.
That decision's already been made in the public
and you gotta walk around and carry that
and had to do it for a number of years in both your
public and your private life.
And so I feel for you, brother, just
as somebody who's had that kind
of type casting occur when you walk through life
and people automatically saying, well, you heard about so
and so and the whispers whenever you're walking,
and there's been a number of us that have been a part of it,
we had the same kind of intention.
And so I wanna apologize for that personally.
Um, and you raised up a very real concern.
I think when we talk about what's being re-referred, um,
it's a thing that I'm balancing that I, there's a reality
that we need the kind
of investigations occurring in government
because there's a lot of things that happen
behind closed doors and conversations
that aren't investigated.
And there's things we don't find out about until years after
because an investigation was allowed
to happen even when you got, whether it's a city council
or any administration doing everything they can to block
that kind of accountability, right?
And so there's a clear weight and importance
and which is why I'm supportive of trying to make sure
that gets done properly, why it should be re-referred
to committee and we speak to it.
But what you raise up is something that,
we've talked about this before as a council.
There are situations we find ourselves in
where corporate counsel's not gonna defend you.
They're not gonna not gonna defend any
of these city council members
depending on what we're talking about.
And we're in a situation now
where it may not just be a neighbor.
It could be the federal government itself coming
after an altar for any decision being made
or any protections they think they're providing.
And you might find yourself in this situation
where the council looking at the law
says, I'm terribly sorry.
Can't do anything for you.
Or to your point, you gotta go find a lawyer.
And we got a number of street kids here
where I don't even know which lawyer you'd call up first.
But you've gotta try to solve that for yourself.
So a number of years ago, a couple of our colleagues,
alderman Riley Alderman Beal
proposed us getting our own council.
And in the, in the world
where anybody would think about their own self-interest,
this council didn't vote to move that poll.
They found every possible way to say, no,
we don't necessarily need that.
In fact, this council voted against
the legislative reference bureau, are two
or two folks here who we write legislation with,
voted against them even stepping floor on this
council to talk to people.
Now, why would anybody vote against their own interest?
Because everyone thinks they have relationships
and hey, I'm cool with an administration.
I don't wanna say do that. But when push comes to shove
and a lawsuit happens,
you find out those relationships aren't
as strong as you thought they were.
And so the reason why I wanted to raise that up is we need
to revisit that legislation.
We need to make sure the council has its own counsel,
has its own lawyers, because there are situations
that are gonna happen and it isn't malicious it's law
where corporate counsel will say,
not in my purview, can't do it.
Or you might be on the opposite side of the table.
So the only reason I wanted to make sure to add
that is we have 50 members of this council.
We need to revisit the conversation of what it means for us
to have our own independent lawyer for the situations
that we might find ourselves in.
And when we do bring this back up,
because we should can't vote
against your own self-interest.
'cause you're gonna find out, you might end up on the end,
up on the wrong end of it,
especially when you have the federal government we're
currently has having the White House.
So just wanna make that point.
Again, terribly sorry
for everything you've had to go through.
I do believe the Inspector General has to have the right
to be able to investigate our, our government
'cause we're not above that accountability.
And also we need to make sure we have our own lawyers,
that the council will be able
to have a check and balance there as well.
And so I hope that folks that are watching and
and listening in on this are able to partner with us
to get something like that done.
Uh, thank you very much, Mr. President.
Thank you. The chair recognizes Alderman Irvin.
Thank you, Mr. President.
Um, again, I I think that, uh, a lot
of points being made here.
Uh, i I do question though, um, where this needs to go.
This is something in my opinion that impacts all of us,
um, in places of impact.
The body as a whole generally go
to the Committee on committees and rules
because it's the committee of the whole
'cause it impacts the whole of council.
Um, granted, I understand the chairperson's desire
to, uh, have that.
However, uh, as far as the balance is concerned, uh,
we see what potentially unchecked power can do.
And unfortunately our colleague has had
to deal with the brunt of that.
So, uh, I would offer that it's something that we all need
to be weighing in or we all need to, uh, be a part of
and not just a group,
a very small select group of members of council.
And so, uh, my opinion is that this is something that needs
to stay in the committee, uh, needs to be dealt with.
But I think it's a broad enough conversation
that impacts the body as a whole
and things that impact the body as a whole, uh,
are generally handled in the Committee on
committees and and rules. Thank you.
Thank you. The chair recognizes Alderman Rodriguez. What's
The quick point of clarification?
I mean, we're not asking for anything special here.
It's gonna go to your committee
and then any, any alder can go to that committee,
meaning is my assumption.
And then it could comes before Full City Council, right?
I don't think so. If you're, if you're posing the question
to me, yes, it's the motion on the floor is
for re-referral, uh, to the ethics committee.
But obviously what the chairman was indicating urban is that
that's not a committee of the whole,
that's all it was his argument. Right?
But, but my point is, it, it would go through the process
through committee back to city council for a final.
That part has not changed. Thank you.
Chair recognizes Alder Hadden.
Thank you, Mr. President.
I, um, appreciate, uh, chairman Irvin.
I appreciate your points. Um, and would advocate against it.
One, um, we're not have rules committee hasn't met.
We've had rules committee
scheduled rules committee canceled.
Um, I mean Elephant in the room not only is rules committee
where we have traditionally sent things that hey,
legitimately we have questions about for real.
And of course there are items that go to rules
because they are questions of the whole or
because they are specific to the rules.
But it is not customary that things go
to rules committee just
because they're things that impact all of us.
Um, arguably every single thing that we hear
in council impacts all of us, and not just us of course,
but our constituents, which is who we're here to represent.
I, uh, also have concerns about, um,
any further efforts to delay this
and actually any other items that are trying
to get discharged from rules committee.
'cause we can't seem to have a rules committee meeting.
Um, it's deeply frustrating
and I think a problematic, uh, process for us.
Um, this is the, the inability
to have a rules committee meeting is leaving us
to this kind of piece, right?
If we had a rules committee meeting,
we could have actually had some debate in rules committee
about what committee this should go to.
But here we are late in the day on a council day in,
in the miscellaneous items on something
that honestly should have just gone
to committee in the first place.
Trying to use maneuvers to prevent a conversation that needs
to be had is a waste of everyone's time.
Um, we need to move forward with this motion.
Um, I call the question,
Right? Well, the
question has been called on this item, uh,
to re-refer this.
Um, item two, the ethics committee.
Is that right? Item number
0 2 0 2 5 0 0 1 5 5 8 3.
Uh, the motion has been moved for a roll call.
I'm sorry for a voice vote. Very well.
All those in favor of the re-referral.
Um, it was for a voice vote.
Oh, okay. So there's a roll call vote that's being requested
for the re re-referral of this item.
So at this time then members should use their
EVO applications.
However, before we do that, um, rules stated in
for reasons stated in Rule 59,
Alderwoman Nicole Lee has asked
to participate in this portion of the meeting remotely.
Adam, uh, clerk,
can you verify Alder Woman Lee's presence online?
Alderwoman Lee, are you there?
Yes, I'm Can you hear me?
Yes, I can hear you can. Thank you. Thank you.
I get a motion for, um, the
participation remotely for Alder woman Lee.
It's been moved. All those in favor signify by saying aye.
Any opposed? Say no. The opinion, the chair, the aye Have it
she, um, Alderwoman Lee will be added, um,
as participating remotely.
Madam Clerk, um, thank you for your help here.
Members, please use your EVO applications
to record your vote at this time.
The voting is now open. The voting is now open.
Please use your Eev device. The voting is now open.
I will call on those
who have not used their Eev device for a voice vote.
Alderman Hopkins not present. Alderman.
Yancy not present. Alderwoman Lee.
Alderman Lee is a yes. Alderman Lee is a yes.
Alderwoman Taylor? Yes, Taylor is a yes.
Alderman Ccho Lopez
not President Chambers.
Alderman Burnett? No. Burnett is a no.
Alderwoman. Rodriguez Sanchez. Aye.
Uh, Sanchez is a yes.
Alderwoman mi not president. Chambers. Chambers.
All right. The voting is now closed. 39.
There are 39 yays. Seven nays.
This motion passes a motion to reconsider
the chair recognizes Alderman LaSpada on a motion
to reconsider
Alderman Alderman.
Bill on
the It's okay.
Alderman Bill, thank you on the motion
to reconsider all those for the reconsideration
of this vote, signify by saying aye.
Any opposed say no. Motion fails.
Alderman Mitchell, anything else?
All Right. For the motion to discharge this committee
on the rules further consideration, um, again, this item
of course will, um, be referred
to the Ethics
Committee, alderman Mitchell. Is there anything else?
Right. The last item was filed by Alderman Laws in regards
to historical landmark designation for a Saint
Adam Burt Parish complex.
However, this item was reported out
and voted on by the city council
during the committee report at today's meeting
for the committee on zoning
landmarks and building standards.
Therefore, this item is mute.
Very well. Thank you very much.
So, um, with that, are there any other pieces
of miscellaneous business, Mitchell,
Except for the ordinance setting The date
and time for the next meeting, I'm not aware any further
miscellaneous business.
Very well. For the date and time
of the next meeting, alderman Mitchell,
I handed up an ordinance
for the clerk setting the date and time for the next meeting.
Madam Clerk, please read the ordinance
Being it ordained by the city
council, the City of Chicago.
Section one. The next regular meeting of the city council.
The city Chicago shall be held on Wednesday,
July 16th, 2025,
beginning at 10:00 AM in the council chamber on the second
floor, city Council 1 21 North LaSalle Chicago,
LaSalle Street, Chicago, Illinois, section two.
This ordinance shall take in effect
and be enforced from an after passage.
Gregory Mitchell, alderman Seventh Ward.
Thank you Madam Clerk Alderman Mitchell, I
Move passes in the omnibus Hearing.
No objections. So ordered
for the omnibus Alderman Mitchell. I
Move that matters in the omnibus be passed
by the first most favorable roll call vote
by the Committee on Finance
and the associated unsuccessful motion to reconsider
Hearing No objections.
So ordered Derman Mitchell on the motion to adjourn. There
Being no further business before this body.
I move that we adjourn,
Hearing no objections to order the meeting is adjourned.