Good morning, everyone.
I do want to start off again by just offering up my deep condolences to the Sandberg family,
to the entire Cubs organization, fans around the world.
Rhino was truly an inspiration to all of us.
He will be deeply missed, but we will celebrate his life and his incredible contribution
to not just the game of baseball, but to sports fans all over the world.
I do have a few short slides, though, that I want to get to today as we continue to work to build the safest, most affordable big city in America.
We're going to look at some of the highlights from July, from everything that we've done around housing, addressing homelessness,
and then we're going to take a quick look at a recent report on the Council on Criminal Justice about the national trend and violence reduction.
You know, as I've said all along, affordability starts with housing because it is the most expensive part of working in middle class Chicagoans' budgets.
This is from a piece by Monica looking at the share of rent burden units by neighborhood and by race.
You can see that our south and west sides are particularly struggling with rent and housing costs, but the issue is widespread throughout our entire city.
When you look at the racial breakdown on the bottom left, you will see that over half of black residents and almost half of Latino residents are written burden, as well as roughly a third of Asian and white residents.
So that's why we're working hard to tackle this issue around affordability in this crisis by simply building more units, particularly more affordable units.
We made history this month with the groundbreaking of the Jigzebick Affordable Housing Complex on the northwest side,
which will create 45 100% affordable units while honoring the rich culture of the contributions of our Native American communities in Chicago.
We also broke ground on an important development at the former site of the Robert Taylor Homes in Bronzeville.
The Legend South A3 complex will create 42 affordable units
and 10 market rate units in that particular community.
But look, let me just be absolutely clear.
We can't just rely on city government.
We also have to catalyze the private sector to build more units.
And the only way to do that is to make more cost-effective
and more efficient ways to build units.
And that's why we took a bold step this month to reform our parking mandates, particularly near transit,
because we know that these mandatory parking spots can drive up the cost of construction by over $800,000,
and it can drive up the cost of rent to Chicagoans by 17%.
So this is probably one of the most significant steps that we've made with the Cut to Tape initiative so far
so that we can continue to pull every single lever to chip away at our housing crisis in Chicago.
But with that, as we continue to talk about housing, we are also talking about homelessness because we know the high cost of housing drives far too many of our families who are already unstable into unfortunate states of being homeless.
That's why we made, my administration made an historic investment just this past week,
$40 million to upgrade the infrastructure of shelters,
and this is the largest investment and the first of its kind.
These upgrades will create single rooms so that residents can have some dignity
and some privacy as they work towards transition into their own spaces.
This is critical because many unhoused Chicagoans repeatedly turn down shelter
because of the conditions of our shelters.
So we're serious about getting Chicagoans the help that they need,
and we need to continue to make these investments in our infrastructure
to provide real dignity in housing.
But again, our core work that I've been zeroed in on
over the course of my first two years in office
is to drive down violence in this city.
When we look at the numbers from July thus far,
You can see month to month that the data points are still trending in the right direction.
Our year-to-date numbers continue to show a stable decline, with violent crime down 20 percent as a whole,
but homicides are down, shootings are down, as well as shooting victims and robberies.
As we continue to build the safest, most affordable big city in America,
these trends are certainly a promising note that our investments are working.
A recent report, though, that I do want to talk about is the Council on Criminal Justice compared crime trends across 30 cities to take a look at the national trends of crime reduction.
And as you can see at the top of the chart, historically, Chicago has been an outlier.
And the national trend, that's an outlier in the wrong direction.
We've seen significantly more homicides and shootings than our peer cities that has hurt our reputation as a city.
And, of course, it's been a tragedy with the reality of far too many Chicagoans losing their lives.
However, what you're seeing now is that the national trend shows that though there's a 17% decline in homicides across the country,
We've seen a 33% decline in our city through the first six months, so that's nearly double the trend that is happening nationally.
In robberies, we see a 30% decline against a 20% decline nationally.
Among the top five cities with the highest numbers of homicides, Chicago has seen the largest decrease both in absolute numbers and percentage.
Now, again, I want to be absolutely clear.
Every shooting, every homicide is a tragedy.
It's traumatic for our families and our communities.
We acknowledge the progress that we have made thus far, but it's not a time to pat ourselves on our backs.
But this is certainly an encouraging indication that our efforts still have a way to go,
but our efforts are certainly paying dividends.
Finally, I just want to share some great news.
As you all know, I've had a very ambitious goal to hire 29,000 young people for summer jobs just this past Friday.
I received a note that we have passed 30,000 young people who have been hired for summer jobs.
I am incredibly proud of the work that we have done.
We still have more work to do, but I'm happy for all the families and the young people who are getting work experience this summer
because every single city department and community organization and corporate partner leaned in this summer.
more people have an opportunity to do just that.
And so we have surpassed by 1,000 the initial goal that we put forward.
Every single child that we invest in is yet another opportunity to build the safest, most affordable big city in America.
And with that, I'm open to any of your questions that you have.
Thank you.
Good morning, Mayor.
Good morning.
You've indicated that you would not support a property tax increase,
and I was just wondering if you could speak to how you would want to raise revenue instead of that.
Yeah.
Well, what I said was, I just want to be absolutely specific,
is that I would not propose a property tax increase in my budget.
I'm going to go after progressive revenue.
That's what the people of Chicago and working-class families in particular want to see us to do.
Look, the city of Chicago, we're the fourth wealthiest city in the richest country in the world.
In fact, we are the tenth wealthiest city in the entire world.
So I think it's important that we look at, in a very meaningful way, how those individuals with means,
particularly our billionaires and ultra-rich who have benefited from a growing economy, can put more skin in the game.
So we're going to look at a variety of options to ensure that we are continuing our efforts to build a safe and affordable big city.
And there are options that we do have, and we're going to open ourselves up to options that people might bring to the table.
You know we have a working group that I've assembled to look at ways in which government can be far more productive.
So it's a both and, you know, but one thing I want to make absolutely clear is that building more affordable homes, driving violence down in the city of Chicago, that's our top priority, and we have an opportunity for corporations and those who have benefited from our growing economy to actually double down on our efforts to ensure that a safe and affordable city becomes the reality for us.
Not trying to get you to commit to any specific policies,
but do you have an example of what a progressive revenue stream would be?
Thanks.
Yeah, you know, so one of the things that we have been looking at
has been the pilot program, the payment in lieu of taxes.
Those are some considerations that I believe that as a city we should look at.
But, you know, something that I do think is important to note, though, that, you know, we have more than 127,000 millionaires that are within the borders of Chicago.
So it's clear that between, you know, the thousands of millionaires as well as...
At least 25 billionaires that there's a reason for us to be able to tap into, you know, those individuals and entities with means so that we can continue to see the positive trend of violence going down in the city of Chicago.
I believe it's to all of our all of our benefit to to ensure that we're doing everything in our power to to maintain the investments that we've put forward.
Hi, Mayor.
Hi.
The CHA board is meeting right now.
You have yet to announce your pick to lead the agency.
Is there some delay in naming Alderman Burnett, or have you not made up your mind,
and are you concerned that the agency will remain leaderless for some time now?
You know, they're not going to take up that vote at this particular time,
but I fully expect them to take up this vote within the next month.
There are options that can take place that could call a special meeting.
So I'm not concerned.
At this moment, we've been able to maintain our commitment to expanding opportunities
for public housing to grow in the city of Chicago.
So I'm not concerned in that regard,
but I fully expect that the board will make its final decision once I put forth a name within the coming month.
The system that the city has used for 60 years to terminate and discipline officers accused of serious misconduct
has been essentially frozen for the last 16 months because of the ongoing legal fight
over whether those cases should be decided by the police war or arbitration.
Three officers waiting to have their cases heard are accused of, without justification, killing Chicagoans.
Two of those officers remain on the force.
Are you concerned that this continued stalemate will continue and these officers sort of won't be held accountable
for what the city's misconduct agency says is clear, unjustified use of force?
Well, you know, look, constitutional policing, that is, you know, the ultimate goal.
And, you know, our police superintendent has worked especially hard to ensure that we restore, build, and maintain trust within the community.
And holding officers accountable who have breached that trust is something that's important.
You know, as far as just the delay, you know, the systems that we have in the city are, quite frankly, they're antiquated.
And I do believe that there is a need for stronger clarification of where that authority lies.
So this is an ongoing process that I'm committed to ensuring that we get it right.
That's the most important thing, that we get it right.
And so, yeah, I've expressed this before.
There are some levels of frustration that I do have with a system that takes a while for due process to be fulfilled,
but I can assure you I'm doing everything that I can along with the superintendent to ensure that we have the best and the strongest
and the brightest women and men who are serving in this capacity as law enforcement
and if they do break their covenant and their oath,
that accountability should be swift and permanent, quite frankly.
Mayor, good morning.
Good morning.
In Washington, D.C., their city council voted to partially repeal the One Fair Wage Ordinance.
You have been a staunch supporter of it here.
So curious how you feel about the change,
especially as restaurant owners and some workers have been raising the alarm here,
but city council hasn't entertained any adjustment.
How do you view what's going on in our nation's capital there?
Well, honestly, I don't spend a whole lot of time thinking about what other people are doing in their cities.
I just know that we are the most pro-worker city in America, and we're committed to holding that position.
I have not heard one worker complain about raises or pay time off.
Now, what I've said repeatedly to those in the industry, my door is always open.
We should continue to have conversations about ways in which we can increase and grow our local economy.
There are clearly strong signs that we do have a growing economy.
The door is always open.
I know that there are some other costs that are associated with running restaurants,
and I'm open to those discussions, and we have to ensure that we have a stable workforce, right?
When rent is on average $1,200 a month in the city of Chicago, I'm working to lower rent.
But we have to ensure that there's a workforce that is well compensated so that they can actually live in the city in which they're serving.
So my door is open, but I'm focused on the city of Chicago.
As we continue to build a safe, affordable, big city, I would hope that other folks look at us as a model because clearly what we're doing is working here.
A question about settlements in the city.
At a recent finance committee meeting, your law department told Alders that there's 275 more settlements that are on the horizon, sort of in the pipeline.
And some members of council are scratching their head over how this is going to work.
I mean, the numbers are just mind-bending.
Will we be able to continue to afford the policy, the insurance policies that inoculate us from these huge numbers?
And can you offer some insight on where this story is going?
Yeah, well, first of all, you know, these settlements have had a tremendous strain on our budget, right?
There's no secret here that recently we've settled a case that, you know, that, you know, the violation occurred, you know, over 30 years ago.
And, you know, as we build towards stronger constitutional policing, the good news is, at least, is that we don't see a lot of recent cases, right?
We're looking at cases that are quite dated.
Now, I'm working with my corporate counsel, Department of Law, as well as budget.
And, of course, we're going to engage city council to create a pathway to be able to deal with these settlements.
Look, the bottom line is this, that people were harmed, and there is a responsibility that the city of Chicago has in terms of paying restitution for the harm.
But it is a serious weight and burden on our finances.
It's a challenge, of course, that we've inherited, much like what we are dealing with our pensions.
So there's a collective group that's working to find a pathway
so that we can deal with these settlements that, quite frankly,
unfortunately, have caused tremendous harm to a lot of families.
But, you know, like everything else, we'll find a pathway for it.
Hey, Mayor.
I'm sure you have more ideas on progressive revenue.
I'd like to hear another one.
But I'm also curious, you know, how are you handling the possibility
that some of these millionaires and billionaires who you want to tax more
might just leave Chicago?
Yeah.
It's interesting because millionaires, particularly in the city of Chicago, that population has increased by about 24%.
They're not leaving Chicago.
So this notion somehow that we're scaring millionaires away is just the opposite.
Look at the way our economy is growing.
Our airports, particularly O'Hare, continues to break records.
Hotel occupancies has reached numbers that are pre-pandemic.
If you look at the revenue streams that we have control over in the city of Chicago, those revenue streams are going strong.
What I can tell you is this, not that I know a whole bunch of millionaires, but do you know what they talk about when they do engage with me?
They talk about community safety.
They don't talk about taxes.
Their number one issue is community safety.
And as we continue to see the trend move in the positive direction, that allows for our economy to grow.
The ultimate goal is to grow the economy.
This is not about billionaires versus everyone else.
This is about the city of Chicago coming together collectively to build the safest, most affordable big city in America.
That's a benefit to our corporations and those with means.
So I know that they're committed to programs like CVI.
They've actually helped fund them.
And when you see the positive work that our community violence intervention workers are doing,
particularly within the first seven months of a newer program that we've instituted,
that's what business is, that's what millionaires and billionaires, just like working people, come to me with.
How do we continue to drive down violence in the city of Chicago?
Because clearly living in the greatest frequent city in the world is not a burden,
but it can be a strain if you don't get a handle on violence.
And as we continue to work to get a handle on violence,
that's what the interest of millionaires and billionaires have brought to me,
and we're going to continue to work collaboratively to see the positive trends move downward.
And following up on the CJA appointment that isn't moving forward today,
the possible pick, Alderman Walter Burnett, has recommended his son, of course,
take his seat in the city council.
What do you say to Chicagoans who think it's unfair that an elected official
would get to appoint, once again, a child of theirs who doesn't have government work experience?
Well, the alderman doesn't have, is not appointing anyone in particular.
He's brought forth a recommendation,
and there will be a number of people who bring forth a recommendation to me.
Here's what's most important, is that we actually have someone in that aldermatic seat who understands the assignment.
And the assignment is to build the safest, most affordable big city in America.
And anyone who is committed to that will be imbibing the spirit of the renowned former vice mayor and former alderman of the 27th Ward.
I know that's going around
whatever that is
was that me?
sorry Justin
patient zero there
so you campaigned on
reviving the corporate head tax
and you haven't sought that the first two years
why not and are you going to seek it
it's an option
why haven't you sought it
it's an option
it's an option now
I mean, as far as, you know, what I haven't done in my first two years, I mean, look, we're on the pace to build 10,000 affordable homes.
I also made a commitment to hire 200 more detectives, right?
I said we're going to hire more young people.
We're going to reopen mental health clinics.
There are a lot of things that I said I was going to do, and I've done it.
There will be no exception in this regard.
You know, as far as the timing around it, this is the perfect time for us now to look at progressive means so that we can continue to demonstrate the positive trend here.
Sometimes, you know, here's what I've learned in my first two years in office.
Some people can keep up with the pace, and others you have to bring them along.
And so now we're in a position where people are very clear about the deficit that we projected two years ago.
And I just hope that city council recognizes the unique moment that we're in as a city to do something that has not been done before,
is to address structural deficits
and do it in a progressive way.
The Institute for the Public Good put out a policy proposal
that I know your administration is looking into.
I don't know exactly what you would call it,
a corporate income tax, I believe is the phrasing they want to use.
What have you guys learned so far as you're looking into it,
and is that something you think that you would not need state approval
to be able to do?
Yeah, that's a good follow-up to that question.
I mean, there is still some ambiguity around, like, how something like that could occur.
What I can say, though, is, you know, look, we are the number one relocation for corporate headquarters on a consistent basis.
We are voted hands down the best big city in the world.
And in order to live up to the expectation that the people of the world has of being that premier city,
you know, our corporate partners will have to do more.
You know, I believe the number is one in four of 18-year-olds or younger in the city of Chicago live in poverty.
We have to address the systemic inequality that has been pervasive for too long.
And again, this is more of an opportunity for us to continue to make the necessary investments to drive violence down the city of Chicago.
That is my number one objective.
All of our investments are leading towards a safe, affordable, big city.
People say they want that.
I know they do.
We're providing it.
if we're going to do it at scale, we will need our corporate partners
and those with means to join us in this journey
to ensure that we don't have 25% of
children under the age of 18 who are suffering in poverty. A lot of them attend our public
schools. There's a lot of work to be done, but as long as we are committed to doing that work
together, we can build a safe, affordable city for everyone to enjoy.
Mayor Johnson? Yes. Just a question today. We're not going
to do any preamble. Just a question. Otherwise, we're just going to keep going. Just a question.
The leaders of the Italian-American community in Chicago are very upset that you've decided
to destroy the historic pedestal of the Christopher Columbus statue in Grant Park, one of, I
think, the only remaining historical landmarks from the 1933 World's Fair. Ron Onesti actually
offered to remove the pedestal himself
at his own expense.
Why would you destroy that pedestal?
And is there a reason why you are singling out
the Italian-American community for such disrespect?
Nothing has been destroyed.
Where is the pedestal?
Well, your question was around what if it was destroyed
and it was not destroyed.
And so we're going to.
I'm going to continue to work with the Italian-American community around what is best for this statue,
and I know that there are a lot of people that are tethered to that history, and nothing was destroyed.
All right, well, last week you said that you were going to use the full force of government to stop smoking on the CTA.
Many people, hundreds of thousands of people, ask me why you wouldn't use the full force of government to remove illegal aliens like Jose Luis.
Thank you for the question.
Thank you for the question.
We got it.
Thank you.
I appreciate the question.
I mean, as far as the city of Chicago is concerned, our local police department does not dub as federal ICE agents.
It's just that simple.
So the Trump administration attempted to sue the city of Chicago.
A district court rebuked that suit because as a welcoming city, in order for us to continue to build a safe, affordable city,
the people of Chicago have to have trust in their local law enforcement.
And that trust is being built.
It's being restored.
and I'm going to ensure that that trust moves in a direction that allows for us to continue to have
the safest, most affordable big city in America.
Thank you very much.
Thank you. We'll go to the next one. Thanks.
Good morning.
Good morning.
I know that you already kind of answered this question,
but can you be more specific about how you're going to or will be able to balance the budget
or those billionaires that you're talking that you're going to bring to invest
or continue investing in the city?
What's the plan?
Well, the plan, as I said before, is like we have to ensure that we find more productive means to administer government.
I mean, for the last couple of years, I have addressed the structural challenges that we've had in this city for a very long time.
We're tackling this issue head on.
We've made cost savings where we could.
In fact, last year's budget, over $200 million in cost savings.
So we're going to continue that effort and that work.
That's why this working group has been established. That's also part of the plan, to bring together experts, the business community, philanthropic community, labor, community-based organizations, financial experts, to help devise more structural ways in which we can finally get the budget under control, something that hasn't been done in decades.
and the 30,000-plus young people that have jobs, the mental health clinics that have been reopened,
the work that we're doing to build more affordable homes,
the communities in which have suffered the most, where affordability and cost of living continues to rise,
those are the people that we have to be responsible to.
That's who I'm responsible to.
Those are the people who entrusted a working-class man to be able to deliver on high-quality government services
without having to put the strain, the balance, and the budget on the backs of working people.
So the plan, again, of course, is to find progressive revenue.
We're going to do that.
The plan also, again, is to find structural ways in which we can have cost savings.
The other part of the plan is to ensure that we bring all stakeholders together
to provide ideas from the business community and the like
to help us think about how we move our government into the 21st century.
We have saved the taxpayer dollars over the course of these first couple of years,
3% cuts last year across the board.
So we're clearly rolling up our sleeves.
I am not going to be intimidated by this moment,
but it's going to take all of us to ensure that we build the safest,
most affordable big city in America,
and the way you do that is you have to invest in people.
Also this weekend, there are going to be a couple of festivals in Chicago,
including Lollapalooza.
There's also still a fear in the immigrant community
about possible targets for ice rates in culture events,
and one of these festivals is Fearsal of Soul in Pilsen.
Is the city ready, especially to avoid what happened on June 4th?
We are ready. We are ready. We are a welcoming city.
We're going to hold firm to our position.
As I said earlier, the Trump administration attempted to sue my city.
We pushed back, obviously, and we won that lawsuit.
Every single thing that this administration has attempted to do
to bring division and fear in our city, we continue to fight back.
Back now, that fear and anxiety is real.
I was just with Senator Villanueva and Alderman Sancho Lopez walking the blocks in their communities,
particularly after the white supremacist attack on those communities with the swastika and the hate crime, essentially,
that was moved about in those neighborhoods.
And I talked to some of the business owners there, and people are afraid to go out and go grocery shopping.
And so right now we are planning events, public events, where we can all go out and grocery shop together
and show solidarity with our immigrant community.
Our immigrants play an incredible role in the soul of Chicago
and as mayor of the city of Chicago.
I'm going to continue to stand firm to protect undocumented families,
immigrant families, because they play a crucial role in who we are and the culture of our city.
Mary, I just wanted to clarify or make sure I heard Justin's question on the corporate head tax.
It's on the table. Everything has to be on the table. Everything has to be on the table.
And what about those who say that it's a job killer?
Well, you know, look, the job killers right now are the situations that continue to not speak to addressing violence.
Again, when corporate leaders come to me, you know the number one issue they talk about is safety.
That's what they talk about.
They don't talk about job killing.
They don't have those conversations with me.
And with a 32% reduction in homicides, 38% reduction in shootings and shooting victims,
robberies are going down, particularly in the very areas in which our business district
moves, helps move our economy. That's what they're
concerned about, and I'm going to continue to address those issues, and those issues
require investments. I'm grateful that folks in the business and the philanthropic corporate
community are working to add to the $100 million of investments
that I put towards violence reduction. Those investments are working.
The number one issue that I hear from corporate leaders
as mayor do something about crime and we are doing something about it
and in order for us to continue to drive violence down to a greater extent
we're going to need them to partner with us and I'm confident though that we will be able to have
substantive conversations that allow for us to find more productive ways in which we can
administer government but also have progressive revenues so that we can continue to make the investments that are
working. As so many Chicagoans today are remembering Ryan Sandberg
I know you mentioned him at that but what was one of your favorite memories as a
Cubs fan, and what are you going to be thinking of today?
Yeah, you know, again, for those of us especially who lived through the 80s and 90s, those are
some very emotional moments as a Cubs fan, and I can recall the, I believe it was the
three-homer game, I believe against the Phillies, but one of the things that really stood out
to me about Rhino is that at the height of his career, he had a chance to live out probably
one of the most significant contracts at that time, and decided to forego the completion
of that contract, and it really spoke to his love for the game of baseball, and look, I
do believe that people who work should be paid well, but I'll never forget just that
decision for him to walk away from the game when he could have just cashed that check
in and could have had, again, one of the most significant payouts, but decided to forego
that. It's a remarkable testament to who he was as a human being, more than
just a baseball player, but a remarkable human being. He will be
loved and deeply missed. I know there's a number
23 on the west side of Chicago with
Michael Jordan, but number 23 on the north side,
Rhino, that's a number to behold as well.
Good morning, Mr. Mayor. Good morning. The Trump administration, well, Trump has
issued an EO to make it easier to institutionalize unhoused people.
Do you agree with it? And if not, how would
Chicago fight it? To repeat that question in his executive order to do what? To make it
easier to institutionalize unhoused people. Institutionalize
them? Yes. You mean to incarcerate them?
It's not jail, but take them if they
seem to need treatment, whether forcibly or voluntarily.
Well, you know, look, I've made critical investments within our Department of Family Support Services to work in a strategic and a sensitive, thoughtful way of how we treat those who are unhoused, some of whom have severe mental health issues.
You know, so, you know, my approach is what we have done, you know, as we have worked to work within these encampments around the city to find services and support for these individuals.
I believe that the best way in which we go about doing that is to help move people along and convince them that these are the services that are beneficial for them.
That's my approach.
You know, I think anything that you do to force something on someone, you're certainly not setting them up for success.
Another EOE sign would make it easier to expand data centers.
Data centers have been blamed for an increase in people's com-ed bills this month,
and the major grid operator for Illinois says those will go up again next year, again, driven by the demands of data centers.
Chicago's got more than 160.
should we be looking at maybe not expanding them so fast?
Maybe.
Yeah, I mean, look, I can tell you that the number of families
who are struggling and living in debt is quite severe.
As I mentioned earlier, the number of families who have children.
Our living in poverty are quite severe.
We know that medical debt is one of the greatest drivers of harm of working families.
That's why my position is that we should be doing everything in our power to make health care a guaranteed right.
The piece of legislation that he just signed, as you know, is going to take food away from individuals.
It's going to take medicine away from individuals.
I mean, we're talking about millions of people just in the city of Chicago alone.
that will be harmed by these policies.
So in terms of what we do in the city of Chicago, the state of Illinois,
this is why I believe this is a critical moment for Democrats
who have an opportunity to demonstrate further our commitment to working people.
But it's very disconcerting that this administration is moving wealth concentration
into the hands of the few, and he's paying for those tax cuts to the ultra-rich
by taking services and critical life-serving means away from everyday people.
Good morning.
Good morning.
So something new on Walter Burnett's now-stalled quest for CHA's CEO.
The Deep South Press Corps' Cauldron of Sources say that about some $100,000 was spent
on a search for a permanent CHA CEO
and that his name did not appear on the short list,
although everybody agrees that he did apply for the job.
So can you sort out what's going on there, and did that have an effect?
Yeah, well, that's a good question.
We did have a search that went beyond the city of Chicago.
Alderman Burnett applied, and he is one of at least two other people
that have been recommended to me by the board.
But we're told that his name did not appear on a short list.
What short list?
We were told there was a list of candidates and that his name wasn't on it.
Okay, his name is on it, right, because it's one of two other names that have been sent to me for consideration.
Okay.
Now that the public safety concerns among undocumented have hit close to home, as well as national security concerns have hit close to home with that ammunition and whatever found on the low end at that apartment building populated by nationals, foreign nationals,
The question now is, what is the city doing or what can the city do to balance protecting undocumented as well as citizens under the Alien Enemies Act of 1798?
I think I got the question.
So, look, I speak with the superintendent every single day.
We have regular check-ins throughout the week.
Our Chief DeVries, who provides me updates on a regular basis of the incoming information that we have that could be of a threat to our security here.
And, you know, we work in this regard, you know, with the federal government to ensure that any threat or even what is seemingly a threat, that we take it seriously and the city is as prepared as we have ever been to deal with forces that would want to terrorize us and impact our way of life.
But Chief DeVries. Yes. Yes. Yes. So, again, the welcoming city ordinance, which is separate and apart from how our local law enforcement does cooperate with federal agents, particularly when it's regarding, you know, the trafficking of children, the, you know, getting guns off the streets of Chicago.
So there are a host of things that Chief DeVries, who is the chief of that particular division, that we do have coordination.
As it relates to immigration enforcement, that's separate.
We do not cooperate or enforce federal immigration policy as a local police jurisdiction.
Thank you, Mark.
Thanks, Mark. We've got to keep going.
Go ahead, Craig.
Mary, you were talking about the two main things.
You want to keep the city safe, you want to grow the economy.
When we look around the city recently, we saw two cranes.
You've touted all the affordable homes that you're building.
Why don't we see you touting groundbreaking for large businesses that bring jobs that grow the economy?
Well, because there are many ways in which you can grow your economy.
And this is what I mean by being far more innovative and progressive in terms of how we have economic development.
So let's just look at the Department of Planning and Development just last year alone.
$11 billion of new investments, of which that constitutes for 37,000 construction jobs.
So when you think about some of the development that we're doing downtown, for instance,
the conversion of old office spaces into housing.
You're not going to see a crane on those projects, but the development is still happening, right?
And so there are ways in which our economy continues to grow.
Just this year, we've already approved $8 billion of new development in the city of Chicago.
We're talking about thousands and thousands of construction jobs.
Is that city-sponsored development?
That's a good question.
So some of it is entirely privately invested without any city dime, which speaks to the strength of our economy.
There are four or five projects, and we'll get those to you.
I can see them on the document that I just looked at last week through our Department of Planning and Development, Commissioner Boatwright,
where we had, you know, East Coast developers that are coming into the city of Chicago to redevelop old office space,
and they have not asked for a single dime.
And you know what many of these developers said? It's actually easy to do business with the city of Chicago through our cut-the-tape initiative.
So in other words, we're seeing thousands and thousands of construction jobs that are online based upon the development that we are experiencing.
And so I think this antiquated way of looking at development through the lens of cranes is just yet another sort of – it's just a very narrow view, is all I'm getting at, of how development is happening.
And, you know, again, the goal is to build a safe, affordable, big city.
So, look, I mean, but I'm not going to shy away from the fact that, you know,
the development that is happening with the expansion of Chase downtown, Google downtown,
Mansueto is committed to building a stadium here in the city of Chicago,
and there are others that are looking at doing larger developments.
We just saw, I believe it was north of the North Lincoln Yards, where that sat dormant for years.
Deals have collapsed, but now they're being revitalized under my administration.
People are confident that we are moving in the right direction.
And you know what their big confidence is in?
Is that we're driving crime down in the city of Chicago.
So where vacancy has existed under a couple of administrations, we're seeing development take place there.
So there are multiple ways in which we can create jobs.
We have the strongest workforce, the best universities, 20% of the world's fresh water,
the most diverse economy in the entire country.
That's why people are attracted to this city.
And as long as we're creating thousands of jobs, clearly development is happening here.
As long as we're doing the drip, drip, drip of progressive revenue ideas,
let me bounce something off to you that one of your allies mentioned to me last week
reported on that your attacks on advertisements that run on social
media and other digital platforms. Is that also
the things that are on the table and maybe since you're laying out
some of the ideas, lay out a few more. Well, I can say since you asked about that one
when I was a Cook County Commissioner, I actually worked with those who were
moving that legislation in Maryland. There is a
suit right now that will help provide some clarity and determination
how we can move forward with it, but I've long been a supporter of
placing revenue lines with
our digital ads. Look, people have made billions of dollars from the digital
industry, literally billions of dollars, and that free advertisement happens on a
consistent basis. So this is something that I've been looking at and exploring
since 2018. So yes, that is yet another idea that is on the table.
Alright, is that everybody? Thank you all. Have a great day.