Chicago Politics

Press Availability 5.6.25

Description

Mayor Brandon Johnson hosts press availability

Transcript

0:00 Good morning, everyone. Good morning. Good morning. All right. Thank you all for being here today. And I'm looking forward to the opportunity to engage the people of Chicago again around our investing in people and building a better, stronger, and a much safer Chicago. We'll have a few presentations to get today. We'll start with our Deputy Mayor of Community Safety, Gary Gatewood. Good morning, everyone. Good morning. We will give you all a community safety update. We'll start with an announcement that we made Friday, our safe housing pilot,

0:33 which is some incredible work that we get to do alongside, obviously, Commissioner Castaneda and the Department of Housing, Family Rescue, the network, our partners at the Department of Family and Support Services. You know, a few months ago, the mayor made the choice to have the community safety team absorb the gender-based violence portfolio. So as a part of that work, really making sure we center victims and survivors of gender-based violence, working with our partners in philanthropy, the Michael Reese Foundation and also the Crown Family Foundation

1:04 to put together resources to help victims of gender-based violence move to a different location and give them some of the protections that are needed and are necessary. So again, we're excited about that, and I know we announced this Friday, but it's an opportunity to really help victims of gender-based violence because that is one of the most important issues that we face in our city. we'll go to our next slide I'm sure a lot of you saw this April was our lowest number of homicides on record since 1962 but

1:35 even thinking about from this last April to five years ago we saw a 65% decrease and that is a pretty monumental decrease and not just the decrease in the number of homicides but the impact that is having on families throughout the entire city These are people who are here with us and still being able to enjoy their lives. So that's just a testament to some of that work that happened throughout April and just throughout the year in general. We'll start to talk about that here as well, too.

2:05 Where are we on our crime data year to date? Our violent crime is down 22 percent. That's our violent crime over the entire city. Our homicides as we sit here today are down 26 percent throughout the city of Chicago. And we sit at a 32 percent reduction in shootings in the city of Chicago, comparing our time from right now to last year. So we're seeing positive trends in our violent crime continuing to decrease across the city in all of these key areas.

2:37 And we'll talk a bit about why some of that is happening. Why is violence trending down? There's a lot of factors that lead to violence trending down. We'll give a few examples here of some of the partnerships, both internally and externally, and how we're having our public and private partnerships really helping drive violence down. The Chicago Police Department and our partners in community violence intervention have a professional understanding. This is a training that was established in many of our districts. I think we only have three districts left to train throughout the entire city,

3:09 where our CVI outreach partners and our commanders and sergeants in those respective districts have a line of communication between each other. Since we started this work and this pilot, we've seen a 25% increase in response time from our CVI partners on the ground to really help not only quell concerns of community members but help stop retaliation while the police are able to step in and do their job. We just had another joint CPD and CVI workshop. They share contact information with each other so they keep those lines of communication open.

3:42 And this is something that we have seen, again, have positive results, and we'll continue to build on this. One of the other major areas, as you all know, Mayor Johnson, his favorite bureau in the police department is the Detectives Bureau. You know, he promised to promote 200 detectives throughout his first term. I think he was able to get that done in a little over, under two years, in the promoting of those 200 detectives. But promoting those sensitive detectives has led to stronger clearance rates,

4:15 stronger interdepartmental collaboration, and increased support for families of violence. And when we talk about those stronger clearance rates, you know, just a few weeks ago, I know you all remember the Chicago Police Department along with the state's attorney, the mayor's office were all there to announce charges on a person who has been charged with six counts of murder stemming back from 2020. Thank you. The reason I highlight that is that was closure for those families who were suffering from that many years.

4:45 So, again, this is another example of how that work doesn't stop. And while we talk about the clearance rates on homicides, the same approach the Chicago Police Department and the Bureau of Detectives has taken to solving homicides a bit quicker. They're starting to use that same approach on non-fatal shootings as well. So we'll continue to see improvements in those spaces, too. And one more key area that we'll talk about briefly is our community environment work. As many of you know, it's not just around driving shootings down or driving violence down.

5:20 It's about that community environment work that happens. As you see on the screen last year, we came together to clean 250 vacant lots across our 10 block groups in the People's Plan of Community Safety. We established a regular cleaning cadence that will obviously continue this summer. We also launched a Make the Right Call campaign to improve 3-1-1 awareness and have people understand which lines to call to get the necessary responses. Really quickly, just last year, in our block group areas,

5:51 we responded to 5,000 3-1-1 requests and got those solidified. And I'll give one more point, and I'll pass it over to Commissioner Castaneda. Later this week, we'll be having our second tabletop exercise around large gatherings where we're bringing our city partners together with external partners, youth organizations, community-based organizations, to think about how we work together to help on teen trends and help each other in general with some of the violence we've seen in our city so we can continue on the trajectory that we're on.

6:21 With that, I'll pass it over to Commissioner Castaneda. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you, Deputy Mayor. Good morning. Good morning. I'm going to talk a little bit about Green Social Housing, which has been one of the mayor's big points for affordable housing from the last two years. Obviously, why green social housing is needed is because we are in a housing crisis. A 2023 study from the DePaul Institute of Housing Study cites a shortage of about 119,000 fewer affordable units than there are families in need.

6:57 Right now, the single biggest way in which we are building affordable housing is through the low-income housing tax credits, or LIHTC, and that relies significantly on federal resources. In fact, LIHTC itself is a federal resource. Right now, we are in a very difficult environment, including that on Friday, President Trump's budget proposal eliminated community development block grants, eliminated home funds, which puts into jeopardy in a really big way the way in which we have been building affordable housing up until this point. Green social housing is urgently needed because we need a different way to build affordable housing.

7:32 So green social housing, again, it is a key initiative of Mayor Johnson's Housing and Economic Development Bond. It is mixed income housing that is permanently affordable. It creates multiple ways to develop. It can be through new construction or acquisition and rehab. It provides low cost financing to housing developers. Funds can be used for different projects, and the Residential Investment Corporation, or the RIC, will generate equity that can then be used to self-finance rehab, invest other projects, or go for deeper or more affordability within a development itself.

8:08 The way that the green social housing financing works is that we're really looking to develop a green social housing revolving loan fund. It will be run by the Residential Investment Corporation, by the RIC, and the idea is that because we are looking for much smaller returns on the equity, we will be able to help make these deals happen and happen in a less expensive way than they have traditionally been happening to this point. Our contribution as a city, so what the city is putting into each project will revolve,

8:39 because as you saw in the prior slide, the construction financing, see when it gets paid off at stabilization of a project, so when the project is ready to become permanently stabilized and housed and ready to continue to operate, at that point the loan will get paid back off, which means that money comes back to the RIC and can be put into a new project. At the end of the day, what we're looking for is permanent affordability. We're looking for the RIC to earn and recoup value over time, so it can be through cash flow, equity,

9:11 and the value can then be reinvested back into new projects. This is a very big key point for us, which is that we are looking for financial independence. We are looking for a way to locally produce housing that does not rely on state and federal resources. It will be green to DPDs, Department of Planning and Development, Sustainable Development Policy. We will be creating good jobs as we will be ensuring that all the minority and women business enterprise metrics are being. met as well as prevailing wage. The RIC will form joint ventures with private developers for

9:46 construction. The RIC will contract property management and have its own staff. The RIC will be an independent 501c3. The mixed income approach allows the 70% of the market rate to subsidize the 30% affordable without additional federal subsidies. Normally this is done through a combination of other federal resources, but through this approach, we are ensuring that the cross-subsidization can happen within a development and eventually across the whole portfolio. The market

10:17 rate units allow for that positive cash flow, and we're really looking for a sweet spot of developments between 75 and 200-ish units of housing. There are a couple different pathways in which we want to do this. One is through new construction, which can be through publicly own land, we know that the city owns lots of land, and as well as being able to step into the financing of deals that have been through entitlement processes perhaps, but the financing has not worked out, we could step into that space. The other way to do this would also be through

10:50 acquisition and rehab, acquiring buildings, rehabbing them, and adding them to the portfolio of the RIC. So again, we are looking to accelerate mixed income housing development because we are any crisis. We are looking to develop affordable, mixed income, environmentally sustainable, and tenant-governed housing here in the City of Chicago, and it will be one of the most effective uses of public dollars by using a revolving loan fund that can continue to generate equity for the future investments. This is a really important piece of developing permanent, affordable housing,

11:21 and we know that that work is along a spectrum, and so we're really proud to also partner with the Chief Homelessness Officer, Sandy Soto, who I will turn it over to now. Thank you, Commissioner. Thank you. Good morning, everyone. Thank you for being here. I have the pleasure to share with you the plans that we've developed to really encourage each of you, and I mean each of you in our communities across the city, to be part of

11:54 the Mayor's five-year plan to end and prevent homelessness. I've had the pleasure to be in this role now for one year. I'm the inaugural chief homelessness officer and the office has been quite busy in this first year. It is officially the mayor's office of homelessness and we've been coordinating citywide responses on a number of different issues. One that's very common to everyone at the moment is the one system initiative. We've been able to address family homelessness, those who have been waiting for shelter through 311 where no family is without

12:27 shelter. All of our families have been sheltered. It's just a matter of minutes at times or hours before they can get a place to shelter. We are continuing to expand our footprint for homelessness opportunities for our single community. We have currently a need for more single beds, and we will be bringing online hundreds of beds later this year to add to the opportunities where people can leave the street homelessness to be sheltered homelessness and then a path to more stable housing.

12:58 We've also established the Interagency Task Force, which was part of the executive order in 2023. It's known as the Chicago Homelessness Interagency Collaborative, where I have the pleasure of working with Commissioner Castaneda and all of our commissioners across city government and our sister agencies. We've been looking at how we can have support for the intersections of community safety and homelessness, including gender-based violence, ensuring that we have opportunities for people that are using our libraries, our parks, CTA stations. Everybody joins this table once a month, and we've been meeting in earnest,

13:32 and we are continuing to meet to ensure that we are building the five-year plan together as well. And I've been actively part of the Chicago Continuum of Care. The Continuum of Care is our major source of addressing street homelessness and moving people into stable housing with wraparound services, typically with a couple of years of supportive services and stable housing. Many other opportunities have come about in the last year, but this is just a snapshot of what we've been doing.

14:02 But I'm now very excited, and I have to give a shout-out to our advocates and consultants that are here with us today as well, to launch the five-year plan on homelessness. This plan is the first plan since 2017 where all Chicagoans have an opportunity to have a voice of how the city can address homelessness and housing insecurity. Currently, according to the Coalition to End Homelessness, there are over 76,000 Chicagoans who are housing insecure and over 26,000 Chicago public school students who are living in temporary living situations.

14:38 the issue As the commissioner has noted, is at a level of a crisis, and we need to do something immediately. The five-year plan will be integrated across all of our agencies. Every single agency is at the table. We will ensure that we look at historic drivers like systemic racism, structural racism, and really the impact that we've had towards community wealth building for communities of color. We're going to center the voices of those most impacted. We're going to look at the whole continuum of housing. So it's not just those who are unsheltered, unhoused, but also how are they moving through the system using our resources that are being made available through opportunities like green social housing or CHA vouchers and so on.

15:23 We're also going to use a co-governance model. Currently, there is a 30-person strategic advisory committee, and on this committee are people with lived experience. They are paid for their time. They are paid for their talents. this is really the entire it's a snapshot it is hundreds of people who have already been part of this effort and we need every single Chicagoan to be a part of it we have the interagency task force we have our 30 person strategic advisory committee we have public private our philanthropic partners are

15:53 a part of this we've also instituted a public sector round table with our city county state and federal elected officials and other appointed officials so that we can talk about how we can bring our resources together. None of this would be possible without the backing of the Chicago funders together to end homelessness. They have not only funded my office, but they're also funding our efforts here. We have a strong consultant team. We have the Illinois Public Health Institute, Smart Policy Works, Rudd Resources, the Civic Consulting

16:24 Alliance, and the Inclusive Economy Lab. And most importantly, every resident of the city of Chicago that wants to participate in this moment and that includes you. We are really taking action here and we need to build awareness, curiosity, connection and transformation in this moment. We can do this together. Every Chicagoan can come together to build momentum and have real solutions that have a lasting impact. All of us care deeply of how the city addresses homelessness and this is an opportunity and a call to action to join us.

16:56 We are also focused on areas that have been historically harmed by housing instability. Those areas are Avalon Park, Austin, Back of the Yards, Inglewood, Humboldt Park, North Lawndale, Rogers Park, South Shore, and Westtown. We're providing additional resources and outreach and hosting focus groups in these particular areas, as well as throughout the city, but ensuring that the voices of people who have been most marginalized are at the center of this plan. This is how you can get involved. There are many, many ways. We have created a website.

17:30 You can look at all of our strategic advisory committee members on the website. Go to their organization. See how they're part of this mission. You can also make sure to complete the survey yourself. There's a link there, but there's a separate link as well if all you want to do is push the survey out. There's a QR code. You can put it on your website and social media channels. There's tons and tons of resources. After this moment and after we've completed our research and engagement process, we're going to provide an opportunity for the public to give us their feedback before this plan is completed

18:03 and before we get into implementation. But there is not enough time here for all of us to ensure that we can get our voices heard and at the table. So throughout the month of May, we're going to be really promoting opportunities for people to be engaged in this process. We're going to be reaching out to all of our aldermen, making sure that they know how to reach out to their constituents and provide opportunities for them to be part of this effort as well. And with that, I'm so proud to turn it over to the mayor who's made all of this possible, Mayor Brandon Johnson.

18:33 Thank you, Chief Soto. Thank you, Commissioner Costaneda, our deputy mayor, Garen Gatewood, also joined by my chief of staff, Christina Pacillon-Zayas, to answer your questions today. The hope of all of this, and I know that was a lot of information, you all, But we're really counting on you, members of our press corps, to ensure that the people of Chicago are fully aware of how our investments are showing up for them, the opportunities that are available to them, and how we move forward collaboratively as a city. The coalition that we've built, the cross-interdepartmental work that we're all doing to create stronger neighborhoods and investments for our people.

19:11 So it's been a Herculean challenge, but it's one that we are up for. So with that, we're happy to answer any of all of your questions today. We're doing one question, one follow-up, and for ease, Mariah, after you get the question, pass it to Justin and then pass it back so I can get it over. Thank you, guys. Good. Well, we got a statement last night from the Joint Civic Committee of Italian-Americans criticizing the handling of the... a Columbus statue. You're a history buff. I know you've thought about these things a lot.

19:44 What do you think the legacy of Christopher Columbus is? Well, you know, look, I know that there has been a great deal of debate around how monuments and statues, you know, reinforce conditions and trauma, but also for some individuals, it speaks to a legacy that some folks are proud of. I've been very clear about my position around the entire transatlantic slave trade that not only enslaved Africans, but also dismantled and eliminated

20:26 to a great extent indigenous people. That history is real. And it's important as a country particularly at a time in which history and art and culture is being eroded, that we continue to express and tell the truth about our past. And we do that because it gives us, hopefully, some clarity about how we can show up for generations to come. But the main focus really has to be around how we all collectively respond in this moment to protect and secure our democracy.

21:02 This is also about, again, how we move forward. So I'm happy to have a much larger, I don't know, circle or conversation around the historic harms that have been caused. And I think it's important as a city that we bind together around our collective story, which is the formation and the establishment of this city, a black Haitian immigrant that opened up opportunities for immigrants around the world

21:34 and a Potawatomi woman. So a space in Chicago where descendants of slaves and immigrants can come together collectively to enjoy the greatest city in the world. Your administration faced criticism for the pro-Palestinian protest puppet that was on display at the Cultural Center, but defended it, left it up kept it up there in that exhibit what do you think are the differences between that exhibit item and this monument?

22:06 Well look, as we've discussed before the way art is depicted for individuals to be able to express their political views I'm not sure if that is the if that's a comparable argument Now, of course, people can make that, but, you know, art in and of itself can be interpreted in many different ways. I've seen art with the American flag depicted in a noose tied around a black man.

22:38 Now, some, I've seen art where it depicts individuals on the bottom of a slave ship. Now, we do know that that art doesn't just tell the story of a particular group, but it also speaks to those who have been responsible for some of these or if not all of the acts that we are constantly debating. I think what's most important here is that art and culture in particular is something that I don't believe we should erase.

23:16 and we do have to make sure that our presentation is depicting not just truth, but the best part of our existence, which is our collective humanity. And that's what I'm focused on right now is our collective humanity. And I know that there is a propensity for individuals to find these dividing lines. That's what the Trump administration is doing, just focusing in on the dividing lines. But I can tell you, all of Chicago wants us to address homelessness.

23:48 All of Chicago want us to address housing. All of Chicago want us to address violence in the city. And that's what we're doing. That's what my administration is doing. These other matters, of course, sure, they can warrant some of our time. But when I talk to people, they ask me, Mayor, how much faster can we build affordable homes? are there more opportunities for youth and workforce, particularly for our young people? How much quicker can we see these numbers and violence go down?

24:20 That's what my administration is focused in on, and I'm going to continue to lead the way at a time in which the divisive nature of our politics and governance, that it doesn't, it's like yeast, where yeast can spread and rise. We have to beware of... The type of yeast that spreads division and rises division, that we're going to spread something that is far more dynamic than the divisive tools that are being used right now. We're going to spread a collective response to how we show up for working people in this city.

24:53 Thank you for your questions. Hi, Mayor. Hi. Do you have any advice or have you spoken to DePaul President Robert Manuel ahead of his trip to Washington, D.C. to testify before Congress tomorrow on alleged anti-Semitism on campus? If you haven't spoken to him, what advice would you give him, having testified before Congress yourself? Well, I have not spoken to him. And, you know, as we move into the celebration of Jewish Heritage American Month,

25:24 our city has been on the front line of rejecting anti-Semitism. We were, if not the first, but one of the first major cities in America to, in very certain terms, condemn the attacks by Hamas against the Jewish people and against Israel. We will continue to, you know, affirm our position and show up for the Jewish community.

25:57 You know, as far as advice, just tell the truth. Tell the truth. On the tabletop discussions, how many more of those are you all going to hold? Is this the last one? And how are you logging suggestions that come out of those discussions to ensure they're not just going into a void? Are there any fresh ideas that you're going to try out this summer that have come up in the first tabletop discussion on mass gatherings? Deputy Mayor, would you like to address that?

26:30 Thank you for that question. So our team literally took every suggestion that was there. As we have our follow-up Thursday, we go from those suggestions to action. People who made suggestions, we want them to be a part of the work. We want people who can provide resources and support to young folks to come outside with us and actually help this summer. You know, we've had a history of, and not even in this group, because this group has been very good, a history of opinions without action. So we want action. We want people who can actually help us continue to drive violence down

27:02 and continue to help young folks and people across the city. So we have ours scheduled for Thursday, and then we'll have a youth-focused tabletop that will be led by youth groups throughout the city that we're working on. And those will be the final two on that particular topic, but we have tabletops on other topics all the time, Lollapalooza, NASCAR, so on and so forth. But this is the first one that we've actually done that has included folks external to government to really think about the ways that we can work together and show up for the people in Chicago.

27:32 And that's important. My main objective and responsibility in this moment is to continue to bring people together, to build the coalition that's necessary to respond to all of these critical issues. And, you know, Friday, I believe it was Friday, spent a good part of my day in the Second Ward, River North Street of Ville, a few of the neighborhoods there, in Alderman Hopkins Ward, and talking directly to people who have very different opinions. In order for us to build the type of economy that's necessary, more homes, responding to homelessness,

28:06 you have to have safe communities, right? And it's not the responsibility of just one entity. It's going to take all of us to do that, and there's a reason why violent crime continues to go down in Chicago. is because we are taking the full force of government, a collaborative approach, bringing all perspectives together to ensure that we create safe and vibrant communities. Thank you for that. My question is for you or maybe the housing commissioner. So my understanding, and I think you guys have expressed in briefings on green social housing,

28:37 that at least in the near term, it works best in neighborhoods with high market rate rents, right, because that will allow you to subsidize the affordable rents. And I know you've received some pushback from aldermen saying, I don't think that this is going to help my ward. What's your response to that, that this is still needed? It's a substantial amount of money, right? It could be used for other programs. Why is this specific program needed in this moment? Well, I'm going to turn it over to our commissioner.

29:08 Multiple tools to respond to all of the challenges that we have across the city. As you mentioned, there are neighborhoods where families who have been indigenous to those communities are being priced out. Our chief of homelessness, Soto, just put up Austin and Humboldt Park in particular. If you look at what's happening across the country, where the average price of a home in New York, for instance, is $1.1 million, the average price of a home in Los Angeles is anywhere between $800,000 to $900,000. Now, in the city of Chicago, you can still find homes between $275 and $350,

29:42 but for some families, that is still out of reach. Rent, at the time in which my wife and I had our first child, I think we were paying $675 in Humble Park. There are folks who are still aghast when I tell them that, but two bedrooms with a washer and dryer in Humble Park, $675. I tell you, I mean, if we could have a situation like that, that could make a difference for our train operators and our bus operators and our young families. And so this is yet another example of how we cannot rely upon the federal government to come and do the right thing.

30:19 And so we have to have a tool in place that creates affordability across the city. Here's what I'm also saying, that in the midst of division, there's been a lot of talk about the hypersegregation of our city, Creating affordability across the city allows for families who have been historically concentrated in one particular area could now experience Chicago in a neighborhood that is not necessarily historic to that particular people group.

30:52 That should be a good thing. Commissioner? I could not possibly say it better. I think that the very crux of what the mayor said is that this is one tool in a toolbox. We do consider green social housing to be a citywide model, and there are lots of places where it will work. And the thing that we need to be able to do at this point is to be able to get deals in front of the RIC board to actually vet and evaluate. But we are very confident that across the city, there are many communities where this will work, including in communities where private market equity has not taken an opportunity,

31:24 has not taken the chance that we are willing to take because we are looking for a different outcome. Ultimately, we care the most about being able to build the affordability and build the housing. And then, Mary, we spoke about this Friday, but on the CTA appointment, transit advocates are still calling on you to conduct a national search and to hold off on making an announcement until whatever happens in Springfield happens in Springfield. So the CPS and CHA have hired search firms, are conducting searches at CPD.

32:00 Obviously, you appointed Carlos Smears-Rosa. You know, what goes into whether or not you conduct a search or whether or not you appoint, you know, kind of go the more traditional Chicago route of appointing an ally, right? Well, I will just say it's about making sure that we have the right person in the position to lead these agencies, right? There's no nepotism here. These aren't people who have my last name or have my bloodline, right? These are not people that historically have all been completely within my own political trajectory, right?

32:38 I've met a lot of fascinating people along the way to the point of our new aviation commissioner showing the presentation of private and public experience. Someone who I just met, the Board of Education, for instance, the board president, Sean Hart and I, we don't have a long political history, so I don't make decisions just based upon someone's political affiliation. We're talking about compassion, competency, and the ability to collaborate.

33:12 I believe what's important and what's most important is that if you look at the trajectory of public transportation in the city of Chicago since I've been mayor, ridership is up, 300 million rides between buses and trains. Our hiring is up. That's being reported, and we appreciate you all. And there are more opportunities for us to hire people. and as a result of that were able to move stronger transportation, there's still much work to be done. Please don't misunderstand me, and I appreciate the advocates that are pushing for the right person.

33:47 I was elected to lead the city. Now, that's something that's important for the residents of Chicago. They trusted my vision for the city. and I'm going to make sure that we place someone in position who reflects the values of work. working people. That's important, someone who understands systems, someone who appreciates public accommodations and has experience of using public accommodations. And we're going

34:21 to continue to work with the advocates. Whomever I appoint, that doesn't end our work. That's just the nexus to what we're going to ultimately have to do moving forward, and that's to create an affordable, reliable, safe, clean, public transit system that all of Chicagoans and residents can come to appreciate. Thank you for taking the question.

34:51 It's been almost a week since you've visited Springfield, so I'm just wondering now, a few days later, what fruits have those efforts yielded? Any promises, any revenue options that you may have secured from Springfield? Well, thank you for the question. Our work in Springfield did not begin last week, so I just want to make sure we name that. We've had ongoing conversations with the Senate President, the Speaker of the House, and the Governor, and his team, along with other leaders of the General Assembly, and we appreciate those engagements.

35:26 What I took away from those conversations is that everyone knows that supporting Chicago supports the entire state of Illinois. We're not asking for any special treatment. We're not even asking for anything that is insurmountable. All of the conversations that we had when I was there were a continuation of conversations around what is it going to take to ensure that the residents of Chicago and those who represent Chicago can go back to their districts and constituents and say, here's how we help support the city.

36:05 And so our categoricals around, we don't want to see a reduction in those reimbursements, particularly around special education, bilingual education, and transportation. That's critical. All of Chicago benefits from those investments. We want those reimbursements to be at a higher rate, particularly at a time in which the federal government continues to attack our education system. The one system initiative, right, this is the outbreak of a lot of planning and work. our Chief of Homelessness, to ensure that that budget item stays there.

36:39 I can tell you as a Chief Executive, just because you present something in the budget doesn't automatically mean it's going to be in there. So this wasn't going down to just ask for something that we've assumed we've secured. We take nothing for granted. And then our telecom and our surcharge. Did I miss anything else, Chief? Oh, and this is CTA and transit. Look, 87% of the ridership, it's Chicago and the region. Right now, the distribution of those resources have not matched what we believe is an equitable distribution.

37:14 So we're hopeful, right? And we had a recent follow-up with the governor around our time together in Springfield. I will be meeting with the Senate president next Friday. Next Friday. Speaker of the House, same thing. We'll continue to have these ongoing conversations, and we're going to remain hopeful that the city of Chicago will receive what is necessary for this particular moment in this session. You mentioned that what's good for Chicago is good for the state.

37:47 Chicago is also seen as an economic engine for the Midwest, But its growth rate isn't as, you know, as fast or as it doesn't grow as rapidly as some of the other cities around the country or around the globe. One of the things I'm curious about is as you're looking at the city's finances and various policies, can you talk a little bit about, you know, what your perspective is on making Chicago competitive in terms of residents, businesses, investments as you're competing in a global environment?

38:22 Yeah, well, one of the things, though, that I think it's worth discussing is that, to your question, thank you for the question, is that we're the top relocated for corporate headquarters anywhere in the country. So we are quite competitive in that regard. I believe it's 12 years in a row now. We were voted the best big city eight years in a row, the most diverse economy, not one particular entity of our GDP comprises over 14 percent over the overall GDP, the world's fresh water, our transportation hubs, best universities, top labor force.

38:54 I believe that in terms of what we are experiencing right now, we are in the midst of that transformation that I've been talking about. If you look at the numbers for hotels and hospitality, our occupancy last year was almost 70 percent, right? The revenue generated from our downtown hospitality, we're already, you know, pushing past pre-pandemic numbers. We're building affordable homes downtown with the repurpose of our office spaces. So what's happening in the city of Chicago right now is

39:26 that we are moving out of that very traditional, stoic form of governance and operation, and we're becoming far more nimble and flexible it's it's like i don't know maybe to use a football analogy we we're not just simply running the ball and using our sort of traditional forms of of a of an offense that you know we have multiple receivers we're in shotgun moving in motion it's just a far more innovative approach and as far as population we're going to get there i have no doubt we're

39:59 going to get there and we're already seeing the the turn in fact those who are coming to the city of Chicago, the ones that are repopulating the city, on average, I believe they're making $120,000 a year or more. And so as we grow into life sciences, biotech, and our aviation and transportation hub continues to grow, the conservative number is 400,000 more people. And I believe we can, I'm saying that's how many more we can get in the city of Chicago.

40:30 Look, I'm not going to predict when we'll get to 400,000 more people. I'm just simply saying that all of the signs are showing that there's growth. And as we continue to attract more businesses and more public events, Beyonce is coming to town. If she was here for five days, I believe she would close our financial gap. She would. I mean, she's just there. Beyonce, if you're hearing me, stay two more days. We need the revenue. Good morning, Mayor. Good morning. Quick follow-up on your trip to Alderman Hopkins Ward.

41:05 What did you hear there? Talk about any compromise that we might be seeing on a curfew. I'm sure you heard a lot about that from the residents there. You know what I heard the most about, though, were making sure that community groups can plug into the work that we're doing and they want to know how else can the city of Chicago be supportive of their particular efforts. So things as, you know, as Chicago, as community neighborhood festivals where, you know, I've got to get on Chicago a little bit.

41:36 These events, these neighborhood festivals, there is a recommendation for a donation for these events. These are not Chicago-ran events. These are neighborhood events, and those donations are going down. So Chicago, when you go to these neighborhood events, I implore you, if you want to continue to see these events grow and remain, there's one coming up June 14th, 15th in the Second War. It's been around for 50 years, and the donations have just gone down, right? So we're encouraging people to donate.

42:08 These events mean something to you, these concerts and food and activity. We had conversations around how the business community can be better supported and their operations that we have to do that. As far as the curfew is concerned, you know, I didn't hear anything that I hadn't heard already. People are committed to working together, and they appreciated, you know, my presentation, and we learned from one another. You know, look, our neighborhoods are so unique, so the experiences that people have in Chicago can be diverse experiences, right?

42:43 And so what we made a commitment to doing is that there has to remain a level of accountability, which our superintendent is committed to that. But even with the curfew violations, we've seen them go down dramatically over the last several years. What they also talked about was ways in which we can sharpen our collaboration, and that's something I'm committed to doing. If there's one thing that I've learned over the last two years is that, you know, I have to spend even more time with different, you know, respective community groups.

43:15 So that's what, you know, came out of our discussions, and we'll continue to have them as we build safer communities that work for everyone. The other part of that question was tomorrow's council meeting. Are we going to be seeing any type of... I don't know what the committee has planned. I believe that they did gavel in or gavel out, but I'm committed to ongoing conversations. Second question, talk about your mindset when it comes to dealing with incoming disagreements, we'll say, from citizenry who you could do everything for and still would not be happy.

43:53 When you have the job that you have, talk about where you are emotionally, mentally, when you're having to deal with that but still working on their behalf. It's like being at the dinner table during Thanksgiving. There's general agreement around the menu and why we're celebrating and what we need. sometimes there's a disagreement on who gets to make what

44:26 I can tell you there are a few family members that I wish they would stop bringing things to the Thanksgiving menu I won't call them out today this is the beauty about Chicago you can have arguments and disagreements with people who deeply not only care about the city but they want the city to succeed it's my responsibility and look I admit this is something I have to do more of

44:57 and I have to be even more strategic about how we have these community engagements so many of you all know that I'm doing these lakeside chats visiting senior homes I visit high schools on a regular consistent basis I spend time talking to business leaders if I go into the grocery store it turns into a town hall which this is probably a shameless plug. Should I do it?

45:28 WGN will be having a community town hall featuring Lisa Dent and Taman Bradley, so I would encourage everyone to tune in tomorrow night where the community can actually ask questions to me directly, and that's really what I'm getting at. That's the beauty of this assignment and this job, to hear the diverse makeup of all of our residents. And what you're seeing, though, is, and I'll close with this, we're not having this type of success if we're not engaging people. Mayor Johnson is not solely responsible for all of the success. No more than am I responsible for all of the challenges.

46:01 But we are all responsible for our success as well as overcoming our challenges collectively. That's why violence is going down in Chicago, because we're listening to people. It's why we have this new tool with green social housing, because we're listening to people. It's why we have a 126% increase year over year for more shelter beds because we're listening to people. And there are some people who might fuss and yell, but when that conversation is over, we make a commitment to continue to show up for all of Chicago.

46:33 And that is my responsibility. That's my reflection. That's what I'm going to continue to do. I'm going to do more of that. And if there's one thing that I wish I would have done starting two years ago was to start off with town halls at WGN, where you can tune in tomorrow night from 6 to 7 o'clock. Okay, Mike, okay, that's right, Mike. I'm sorry, Mike, I don't want to get upset. I do not want to get upset. That's right. All right. The next town hall, ABC News. Yeah, I was going to say, my God.

47:04 Yeah, let's keep plugging. Not for WGN, but anyways, back to CPS. As you know, your school board unanimously passed a measure resolution calling for either an interim or permanent CEO to have a superintendent's license. Obviously, there's a bill in Springfield that's kind of stalled. Should an interim have a superintendent's license?

47:34 Because at this point, it looks like it's going to be an interim CEO. Yeah, you're right about that. You know, look, the most important thing here is let me just answer your question directly. I am not opposed to, you know, an approach to ensure that the leader of our public schools has a strong education background. Like, that's important. What we've seen historically is that we've had business leaders and others who don't have that connection.

48:08 What I will say, just as a caveat to that, there are individuals who have taught at the community college level and have led at the community college level that could be available for positions like that, not just in Chicago but around the country. and I'm saying I'm saying that there are a number of individuals that have education backgrounds that understand my vision for public schools that could lead the district.

48:39 What's most important to me is that they understand the value of our sustainable community schools because that's real strong community engagement. We're going to need a leader who appreciates and understands that, someone who understands the value of our workforce, quite frankly. You know that historically in Chicago over time that there's been a great deal of animus towards workers, particularly our public employees, so someone who has a deep and profound perspective around how our workers show up.

49:09 And then most importantly, someone who is vested in our public education system, someone who understands the role of parents, who know the needs of students, particularly the diverse needs of our students. That's what I'm going to be looking for as we prepare for a new era in our public school system. It is still a school board that's controlled by you, and they don't really agree on a lot of things. It's a pretty split school board, but this is the only thing they actually do all agree on, is a superintendent's license.

49:39 So why not make that part of the requirement, since this is your school board? Well, look, first of all, I think it's a good thing for the city of Chicago to have a school board that has diverse opinions. I know Chicago has become customary of rubber stamp, and sometimes it probably feels a little bit more chaotic. But that's what the people of Chicago have historically have said that we've wanted. And my responsibility is to continue to bring people together of diverse opinions.

50:11 You know, look, as I've said before, someone who understands the direction of our school district is critical. That person has to have a clear sense of our financial challenges. This person really has to have a strong commitment to working with my administration in Springfield, someone who has those type of relationships. I actually think that there's something pretty special about our board president,

50:42 which I think is a model for how our next interim could relate to the school board, someone who is a product of our public education system, right? There's power in that. And I'm going to continue to work with our board members, Springfield, city council, and our residents to ensure that the type of vibrant, well-funded public education system that we want for all of Chicago, that we have leadership that reflects those aspirations. Thank you.

51:12 Hi, Mayor. Hi. But you do know you get full credit for these town halls that are being moved by, you know, so thank you. Thank you for being the entry into that world. So I wanted to ask you about the curfew proposal. And it specifically says that it is that they could declare a curfew, quote, whenever the superintendent and the deputy mayor have jointly determined that there's probable cause to believe that a mass gathering will occur. How do you respond to criticism that that is essentially criminalizing people in Chicago, specifically teens in this case, for crimes that have not yet committed since this statute would give the city the authority to take action before a criminal act had even been contemplated?

52:01 Thank you for that question. Look, the ultimate goal is to prevent these gatherings from happening. Everybody's in agreement to that. I'm going to turn it over to our deputy mayor in a second. I think he could go into a little detail around the work that has been done to prevent these. Look, I've said from the very beginning the constitutionality around this discussion is something that I have expressed my trepidation. And, you know, again, we want to keep people safe. You know, and in many instances we're able to avoid these occurrences from actually materializing.

52:33 You know, and there are some individuals that provocate violence when they're calling for these gatherings. But, Deputy Mayor, just talk a little bit about how we're avoiding and working to prevent these occurrences from happening. Absolutely. Thank you, Mayor. Thank you for the question, Heather. You know, we do a lot of work to try to prevent these from happening, from outreach to the organizers, pulling in our street outreach partners, pulling in, obviously, the Chicago Police Department. A lot of times you'll find myself and our Director of Violence Prevention and Community Safety,

53:09 Manny Whitfield, on the ground to help stop these from happening. And one of the ultimate goals, even in that language, and obviously that language is still being tweaked, is understanding that if we know that there is a propensity for violence in some instances, if we've seen some of the same folks who have hoped Most of these and they have led to violence, so we need to do whatever we can to get in front of it to stop violence from happening. Our goal is always to be proactive, protect people and be proactive, and continue to drive violence down.

53:41 So that's also a part of why we've done those tabletops that include both people inside government and external partners so we can find ways to come together to not only stop them before they happen, but make sure we have the adequate resources around, both internally and externally, and make sure people have what they need. I reported this yesterday, I guess it was, although time has lost all meaning, that Superintendent Larry Snelling recommended five officers who shot at Dexter Reed, killing him, should be suspended for their actions during two other traffic stops in the three weeks leading up to Dexter Reed's death.

54:18 Those officers, as I understand it, still have their police powers. Should they continue to have police powers, given that they have now been found to be sustained complaints for misconduct in other traffic stops that are very similar to that of Dexter Reed? Well, look, I mean, think of it this way, that we now have accountability mechanisms in place to address what many communities have known for decades,

54:49 that these pretextual encounters and stops have been used in only certain sections of the city. And I can tell you, as a resident of the Austin community, particularly on the west side, there's been reports that go back to the mid-2000s, early 2000s, particularly right off of Laramie on the west side, where that has been a very egregious form of policing. So, you know, I'm going to see this as a win, you know, where we are holding people who have been sworn to serve and to protect to a standard that reflects our values in constitutional policing.

55:32 As far as progressive accountability, I do believe that there is room for us to have conversations about ensuring that the workforce of law enforcement fully reflects the values of our city. I won't rush to judgment on what progressive accountability could look like, but I will say that the mechanism that we have in place that investigates these type of interactions and a superintendent who understands why it's so critical that the trust between law enforcement and community

56:08 is maintained or restored or grows, that demonstrating a willingness to say, look, we're going to hold you accountable for these interactions to prove positive to the people of Chicago that constitutional policing is the form of governance and that everybody has to embrace that. And again, what a continuum level of accountability needs to look like. I won't rush to judgment, but I will say this. As the chief executive of the city, constitutional policing and ensuring that our public employees

56:40 are adhering to a standard that reflects our values, If you don't do that, you won't have a place in city government. Good morning, Mayor. I want to actually follow up on Jake's line of questioning about monuments, but more in monuments in general, because there was, in a previous administration, a monuments project that looked at that question in a broad sense. And I wanted to know to what extent the findings of that, which among the recommendations were some monuments fine, some maybe should be removed, others maybe should have companion or clarifying displays with them.

57:25 To what extent is that project still in operation, being looked at at all? No, that's a great question. I'm going to turn it over to our chief of staff. Look, this is – first of all, I'm impressed by the healthy form of debate and discord that we're experiencing in the city of Chicago at this time around how we reflect our values. And, you know, historically, there have been characters in our nation's history or the globe where there's been deference offered,

57:57 and there has not been a real interrogation of their behavior and the manifestation of what our society consists of now as a result of those interactions. So as far as this table is concerned and the work that we're doing, I'm going to pass it over to our chief of staff. Yeah, so there was a grouping of individuals that came together, you know, to examine precisely this topic. A report was issued with recommendations, even looking at very specific monuments, inclusive of the one of...

58:28 Note, and actually that report guided what was offered up to community to be able to meet some of the demands of community members, but also still honor some of the findings and discussions around the complexity of that particular monument. So all of this was followed. It's not just sitting on a shelf. It's actually being utilized in real time as these particular issues arise. But now let me ask you a more theoretical version of this, not ignoring the Columbus statue.

59:09 And that is some of the recommendations were that some art called for explanatory or, like I said, other things with them to allow people to see the history and see it in context. As a history teacher, what's your feeling about doing that, about adding to the displays? That's a great question. I know this is what Jake was alluding to as well. I do believe that there is some value of having context provided around how art is depicted or even monuments.

59:50 You know, and at a time in which we're not necessarily calling for uniformity. What we are calling for is an honest and open display of discourse, discord, so that we can get at truth. and I believe that for me as someone who is highly qualified to teach up to 12th grade history

1:00:22 maybe one day a college professor Craig, in fact you and I should figure out how to do a joint course, we should figure that out WG is going to sponsor that class thank you But getting at truth, right, is important. And I know that art can be controversial, but I believe that there is a distinction between art and monument.

1:00:57 I do believe there's a distinction there, you know, where art can depict a moment in time or where we're trying to go, where a monument solidifies a position that by this monument in and of itself, we are honoring this particular monument, where art is not necessarily telling you that you should honor their opinion or their thought. That was the distinction that I was attempting to make with your colleague. But the ultimate goal as someone who has a love and a fascination for history is that

1:01:30 context does matter, you know, and we also have to be very clear that even with context and the desire for other groups to be able to rally around their particular character, you cannot ignore what history has actually shown us or told us. And if we do that, I don't believe that's helpful for any particular group. I just believe that personally, that there is an opportunity for us to have a more thoughtful, open process, right? Because once upon a time, I don't even know

1:02:03 who declared monuments to be moved into particular bodies of government or city hall. Now we have something that creates again, a more collaborative approach, and those type of hard conversations, I believe, will ultimately make us stronger. That was always my goal when I taught at Westinghouse and General Academy, and all of my students would always love these discussions, and they never fell asleep during these lectures. i'm josh hernandez with cbs chicago yeah um you supported the one fair wage ordinance

1:02:36 the mayor of dc is calling to end the same initiative that they implemented there because they said restaurants were closing um how do you feel the ordinance has helped or hurt chicago well it stabilized our workforce that's how it's helped you know what was happening is that for many of those workers, particularly primarily brown and black women, couldn't find some level of stability and continuity. And for businesses, having a strong, consistent workforce, there's a benefit to that particular establishment.

1:03:06 Now, look, I'm not going to say that everybody embraced it wholeheartedly, right? There were some level of skepticism. But as you can tell in the city of Chicago, one thing you know about Chicago, So we have a plethora amount of restaurants, and I know there are restaurant owners that are working hard every day. I know that margin for... A surplus is very small, you know, and having a strong, committed, consistent, well-paid workforce

1:03:37 stabilizes those institutions and it provides far more continuity and certainty. It's something that we firmly believe in, and I believe that, you know, other, this is why Chicago is leading the way as the most pro-worker city in America, from paying time off, abolishing subminimum wage, but we're still attracting corporate headquarters, We're building affordable homes downtown. Our occupancy rate, particularly in hospitality, continues to go up. CPZ, we had about a month ago the Chicago Cook Workforce Partnership brought in, oh, my goodness,

1:04:14 dozens of dozens of different hospitality groups. There were 2,500, I think that's a conservative number, of registrants there looking for jobs and getting hired on the spot, our hospitality industry is second to none. And so I just hope that people recognize that if you have a good workforce, you're going to have a strong company in the business. Thank you. Good morning, Mayor. This is either for you or if Chief Soto wants to chime in, of course. Is this five-year plan on homelessness based on any specific approaches

1:04:48 or successes in other cities or places across the country? And, yeah, can you elaborate on maybe how that was crafted? Yeah, that's a great question. I'll turn it over to our Chief Soto. But what I will say, let me just, the business community and philanthropy, we could not have done this without, you know, this partnership. And that's, again, the coalition that I continue to bring together around community safety and housing and homelessness. I've had great conversations with Mayor Dickens in Atlanta, Georgia, with Mayor Bass in Los Angeles,

1:05:19 where they're confronted with these challenges, the lessons that we are learning from our own experts right here in the city of Chicago. Chief Soto, do you want to add to that, please? Absolutely. That's a great question. Our approach is really a couple of different models. We are looking at community health needs assessments and how the health care system uses community health needs to demonstrate housing being a social determinant of health. A lot of our hospitals look at community health programs by addressing homelessness and housing insecurity to improve health outcomes.

1:05:50 And we're also looking at racial equity impact assessments. There's a wonderful organization in Chicago, Q, Chicago United for Equity. A lot of us have a lot of experience working with them. I was proud to complete the racial equity impact assessment while at the Department of Housing on low-income housing tax credits. So we're pulling in REIAs and CHNAs to ensure that we're looking at this work through a human-centered, health-based racial equity approach. but I will say that we're actually also giving it our special touch which is

1:06:21 this full force of government which I don't believe when we did our research that look at other cities that were doing five-year plans to this degree of engagement it hasn't occurred to be quite honest with you so far what we've been able to to look into including the public sector roundtable being in adjacent to us walking through this process has really been a different kind of five-year plan right and not only that but to have the funder community the philanthropic community funding this entire process and at the table and

1:06:54 helping us support with lived experience conversations I don't believe that the city or any other city unlike ours has this kind of partnership and commitment to address these issues and a lot has to do with Mayor Brandon Johnson's commitment to this cause that people are backing this effort in such a diverse So it's not quite unusual to have these models at the table, but to do it in such a way to integrate the entire government and all stakeholders across our city is quite unique. So if you could do me a favor, though, to all of you, really encourage the residents of the city of Chicago to go to our website and fill out that survey.

1:07:32 I take this seriously. As someone who has been an organizer, there's tremendous value in hearing directly from the people of Chicago. So I'm asking you, Chicago, get to our website, engage with this survey. This is something that is a top priority of my administration to provide housing, permanent housing for our families. And, of course, pointing out that it is a five-year plan, if all goes well, what might Chicagoans see in terms of outcomes even one year or two? Well, that's a great question. You're already seeing it with our One System initiative.

1:08:03 I mean, this is a more innovative approach. It's a collaborative approach working with the state of Illinois. You know, we we responded to a crisis that we inherited. And, you know, for many Chicagoans who have borne the brunt of disinvestment had to, you know, quite frankly, were forced to to be supportive. And, you know, look, as much consternation and hardship as it has caused. We got it right, and we didn't, along the way, didn't do everything right,

1:08:34 but we did enough right for it to turn into a one-system initiative. And that initiative with beds now, and my chief of staff, she calls me every single morning, talks to me about what people are calling for overnight. And for the first time, I believe, in a decade, we don't have a single family waiting for a shelter bed. Now, that's not the end, right? That's just the beginning. But if we know people in the city of Chicago that are families and we're working to reconfigure our operations so that we can create more beds for single adults, we're already seeing that shift and that change.

1:09:08 I believe that what we can anticipate over the next few years, especially if we can continue to come together, is to build more affordable homes. This is about creating a close with this part. This is also about securing generational wealth and opportunities for our families. Like our Missy Middle Program, this owner occupancy, where we are encouraging developers to own and rent. The cumulative wealth for white families in Chicago is about $213,000.

1:09:40 For black families, it's zero. We don't want to live in a society that's egregiously inequitable like that. Right. And so if we know that, Chief Soto, 70 percent of Chicagoans who are identified as homeless are black families, I believe. Seventy two. You know, so that's why I'm making that connection to green social housing and the affordable homes that we're building. This is something that we all have to commit ourselves to doing so that we can get the additional four hundred thousand people that your colleague asked about earlier,

1:10:11 repopulating the west, south side of Chicago, but all over the city of Chicago. Thank you for those questions. Hi, Mayor. Hi. You've been very patient. Thank you. It's all good. That's what happens when you sit on this side. As you may know, Arlington Heights just swore in a new mayor this week. Yeah, congratulations. And in recent weeks, the Bears have seemed more open to Arlington Heights than previously. Can you tell me when the last time you met with the Bears about a new stadium and how the negotiations are going? Well, there are constant conversations that are happening with my team, my legal team,

1:10:44 the parks, with the Bears organization. We're still working through terms of agreement of, you know, what an agreement could look like. You know, those conversations have not ended because a village, municipality, or town, I'm not sure if it's Arlington House, city, village, village has elected a new mayor, and we're wishing him all success in having, you know, a village that reflects the values that he ran on. But I think what's important here is that there's no political leader in this state

1:11:15 that has been as emphatic as I have been around, you know, working with the McCaskies and the entire organization to keep them in the city of Chicago. We're going to continue to have those conversations, and, you know, I'm going to remain hopeful that we'll be able to come up with an agreement that works for everybody for the Bears to stay in the city of Chicago. And another topic, to cover the budget shortfall, have you considered raising property taxes? Is that something that's on the table? Well, here's what we have done.

1:11:45 We've put together a working group. Again, my approach is always going to be collaborative. We're having early engagements, even earlier engagements with city council. This working group is a step to bring all of us together. Everybody knows that there's – I shouldn't say everyone. That's probably not a good assumption. But I believe that many people know of the financial malfeasance that has existed in this city for a very long time. And our approach is it's going to take all of us to have a really good conversation with leaders of the civic committee.

1:12:16 We're talking to folks in labor. We're talking to community-based organizations. It's going to take all of us to come up with solutions. There are those right now. We have over 40 particular revenue options that we can explore and look at. As you also probably know or likely know that the levers that I have in the city are limited, in most of the revenue streams that we could draw upon state controls, the state of Illinois controls those levers. We're having conversations with members of the General Assembly about ways in which we can ultimately,

1:12:49 here's my ultimate goal, is that property taxes and cuts, it's not how we start the conversation. We do need progressive revenue. The protection of the ultra-rich in this country has just gotten absolutely out of control. I just mentioned that the cumulative wealth for many families, particularly groups of color, are far less than what white families in particular have enjoyed. And so our approach towards this collaborative approach is to ensure that there's an equitable distribution of revenue

1:13:26 so that we can have long-term economic sustainability. But, you know, it's new, and I know that people are committed to rolling up their sleeves so that we can continue to build more homes and respond to homelessness and drive violence down in the city of Chicago. I say this with humility. I hope this doesn't come across with hubris. The city of Chicago is better and getting better. I think it's important that we tell that story to people because it can be overwhelming and draining when people believe that property taxes and cuts and violence

1:14:01 and gatherings and lack of affordability, look, all that is real. But since I've been in office, we've built more affordable homes. We are hiring more young people. Violent crime continues to go down. We're expanding mental and behavioral health. We have not figured it all out. I have not done everything right, but we certainly have put forth an incredible effort to bring people together, and that's what this working group ultimately is going to entail. all right are you have any other questions all right thank you all very much all right thank you all

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