Chicago Politics

New Year's Eve Safety Press Conference 12.29.25

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Mayor Brandon Johnson joins City leaders for a New Year's Eve safety press conference.

Transcript

0:00 for being here. Today we're standing with the full force of government. We have our OMC Executive Director Frank Velez, CPD Superintendent, Superintendent Larry Snelling, CFD Commissioner Annette Lance Holt. We have our Acting D-Case Commissioner, also Deputy Mayor of Business Economic and Neighborhood Development, Ms. King and Merritt, our Deputy Mayor of Infrastructure. Atenuation of the progress that we are making as a city, and we truly are the greatest city in the world. Multiple Chicago-based artists, Nick Cave and Brendan Fernandez, will illuminate our art on

0:35 the mart at the beginning of the night, and there will be a number of exciting surprises for those who actually come out. The national broadcast will be hosted by Ryan Seacrest, as well as Chicago's very own Chance the Rapper, with performances during the live event from local talent, like the chosen few DJ Mike Dunn, DJ Mike, but also we're going to have J. Ivy and Shamika Copeland, who is an incredible blues artist. We are anticipating thousands of people from across

1:08 the globe to gather downtown to celebrate Chicago's inaugural countdown, and we are prepared to welcome and safeguard those crowds. The city and our partners have convened seven planning meetings dedicated to identifying best practices and safety, operations, and, of course, execution. And as a premier destination, we are certainly adept at hosting large-scale events, whether it's from Lollapalooza, NASCAR street races, to the 2024 Democratic National Convention

1:40 and countless other conventions that we host year-round. Chicago is no stranger to hosting these large-scale events. I'm confident that Chicago's New Year's Eve celebration will be just as safe and successful as any of those other events. Thanks to the leadership, professionalism, and the partnership of everyone standing with me here today. The city will have outreach workers present throughout the Riverwalk to ensure safety and keep folks informed about access and transportation options that they'll have.

2:15 Our CTA buses and trains will be free from 10 p.m. on Wednesday until 4 a.m. Thursday to help individuals move about our beloved city. Hosting Chicago's New Year's Eve celebration is a big moment for our city and another opportunity to showcase the very best that Chicago offers to the entire world. We welcome everyone to this celebration, and we ask and encourage residents and visitors who are planning to celebrate downtown to represent our city proudly.

2:46 We want our young people to experience this event and the best of our city along with us. And we are encouraging families to make a plan with their children and teens. Parents, talk to your children about their plans and help them identify a safe place where they can go if they get separated from the group in a safe route home. Please be mindful that there will be a curfew in effect for young people aged 12 to 17.

3:21 So in other words, if you are 12 to 17 and you are downtown past 10 p.m., you must be accompanied by an adult. As we close out one of the most transformative years in violence reduction in our city's history, we want to finish this year safe and strong. this celebration belongs to our entire city and I want to again thank the leaders and partners who are standing with me today for their collaboration and dedication to making this event safe and making it possible I want to give a

3:56 special thanks to the women and men of the Chicago police and fire departments and emergency management for hosting us today and to all the city workers for their unwavering service to our wonderful city we look forward to welcoming the world to Chicago and to the year 2026. Thank you. And with that, please welcome our Acting D-Case Commissioner, Deputy Mayor Kenya Merritt. Good afternoon, everyone. Good afternoon.

4:30 And thanks, Mayor Johnson, for the introduction. Chicago's first ever nationally televised New Year's Eve countdown is a powerful opportunity to showcase our city's cultural energy to millions across the country. This celebration reflects our culture. and our community, and most importantly, our deep commitment to elevating local artists and authentic Chicago voices. From the music and visual arts to the storytelling,

5:02 this event is rooted in what makes Chicago one of the most culturally vibrant cities in the world. This year, Chicago's New Year's Eve celebration will take place on Wednesday, December 31st, along the Riverwalk on Wacker Drive from Wells to Lake Street. Portions of the celebration will be broadcast nationally during Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve with Ryan Seacrest 2026. As the mayor mentioned, this marks the first time in the broadcast more than 50-year history that Chicago will represent the Central Time Zone, a milestone moment for our great city.

5:42 It underscores the strength of our tourism industry and the role arts and culture play in supporting Chicago's world-class hotels, restaurants, as well as the entertainment economy. Celebrating New Year's Eve Chicago-style means centering local talent as well as our local businesses. The live event will feature a main stage on Franklin and Wacker with multiple viewing locations via digital screens throughout the site and secured entrances at both Lake and Wells Street.

6:17 Chance the Rapper will serve as Chicago co-host for the national broadcast and will perform live on stage ahead of the midnight countdown. But starting at 7 o'clock, Art on the Mart will present a special audio-visual program celebrating Chicago's iconic dance culture, featuring works by Chicago-based artists, as Amir mentioned, Nick Cave, Brendan Fernandez, Wills Glass Spiegel, and Brandon Calhoun, amongst others. Musical performances will begin at 9 p.m. and include hometown legends, chosen few DJ Mike Dunn, DJ Mike P, multi-award winning spoken word artist Jay Ivey, and blues vocalist Shamika Copeland.

7:04 The evening will conclude with fireworks launched from bridges along the Riverwalk spanning from Franklin to Columbus, and countdown projections will accompany those from Art on the Mart. Gates open to the public at 5 p.m., a small bag policy will be in place, and if you want something to eat, food trucks will be available along Franklin Street from Lake to Randolph, including food trucks from Tasty Chicago, Soul and Smoke Barbecue and Taco Motora, and many, many more.

7:38 For those unable to attend in person, the event will be live streamed at chicago.gov forward slash live with portions airing locally on ABC7. DK's has also worked closely with the Mayor's Office for People with Disabilities to bring on ASL Access in partnership with Max Mackey of Definitely Dope and Moseco. Matt is a nationally recognized deaf performer who has performed with Chance the Rapper,

8:08 and we are happy to bring this dream team together to help celebrate NYE access here in Chicago. For full event details and ongoing updates, please visit chicago.gov, again, forward slash NYE, and follow us on all of our social media platforms at Chicago DKs. Now I'd like to turn it over to OEMC Executive Director, Frank Velez, who will share more about the safety measures in place as we ring in 2026 together.

8:43 Thank you, Deputy Mayor. Thank you, Mayor Johnson and guests. Good afternoon. I'm Frank Velez. Afternoon, sir. Good afternoon. I'm Frank Velez, the Executive Director of the Office of Emergency Management Communications for the City of Chicago. This year, New Year's Eve celebration will include fireworks along the Chicago River, at Navy Pier, and events citywide. The City of Chicago is advising residents and visitors to be aware of street closures, additional crowds, and increased traffic.

9:13 Please plan ahead, and as the Mayor said, celebrate safely. OMC will monitor events citywide through our Emergency Operations Center. We'll coordinate security efforts and resources with the Chicago Police Department, Chicago Fire Department, city departments, and our partner agencies. We ask everyone to be aware of their surroundings and to report any suspicious activities by calling 911. Remember, if you see something, say something. We also encourage everyone to download Chicago's OMC apps for alerts.

9:44 Weather conditions, safety tips, and many more. The app is also available through Apple and Google Play stores. You can go down, download it by the Chicago.gov forward slash OMC. Residents can also sign up for the Notify Chicago alerts at the Chicago NotifyChicago.org. OMC will be monitored the weather condition with the National Weather Center. Temperatures are forecasted to be in the teens with the chance of snow Wednesday night.

10:15 We advise everyone to dress appropriately, warm layers, along with hats and gloves. As with large-scale events, citywide public transportation is strongly encouraged. Motorists should be prepared for heavy traffic and possible reroutes in the downtown area. There will be traffic control aids on hand at events across the city for direct traffic. Finally, I want to wish everyone a safe and happy new year. And now I'd like to introduce Superintendent Larry Snelling, the Chicago Police Department.

10:52 Good afternoon. Good afternoon. First of all, thank you, Executive Director Frank Velez. And thank you, Mayor Johnson. And I'd like to thank all of our partners who are here. These are the partners that we are going to be working with to make sure that we keep the city safe. From the Chicago Police Department, it's important that we point out a few things about safety and what the Chicago Police Department's role is going to be in keeping the city safe. First of all, we're going to be highly visible throughout the entirety of the city.

11:26 We're going to make sure that we have sufficient manpower. We've already made provisions for that. This manpower will not just be in the downtown area. It will not just be around this particular event. We'll also be at Navy Pier. We will also be in every single neighborhood across the city, as we know that New Year's Eve can be a dangerous time if people are not responsible. We ask people that if you're going to be partying and you're going to be drinking,

11:57 please do it responsibly. Please do not drink and get behind the wheel of a car. As the mayor mentioned, the CTA will have free rides from 10 p.m. until 4 a.m. Please take advantage of that when you can. It will help keep you safer rather than getting behind the wheel of a car. We will have sufficient manpower on the CTA to make sure that we're doing everything that we can to keep riders safe.

12:28 So throughout this city, the Chicago Police Department will be there to ensure that everyone is partying and enjoying themselves responsibly while keeping everybody safe. Now, there's one thing that I just want to make clear, and this is to parents. Please know where your children are. Please know where your children are. And I'll repeat that one more time. Know where your children are.

13:00 We've had incidents where young people go into the downtown area and we have a lot of young people who go down there to do the right thing and they're enjoying themselves and they're responsible. But then we have young people who show up and they're down there for the purpose of causing problems, disrupting and using disruptive behavior. The Chicago Police Department is not going to tolerate that. As we've seen in the past, this has led to violence where people were hurt and even killed.

13:32 The Chicago Police Department will be on top of this. There will be no loitering in these areas. We'll make sure that we keep people moving along. Our officers will be policing responsibly and constitutionally. but they will also be on the lookout for anything that could cause anyone harm, and we will act upon it immediately. So we want to make sure that everyone is safe. If you are under the age of 18,

14:04 you should not be in the downtown area after curfew without being accompanied by an adult. So please, once again, parents, let you know where your kids are. because our officers will be out there to make sure that everyone is safe in this city. Please enjoy your time out there. Please take care of each other. And as you've heard before, if you see something, please say something.

14:35 If you need to call 9-1, please do so. We will be working with everyone up here, all of our city partners, to make sure that we're keeping this city safe. With that, I want to wish everyone a Happy New Year, a Responsible New Year, a Safe New Year, and Merry Christmas for all of those that I did not get the opportunity to see beforehand. And with that, I'm going to turn it over to the Fire Commissioner, Annette Nance-Hope.

15:10 Good afternoon. Good afternoon. And thank you, Mayor, for bringing us together as we prepare for one of the largest celebrations of the year. I'm proud to stand alongside our partners from the Chicago Police Department, the Office of Emergency Management and Communications, and the many city agencies that work behind the scenes to ensure Chicago rings in the New Year safely. New Year's Eve brings hundreds of thousands of people into our downtown lakefront areas and throughout our neighborhoods. The Chicago Fair Department has been planning extensively for this event.

15:41 and we are fully staffed and ready to respond to any emergency in the entire city. This year we are deploying additional fire, EMS, and command resources at Navy Pier, which traditionally holds some of the largest crowds and one of the most widely viewed fireworks displays in the area. We also have enhanced coverage along the downtown bridges where synchronized fireworks are scheduled. Additional fire companies and EMS units will be strategically positioned to reduce response times, manage large crowds, and support our public safety partners.

16:13 Our marine units will also be staged along the river, ready to respond quickly if needed. I'd like to emphasize a few important safety messages for everyone planning to celebrate. Please follow all instructions from public safety officials on site. If you see something like they said before, say something or alert a nearby first responder. Dress appropriately for the weather. It is going to be cold. Dress in layers. Get warm while you can, and look for signs of frostbite and hypothermia.

16:44 Stay with your group and have a transportation plan before heading out. And remember, fireworks are beautiful. When handled by professionals, lead them to the experts. I want to thank the women and men of the Chicago Fire Department, our firefighters, paramedics, and our Fire Prevention Bureau inspectors who will be working throughout the night to keep our city safe. Chicago is a world-class city. And when Chicago's fire, police, and OEMC and every other city department come together, our preparation and coordination are unmatched.

17:14 We are ready to welcome the new year, and we are ready to protect our residents and visitors. Thank you. Have a happy new year, and please stay safe. Now I'd like to welcome up Mayor Brandon Johnson for questions. Thank you, Commissioner, and to all of our leaders here. We're also joined by my chief of staff, Christina Pacione-Zayas. Since taking office, I've longed for the city of Chicago to be a year-round destination, making New Year's Eve a thing in Chicago. I want to give a special thanks to our acting commissioner and the entire D-CASE operation to help make this come to fruition.

17:53 In fact, if I'm not mistaken, there are several publications now that have identified Chicago in the top five destinations for New Year's Eve. that has not been the case. But since we have taken on this effort to make the city of Chicago a year-round destination, I'm glad that we're moving in this direction. So with that, is Casio around? Yeah. Testing, testing. Okay. So we're just going to do one question to get to everyone. We'll start with Megan, and then we'll just pass it around. Good afternoon, Mayor. Good afternoon.

18:24 This could be for you, or this could be for Superintendent Snelling. Unfortunately, the violence after the Christmas tree lighting is still fresh in a lot of people's minds. Are there any lessons from those incidents that you're bringing with you into this New Year's Eve gathering? Look, you know, those acts of violence and terror that have disrupted our city and, quite frankly, set our city back, it's not only upsetting, but it enhances our determination to continue to get it right. I've had extensive conversations with

18:56 our superintendent around not just our presence, but how all of our departments have to work together for ingress, egress, to be able to move people around effectively. Those lessons will certainly be applied to the New Year's Eve event. Good afternoon, Mayor. Good afternoon. This is a big event and I know that you and also the superintendent mentioned it, the curfew, but can you be more specific and also how many minors can be per adult or how many minors and adults could handle it? I don't know if you understand my question.

19:35 No, I do. You know, as far as, you know, what the citywide curfew law that we have is that if you are under the age of 18, as I expressed and as a superintendent expressed, they have to be accompanied by an adult. Now, in terms of how many children can be attached to one adult, you know, I mean, I could use my time as a child care provider 30 years ago around what I think a healthy ratio is, but that's not something that you can actually legislate or relegate, quite frankly. So what we're ultimately saying is to parents, know where your children are.

20:09 That's the most important thing. And if they are under the age of 18 and they are out past 10 p.m. without an adult, we're going to obviously have to hold those individuals accountable. We're also asking parents to identify safe spaces for your children to go. And that's the message that all of us have communicated. And, you know, again, we're confident that the measures that we've put in place have positioned us to have a successful event. This is an exciting time for our city.

20:41 It's an opportunity for the people of the world to get another beautiful view of our beloved city. And that's why we need adults and parents to be that much more vigilant around knowing where their children are. And if they are under the age of 18, they have to be accompanied by an adult. So, listen, I can tell you for me and my wife, we like to be present with our children, but there's no law that identifies what a race is. This is not a classroom, right?

21:12 So we're just saying that parents have to know where their children are. A question for Superintendent Snelling, if I might. Superintendent, we're looking at crime stats as you're preparing for trying to make New Year's Eve safe. The crime stats for 2025 have been rather good for Chicago, homicides, shootings, and overall crime at their lowest levels in a decade, mirroring a trend that is being seen in major cities across the country. I'm wondering if you, maybe you and the mayor, could both opine on this. What do you believe might be the factors that are helping drive down crime here in Chicago?

21:46 Yeah, thank you for that question. We'll pass it to the superintendent in just a second. And, you know, historically, the the national trends, the city of Chicago has been out of sync with where you've seen national trends where crime has gone down around the country. But that has not been the case in the city of Chicago. And that's why there's been an uneven element in terms of how we compare with our peer cities. Now, clearly, we are in a much stronger position because our reduction has been double, the reduction in the national trend.

22:22 As far as to your specific question, it's about partnerships. It's what I've said from the very beginning. The partnerships that we've established with the Chicago Police Department and CVI, we have never seen these two entities work together in the way in which they've shown up over the last couple of years. But it's also about making sure that we're making critical investments. So whether it's the partnerships or the investments, that's necessary. That's investments in youth employment, mental and behavioral health care, services and support.

22:52 But it also means that we have to invest in the divisions of policing that are strategic. Everyone in this room knows my commitment to hiring and promoting more detectives. The superintendent could speak to this as well. I believe another 50 have been promoted within the last 60 days. So the key has always been partnerships and making those critical investments and then ensuring that our police department is showing up in strategic deployments that allow for them to continue to help support our overall safety.

23:23 Superintendent. Thank you, Mayor. Just real quick, partnerships, everyone working together across the board internally within the Chicago Police Department. Top-down leadership, intelligence-driven policing, a leadership style amongst our command staff, where they're leading from the front, and just bureaus working across with each other, building relationships with community members, which our detective division and our police officers are doing, and then officer wellness.

24:00 You know, when our officers are doing better, they do better for others. So we just plan to continue that through 2026. How many more detectives? Did I get that right? 50? That's right. All right. I'm going to make sure. Hi, Mayor. I was wondering if there was any way to quantify the difference between this year's New Year's Eve plans with the events, Chicago being a host for the first time compared to years past, and what you may expect from the public in terms of coming downtown compared to years past.

24:30 Yeah, first of all, that sweater is pretty nice, man. I've got to be honest with you. Thank you. I'm clocking that. I'll pass it over to our acting commissioner. She can speak to some of our expectations. What I can say is, though, and this is a true story, you all. So in 2023, the Bears had a game on New Year's Eve against the Atlanta Falcons. And I believe there was a major comedy concert that was happening at the United Center.

25:01 And when I was sworn into office, you know, we're just looking at the calendar and all the things that we have to prepare for. And I thought to myself, and I had this conversation with my administration, did anyone plan around the fact that we're going to have thousands of people downtown for a Bears game, as well as thousands of people on the west side of Chicago? Was there any planning around that? And there had not been. And so that is what started to, I guess, spin the wheel, if you will, around how the city of Chicago can become a destination for the world.

25:37 quite frankly, because, look, you know, we always brag about the summertime in Chicago, but our winter months are pretty spectacular, especially when our teams are winning. And, you know, I think our expectation is that the people of the city of Chicago will see this as a benefit and that we'll participate. There are a number of families who are already, have already booked hotels to come downtown anyhow. And so this adds another component to what families weren't even anticipating but deputy mayor acting commissioner anything else you want

26:12 to add to that no i'll just briefly add as the mayor mentioned we're looking for this to be an economic driver for the city for the winter season so what's different than previous years is in the past dks has traditionally hosted in partnership with all of our public safety partners here fireworks along the river well this year we're including artistry and so we're partnering with Art on the Mart, again, to highlight and to showcase our visual artists here in Chicago. But we also have local performers, and so we'll have performers that represent all genres of music, some

26:44 that originally started in Chicago. And so it's elevating the artistry that's here in Chicago, but also hoping that people will make an evening of it, that they will support our hospitality partners from restaurants to hotels, and we're hoping that this will be the kickoff to Chicago again, as the mayor mentioned, being a winter destination thank you thank you hi thank you for having us casey from fox 32 has the secret service always had this much of a role during new year's eve celebrations or is that newer this year

27:15 because of that national stage that will be on with the broadcast well our local police department has have always works with um the federal government the federal entities whether that's But, Peter Vogel, you want to speak specifically to the New Year's Eve? Yes, sir. Thank you, Mayor. So regarding that question, as you know, Secret Service is under Department of Homeland Security. And for every event across the country, they analyze and look at every event.

27:47 And this has been designated as worthy to get federal support. And because of that, we are here to help coordinate federal assets to support and cooperate with the CPT, and all the other city officials. We've worked in the past with the Marathon, the Democrat National Convention, and we have a great working and outstanding partnership with the city and all the entities up here present today. Thank you, Peter.

28:17 How's it going, Mayor Johnson? I'm good. How are you? I'm well. A question, a little more detail, if I may, about safety on the CTA. Obviously, the public safety situation on trains and buses has been very much in the news lately. If you or the acting president of CTA could talk about the planning that went into the safety plan for trains and buses around the New Year's holiday in light of recent communications from Washington. Yeah, well, it certainly has, you know, Washington does not dictate how we show for the people of Chicago.

28:54 So I just want to make that point clear. You know, and safety, of course, is our top priority on the CTA as well as within our neighborhoods. You know, I'll give a space for Nora and the superintendent can speak to some of the specific plans that we do have, you know. But again, safety is our top priority. Nora, superintendent, you can follow her. Thank you, Mayor, and thanks for the question. Our planning for New Year's Eve really comes out of our longstanding practice of planning for special events in the city.

29:26 CTA successfully executes moving people around the city with special events throughout the entire year. The foundation of that certainly is our strong partnership with the Chicago Police Department, with OAMC, with the other partners that you see up here. but we have a strong record of executing from a security and service perspective for special events, and that's what we've planned and employed here. Thank you. Superintendent, you want to add anything? Thank you, Nora. And just to follow up with that, we communicate on a regular basis, Nora and I,

29:58 and we're looking forward to the upcoming year and how we can continue to coordinate to address any problems that are happening on the CTA. As I told you before, we're going to make sure, especially when we know ridership is up, And we have these types of events that are occurring that we have enough manpower on the CTA to do everything we can to keep people safe. Obviously, we can't be every single place all the time, but we can put plans in place to bring down crime and make people feel a lot safer about using public transportation.

30:33 Superintendent Snelling, good afternoon. Sam here. You know, you've said three or four times, you know, the city wants parents to be aware of where their kids are. I'm just curious, like, are there any accountability measures in place now for parents who don't know where their kids are? Well, look, if you're asking, you know, whether or not there's a specific law that addresses parents who may not know where their child is

31:06 and there's something that happens that's disruptive, you know, I don't believe there's any legislation on the books there. What we're simply saying is, and the message is pretty straightforward, we're asking parents who may not be as diligent as most parents already are to just know where their children are. And there are spaces where children can go, you know, throughout the city of Chicago to bring in the new year.

31:39 And if they're going to be downtown, they have to be accompanied by an adult. But, you know, I guess this was getting at to your other colleagues' question. I don't think there's ever been a legislative effort to necessarily hold parents to a deeper level of accountability. Now, obviously, if a child is in violation of the curfew, an adult will have to come and recover that child.

32:14 Superintendent, if you want to speak to that process, we can. But otherwise, there's no mechanism in place, you know, if a parent doesn't know where their child is, that somehow there's a sort of legal liability. But superintendent? And thanks for the question, Sam. Just when we're saying know where your children are, here's what I'll tell you. There are a lot of times that people believe that some of these kids that you see downtown who are acting in that fashion, who are committing acts of violence or vandalism, that these are kids from poor neighborhoods who don't know any better.

32:54 That's absolutely not the truth at all. A lot of these kids, some of them are from the suburbs. Some of them have working parents. Most of them have working parents. And when we've made arrests in these situations, the parents believe that they were somewhere else. So they may have lied to the parents. So when I say know where your kids are, it's not just about the curfew. It's just in general. Just have an idea of where your kids are because the kids that go down there to act this out, they're doing something that they saw on social media, and they're going into downtown for that particular purpose.

33:31 And we want to make sure that if your kid is going somewhere, check, double check and triple check and make sure that that's where they're going to be. Because you could find yourself as a parent having to go to the police station to pick up your child if you didn't know where they were and they were going somewhere else. So we just want to make sure that parents are aware that these are possibilities. So don't just trust everything that you hear from young people. You know, that was one of the things with my daughters.

34:05 Trust was not a thing that was in my house. I understood that they were. Young people, but I always check to make sure they were where they said they were. And when they knew that I was going to do that, they knew that they couldn't pull the wool over my eyes. So we just want to make sure that everyone's safe. But I also want the parents to understand this, that if you don't know where they are and they find themselves in a place where they're breaking the law, we're going to take action and you're going to have to come and get them.

34:39 So we're not going to tolerate the violence. We're not going to sit back while kids fight, while they put other people in danger, and when they're out there shooting and taking each other's lives. We want to make sure that we're stepping in front of that. And as the Chicago Police Department and the men and women of the Chicago Police Department do every day, we're going to be proactive to make sure that this New Year's Eve is as safe as we can possibly make it. And just for the record, I'm aware that the superintendent still checks in on his daughter.

35:12 And they're grown. Hi, Mayor. I want to ask you about Bally's Casino. Has your office gotten any word from them that they want to renegotiate the host city agreement, given the city council poised to legalize VGTs? We haven't had that conversation. And how concerned are you about that affecting? I've already expressed my concerns around, you know, VGTs and, you know, look, I think that there are, you know, real opportunities that, you know, we want to be able to maximize as a city as the casino comes online.

35:51 You know, and, you know, those will be some ongoing conversations, though. Yep. Thank you. Good afternoon. Emmy Victor here with WGN. Good afternoon. Good afternoon. Thank you for answering our questions. I also just have one more question regarding the CTA. I did hear you loud and clear when you said that you all have a track record of moving hundreds of thousands of people for larger events. But I wanted to know if there was anything specific you could share that may just put people at ease. You all are promoting, you know, riding the CTA for free for New Year's, even New Year's Day in the morning at least.

36:25 But there have been crimes that have concerned people in recent weeks. So is there anything specific you could share that could put the community at ease to ride your transit system? I think what both of them have articulated, the superintendent and our acting commissioner has indicated as well, is that, you know, there's going to be far more visible presence. and the footprint is not going to have an impact on the neighborhoods. Because I also know that when we start talking about our presence on the CTA or downtown,

36:58 that the neighborhoods might feel like they're being neglected. In this case, we won't. And so the plan that has been put before me, I appreciate the collaboration. And, again, there's going to be a stronger presence. But the fact of the matter is, you all, you know, our police department cannot be everywhere at the same time. It's just not possible. But what we are counting on is that, as every person up here has already expressed,

37:30 especially coming from our executive director, OMCA Velez, you know, you see something, say something. Right? We also have to support one another as a city. You know, it's I don't know how much I can emphasize this. You cannot just put all the pressure on police officers. We just cannot do that. It's not sustainable. It's never worked at a time in which we had 2000 more police officers. You had 900 people being killed in the city of Chicago. So it's it's it's a collaborative effort. But I'm also asking residents to be vigilant and diligent as well.

38:03 So know your surroundings. If you see something, say something. But there will be a concerted, strong effort to have a presence on the CTA along with our footprint downtown and in the neighborhoods. Hey, Mayor. Alderman Lawson says he won't hold a zoning committee vote or a meeting until there's a permanent committee chair. Are you worried that that will halt development? And are you moving ahead with a proposal for that position? We'll have a proposal for the reorganization of those city council leadership positions.

38:35 I'm confident we'll be able to land on agreement where people will understand the configuration. The goal, of course, is to continue to build the safest, most affordable big city in America. Am I worried about any sort of delay? I don't have any reason to be worried about that. Any idea when you might do that? Good afternoon, Mayor. Hey, good afternoon. I wanted to get you and Superintendent Snelling to weigh in on two pieces of legislation that are moving through the city council committee as soon as next week.

39:08 one from alderman hopkins would allow geographic curfews within a 12-hour minimum notice and the other from alderman hall would allow the city and cpd and omc to monitor social media for posts promoting unruly or violent teen gatherings and ask those companies to remove those posts or limit their visibility or face penalties are those tools that the city's public safety agencies could utilize well look i think the work around the impact that social media has on on influencing

39:46 behavior of course there's legitimate concern around there you know in this year's budget we have a brand new tax that we've initiated the smart tax social media amusement responsibility tax because of all of the research that has demonstrated the level of anxiety and other mental health issues that have been exacerbated or even caused by these large tech companies. You know, as far as whether or not the language of what's being debated is something that, you know,

40:17 we could get around, there's an ongoing element there. As far as the curfew, we have a citywide curfew already. We have one. Is that everybody? Okay, listen, you all, happy new year. I hope to see you all downtown enjoying what will be one of the most memorable moments, I believe, in our city's history. Thank you all very much.

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