At the police budget hearing, alderpersons got hiring numbers but no answers on the gunshot detection pilot

Officials referred questions to the City's procurement chief, who wasn't there. Ald. Timmy Knudsen raised Monday night's Clark Street burglaries, and Ald. Marty Quinn asked to add a Southwest Side district to the pilot.

By Chicago PoliticsUpdated Oct 29, 2026

The Chicago Police Department's turn before the City Council's budget committee on Wednesday produced hiring and retirement figures, but little on the question many alderpersons came with: what is the gunshot detection pilot the City says will launch in six South and West Side districts within days?

Why it matters: Chicago has had no citywide gunshot detection system since it ended its ShotSpotter contract in 2024, and nine companies bid to replace it in 2025 without a contract being signed. The pilot was announced to alderpersons in a letter from the City's chief procurement officer on Oct. 20, as we reported. Residents in those districts don't yet know what technology will be used, who runs it or what it costs.

This follows our preview of Wednesday's hearing.

What was said

The pilot. Ald. Matt O'Shea (19th) said officials kept passing him between offices, and that no one could say which company has the pilot or when it starts, according to Block Club Chicago and the Sun-Times. Dan Casey of the Office of Public Safety Administration said the procurement department should answer, and cited the letter's two-week timeline. Ald. Samantha Nugent (39th) said the Police Department had no role in a program run by procurement, Block Club reported. Acting Supt. Fred Waller called gunshot detection a "valuable tool" and said he wished he knew more.

Ald. Marty Quinn (13th), who put a gunshot detection question on next week's ballot, asked that the 8th District on the Southwest Side be added. Waller said the department could look at it, Block Club reported. A mayoral spokesperson said the pilot would start "as soon as possible" and is separate from any pending procurement.

Staffing. The budget freezes 368 officer vacancies and eliminates 132 more police positions. Waller said the Mayor's office asked for the 132 cuts and that he negotiated to run academy classes all 12 months of 2027, the Sun-Times reported. Ald. Brendan Reilly (42nd) tallied the decline in budgeted officer positions since 2024. The department hired 539 officers in 2025 and lost 397 to retirement; so far in 2026 it has hired 407 and lost 363, according to the Sun-Times.

Clark Street. Ald. Timmy Knudsen (43rd) raised the break-ins early Tuesday at at least 13 businesses on the 2400 and 2500 blocks of North Clark Street in Lincoln Park, Block Club reported, and asked for the department's response. He said staffing in the Near North and Town Hall districts is down significantly. Chief of Detectives Kevin Bruno said investigators would use video, license plate readers and phone data. No arrests had been reported Wednesday.

What our records add

The ordinance waiting for a Council vote. O2026-0028837, from Ald. Felix Cardona Jr. (31st) with Peter Chico (10th) and Silvana Tabares (23rd), directs the procurement officer to act on the gunshot detection contract. The Committee on Contracting Oversight and Equity approved it Oct. 20 by voice vote. Our copy of the Clerk's record still shows it in committee; it needs a full Council vote, and the next regular meetings are Dec. 8 and 9. Monday's special meeting is limited to the parking meter pension ordinance.

How the Council split before. In September 2024, the Council passed Ald. David Moore's ordinance directing the superintendent to sign a new or extended acoustic gunshot detection contract, 33 to 14.

How each ward voted

33 yea, 13 nay, 1 absent, 1 not voting · Sep 18, 2024 · Passed

Yea Nay Absent Not voting

O2024-0011032: the roll call, the timeline and the documents

Among the members who spoke Wednesday, O'Shea, Quinn, Nugent and Reilly voted yes. Ald. Jason Ervin (28th), who also asked about the pilot, voted no.

The video. The hearing's video and transcript will be on our meeting page once the Clerk posts them.

What's next

Early November: the mayor's office said it expects to give an update on the pilot, Block Club reported.
Nov. 3: Quinn's advisory question on resuming gunshot detection is on the ballot, as we explained.
Nov. 5: the Office of Public Safety Administration and the Civilian Office of Police Accountability face the committee.

Sources: Chicago Politics: O2024-0011032, acoustic gunshot detection contract.