Results tagged “daley”

According to a report by the Tribune, Mayor Daley was secretly interviewed by the FBI in 2008, as part of their investigation into Calvin Boender and the Galewood Yards project. That investigation has led former 29th Ward Alderman Ike Carothers to plead guilty to accepting a bribe in connection to the project, and bribery charges against Boender. "The mayor cooperated with a request for an interview during the course of the investigation," said Jennifer Hoyle, spokeswoman for the city's Law Department, in an e-mail response to Tribune questions. "There is no indication that he was or is anything other than a witness." more ›

Bringing the total number of sitting aldermen that Mayor Daley has appointed to the City Council to 19 (that's nearly 40 percent of the city's legislative body!), Da Mare announced his picks to replace 1st Ward Ald. Manny Flores and 29th Ward Ald. Ike Carothers late yesterday: Proco "Joe" Moreno in the 1st, and state Rep. Deborah Graham in the 29th. The appointments follow an on-line application process to replace the aldermen, one who left office to pursue a position at the state level, and another for prison, respectively. Daley said he interviewed 44 people for the position. "The interesting thing was to listen to people about their concerns" Daley told the Tribune. The mayor assured the local press that the new appointees won't be doing his bidding on the council, though. "If you get some things done, it is amazing. [You say] they do my bidding. They don’t do my bidding. I do my own bidding….It is not one way — the Daley way — or that's it. I’m sorry," the mayor told the Sun-Times. more ›

In his on-going efforts to stop the bleeding at McCormick Place, Mayor Daley is floating the idea of privatization as a solution to overhauling the city's convention business. The convention center, part of the publicly-run Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority, which includes Navy Pier and is known as McPier, has been under pressure lately as it has lost conventions and trade shows to other parts of the country, thanks to the high costs of doing business in Chicago. "Bring the private sector in and you manage it and get out of the business of McCormick Place in the sense that it should be fully privatized," Daley told the Greater North Michigan Avenue Association's annual meeting. "Then you can run the costs down." Jodi Kawada, a spokeswoman for the mayor, quickly pointed out that the mayor was not talking about selling McCormick Place off as a city asset. "This is just an idea at this point," she told the Tribune. "The mayor is trying to think creatively about jump starting the convention and tourism industry in Chicago, which will require bold steps." more ›

Codifying what City Hall officials say has been an unwritten policy, the city council approved an ordinance proposed by Mayor Daley to let drivers off the hook once a year if they've overstayed their parking meter for five minutes. The ordinance will dismiss tickets issued to motorists within the first five minutes of parking meter expiration, once a year, provided they've kept their receipt. "The change will assist motorists who are occasionally ticketed for accidentally overstaying the time on their pay box receipt by a few minutes, despite trying to comply with parking requirements by purchasing adequate parking time," Daley told the Tribune. more ›

Following on the heels of a sexual harassment scandal that bubbled up into the news last month, Mayor Daley has transferred control over city hiring to Chicago's Inspector General. Daley is also proposing that the IG have the power to investigate corruption in the city council. Citing the federal corruption investigation into 29th Ward Ald. Issac Carothers, Daley said that “I think after the Carothers issue, some people are losing confidence in government.” more ›

Mark Meaney, first deputy to Anthony Boswell in Mayor Daley's Office of Compliance, resigned his $146,940-a-year position yesterday. The city inspector general recommended to Mayor Daley in a report last month that both be suspended for their handling of a 2008 complaint of sexual in the city's 911 center. The IG's investigation stems from an incident in which a student intern alleged that a high-ranking 911 center deputy made inappropriate comments about her appearance, repeatedly asked her out on dates and remarked that he'd like to have a cheerleader for an intern someday. The city's sexual harassment officer (who works for Boswell and Meaney) tried to investigate the claim, but ran into resistance, according to the IG's report. The two compliance chiefs supposedly tried to get the 911 official a new student intern, as well as trying to move him to a different city job, away from the 911 center. more ›

• Mayor Daley said there's no reprieve coming for the impending CTA cuts.
• More developments in the Alexi Giannoulias/Broadway Bank matter. Meanwhile, opponent Cheryle Jackson has called for Giannoulias to bow out of the race.
• That new Blago indictment could be coming by next week.

In the wake of a Tribune investigation into the apparent misuse of city-issued credit cards by high-ranking officials in the Chicago Public Schools, Mayor Daley says that he wants to wait to see what the report that Schools Inspector General James Sullivan will issue says. "The report has not come out as yet, but we'll be sitting down with that," Daley told the Tribune. "The independent inspector general is supposed to issue a report as well, and we'll respond appropriately. Like anything else, you want to protect taxpayers' money at all times." more ›

After a report by the city's inspector general, Mayor Daley is mulling suspensions of his top compliance officers. Inspector General Joseph Ferguson recommended to the mayor that he suspend Anthony Boswell and Mark Meaney, Daley's chief compliance officer and his first deputy, respectively. The case stems from a 2008 incident in which a student intern alleged that a high-ranking 911 center deputy made inappropriate comments about her appearance, repeatedly asked her out on dates and remarked that he'd like to have a cheerleader for an intern someday. The city's sexual harassment officer (who works for Boswell and Meaney) tried to investigate the claim, but ran into resistance, according to the IG's report. The two compliance chiefs supposedly tried to get the 911 official a new student intern, as well as trying to move him to a different city job, away from the 911 center. The Sun-Times is reporting that the official in question was stripped of his responsibilities in 2008 after he gave investigators information relating to an investigation into $2.25 million of contracting irregularities. more ›

Renaissance 2010, Mayor Daley's controversial school reform plan which includes shutting down low-performing schools, has failed to meet the mark, according to the Tribune's analysis of 2009 state test scores. more ›

Following the defeat of 14th Ward Ald. Ed Burke's proposal to impose an $11.03-an-hour wage on retail workers in stores that have received city subsidies, Mayor Daley lashed out at the public debate that has followed Wal-Mart's controversial plans to expand its business into the city. “These questions are not debated in the suburban area,” Daley said, waxing poetic on his favorite part of the region. “They are never even talked about.” Daley has said that he'd like to see a Wal-Mart open up in Chatham, but he wants to make sure there is agreement in the city council first. more ›

Mayor Daley, channeling his inner-Maoist, complained publicly over the weekend that the American system of government wasn't as awesome as China's. Speaking at the opening of the Brown, Red and Purple line L station at Fullerton, he told the press that the U.S. should follow China's lead on building infrastructure. “If you travel to China, they do these things continually, on a daily basis,” Daley said. “They get the full cooperation at the federal, state, and local levels and their infrastructure projects are amazing. It doesn’t take them 10 or 20 or 30 years. It takes about four or five years.” When the Sun-Times pointed out that China's government is a centrally planned authoritarian regime, he noted that “the form of government has nothing to do with it. . . . How did they figure that 25-year infrastructure plan is important for them and we only do one year? It isn’t government — it’s the people thinking 25 years ahead.” more ›

Mayor Daley had his hands full with McPier this week, staving off the suggestion of a merger of the troubled Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority with the state agency that owns and operates U.S. Cellular Field. "First of all, you can't take McCormick Place, which is not doing that well, and merge it with the Illinois sports authority, which is doing well," Daley told the Tribune. "You're saddling the Illinois sports authority. You couldn't do that, no, it would be unfair." more ›

The first flakes of the season's first big snowstorm are falling just now and we could see anywhere from 1 inch to 4 feet of snow depending on who you believe (and really, we believe only what our eyes see in terms of the weather sometimes). And as that first storm rolls in, Mayor Daley today blamed the media for something else: hysteria over the snow. Thing is...well, he's right. The media does kind of go a little bit overboard. In fact, so much so that they're even self-aware of it, as the videos below show [via the geniuses at EiT]. more ›

To the surprise of absolutely nobody, Mayor Daley's $6.1 billion 2010 budget passed, with slightly more aldermanic grumbling than usual, and 12 dissenting votes. 38th Ward Alderman Tom Allen voted against it, for the first time in his career as an alderman, saying that the budget failed to uphold the city's commitment to maintain $400 million in long-term reserves to make up for revenues lost in the botched parking meter lease deal. "Sometimes we sit in this room and think the 50 of us are breathing different air," Allen told the Tribune. Saying that the parking meter deal had angered "the people on the street breathing the real air," he couldn't vote for the budget. “We have breached our fiduciary duty to taxpayers. You can’t break a contract in 12 months that’s supposed to last for 75 years. It’s unconscionable. It’s irresponsible. It’s disingenuous. …The decision to raid this fundamental asset is mind boggling,” Allen said. (He voted for the parking meter deal, by the way.) 2nd Ward Ald. Bob Fioretti took a more folksy tack, saying "You don't eat your seed corn," after denouncing the city's plans to spend $35 million of parking meter money to give homeowners a few hundred dollars of property tax relief. (He voted for the parking meter deal, too.) The only aldermen who voted against the original parking meter deal to vote no on the budget was Ald. Scott Waguespack (32nd). more ›

According to WBEZ, the City Council has passed Mayor Daley's proposed $6.1 billion 2010 budget by a count of 38 to 12. We'll have more as information becomes available. more ›

Conventions have been leaving McCormick Place faster than rats on a sinking ship lately and now Mayor Daley is pointing his finger at the MPEA and trade show managers. After he discussed how the CHA has used stimulus money at a press conference on Tuesday, Daley was asked about the recent trade show exodus. “You have competition from Atlanta, you have competition from Vegas and Orlando and you have to get away from gouging. If you gouge 'em, they're not going to come back,” Daley said. more ›

After all that huffing and puffing about Mayor Daley's proposed property tax relief plan, the City Council's Finance Committee backed down on their challenge and passed Daley's plan with a few minor changes. The committee had initially balked at the plan, prompting Daley to lash out at the challenge. more ›

Mayor Daley lashed out at Chicago aldermen on Tuesday for sending back his proposal to give Chicagoans cash payouts to help ease the hit of increased property tax bills. The mayor's plan would use $35 million of the proceeds from the controversial parking meter lease to give an average of $150 to homeowners. The city council's Finance Committee sent the bill back to City Hall, asking that the mayor revise the scope of his plan, as it currently would extend to homeowners earning $200,000 a year. more ›

Is the City Council growing a spine? That may be the case, as the Finance Committee sent Mayor Daley's plan for property tax relief back to City Hall Monday for revisions. Facing a steep increase in property taxes this year, Mayor Daley (who claimed not to understand how property tax assessments work) has proposed a tax-relief plan - to the tune of $35 million - for homeowners that see their tax bills rise. According to the Tribune, Daley's plan breaks down like this: more ›

If you're one of the hundreds of thousands of people that will get stuck with a higher property tax bill this year, one of the things you may be wondering (besides 'why me?') is where that money goes, specifically. Thanks to a new search engine Cook County Clerk David Orr put up the other day, property owners in TIF districts can now see how much of their tax money is going into Mayor Daley's personal slush fund. Progress Illinois took it for a test drive, using Mayor Daley's permanent index number.

For fun, we plugged in Mayor Daley's PIN number (17-22-109-027-0000) and found that a whopping 92 percent of his property taxes were redirected into the Near South TIF last year. By contrast, cash-strapped schools are getting a mere 3.9 percent of the Daley's property tax dollars. This goes to show how much strain the TIF system are putting on those local taxing bodies entrusted to deliver education and other public services.

Following up (finally) on 47th Ward Ald. Eugene Schulter's complaint that suburbanites are claiming the best seats at Pritzker Pavilion in Millennium Park, Mayor Daley lashed out at those who are ungrateful for the benevolent contributions that suburban corporate benefactors have made to build Millennium Park. "Remember, people gave money [to build Millennium Park] who lived throughout the metropolitan area - business leaders. And if you look at many of them, they lived in suburban areas. They should have never given," Daley said Monday. "We have free concerts there. First come, first served. People show up early. I mean - they show up REAL early. So, it's first come, first served," the Mayor told the Sun-Times. "It's a wonderful program. Of course, they [also] have the Grant Park concerts. That goes on." more ›

With a massive budget deficit looming, property taxes on the rise, and the mayor talking about more furloughs and service cuts, the Chicago Public Schools have still found over $150,000 to hire a city hall insider to handle "forging partnerships with the business community to support school programs," the Sun-Times is reporting. Better yet, the hire is Barbara Lumpkin, who has served as Daley's city comptroller, budget director and city treasurer, and who was involved in several city hall scandals during her previous tenure. more ›

Some officials believe building a land-based casino could provide help during Chicago's financial crisis but Mayor Daley has some reservations that must be met first. more ›

We're a short time away from hearing all about Mayor Daley's budget for 2010 - hint: it won't be pretty! - and Daley continues to slash at the budget like Jason Voorhees so that he can avoid raising taxes to help fill a budget gap in the neighborhood of $500 million. Items have been trickling out in the days ahead of his presentation to the City Council and now we've got a clearer idea of what's going to be cut. We already know that the city's non-union workers will be asked to take nearly five work weeks worth of furlough days (24 to be exact), that there will be no cost of living increases in wages, and at least three more reduced services days. Daley has also suggested that while money from the Skyway lease will remain untouched, he could borrow heavily from the parking meter lease to help cover the budget gap. more ›

Sticking to his vow not to increase taxes to close next year's budget deficit, Mayor Daley announced on Monday a portion of his plan to save millions of dollars in city spending next year. That includes 24 furlough days for city non-union workers (that's five weeks off, the equivalent of a 10 percent pay cut), no cost of living increases and three reduced service days. “The economic recession that has plagued our nation for well over a year continues to affect most of Chicago working families,” Daley said at a City Hall news conference. “I understand that times are still tough for people and I don’t feel right asking them to pay for more city government right now,” he said. more ›

Oh, to have been a fly on that wall: former world champion boxer Mike Tyson stopped in to see Mayor Daley this afternoon after appearing on Oprah this morning. He and Daley became acquainted a few years ago, and Tyson stopped in today to say hello and talk about youth violence with the mayor during a 30-minute private meeting. Tyson said he has a unique perspective on the subject because he grew up in rough parts of Brooklyn. more ›

With the release of his 2010 budget approaching next week and a budget gap of over $550 million in the city budget, Mayor Daley's going to have to get creative if he wants to close that gap. He'll have to be even more creative now that's he promised he won't raise any taxes, fines, or fees. Said Daley yesterday, "I understand that times are very tough for people. I don't feel right asking them to pay for city government right now." The most likely option being bandied about, it seems, is still dipping into reserve funds from the city's parking meter and Skyway leases. more ›

Now that Mayor Daley is firmly back on Chicago soil, he's staring down not only a dangerously low popularity rating, but also a city that's on the verge of economic disaster. Impending budget holes, (yet another) CTA Doomsday scenario, unemployment and of course the on going parking meter fiasco. Before any of these crisis, individually or in total, do him in, Mayor Daley is trying his darnedest to to some serious spin. He's already insisted he won't raise property taxes to close the budget gap, likely taking reserve funds to help him do that. more ›

As Harold Washington Library displayed its new teen media center, Mayor Richard M. Daley focused on ways to stem the rash of youth violence the city has experienced in recent weeks, Chicago Breaking News reports. The library's new YOUmedia lets teenagers edit music and video projects on computers. A program like this teaches marketable skills and provides a "safe place" and an alternative to hanging out on the streets, Daley said. more ›