Rahm Concerned About After School Matters Donations

By Chuck Sudo in News on Oct 5, 2011 9:45PM

It doesn't appear as though anyone is surprised by yesterday's report from City Inspector General Joe Ferguson of "special clauses" contracts tied to TIF grants that kicked back a portion of the grants to a list of specified charities during former Mayor Richard M. Daley's mayoralty, and how wife Maggie Daley's After School Matters charity seemed to benefit the most from it. We've come a long way from the days of widow and orphans funds and buying $2 pencils from police at traffic stops to avoid a ticket. Ferguson's report merely adds proof to the pudding that the "Chicago Way" has adopted a level of subtlety over the years.

With Daley out of office (and can you imagine the meltdown Daley would have had at a press conference if this report came out while he was still mayor?) it's up to Mayor Rahm Emanuel to respond to the report. Emanuel has had to do this a lot since he took office, calling for an end to business as usual even as he subtly blames his predecessor as the reason business continued as usual.

That will be compounded here. Emanuel is a former After School Matters board member; his wife Amy Rule still sits on ASM's board.

Asked to respond to Ferguson's report today, Emanuel balanced on a gossamer.

“What I don’t want to see happen is because of one report that we shut down after school activities that will affect everybody’s neighborhoods and their children. I want to keep encouraging corporations to step up in the public way they have done,” the mayor said.

“The question is, if TIF is not the right vehicle, how do we still do this and what are the reforms necessary? We’ll take the appropriate steps so there’s clarity to that.”

Emanuel has been quick to embrace TIF reform, but it's still undetermined if the panel he put together will put some teeth behind their recommendations. Meanwhile, mayoral communications director Chris Mather said what Emanuel can't, threading that fine line as he is.

“To ensure that there is absolutely no question as to whether or not this is acceptable, the mayor has asked [Community Development] Commissioner [Andy] Mooney to immediately install whatever safeguards are necessary.”