Committee on Finance

Chicago City Council

Finance

Politics

Monday, May 24, 2021
10:00 a.m. CDT

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Chicago, IL 60602 (Directions)

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Reporting

Edited and summarized by the Chicago - IL Documenters Team

Note-taking by Monica Mosching

Urban Forestry Board, Ramova Theater renovations, Settlement payments

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Live reporting by Princess-India Alexander

Urban Forestry Board, Ramova Theater renovations, Settlement payments

Princess-Documenter @PrincessIndiaA2

Good Morning all! Today I'll be covering the Chicago City Council Committee on Finance for @CHIdocumenters. Follow along here or watch the virtual meeting at the link below!
livestream.com/accounts/28669…

10:05 AM May 24, 2021 CDT

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At 10:03 chairman of the board Scott Waguespack called the meeting to order and began roll call with 23 members present at the time of attendance.

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With attendance done we begin with public comments starting with Marilyn May from the Black Heroes Matter Coalition. She urges members to vote yes on the motion to rename portions of Lake Shore Drive after Chicago's founder, Jean Baptiste Point Du Sable.

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On April 29 the Chicago City Council Committee voted to change the name of outer Lake Shore Dr to honor Du Sable and now the proposal must go before the full council. Read more here! abc7chicago.com/lake-shore-dri….

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We move now to comments from Duane M. Jarrett, chief gardening officer for Blacks In Green. The org works to develop "green, self-sustaining, mixed-income, walkable-villages in communities owned and populated by African Americans."
blacksingreen.org/about-us

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Jarrett urged the board to give time and attention to the green spaces in Black neighborhoods and actively invest in making these areas healthier for those that live there.

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Now we hear from Adrienne Lange of Latinos Progresando (@latinospro) also speaking on behalf of the need for green spaces and to protect the trees across the city.

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More specifically, Lange asks the board to vote yes on the creation of an Urban Forestry Advisory Board. This board would protect and sustain Chicago's tree canopy. news.wttw.com/2020/07/22/chi…

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Council member Adam Flores further explained how this Urban Forestry Advisory Board would operate. For example the board would consist of 13 volunteered positions that would advocate on behalf of Chicago's tree canopy.

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Both Malcolm Whiteside Jr, the Deputy Commissioner of Department of Streets and Sanitation and Jeff Brink, the Senior City Forester spoke out on their support of the board and the multiple benefits it would bring

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Echoing Whiteside and Brink's comments, 39th Ward Alderman Samantha Nugent noted how trees can help lower asthma rates and ease heat zones in especially effected areas of the city. Read here for how these zones effect gardening and forestry.
lawnstarter.com/blog/illinois/…

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During discussion of tree management 27th Ward Walter Burnett asked if it were possible to simply move and replant large trees that may, for example, be pulling up sidewalks.

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According to Jeff Brinks moving trees over 4 inches in diameter is too stressful for both the tree and its root system. In fact, he says that small nursery trees out perform larger nursery trees when planted because it is so much easier to move a young tree than a mature one

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Fourth Ward Alderman Sophia King also brought up a question she often gets from her constituents: can tree roots penetrate sewer lines?Mr. Whiteside responded with a simple "no." It's more of an urban myth that trees interrupt sewer lines in this way.

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Adam Flores piggybacked on the answer noting the importance of the future advisory board educating the community about Chicago's trees and how they function within neighborhoods.

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Anthony Napolitano, 41st Ward Alderman, asked if the urban forestry advisory board would have a budget to which chairman Waguespack responded "no." The board will be made of volunteers from across the City Council working in only an advisory role.

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We now move to item 3 on the agenda, an amendment of authorizing ordinance regarding redevelopment agreement with Our Revival Chicago LLC for acquisition of Ramova Theatre, adjacent parcel, and provision of tax increment financing (TIF) assistance funds.

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Tim Jeffries, the Deputy Commissioner for the City of Chicago, Financial Incentives Division, introduced the following proposed amendments for the renovation. https://t.co/rAqxkhVCfU

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Although renovations began in early 2020, they were halted by the COVID 19 pandemic. Now the project has been reignited chicagotribune.com/entertainment/…

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We begin item 4 on the agenda with COC financial planning analyst Jim O'Connell. He introduced ordinance O2021-1653 which deals with the "Issuance of multi-family housing revenue bonds for acquisition and construction of low-income housing development project at 145 N Damen Ave

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Below is the full summary presented for the housing project. https://t.co/Tog803PrpR

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The committee quickly voted in agreement with the plan and moved the misc items on the agenda. These were settlements from citizens against the City of Chicago presented by Renai Rodney, the First Assistant Corporation Counsel at City of Chicago, Department of Law

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The first civil case Rodney presented deals with a man who has since been acquitted of his accused crimes following suppressed alibi information and presented unreliable eye witness testimony. The original case from 2014 is as follows abc7chicago.com/archive/943639…

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Rodney, in representing the Law Department, recommends the city resolve the case with a $500,000 settlement including attorney fees for the accused.

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Ward 30 Alderman Ariel Reboyras was the only member to oppose the settlement while the rest of the committee approved the motion

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With all proposed settlements approved, Chairman Waguespack called the meeting to a close at 12:14 pm. Thank your for joining me today and follow @CHIdocumenters and #chidocuments for more City of Chicago news!

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Agency Information

Chicago City Council

chicityclerkelms.chicago.gov

(312) 744-3166

@ChiCouncil

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