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Hi neighbors,
It's a very fun Tuesday here in the 1st Ward! I started the day at the Wicker Park / Bucktown Chamber of Commerce's State of the Wards event, went to a sip-and-paint party with the seniors at Linden House; and will be learning to play pickleball this evening with the students over at De Diego. For the rest of the newsletter opening though I'm going to take a moment for a legislative round-up: items of note introduced or expected to pass in the near future.
ADA Transition Plan Council Order: For whatever banners you see hanging from City Hall, Chicago has been out of compliance with the federal Americans With Disabilities Act for the past 35 years through our lack of Transition Plan, essentially a city's comprehensive understanding of our barriers to accessibility and our plan for addressing them. Here's a look at Cook County's for an example. I'm calling on the city to finally address this injustice through a Council Order demanding the creation of this plan.
Institutional Zoning: Almost every house of worship or school in the city is non-conforming to it's current zoning, because we've never had a zoning category specific to those uses. That's why it's so easy to demolish these properties and build over them. Rather than seeking to landmark all of these properties, the most logical legislative path is to actually create a zoning category specific to those land uses. That's the ordinance I introduced last week and I hope to see it pass quickly.
Redistricting Reform: Yes. Really. Both because our current process is hopelessly broken but also because we may have reached the nadir of politicians picking their voters and not the other way around. Working with Change IL, I've introduced an ordinance through which, starting in 2031, a redistricting commission of Chicago residents would be appointed by Council and–through a public transparent process–draft three maps for the City Council to then vote on. I'm very grateful for Alders Knudsen, Fuentes, and Sigcho-Lopez for being the first to sign on as co-sponsors and look forward to the hard work of convincing both Chicagoans and my colleagues that this is the necessary path forward.
Parking Meter Deal: It's baaaaaack. Morgan Stanley is selling it's 75-year lease of our parking meters to the private equity firm StonePeak, a decision that must be ratified by the City Council. Sadly but truthfully, we do not have legal power to change the terms of this contract. We can however fully vet this potential purchaser and see what actions they are willing to make of their own accord. I will definitely update you on this as more information becomes available.
Have a wonderful week!
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