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April 19, 2026
Dear neighbors,
This week is National Public Safety and Telecommunicators week, so I’d like to thank all our public safety dispatchers, 9-1-1 call receivers, 311 operators, and traffic management heroes. These “heroes under the headset” do the work to keep us safe daily!
Thanks to everyone who came out for our Earth Day ward clean-up event on Saturday. Lots of fun keeping the neighborhood clean with you and enjoying lunch together!
Congratulations to the Healy Elementary School community on another successful walkathon fundraiser on Friday. Thank you to everyone who participated and contributed.
Get well soon to longtime White Sox anthem singer Gerald Chaney, who fell sick at Wednesday night’s game. He is reportedly doing better, but our prayers go out to him for a full recovery.
I hope you’ll join me and the Department of Planning and Development this coming Thursday, April 23 at Vjosa Café for an opportunity to learn more about Small Business Grant programs for business owners. Vjosa Cafe & Events is located at 1010 W 35th St Suite 102, entrance next to Antique Taco on 35th Street.
Sadly, we lost the first female majority leader of the Illinois House, Barbara Flynn Currie on Thursday. Her leadership in the statehouse and groundbreaking work as an example for generations of women will be remembered. May she rest in peace.
Chicago Public Schools
It was reported late this week that CPS has agreed to restore funding for 800 Catholic school students who receive services under the Individual with Disabilities Education Act, or IDEA. This funding restoration allows for students to receive services through the end of May. I was pleased to hear this news especially for those families who would have been impacted right here in the 11th Ward.
CPS CEO Dr. Macqueline King, confirmed this week that May 1st would still be a school day and in a compromise with the Chicago Teachers Union, will allow for participation on May 1st as a civic day of action. As a CPS parent, I believe the decision to participate should be discussed as a family. I appreciate that CPS will be in session on May 1st, which provides assurances for parents and caregivers that they will not have to make alternative childcare plans.
This week, Yesenia Lopez, elected school board member for part of the 11th Ward (7B), is sharing an update with residents. See the section below “Update from your school board member” for more info. I encourage you to reach out to her directly with specific questions about what’s happening at the Chicago Board of Education.
Public Safety
I joined 43 of my colleagues in signing a letter to Director Dionne Tate of 311 services (good timing with OEMC week) to suggest an improvement to their system for reporting and tracking hateful graffiti. Our suggested update would make it so there were more granular categories to report the traits of the graffiti, so we can better keep track of hate speech across the city.
We now have two Chicago Police Department Officers officially assigned to oversee all the beats in the 9th District, and to focus their efforts specifically on community policing. Welcome Officer Jacqueline Torres and Officer Andre Rodriguez to the neighborhood if you see them at a CAPS meeting, which they will be attending. Both are CPD veterans. It’s always been successful in the past to have specific officers focused on community activities. I’m glad this is happening now, even if it may be overdue.
This Week in City Council
This week in City Council, we appointed Ald. Gilbert Villegas to hold the position of Chair of the Zoning Committee. We’ve needed a permanent chair to hold the position and have access to the full resources and powers of the role. While I supported Ald. Bennett Lawson’s bid to be the permanent Chair, I have confidence in Ald. Villegas’ ability to lead the committee. Ald. Lawson will remain as Vice Chair and the Chair for the Committee on Economic and Technology Development will now be Ald. Derek Curtis of the 18th Ward, the position was vacated by Ald. Villegas.
Ald. Scott Waguespack and I introduced a resolution calling for a hearing to get updates from department heads on the efficiencies that were passed in the 2026 budget. The Council led budget that was passed included $46 million in cost savings and the hearing is intended to make sure we’re on track.
Alds. Hopkins (2), Chico (10), and Curtis (18) introduced a resolution calling for a hearing to look at delays and missed deadlines to replace ShotSpotter, the acoustic gunshot detection system the Mayor cancelled use of in 2024. The resolution also calls for the hearing to discuss delays in implementing a records management system to improve data collection, analysis and officer oversight, including an early intervention system to identify at-risk behavior. I signed on as a co-sponsor of this resolution. The Johnson administration has not provided any updates after the September 20, 2024 deadline for a “Request for Information” where submissions from companies with gun detection technology were solicited for review by the City. All the while, we’ve budgeted for this item in 2025 and 2026 with no clear plans on implementation from the Mayor’s Office.
Upcoming in City Council
The next City Council meeting is May 20th at 10 a.m.
Around the Ward
The Greater Bridgeport and South Loop Chamber of Commerce’s most exciting events, the 2026 Revitalize Cocktail Fundraiser, honoring 100 Years of Filbert’s, will take place on Wednesday, April 22nd at the Bridgeport Art Center’s Sculpture Garden. Tickets are available here.
Construction to complete the work on Wentworth from Cermak to 24th Place began April 15th. Wentworth Avenue will not be completely closed, but please be aware of posted no parking signs for and flaggers, with rolling partial closures. More info below.
Have a good week,
Nicole
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