CBS Chicago: City council approves funding for CTA Red Line extension

 

[VIDEO] Here are a few more details from Crain's, this TIF was noted in a recent CTA video about the future extension from 95th Street to 130th Street.

The City Council on Wednesday approved the creation of a new tax-increment financing district to create $950 million over three decades to help pay for the $3.6 billion extension of the Chicago Transit Authority's Red Line from 95th Street south to 130th Street.

“Our community has been disconnected” from the city, said Ald. Anthony Beale, 9th, whose Far South Side ward will be home to much of the extended rail line. Beale, who’s a frequent critic of Mayor Lori Lightfoot, thanked the mayor for pushing for the TIF to support the project.

The new TIF will capture future property tax growth within portions of five wards—the 3rd, 4th, 11th, 25th and downtown 42nd—to pay for land acquisition and other costs involved in the project.

The 5.6-mile extension plan also includes four new stations to be located at 103rd Street, 111th Street, Michigan Avenue (between 115th and 116th streets) and a new 130th Street terminal.

CBSChicago: Lawsuit accuses Roseland Community Hospital, fired doctor of fraudulent billing

 

[VIDEO] A scandal at a far south side hospital. Roseland Hospital is at the center of a scandal where the hospital billed for coronavirus testing that was never provided. Jermont Terry reports on WBBM-TV.

Last day of petition filing #Ward09

 Today, Lori Lightfoot has filed her papers to run for a second term as Mayor. [VIDEO]

I'll eventually update the 2023 elections page with all candidates that have filed petitions to run against Mayor Lightfoot for the city's top job. In addition these candidates have filed for Alderman of Ward 9.

• Cleopatra Draper
• Alderman Anthony A. Beale
• Sonya Thompson Dorsey
• Cameron M. Barnes

Also bear in mind these petitions will be challenged so this field or for any office in the city for next year will change and we will know for sure who will be on the ballot in February. Those who were able to file for office have done so.

As a reminder here is the ward 9 map from 2023 onwards

Ray Lopez drops out of mayoral race #Ward09

 

[VIDEO] Over the summer he had been one of the first candidates to announce his run for the mayor's office. Yesterday he had dropped out of the race stating that a crowded field could help Lori Lightfoot get a second term as Chicago Mayor. Well while I could be disappointed that's he's dropping out, he is running for re-election as Ward 15 Alderman and well it'll have to be another candidate who could potentially defeat Mayor Lightfoot.

Earlier this month Congressman Chuy Garcia announced another run for Mayor.

Meanwhile this week candidates seeking an elected office in Chicago have started filing their petitions. You can check out them out here at the Chicago Board of Elections. 

These two candidates are running for Alderman of Ward 9. Ald. Anthony Beale is running for re-election and so far Cleopatra Draper has filed to run against him. Time to start that Ward 9 elections page.

Also I see also on the ballot next year in 2022 is three positions in 22 Chicago Police Districts around the city. I'm sorry but had no idea about this, when did this start? Anyone reading this blog running for a seat on the Chicago Police District council?

BTW, I wish I could create an iniative no more of this alderperson junk. Let's just change the job title of Chicago alderman. Find something that is "gender neutral" and a bit more logical to say...can't get used to it! 

Commentary: Red Line extension needlessly caught in the switches due to CTA/City Council beef

From Lee Bey at the Chicago Sun-Times:

Resource Fair #Ward09

Ward 9 Ald. Anthony A. Beale in partnership with State Representatives Nicholas "Nick" Smith and Robert "Bob" Rita presents their 

9th Ward Resource Fair

Thur. October 27, 2022

From 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM

Pullman Community Center

10355 S. Woodlawn

If you're looking for a shred event the flyer below says all documents will be destroyed on site. Any questions about this event I would refer you to the Ward 9 service office, contact info on the flyer. Or you can check out their ward service office webpage.

Events for Thursday and Friday #Ward09

 Events taking place tomorrow Thursday, Sept. 15, 2022. These flyers are provided in a recent email blast by Ald. Anthony Beale.

WGN: Man fatally shot at South Side gas station #Ward09

 

[VIDEO] As you see in this clip Ward 9 Ald. Anthony Beale is upset about a lack of resources in the community to address the gun crime in the Roseland community. 

Wednesday morning a fatal shooting took place at a Citgo Station at 116th & Michigan. Then on Tuesday afternoon another fatal shooting on 113th & Michigan.

The right question is being asked if crime is down, who is the crime down for? Is it downtown? What about the neighborhoods.

2022 Taste of Chicago & SummerDance in Pullman Park

 Something found on the fb page of Ald. Anthony Beale. This will take place on June 18, 2022 Pullman Park is located at 11101 S. Cottage Grove admission is free. Refer to flyer below

Also click this link which shows a far more comprehensive list of events and acts for June 18.

And allow me to add TasteofChicago.us which is basically a link that sends you to a page about the Taste of Chicago from the city itself.

Sun-Times: Ward map battle over, but bitterness lingers

As stated already Altgeld Gardens will soon be in Ward 10 it is especially noted in this Chicago Sun-Times May 16, 2022 article. Altgeld Gardens is currently in Ward 9

9th Ward Summer Clean out fair June 16th

From Ald. Beale's fb page:

The 9th Ward's Annual Summer Clear Out Fair is June 16th! Shredding, electronic recycling, prescription pill disposal, and collection of any junk items will be accepted. Help us keep the community clean by disposing of your items the correct way.

• Pullman Community Center
  10355 S Woodlawn
  Chicago, IL 60628
  Thursday, June 16, 2022
  10 AM to 2 PM 

Sun-Times: Compromise on new City Council ward map could take issue away from Chicago voters

 The vote on this new map will take place when the City Council meets next week. You can check out what the ward remap looks like here.

From Sun-Times:

A deal has been struck on a new Chicago City Council ward map that, if approved, will keep the decision out of the hands of voters.

Under the deal, which still must be cemented by a City Council vote next week, the map will create 16 Black majority wards and 14 Latino majority wards, according to Ald. George Cardenas (12th).

Faced with a May 19 deadline to work it out themselves, the agreement calls for one fewer majority-Latino ward than the council’s Latino Caucus had wanted.

The proposed map also contains the city’s first ward with an Asian American majority.

Demographics are key to ward map negotiations. The city’s Black population is shrinking while the city’s Latino population is growing.

“There’s no need to bring the house down. We can own the house,” Cardenas said, referring to the next remap — in 10 years.

“Our day is coming for sure. We have to be patient and humble,” he said.

Cardenas offered a “kudos” to Mayor Lori Lightfoot for her work on Monday to facilitate the agreement and get all sides to sign on to the map.

Cardenas is grateful the map won’t go to a referendum — a step that, he said, would have siphoned energy from council members dealing with other pressing issues, including crime and a city casino.

Here's how our part of town looks in the new ward map. If you live in Altgeld Gardens, that development will now be in Ward 10.

 

Chicago Mag: ‘This is the end of Chicago’ (Geographically)

Map of Hegewisch and nearby area 

From Ed McClelland at Chicago Magazine regarding the southeast side of Chicago.

To reach the southeasternmost corner of Chicago, you have to take bumpy, potholed Boy Scout Road out of Hegewisch, then turn onto a set of tracks belonging to the Indiana Harbor Belt Railroad. With Powder Horn Lake to your right, follow the tracks between tall stands of reeds, still in their winter blondeness, toward a railyard where black tankers idle. Then turn onto a disused rail spur, weeds growing between its ties. Ahead, just across the state line, in Hammond, Indiana, are the rusted sheds of some long-abandoned industrial concern.

Chicago’s southern border is, perhaps, the wildest, most undeveloped part of the city, a hinterland that, in some places, looks more rural than urban, despite lying within the boundaries of America’s third-largest city. Like the nation’s southern frontier, it is a no-man’s land that crosses woods, lakes, rivers, and federal facilities off limits to the public. It would have made sense to set the southern city limits at the Little Calumet and Grand Calumet rivers. Instead of respecting natural boundaries, though, surveyors drew a straight line that corresponds with the middle of 138th Street and is often impossible to follow, even by bicycle or on foot. Last weekend, I tried, and, for most of its length, I failed.

After leaving the Belt Railroad yards, the city limits travel west across Powder Horn Lake and through Burnham Woods. I only had a bicycle, not a canoe or a machete, so I couldn’t paddle and bushwhack through those wild barriers. To pick up the line again, I pedaled south to the village of Burnham, and into the dirt alley behind 138th Place, a street of vinyl-sided workers’ cottages and a long-shuttered Old Style bar. Running along the north side of the alley is a fence entangled with vines — a border fence between the city and suburbs, as flimsy as any in the Sonoran Desert, barring the way to Mexico. On the other side is Chicago.

The alley dead ends near the south bank of the Grand Calumet River, the body of water that lends its name to the Calumet Region. From there, the city limits cross the confluence of the Grand and Little Calumets. When they hit land again, they slice through the northern tip of Burnham Park. A few square feet of that suburban park actually lies inside Chicago, although the village of Burnham still mows the grass. Such is what happens when man’s Euclidean determinations impose themselves on nature’s beguiling irregularities.

They go from about Altgeld Gardens which is contained within Ward 9 and further east into the area known as Hegewisch as you see in the above map. Read the whole thing.

Walk with us to what feels like an abandoned frontier. Southeasternmost Chicago may surprise you.https://t.co/th6aGuojBK

— Chicago magazine (@ChicagoMag) April 15, 2022

 

2023 elections

 I'm considering creating a 2023 elections page.

Next year in February we'll be voting for city council, city clerk, city treasurer, and mayor. Right now the city is of course focused on who's running for mayor.

Usually when I do these pages the focus is often on the Aldermanic election (or Alderperson still doesn't sound right). Thinking about throwing in the mayoral race for coverage and for the first time.

Today the news is out there that north side Congressman Mike Quigley is opting out of the 2023 mayoral race citing the ongoing Ukraine conflict. And so far who announced they're running is Ward 15 Ald. Raymond Lopez and the man responsible for these gas giveaways businessman Willie Wilson.

The current Mayor Lori Lightfoot has yet to announce she will seek re-election although it seems the signs are she might. When we hear about a re-election campaign the emphasis might be on her fundraising which the news is usually that it's not good.

Time will tell although the latest news about her right now is successfully pushing through the city council prepaid gas and CTA cards to address rising gas prices.

So anyway some feedback would be appreciated on this. For the purposes of this blog the 2023 election page will look at both those running for city council in Ward 9 and perhaps also those running for mayor of Chicago next year.

Another Willie Wilson gas giveaway coming

This week 2023 mayoral candidate Willie Wilson announced yet another $1 Million gas giveaway. As the last time if there are any updates I will share it with you all. This time he's separating out the city locations and the suburban locations. The closest station for the next giveaway is 111th & State Street on Saturday April 23, 2022.

Also you can follow Willie Wilson on his fb page and on Twitter.

 

Harlan baseball is back!

Found this in a fb group Harlan's Alumni with this caption:

Support Falcons Nation Support JR Kennon we need to get on board with fellow Harlan Alumni c/o 97 J.R * 4yr Varsity starter City Champions as a player and coach All state and All City members as a Senior And Welcome JR as New Head Coach at Harlan High School

Contact info provided in the graphic below.

 

WGN News: A final insult for a fallen officer

 

[VIDEO] Titus Moore died in his home of coronavirus or COVID-19 in November 2020 and one final insult has been that WGN reports that his home has been broken into. His family due to this pandemic hasn't been to enter his home to retrieve any of his belongings. The people who were caught breaking into his home have claimed when confronted by police there were there to secure and winterize his home. 

Thankfully the neighbors of West Chesterfield keeps an eye on suspicious activities at his home and unfortunately police were called but as you see in the story above police only just suggested they possibly "come back tomorrow". The home is said not to be in foreclosure and the implication is that there is no reason for any mortgage company to secure and winterize the home and of course some items have been stolen from the property.

Property Tax forum on January 12, 2022

You may have seen this in a recent email blast from Aldermen Beale's office. Refer to flyer below.

• Ward09.com
• CookCountyAssessor.com

 

Ward Remap 2021

 I wanted to share these maps with you to see the two proposals between the Chicago Coalition/Latino Caucus which is the map that Ald. Anthony Beale signed on to last week and then the Rules Committee/Black Caucus map that said Ald. Beale has an issue with.

Let's start with the City Council Rules Committee Map. I pointed out some geographical points to show what's where. West Chesterfield which is bounded by State to about 93rd Street to King Drive to 95th Street will be split between Wards 6 & 8. It's safe to say currently that area is in Ward 9 solidly.

Altgeld Gardens is drawn into Ward 10. Pullman which is a special concern for Ald. Beale appears to remain within Ward 9. Also where's Ward 34 well from what I've seen so far it's being drawn up near downtown. They pulled a Ward 2 on us this time around, in the last remap in 2011 they drew that ward out of the South Loop and drew it further north. As you see Ward 21 goes further south where 34 used to be and Ward 9 takes a little territory from 34 as well.

As for the Chicago Coalition map which is what Ald. Beale signed on with, especially as far as getting it up for a potential referendum next year. The only changes from the 2011 map is that Ward 6 is sent further west taking from 21 the Chatham Market mall and Simeon High School. Ward 21 again takes up most of what used to be Ward 34 and going further south. Ward 9 looks basically the same with Pullman and Altgeld Gardens with the boundaries and the ward goes all the way up to 87th Street between State and Cottage Grove.

We got basically two very different maps for this part of the south side. Perhaps some of you have your thoughts on these maps. Feel free to email us your thoughts it's in the sidebar.

Block Club Chi: New Culver's restaurant in Pullman now hiring

 Culver's is a burger chain that has locations in Bronzeville near 33rd & King Drive and one in Evergreen Park near 95th & Kedzie. They're expanding into the historic south side neighborhood of Pullman. And they're seeking applicants.

Via Block Club Chicago:

The Culver’s will open in early November at 111th Street and Doty Avenue. The restaurant is seeking applicants to fill 60-70 full-time and part-time jobs.

“It’s important that we work in the community to provide people of all ages with new opportunities that offer the skills and experience,” Baron Waller, the owner and a mentor who grew up on Chicago’s West Side, said in a statement. “It is one of the best ways to build a brighter future.”

Although prior restaurant experience is a plus, it is not necessary. Interested applicants can apply on Culver’s website.

...

“We’re excited that Baron has chosen to bring Culver’s to the Pullman and Roseland community,” Ald. Anthony Beale (9th) said in a statement. “Culver’s will be a great addition to the community serving not only residents, but the visitors to the Pullman National Monument Visitor, the Pullman Community Center and employees of all the businesses in the area and more.”