Two south side Target stores are closing

[VIDEO] In addition to this video report from Tuesday from outside the 87th & Cottage Grove Target store I'll give you an excerpt from this Tribune article

The decision to close the stores in the Morgan Park and Chatham neighborhoods “follows a rigorous annual process to evaluate the performance of every store in the portfolio and maintain the overall health of the business,” the Minneapolis-based retailer said in a statement. Four other stores are closing nationwide.

About 115 people work full or part time at the 128,000-square-foot Morgan Park store, which opened in 2008. Roughly 120 work at the 126,000-square-foot Chatham store, which opened in 2002.

Employees in good standing at both stores will be given the option to transfer to a different store in their area, Target said.
 ...
Target said it does consider the proximity of other stores when making decisions about closing locations. But it also looks at the store’s profitability over several years and other options available to customers, such as shopping online and having orders delivered, Target spokeswoman Jacque DeBuse said.

“This is based on the business and is not about a neighborhood or geography,” DeBuse said. “As you have seen, Target remains committed to Chicago, as we’ve been remodeling stores across the metro (area) and continuing to open new stores to serve new guests.”

Both stores are expected to close in February next year.

2019 race for 9th Ward Alderman #Ward09

Recently I procured a flyer for Paul Collins who is running for Alderman in Ward 9. He seeks to challenge Alderman Anthony Beale in 2019.

Visit his under construction website at www.friendsofpaulcollins.com and he also has a FB page Paul Collins for 9th Ward Aldermen

Early voting for #Ward09

This was sent out via on Wednesday by Ald. Anthony Beale's office with regards to early voting.You can early vote at both Palmer Park on 111th & Olive Harvey College on 103rd. Refer to flyer below!

Washington Heights Visioning Session - Red Line Extension Coalition

Red Line extension

This invited with an attached newsletter was sent to us via the West Chesterfield Community Association with regards to the red line extension.

• THE FOURTH AND FINAL WASHINGTON HEIGHTS VISIONING SESSION BY ENDELEO INSTITUTE.
  
  6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
  Thursday October 18th, 2018
  Woodson Library Auditorium
  9525 S Halsted, Chicago

 Red Line Extension Coalitio... by on Scribd

The Sixth Ward: Van Dyke - guilty! #laquanmcdonald

[VIDEO] Above I will share coverage from the CBS network which was live streamed on their YouTube channel yesterday. Below will be a tweet that shares the link to "The Sixth Ward" that attempted to compile various video stories about the reaction to the verdict of the Jason Van Dyke trial.

In late 2014, Officer Van Dyke shot LaQuan McDonald 16 times and McDonald died from his wounds. Yesterday among other charges, Van Dyke was convicted by a jury of second degree murder.

Van Dyke - guilty! https://t.co/6FPUQDZGsl pic.twitter.com/NnSidgglUe

— The Sixth Ward (@TheSixthWard) October 6, 2018

I'm relieved that there will be no rioting as the city was on high alert for any disturbances although there were protests around the city after the verdict was read.

#fbf 95/Dan Ryan - 1971

Wanted to share this ig post from CTA earlier this week. It shows trains departing and arriving at the 95th terminal in 1971 which was back when the line was brand new. I wrote a lot about the history of operations at 95th since the Dan Ryan branch of the CTA Red Line has been in operation over at The Sixth Ward.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Chicago Transit Authority (@chicagocta) on Oct 1, 2018 at 1:00pm PDT

Tonight is the #Ward09 September community meeting

The next town hall/community meeting is coming up tomorrow night.

9th Ward September Community Meeting
Tuesday, September 25, 2018
6:30 PM to 7:30 PM

Pullman Presbyterian Church
550 E. 103rd Street

For more information call Ald. Beale's service office 773.785.1100

If you attend a Roseland Heights Community Association meeting (usually every last Tuesday of the month) which starts a tad earlier than the 9th Ward meeting you can leave that meeting and go see what Alderman Beale has going.

ward09.com

So who could win the mayoralty in 2011?

Block Club Chi on Tuesday told us about the eleven candidates who have already declared at least before the Mayor dropped out of the 2019 race. Even told us about how much money they have and Emanuel had the most by FAR! Problem is what good are those millions if he's not running for mayor again.

Anyway the Capitol Fax takes a look at who could jump in now that Emanuel is out of the running. And thankfully no Pat Quinn - I wasn't even aware he lived in Chicago - who was our former governor from 2009 to 2015. We know it's not attorney general Lisa Madigan who will leave her office next year as she's not running for re-election and she won't run for mayor either.

6th ward Ald. Roderick Sawyer is looking at it. And remember his father was mayor after the death of Harold Washington. Who knows whether or not he'd pull the trigger.

Finally Mayor Emanuel who was not only a former Congressman, but chief of staff to President Obama before becoming Mayor had this to say about who could be the new Mayor in 2019:

Emanuel told WGN radio host Steve Cochran he doesn’t think any of the 12 announced candidates for the fifth floor office at City Hall has the skill set to do the job, while getting in plugs for some of his own work.

“No,” Emanuel said when Cochran asked him whether the next mayor is in the race. “I don’t think so. And here’s the thing: The public knows that this is a very big job, and the mayor cannot be a one-trick pony. You can’t just speak on one issue. You got to do economic development, you got to do education policy, you got to be able to get money out of Springfield and Washington. You’ve got to have an ability to actually invest in our neighborhoods, transportation, libraries, schools and park system.”

“My view is … the list is not done,” he added. “It’s going to shake out for about a month, and then the voters will make a smart decision of who can fill that office. And what I mean by that is, you’re not going to shrink the mayoralty, and there’s got to be a mayor that actually fills this job.”

So the next mayor of Chicago isn't in the race yet. Just remember in 2011, Emanuel gets in the race and automatically he was the front runner and later the victor. Unfortunately the big names I'd like to see do it aren't jumping in...

Rahm Emanuel is out....

[VIDEO] Earlier in the day he was meeting students at a CPS school before announcing at a press conference that he won't seek a third term. He is out of the 2019 race, and this is something that I didn't see coming. I can only imagine what other political insiders think.

Here are two posts from The Sixth Ward about this development.

• Capitol Fax: Mayor Emanuel won’t seek reelection
•  2019 mayor's race without Rahm Emanuel...

Is there anyone running for mayor who would be great to replace Rahm Emanuel?

I also needed to share this CapFax post from yesterday. It shows a lot of speculation as to why he wouldn't pull the trigger.

Block Club Chi: Massive Indoor Track Facility Coming To South Side Will Be City’s First

There was a ground breaking for this facility this past Sunday and it will soon be at Gately Park. Via Block Club Chi:

For 35 years, Chicago activist, scholar and former track athlete Dr. Conrad Worrill has worked to bring an indoor track facility to Chicago.

On Sunday, during a groundbreaking ceremony at Gately Park, 744. E. 103rd St., he realized it’s actually happening.

“I’m ecstatic, happy, overjoyed, we’ve been fighting for this for over 35 years and I think it will give an option to Chicago Public Schools student athletes in having accessibility to an indoor track,” Worrill said. “I believe it will put Chicago on the map and it’s an opportunity to put Chicago track and field on the map.”
...
In a statement, Emanuel said the track and field facility will provide Chicago athletes of all ages a place to train year round.

“In partnership with After School Matters and Exelon, we are proud to make Harold Washington’s dream a reality on the South Side,” he said.

Harris, whose ward is home to Gately Park, said the project will cost $55 million and is scheduled to be completed by August 2019.