chicagotribune--2020-11-25--The Spin: Lightfoot to mark passage of pandemic budget with steak, scotch, cigar | Chicago woos Joli

The Spin: Lightfoot to mark passage of pandemic budget with steak, scotch, cigar | Chicago woos Joliet for lucrative water deal | Will Illinois run out of hospital beds?

“ I am heartened to say that the Biden team has reached out , ” the mayor said .
“ @ @ @ @ @ of fresh air , given what we ’ ve been through over the last four @ @ @ @ @ action .
We need action now in order to say those businesses that are struggling @ @ @ @ @ needs of our most vulnerable residents .
”

Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot holds a press conference at City Hall in Chicago on Tuesday, Nov. 24, 2020, after presiding over a videoconference meeting of the city council. Lightfoot discussed the city's 2021 budget. The pool tv camera operator is in foreground. (Terrence Antonio James/Chicago Tribune) (Terrence Antonio James / Chicago Tribune)
Last year Mayor Lori Lightfoot celebrated the passage of her first city budget with a scotch and a cigar. This year, she said she’ll add a steak to the menu, an acknowledgment of the hard work and battles that played out to get her 2021 spending plan approved.
Compared with her predecessors, Lightfoot won approval of her highly controversial $94 million property tax increase and overall budget during a City Council vote by narrow margins. She said she’s OK with that, going back to an earlier refrain that she wants to work with a deliberative legislative branch, not a body that rubber stamps the mayor’s proposals.
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The relief on Lightfoot’s face was palpable — especially when she talked about fellow Democrat and President-elect Joe Biden’s team reaching out to her. She said she’s going to be pushing him for relief as the city and its residents cope with the continuing economic hardship from the pandemic.
Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle had a much easier lift, winning unanimous support for her nearly $7 billion budget that relied on no new taxes.
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And U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin is looking to become the top Democrat in the powerful Senate Judiciary Committee. A respected member in the chamber, there are reports that some Senate Democrats have reservations about it.
Welcome to The Spin.
Mayor Lori Lightfoot presides over the City Council meeting as Jeff Levine, an attorney with the city's law department, left, and Mark Flessner, corporation counsel, look on at the start of a virtual meeting of the City Council from her office at City Hall on April 22, 2020. (Jose M. Osorio / Chicago Tribune)
After weeks of work and, yes, some battles, Lightfoot got the 26 votes (and a smidge more) needed to pass what she calls her “pandemic budget” through the City Council, with aldermen pushing back hardest on the $94 million property tax increase. My colleagues John Byrne and Gregory Pratt break down the “yes” and “no” votes among aldermen and what it all means in this comprehensive piece.
In some instances, the mayor bowed to pressure from aldermen, including eliminating hundreds of proposed layoffs and increasing anti-violence funding, to get the backing she needed.
Ald. Susan Sadlowski Garza, 10th, cited the cancelled layoffs as a key reason for her supporting the budget. But not everyone was convinced. South Side Ald. Jeanette Taylor, 20th, said the budget is unfairly balanced on the backs of taxpayers.
“A rubber stamp City Council does a disservice not only to the members, but also to the people,” Lightfoot told reporters after the City Council vote today, when asked whether she was concerned about the narrow 28-22 vote for her $94 million property tax hike and the 29-21 vote in favor of her budget.
She pointed to her five-year, $3.7 billion capital plan, which was approved by a whopping 41-8 council vote as evidence that not every vote today was narrow. As Pratt and Byrne note, the roads and bridges plan helped her get support from trade unions that in turn convinced aldermen to approve her budget.
Asked about whether some of the concessions amounted to the horsetrading she vowed to avoid, Lightfoot told reporters: “I don’t buy votes and I never will, but the democratic process is about compromise.”
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The Sun-Times’ Fran Spielman, reminding the mayor that she celebrated with a scotch and cigar last year, asked how she’d mark the passage of her second budget.
“Same way ... and a steak,” Lightfoot said, laughing.
But will the Cubs-owning Ricketts get a break? As Byrne and Pratt write, “Lightfoot muscled her property tax hike on Chicago homeowners through the council the same day she introduced a plan to let the Cubs owners the Ricketts family defer a $250,000 payment to the city for infrastructure improvements near Wrigley Field on the grounds the Team has lost revenue during the pandemic.” The Tribune’s Byrne has even more here.
Mayor ‘heartened’ to hear from President-elect Joe Biden’s team, but…: Lightfoot dropped that nugget during a news conference to underscore that she welcomes the outreach, she wants to see the White House and federal government deliver some aid to state and local governments struggling amid the pandemic. She said that if she had a partner in the White House, perhaps the “painful” choices needed to close a $1.2 billion hole in the city budget wouldn’t have cut so deep.
“I am heartened to say that the Biden team has reached out,” the mayor said. “It was like a breath of fresh air, given what we’ve been through over the last four years. But we need action. We need action now in order to say those businesses that are struggling in order to meet the needs of our most vulnerable residents.”
A new moneymaker for Chicago? Lightfoot lays out plan for Chicago to provide Joliet with Lake Michigan water: As Joliet looks to sign a contract to start getting its water from Lake Michigan, both Chicago and Hammond want the potentially lucrative deal to deliver it, the Tribune’s John Byrne and Alex Kukulka report.
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Other news: Former South Side Ald. Jesse Evans dies at 83. He was among several members of Chicago City Council convicted in the 1990s federal Silver Shovel corruption probe. Read my story here.
Cook County Board President President Toni Preckwinkle recites the Pledge of Allegiance in the board room before presiding over virtual meeting of Cook County Board to pass the $6.9 billion budget plan for next year in Chicago on Tuesday, Nov. 24, 2020. (Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune)
From the Tribune’s Hal Dardick: Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle’s $6.9 billion 2021 budget won unanimous approval from commissioners after a series of final adjustments including reallocating money to keep open a health clinic at Morton East High School in Cicero.
The county’s budget included no new tax increases and instead largely relied on eliminating more than 500 currently vacant jobs and drawing down reserves to get through the economic downturn caused by the coronavirus pandemic. Officials ultimately were able to save jobs set to get the ax at the Juvenile Temporary Detention Center and in the Cook County court system.
Preckwinkle started out the budget season facing a $410 million budget gap, but closed that by drawing down nearly $77 million from reserves, while eliminating hundreds of vacant jobs — many of them in the sheriff’s office. That’s expected to save more than $61 million. There also were more than 100 layoffs at Cook County Health, along with consolidations and downgrades at the county’s hospitals, and an anticipated $75 million increase in revenue from insurance rate increases and newly insured patients who were receiving free health care. Read the full story here.
The health system, which includes two hospitals and several clinics while providing health care at the County Jail, accounts for nearly half the county’s spending.
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Registered nurse Kara Pedersen, left, and Dr. Michael Gottlieb, on Monday, Nov. 23, 2020, at work in the lobby of Rush University Medical Center in Chicago which has been transformed into a triage area for less seriously ill patients with COVID-19-like symptoms. (Terrence Antonio James / Chicago Tribune)
The Tribune’s Joe Mahr and Lisa Schencker report: In Illinois, the state health director warned last week that some hospitals already have reported running low on beds amid the state’s second massive COVID-19 surge.
Last week, Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s administration released projections from two sets of researchers that estimated the future number of hospitalized COVID-19 patients, including those in intensive care units. While the models don’t directly address when beds might run out, a Tribune analysis of the more pessimistic projections suggests that, if trends don’t improve, all of the state’s currently available ICU beds could be in use by early December. Read the full story here.
Illinois health officials announced 9,469 new confirmed and probable cases of COVID-19 and 125 additional fatalities, bringing the total number of known infections in Illinois to 674,089 and the statewide confirmed death toll to 11,677 since the start of the pandemic.
The seven-day positivity rate dropped to 10.4%, WMAQ-Ch. 5 Chicago points out. Read that story here.
The Illinois Veterans Administration is launching an investigation of a deadly COVID-19 outbreak at the state-run LaSalle veterans home, the Tribune’s Dan Petrella reports. The announcement of the probe came less than two hours before a state Senate committee was set to begin a hearing today on the outbreak, which appears to have slowed over the past few days. As of Tuesday, 27 veterans have died. To date, 38 residents and 76 staff have recovered, according to the state.
Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul briefs reporters on deceptive practices and price-gouging related related to COVID-19 at the Thompson Center on Tuesday, March 17, 2020. (John J. Kim / Chicago Tribune)
The Tribune’s Abdel Jimenez reports: Fraudulent claims for unemployment benefits are on the rise as record numbers of Illinois residents file for benefits during the COVID-19 pandemic, causing some victims to worry their personal information has been exposed.
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More than 212,000 fraudulent claims for unemployment benefits have been filed with the state since March 1, according to the Illinois Department of Employment Security, with the largest share filed under a federal program extending benefits to self-employed and gig workers.
Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul, whose office has received 4,000-plus calls on unemployment insurance fraud, reminds that “Anyone can be targeted. I myself received a phony debit card.” Read the full story, which notes that fraudsters file claims using personal information acquired in old data breaches, here.
Dick Durbin, D-Ill., speaks during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Nov. 10, 2020, on a probe of the FBI’s Russia investigation. (Jason Andrew/AP)
The Tribune’s Rick Pearson reports that Illinois senior Sen. Dick Durbin threw his hat into the ring for the position of top Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Committee after Sen. Dianne Feinstein of California announced she would not return to the role in the next Congress.
The 76-year-old, five-term lawmaker could ascend to chair of the committee depending on the outcome of two Georgia contests early next year that will decide party control of the chamber. Read the full story here.
Durbin is the No. 2 Democrat in Senate leadership serving as minority whip, a position that he would be able to keep, Pearson notes. It’s also rankling some Senate Democrats who say he shouldn’t hold the dual leadership posts, The Hill reports.
MSNBC reported this morning that it’s not a done deal.
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chicagotribune--2020-11-25--Chicago City Council approves Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s 2021 budget, $94 million property tax hike

“ It should not pass on the heels of the largest protest movement in U.S. history , ” she added @ @ @ @ @ of a pandemic , in Chicago ’ s most violent year in recent memory , @ @ @ @ @ people fighting off illegal evictions , we need and deserve so much more than this @ @ @ @ @ ”

Mayor Lori Lightfoot scored a relatively narrow but important victory Tuesday as the City Council adopted her $12.8 billion budget for 2021 that relies on a property tax hike and controversial debt refinancing to help close a massive deficit.
Aldermen voted 28-22 in support of Lightfoot’s $94 million property tax increase. The mayor’s full budget also passed 29-21.
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It wasn’t as decisive a margin as her 2020 spending plan got, to say nothing of the overwhelming budget wins enjoyed most years by her predecessors.
But given the unusually bad financial forecast for the city during the COVID-19 pandemic and her combative relationship with many aldermen, Lightfoot happily accepted it, saying she would celebrate like last year with a scotch, a cigar and a steak.
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She thanked those who voted for the plan and struck a conciliatory tone toward those who opposed it.
“I hope what Chicagoans who were able to watch the City Council debate also understand is that you witnessed democracy in action,” she said. “It is often messy, confounding and, at times, frustrating. But for me, it remains the best system of government in the world.”
Lightfoot’s spending plan has plenty of bad news, though the proposed property tax increase wasn’t as high as what some aldermen had feared she would seek, making her job lining up at least 26 votes somewhat easier than it might have been.
Mayor Lori Lightfoot speaks at a news conference at Chicago City Hall on Nov. 24, 2020, after presiding over a videoconference meeting of the City Council. (Terrence Antonio James / Chicago Tribune)
It also includes a provision to raise property taxes annually by an amount tied to the consumer price index. It raises gas taxes by 3 cents and relies on an increase in fines and fees collection, including a plan to boost revenue by ticketing residents who are caught going 6 mph over the limit by speed cameras.
And most nonunion city workers will be required to take five unpaid furlough days during the year, all part of a package to address a shortfall of around $1.2 billion.
In addition, Lightfoot is asking to refinance $501 million in city debt for the 2021 budget, which would provide a jolt of new revenue next year but likely cost taxpayers more down the road. Similar borrowing tactics under Mayors Richard M. Daley and Rahm Emanuel drew deep criticism, but the Lightfoot administration said the city’s current financial disaster makes such a move appropriate.
Lightfoot has spent weeks lining up the votes needed to pass what she calls her “pandemic budget” through the City Council. Aldermen pushed back hardest on the property tax increase, a politically difficult vote at the best of times and especially unpopular with the city’s economy hit hard by coronavirus closures and layoffs.
Lightfoot defended the proposed hike as fiscally responsible and a small hit for city residents.
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Black Caucus Chairman Ald. Jason Ervin, 28th, thanked the mayor for increasing violence prevention funding and agreeing to a pilot program in which crisis teams rather than just police officers will respond to mental health incidents. Sixteen members of the Black Caucus voted in favor of the property tax hike, and four members voted against it.
“We won’t be judged by the great things that happen downtown, or the things that happen out in Sauganash to Beverly, but what did we do to help the residents in North Lawndale, South Shore or even out far south in Altgeld Gardens?” Ervin said. “Because today, the things we’re doing today, they’re not easy. But today’s decisions are necessary.”
As she’s negotiated with the City Council, Lightfoot has had to fight what she has characterized as her reluctance to play politics with aldermen by making concessions in the spending plan or offering carrots in specific wards to increase the support.
But bowing to the pressure from council members, she has made several significant changes to her budget plan in recent weeks, such as eliminating hundreds of proposed layoffs and increasing anti-violence funding, that helped her get the backing she needs.
After the vote, Lightfoot defended the deals she struck and said she doesn’t see them as being inconsistent with her vow not to horse trade.
“I don’t buy votes and I never will, but the democratic process is about compromise,” she said.
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The mayor also said she isn’t worried about the tight margins.
“I govern to 26,” she said. “A rubber stamp City Council does a disservice not only to the members but the people.”
Ald. Susan Sadlowski Garza, 10th, cited the canceled layoffs as a key reason for her supporting the budget.
Ald. Chris Taliaferro, 29th, downplayed the cost of the property tax hike, saying the $56 a year it translates to for homes worth $250,000 is “the cost of one meal for my family.” That money, however, will improve safety for residents, he said.
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Not everyone was convinced by the argument.
Northwest Side Ald. Rossana Rodriguez Sanchez, 33rd, voted no. She said the budget fails to respond to the realities in Chicago, both with people suffering economic hardship during the pandemic and those calling for more social justice in the city government’s outlook.
”This is a budget that relies on regressive revenue measures like parking meters and ticketing instead of looking at alternatives directed at making the wealthy pay,” Rodriguez Sanchez said. “We’re voting on a budget that includes promises without plans, plans without personnel or metrics or ways to hold our agencies accountable in their execution. If a budget is a statement of values, this budget process reflects that we don’t regard mutual respect or collaboration as a value.”
South Side Ald. Jeanette Taylor, 20th, said the budget is unfairly balanced on the backs of taxpayers.
“Don’t give me crumbs and tell me it’s cake,” she said.
Lightfoot muscled her property tax hike on Chicago homeowners through the council the same day she introduced a plan to let the Cubs, which is owned by the Ricketts family, defer a $250,000 payment to the city for infrastructure improvements near Wrigley Field on the grounds the team has lost revenue during the pandemic.
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Much of the opposition to the budget came from aldermen against the property tax increase or who wanted to see more police defunding. Lightfoot also lost a chunk of votes from Northwest and Southwest Side aldermen including Marty Quinn, 13th, and Matt O’Shea, 19th, who said they were also opposed to Lightfoot’s cuts to police funding.
Lightfoot’s 2020 budget passed 39-11, and she took a combative approach to aldermen who voted no. After the vote, Lightfoot launched a website shaming Chicago aldermen who voted against her first budget, casting it as a civic tool for the public despite criticism that it was petty and bullying.
On Tuesday, Lightfoot was more forgiving than she has been in some prior disagreements with the City Council. “I also want to thank those who did not vote for the budget,” she said. “We have to move forward together.”
It might not be so easy for her to get past her fights with aldermen, however.
After voting against her budget last year, North Side Ald. Andre Vasquez, 40th, voted for this year’s package. Vasquez noted Tuesday that while the 11 no votes last autumn were mostly progressive Black and Latino aldermen, this year much of the opposition came from white aldermen in wealthier wards where residents vehemently opposed the property tax increase.
“I want this council and this city to remember that last year, when a coalition of mostly Black and brown alders voted no on the 2020 budget, we were publicly targeted by a custom-built campaign website,” Vasquez said. “I do not expect we will see the same treatment of some of the committee chairs and other powerful, privileged white aldermen this year.”
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Two other aldermen who voted no last year, Ald. Maria Hadden, 49th, and Ald. Mike Rodriguez, 22nd, also supported this year’s budget, but not without reservations.
“This is not a people’s budget, and the process we followed is not one that faithfully incorporated the input of the people of this city,” Hadden said before her vote. “I won’t pretend this budget reflects the values that our administration and City Council claim to hold. I’m voting aye because that was the price of the non-law enforcement mental health response model being included in the pilot for this year.”
Behind the scenes, Lightfoot worked hard to generate support for her budget. In a meeting with the Black Caucus, Lightfoot told aldermen that those who don’t support her budget shouldn’t expect their wards to be prioritized and added, “Don’t come to me for s--- for the next three years” if they didn’t support her spending plan.
Lightfoot also approached the Latino Caucus to remove exceptions in Chicago’s Welcoming City Ordinance, the city’s sanctuary law, that allow police to cooperate with federal immigration authorities under limited circumstances. The city’s welcoming ordinance has been criticized by activists for years due to such allowances.
The move was pitched as a budget sweetener to help secure their support, though some Latino aldermen balked at that and she decided not to link it to the budget.
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Lightfoot’s proposed five-year, $3.7 billion capital plan also helped her get support from trade unions in convincing aldermen. The plan passed 41-8 on Tuesday.
Many progressives remain unimpressed with Lightfoot’s budget priorities. At a Monday news conference, members of the United Working Families community organization and other grassroots groups called on aldermen to vote no.
Emma Tai, executive director of United Working Families, said Lightfoot ignored progressive ideas such as a proposed tax on Amazon and other retailers with large successful delivery operations in Chicago in favor of a property tax hike that will hurt struggling homeowners and renters.
“Instead of a moral budget, we got a do-nothing budget,” Tai said.
“It should not pass on the heels of the largest protest movement in U.S. history,” she added. “In the midst of a pandemic, in Chicago’s most violent year in recent memory, and with working and poor people fighting off illegal evictions, we need and deserve so much more than this budget has to offer.”
jebyrne@chicagotribune.com
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gpratt@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-11-24--Illinois VA requests probe of deadly COVID-19 outbreak in LaSalle as Senate committee launches heari

Illinois VA requests probe of deadly COVID-19 outbreak in LaSalle as Senate committee launches hearings

The state VA has followed recommendations to increase staff testing at the facility , including the use of antigen tests @ @ @ @ @ In addition to twice-weekly molecular tests , all staff now are given an antigen test @ @ @ @ @ said there already have been cases of asymptomatic employees receiving a positive antigen test between @ @ @ @

The Illinois Department of Veterans Affairs is requesting an independent investigation of a coronavirus outbreak that has torn through the state-run veterans home in LaSalle this month, infecting nearly 200 residents and staff members and resulting in the deaths of more than two dozen veterans.
The investigation was announced less than two hours before a state Senate committee held a hearing on the outbreak, which appears to have slowed over the past few days.
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Since the pandemic began, 27 veterans have died and 105 residents and 95 employees have contracted the virus. As of Tuesday morning, there were 40 residents and 24 staff members at the home who had tested positive for the virus. There are currently 101 residents at the home, according to the department.
The current outbreak was identified Oct. 31, when a routine test on a staff member came back positive and a resident who was hospitalized for an unrelated issue also tested positive. By the time the home’s administrator notified families and residents the next day, another resident and one more staff member had tested positive.
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“For eight months, the dedicated staff and administration at the LaSalle home rose above the abysmal infection rates of most of our long-term care facilities across the state,” Veterans Affairs Director Linda Chapa LaVia testified Tuesday before a virtual hearing of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee.
“It is no coincidence that cases within the home began to rise just as cases rose dramatically within the surrounding community,” Chapa LaVia said.
Outside the veterans home, located just a few miles from Starved Rock State Park, the pandemic has been raging in LaSalle County for the past two months. The coronavirus test positivity rate in LaSalle County hit a seven-day average of 20.8% as of Friday, compared with the statewide rate of 13.2% for the same period.
Dr. Avery Hart, a consultant for the Illinois Department of Public Health, testified at the Senate hearing that all 16 long-term care facilities in LaSalle County have had COVID-19 outbreaks, including two others with more than 100 cases and at least 20 deaths.
“LaSalle County has been hit very hard in the last six weeks,” Hart said.
Prior to Tuesday’s hearing, the state VA released reports on reviews conducted by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and the state Department of Public Health.
Among the findings: Wall-mounted dispensers at the home were filled with an alcohol-free hand sanitizer that has been found ineffective against the new coronavirus, and staff members were seen wearing full personal protective equipment in administrative areas, not changing gloves after touching patients and other surfaces, and not maintaining proper social distance while eating in a staff kitchen.
Hart testified Tuesday that with such rampant community spread, it’s nearly impossible to know whether staff members infected one another at the home or if they contracted the virus at a restaurant, bar, grocery store or private gathering.
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The state VA has followed recommendations to increase staff testing at the facility, including the use of antigen tests that deliver faster results. In addition to twice-weekly molecular tests, all staff now are given an antigen test before each shift. Officials said there already have been cases of asymptomatic employees receiving a positive antigen test between their routine tests.
The rapid spread of the virus has strained staffing at the 184-bed home, officials said. There have been five documented instances in which staff members in the COVID-19 ward have chosen to finish shifts after testing positive because replacements couldn’t be found on short notice, officials testified.
The agency said it is adopting all the recommendations in the reports and instituting them at the state’s three other veterans homes, which so far have avoided widespread outbreaks despite widespread community transmission.
The independent review of the LaSalle outbreak requested by the VA department will be conducted by the acting inspector general for the state Department of Human Services.
“I expect all facilities to follow all the public health guidance that we give, and if there are instances in which that’s not happening, I expect answers about why,” Pritzker said Tuesday at his daily coronavirus briefing.
State public health officials on Tuesday reported 9,469 newly confirmed and probable coronavirus cases statewide, and 125 additional deaths.
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The state is now reporting 674,089 known and probable cases and 11,677 deaths over the course of the pandemic. Hospitalizations of people with COVID-19 statewide remain at higher levels than they ever reached during the spring surge, though those numbers have leveled out in recent days after weeks of steady growth.
dpetrella@chicagotribune.com
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chicagotribune--2020-11-24--Man killed in Austin alley after shooter mistook him for someone else, prosecutors say

Toney kept walking , into the alley , with his back turned to Garmon , who walked after Toney , @ @ @ @ @ shot Toney several times .
Toney tried to run but fell to the ground and @ @ @ @ @ again while he was lying there , but the gun appeared to jam , prosecutors @ @

A man arrested in DeKalb this week was ordered held without bail Tuesday after prosecutors accused him of fatally shooting a man in the back in an Austin neighborhood alley in August after mistaking him for someone who had killed someone else.
Justin Garmon, 31, was arrested in the 800 block of Ridge Drive in DeKalb, after he moved there to get away following the Aug. 25 shooting death of Darry Toney, 29, in an alley in the 100 block of North Mayfield Avenue in the South Austin neighborhood, according to prosecutors. Cook County Judge John Lyke Jr. ordered Garmon held without bail.
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Another man who’s related to Garmon and who borrowed an ex-girlfriend’s rental car to use as a getaway car in Toney’s killing is still being sought, according to prosecutors.
Garmon and his relative thought that Toney, of the 5100 block of West Crystal Street, had shot a friend of theirs, nicknamed Dooby, who had been killed in a robbery while passed out on a sidewalk a few days before, according to prosecutors.
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Garmon was paroled Aug. 10 in a 2016 drug case for which he was given a sentence of nine years in prison, according to prosecutors and records.
On Aug. 25, video surveillance captured Toney walking on Mayfield Avenue toward Washington Boulevard about 4:45 p.m. when a Chevroley Malibu with Michigan plates pulled up and Garmon got out, according to prosecutors. As Toney walked south on Mayfield, Garmon, wearing a white Izod Lacoste V-neck shirt that’s also shown in a Facebook photo he posted that day, approached him from the north, and they stopped and spoke for a short while.
Justin Garmon, 31, was ordered held without bail Tuesday, Nov. 24, 2020, after prosecutors accused him of shooting Darry Toney, 29, in an Austin neighborhood alley in August after mistaking him for someone who had killed someone else. (Chicago Police Department/Chicago police photo)
Toney kept walking, into the alley, with his back turned to Garmon, who walked after Toney, took out a handgun and shot Toney several times. Toney tried to run but fell to the ground and Garmon tried to shoot Toney again while he was lying there, but the gun appeared to jam, prosecutors said.
After the shooting, video shows Garmon running north in the alley toward the Malibu and the Malibu driving off.
Toney suffered five gunshot wounds, to the chest, left arm, abdomen, back and left thumb, and was taken to Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood, where he was pronounced dead at 6 p.m. Aug. 25.
After the shooting, Garmon and his relative went to a hotel where the relative’s ex-girlfriend was staying to return the Malibu. The relative told his ex-girlfriend that they had gotten the man who killed Dooby.
In the days after the shooting, the relative told Garmon that he should change his appearance and get out of town, prosecutors said.
Detectives received a search warrant and searched the rental car in October, finding parole paperwork for Garmon. Garmon was arrested near his DeKalb residence about 10 a.m. Monday, according to police.
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Chicago Tribune’s Madeline Buckley contributed.


chicagotribune--2020-11-24--Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s ‘pandemic budget’ for 2021 cleared the Chicago City Council. Here are 5 thing

Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s ‘pandemic budget’ for 2021 cleared the Chicago City Council. Here are 5 things to know.

When Lightfoot first proposed her budget , it called for laying off about 350 city employees and the elimination of @ @ @ @ @ .
But earlier this month , the mayor and the Chicago Federation of Labor announced @ @ @ @ @ an agreement to scrap that plan — thanks largely to an influx of marijuana tax @ @

Chicago aldermen on Tuesday narrowly approved Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s $12.8 billion “pandemic budget” for 2021, a package that will fund city government through the next fiscal year while closing a projected $1.2 billion budget deficit spurred by coronavirus pandemic-driven revenue losses to municipal coffers.
Among other things, the package includes a $94 million property tax hike, as well as increases in fees and fines. Aldermen voted 28-22 in support of Lightfoot’s property tax increase and 29-21 to pass her budget.
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Here are five things to know:
What’s in the budget?
In a $12.8 billion budget? A lot. Among the new spending is a $65 million appropriation for affordable housing and homeless prevention programs. Lightfoot said there’s also $36 million for violence prevention efforts and $20 million for a community-based mental health program and $1 million for an alternative response pilot program that would pair police with mental health professionals when answering certain 911 calls.
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“We have not abandoned our values and we never will as long as I am mayor. We will continue to lean into our North Stars of equity and inclusion,” Lightfoot said after the City Council approved her budget. “This budget does just that, even in this extraordinarily difficult year.”
Capital plan
The budget also gives approval for the mayor to begin her proposed multiyear capital plan. Earlier this month, Lightfoot introduced plans to spend $3.7 billion over five years on infrastructure projects across Chicago. Under her plan, the city would borrow $1.4 billion to fund construction projects throughout the city over the next two years before borrowing more later.
Among other things, city officials said the package would balance more conventional, necessary maintenance work on bridges and other key infrastructure with complete street projects aimed at making roads more accessible for bikers and pedestrians. It also will address other infrastructure needs, according to a news release, that include “the repair and replacement of bridges, shoreline revetment Americans with Disabilities Act accessible sidewalks, street resurfacing, streetlights and traffic signals.”
New taxes
A key component to Lightfoot’s budget plan was a $94 million property tax increase. The city estimates that hike will translate to an extra $56 for a Chicago homeowner with a median home value of $250,000. Chicago property taxes will then increase each year based on the consumer price index, under the budget passed Tuesday. The budget also calls for a 3-cent per gallon hike in the motor fuel tax and will raise a city tax on cloud-based computer leases.
Will there be layoffs of city workers?
When Lightfoot first proposed her budget, it called for laying off about 350 city employees and the elimination of more than 1,900 vacant positions. But earlier this month, the mayor and the Chicago Federation of Labor announced jointly that they had reached an agreement to scrap that plan — thanks largely to an influx of marijuana tax revenue.
Although the layoffs were a high-profile part of her plan, the job cuts would have amounted to roughly $13 million, which is a small part of a $12.8 billion budget.
“After many productive conversations, we have come to an agreement to avert any layoffs of city workers in the 2021 budget,” Lightfoot and Chicago Federation of Labor President Bob Reiter said in a joint statement this month. “This will ensure Chicago’s public workers, the backbone of our neighborhoods, maintain their jobs and health insurance while also protecting the critical services Chicagoans rely on during these unprecedented times.”
Most nonunion city employees, however, will be required to take five unpaid furlough days next year.
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New fines and fees?
Motorists caught by automated speed cameras driving as little as 6 miles per hour over the posted limit could get ticketed in the mail under the budget. Lightfoot’s administration expects to raise an additional $38 million next year from additional fines, forfeitures and penalties, a total that includes the speed camera tickets.
A speed camera clocks cars on Western Avenue near Addison Street in the Roscoe Village neighborhood on Oct. 26, 2020. (E. Jason Wambsgans / Chicago Tribune)
As part of the city’s new budget, anyone caught by a camera driving from 6 to 9 mph above the limit would get a warning. Getting caught on camera a second time would prompt a $35 ticket in the mail.
Currently, only those caught driving 10 mph above the limit get the $35 tickets. Tickets of $100 are issued to drivers caught speeding by 11 mph or more above the posted limit. The city has had the authority to issue the tickets at lower speeds, but has never used it.
City officials have said they also are planning to boost revenue by ticketing more for “safety-related issues” such as cars double parking and blocking loading zones, along with better collection of outstanding fines.
Lightfoot’s plan also counts on adding hundreds of parking meters to spaces around the city. While a private company controls the meters through a much-reviled 75-year lease, city officials have said the new meters will help reduce by about $2 million the annual “true-up” payment the city must make to the company each year for the cost of spaces taken out of commission for things such as roadwork and street festivals.
The city issued more than 35,000 parking tickets during a period this year when Lightfoot told the public they’d be getting a break on ticket enforcement because of the COVID-19 outbreak, the Tribune has reported.
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chicagotribune--2020-11-24--Naperville man charged in scheme to illegally obtain coronavirus relief aid to benefit small busines

Naperville man charged in scheme to illegally obtain coronavirus relief aid to benefit small businesses

“ Some fraudsters create the most complicated schemes to steal money from the taxpayer .
Just imagine how productive they @ @ @ @ @ their creativity and effort into noble and useful work , ” U.S. Attorney Ryan Patrick @ @ @ @ @

A Naperville man and six people in Texas have been charged for their roles in obtaining about $16 million in coronavirus small business relief aid and using it to purchase high-end luxury cars and other items, according to a recent federal indictment.
Siddiq Azeemuddin, 41, of Naperville, faces charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud and money laundering.
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The indictment alleges Azeemuddin and the six defendants in Texas falsified employees numbers and average monthly payroll expenses to obtain more than 80 Paycheck Protection Program loans guaranteed by the Small Business Administration under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security, or CARES, Act.
In their investigation, federal agents executed 45 seizure warrants and seized items, including a Porsche and a Lamborghini, allegedly purchased with illegally obtained funds, a news release said.
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Federal prosecutors said the seven conspired to submit, and did submit, fraudulent bank records and/or false federal tax forms.
Some of the PPP loan applications allegedly were submitted on behalf of companies the defendants controlled. Others were submitted on behalf of entities that third-parties allegedly owned, according to the indictment.
In exchange for these, several of the defendants received large kickbacks, charges contend.
The indictment further alleges the defendants laundered a portion of the fraudulent proceeds by writing checks from companies that received PPP loans to fake employees. Among those who received checks included some of the defendants and their relatives, according to the charges.
The fake paychecks were then allegedly cashed at Texas-based Fascare International Inc. under the name Almeda Discount Store, a cash checking company Azeemuddin owned, the release said.
The indictment alleges that more than 1,100 fake paychecks totaling more than $3 million in fraudulent PPP loan proceeds were cashed at Azeemuddin’s business, according to the indictment.
The CARES Act is designed to provide emergency financial assistance to the millions of Americans who are suffering the economic effects caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. PPP forgivable loans were given to small businesses for job retention and certain other expenses.
“Some fraudsters create the most complicated schemes to steal money from the taxpayer. Just imagine how productive they could be if they put their creativity and effort into noble and useful work,” U.S. Attorney Ryan Patrick said in the release.


chicagotribune--2020-11-24--Reports detail domestic incident allegedly involving former Chicago police Superintendent  Eddie Joh

Reports detail domestic incident allegedly involving former Chicago police Superintendent  Eddie Johnson

Johnson ’ s wife told responding officers she wanted to show them something upstairs that needed to be reported , @ @ @ @ @ .
The officers saw no visible injuries on her , the paperwork noted , she @ @ @ @ @ did not say that she was the victim of a battery .

On the night Chicago police responded to a domestic incident at the home of former Superintendent Eddie Johnson last month, his wife told officers Johnson had set some of her clothing on fire and had been physical with her in the past, according to police reports obtained by the Tribune.
The reports, released Tuesday through a public records request, provide a more detailed narrative of the incident than what was initially released by the Chicago Police Department.
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The names of the victim and offender were redacted in the reports. But sources have told the Tribune that Johnson was identified as the offender and the victim was his wife.
Johnson did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment on the police documents. He has not been charged in the case.
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The Tribune also requested records from the city’s civilian police investigative agency, the Civilian Office of Police Accountability. On Tuesday, the agency denied that request, saying that releasing the information would jeopardize an investigation into the matter being conducted by the police department’s bureau of internal affairs.
The police reports provided the following narrative of the incident:
Officers arrived at the home about 9:30 p.m. Oct. 23 in response to a call for a well-being check.
Johnson’s wife told responding officers she wanted to show them something upstairs that needed to be reported, according to the police documents. The officers saw no visible injuries on her, the paperwork noted, she did not seem distressed and did not say that she was the victim of a battery.
When officers got to her second-floor bedroom, Johnson’s wife showed them burned clothing on a damaged comforter. She told them that a few hours earlier, there was a “heated altercation” with Johnson over their relationship, and he took a Lysol can and a lighter “with the intention” to light some of his wife’s clothing on fire.
That action “resulted in small flames on the clothes lying on the bed and comforter,” the police reports stated.
Johnson’s wife said she tried to stop him from doing more damage, at which point he grabbed her by both arms and moved her aside. She was able to pat out the burning clothes and Johnson left the bedroom, she told police.
By the time officers had gathered information from Johnson’s wife, a sergeant on the scene learned that Johnson had been in the home and left, according to the police reports.
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Johnson’s wife said she didn’t want him arrested because of “extra stress in his life and only wanted a report,” the police reports state.
She also told police that night that Johnson had “battered” her in the past but she did not report the incidents. Johnson has no known criminal history.
Three days later, a detective from the Area One special victims unit called Johnson’s wife, who verified what she had told responding officers that night and added “there was a physical event” before her clothing was burned by Johnson, according to the reports.
After reviewing body camera footage and other evidence, along with the fact that Johnson’s wife didn’t want him arrested, the case was closed, according to the reports.
The domestic call was the latest in a string of incidents where Johnson has come under scrutiny since he was fired by Mayor Lori Lightfoot after a night of drinking with a subordinate in October 2019. That night ended with Johnson being found asleep behind the wheel of his city vehicle.
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The subordinate, Cynthia Donald, an officer who worked on Johnson’s security detail, filed an explosive lawsuit last month accusing the former superintendent of raping and harassing her over the course of a few years. Johnson has denied those allegations.
The Tribune has reported that a Cook County grand jury has requested extensive documents about the night of drinking, an indication that prosecutors are considering criminal charges against one or more players in the incident. A subpoena obtained by the Tribune demands that the city inspector general’s office send over all of its reports on the matter.
Following an investigation by the inspector general, Donald became one of eight officers facing suspension for their role in the police response to Johnson sleeping in his SUV. Among the IG’s conclusions: Chicago police officers made a series of critical mistakes, ranging from not supervising young officers to improperly handling body-worn camera footage after Johnson was found asleep, having consumed the equivalent of 10 drinks.
Of the eight officers, Deering District Cmdr. Don Jerome, who supervised the cops who responded to Johnson’s SUV, received the most severe penalty: a 28-day suspension. The police reports released on Tuesday show he also was among the officers who responded to Johnson’s home for the domestic incident.


chicagotribune--2020-11-24--Chicago, Hammond to offer competing pitches to sell Joliet Lake Michigan water

“ This measure represents the latest effort by this administration to build partnerships within the state of Illinois between cities @ @ @ @ @ surrounding region to further advance our shared goals for all residents to have access to @ @ @ @ @ healthy water supply , ” mayoral spokeswoman Jordan Troy said in a statement .
“ @ @ @ @ @ remains the only in-state water supplier proposal for Joliet , we look forward to working @ @ @ @ @ members as they make their final determination this winter .
”

The city of Chicago collects Lake Michigan water in two cribs. From the cribs, it flows through underground tunnels to a pair of purification plants. (Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune)
Mayor Lori Lightfoot on Tuesday laid out her plan to try to convince Joliet officials to let Chicago provide the city’s water.
As Joliet looks to sign a contract to start getting its water from Lake Michigan, both Chicago and Hammond want the potentially lucrative deal to deliver it.
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Lightfoot introduced a preliminary contract to the City Council on Tuesday that would give Chicago’s city Water Department the authority to do so.
The Joliet City Council will hear presentations next month from Lightfoot, according to the Joliet Herald-News.
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Hammond Mayor Tom McDermott Jr. said Tuesday he’d like Hammond to be “Joliet’s water partner,” and that he will be at the Dec. 17 Joliet City Council meeting to present Hammond’s 125-year water contract.
“This measure represents the latest effort by this administration to build partnerships within the state of Illinois between cities and the suburbs in their surrounding region to further advance our shared goals for all residents to have access to a clean, safe and healthy water supply,” mayoral spokeswoman Jordan Troy said in a statement. “As the city of Chicago remains the only in-state water supplier proposal for Joliet, we look forward to working with their leadership and council members as they make their final determination this winter.”
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Chicago already provides water to millions of suburban customers. The Joliet deal would be one of the bigger ones for the city.
Chicago Ald. Scott Waguespack, 32nd, Lightfoot’s Finance Committee chairman, said the city is moving toward a more regional approach to charging customers outside Chicago based on water use, rather than “bulk sales.” The Joliet deal would dovetail with that effort, he said.
“This will put everyone on the same page in terms of rates and water conservation, moving forward,” Waguespack said. “Nobody was really overseeing this, and so this is a much better way to do it.”
Under the terms of Lightfoot’s contract proposal, Joliet would be responsible for building the pipes and other infrastructure to deliver water from Chicago’s Southwest Pumping Station out to the city.
Chicago would charge Joliet customers based on the cost of the service, under the Lightfoot proposal.
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McDermott said Tuesday that he’s spoken to Joliet officials about the city’s water needs because Joliet’s aquifer, or natural groundwater source, will dry up by 2030.
The Hammond partnership would require building a 48-mile pipeline from Lake Michigan to Joliet and a filtration plant in Joliet to filter raw water to the homes of Joliet residents, McDermott said.
It would cost Joliet officials $1.2 billion to build the pipeline and filtration plant, but city officials would be “in charge of their own water destiny,” McDermott said, by setting their own rates and potentially employing Joliet residents at the water filtration plant.
In return, Hammond would receive approximately $8 million within the first 10 years of the system being built, and approximately $250,000 every year after that, he said.
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If Joliet officials chose to receive water through Chicago, the city could “hook up” to Chicago’s current water filtration system but be subject to water costs set by the Chicago mayor, McDermott said. In the past, Chicago mayors have been known to raise water rates to offset other costs, he said.
“(Joliet officials) can choose the cheaper route … and take rate from Chicago mayors, or pay more now to build the pipeline and water filtration system, and be in charge of their water destiny,” McDermott said.
With water becoming an increasingly precious resource, Chicago’s proximity to Lake Michigan is becoming more important by the year.
With strict rules in place about how much Chicago can charge suburban customers for water, Mayor Rahm Emanuel undertook a massive water and sewer pipe renovation project in 2012. That hiked water fees for Chicagoans, and also for the municipalities outside the city that get water from Chicago.
jebyrne@chicagotribune.com
akukulka@chicagotribune.com
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Twitter @AKukulka11


chicagotribune--2020-11-24--Chicago’s winter overnight parking ban begins December 1. Here’s a map and some tips to avoid gettin

Chicago’s winter overnight parking ban begins December 1. Here’s a map and some tips to avoid getting ticketed or towed.

Cars left parked on the designated streets hinder snowplowing and salting services .
Snow can build up next to parked @ @ @ @ @ impeding traffic flow , according to the city .
Both parking bans were implemented to @ @ @ @ @ happened in 1967 and 1979 when Chicago came to a traffic standstill due to major @ @

Chicago's winter overnight parking ban kicked in on Dec. 1, prohibiting parking on 107 miles of main streets from 3 to 7 a.m., regardless of snow, until April 1. (Network Video Productions) (Network Video Productions/Chicago Tribune)
It’s the time of year when you need to think twice about claiming that open spot on the street.
The city’s winter overnight parking ban began at 3 a.m. on Dec. 1. Parking is prohibited on 107 miles of main streets from 3 a.m. to 7 a.m. — regardless of snow — until April 1, 2023. Another 500 miles of streets prohibit parking after two inches of snow or more falls, no matter the time of day or the date.
Two hundred forty two cars were towed on the first day of the ban this year — up from 200 towed on the same date in 2021.
Pay attention to street signs
(City of Chicago)
Cars left parked on the designated streets hinder snowplowing and salting services. Snow can build up next to parked cars on these routes impeding traffic flow — especially for buses and emergency vehicles — according to the city. Both parking bans were implemented to prevent recurrences of problems that happened in 1967 and 1979 when Chicago came to a traffic standstill due to major snowstorms.
Twenty-three inches of snow, the largest single snowfall in Chicago history, covered the city and suburbs in the blizzard of 1967. Abandoned vehicles made even major streets and highways impassable. (Tribune archive photo)
Motorists who ignore these seasonal parking bans will be towed and face at least a $150 towing fee, a $60 ticket and storage fees of $25 per day.
How to find out if your vehicle has been towed
Call 3-1-1 to determine your vehicle’s location and the address of the impound lot, if you suspect your vehicle has been towed by the city of Chicago.
Frank Kuhlmann picks up his car at a city auto pound on the west side of Chicago. His car, and those of many others, were towed as the winter overnight parking ban kicked in. (Alex Garcia)
Vehicles in violation of the ban will be towed to Auto Pound #2 (10301 S. Doty Ave.) or Auto Pound #6 (701 N. Sacramento Blvd.). Both locations are open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
The city’s Streets and Sanitation department has additional tips on what to do to retrieve your vehicle from an impound lot.
Sources: City of Chicago; Chicago Tribune reporting


chicagotribune--2020-11-24--Fifth Park Ridge teen arrested in alleged beating, bullying attack on 14-year-old that surfaced in s

Fifth Park Ridge teen arrested in alleged beating, bullying attack on 14-year-old that surfaced in social media video

Three 14-year-old boys from Park Ridge and one 16-year-old boy from Park Ridge were arrested on Nov. 17 for their @ @ @ @ @ police .
All have been petitioned to juvenile court and are facing charges of mob @ @ @ @ @ and one of the 14-year-olds are also facing battery charges , police said .

A fifth Park Ridge teenager has been arrested in connection with an attack in which a 14-year-old boy in Niles was bullied and beaten. The Nov. 7 attack was recorded on video and shared on social media, police said.
The 15-year-old boy was taken into custody on Nov. 23 and is facing a charge of mob action in Cook County Juvenile Court, Niles police said.
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The arrest stems from an incident in which a 14-year-old boy was punched by one individual and kicked by another. The incident happened near the former Niles Elementary School, 6935 W. Touhy Ave., police said.
Three 14-year-old boys from Park Ridge and one 16-year-old boy from Park Ridge were arrested on Nov. 17 for their alleged involvement, according to police. All have been petitioned to juvenile court and are facing charges of mob action, while the 16-year-old and one of the 14-year-olds are also facing battery charges, police said.
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The identities of the teens have not been released by authorities because they are juveniles.
No additional arrests are anticipated, said Niles Police Sgt. Kelly Eckardt.
Police have not stated a motive for the attack.
The arrests are connected to an incident that Maine South High School Principal Ben Collins referenced in a Nov. 9 email to school parents. Collins wrote that school officials had learned of a video circulating on social media that showed “high school aged children using an inappropriate sexual phrase directed at another high school aged child and physical violence towards that child.”
The purported video, shared with Pioneer Press and the Chicago Tribune, shows a boy facing the camera and repeating words before he is punched in the back of the head by another individual.
In his email to parents, Collins said that if the alleged perpetrators were determined to be students, the school would take disciplinary action.
jjohnson@chicagotribune.com
Twitter: @Jen_Tribune


chicagotribune--2020-11-24--Column: Odds are you don’t know it, but Dr. Arwady is a poet

“ You know , the thing is , I ’ ve been trying to prioritize sleep and getting some exercise @ @ @ @ @ end of the day , this is the work I ’ m the most trained @ @ @ @ @ .
This is the most interesting thing I ’ ve ever worked on .
I @ @ @ @ @ working on it — for the sake of the city — but I find the @ @ @ @ @ I really trust my team .
”

Chicago Health Commissioner Dr. Allison Arwady gives an update about the COVID-19 vaccines and other pandemic news at City Hall, Dec. 1, 2020. (Brian Cassella / Chicago Tribune)
The night Allison Arwady sat down to write a rhyming poem about COVID-19 — a limited poetic genre — the first lines that popped into her head were these:
We don’t care about your politics. Don’t care about your views.
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Don’t care about the channel where you watch your evening news.
Doesn’t matter how you voted. We don’t care to whom you give.
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The only thing we care about is: do you want to live?
Arwady is the commissioner of the Chicago Department of Public Health and since the pandemic hit, she has become almost as familiar to Chicagoans as the virus she is working to contain.
What few people knew until recently, however, is that she writes poems. Before heading from her childhood home in Kalamazoo, Michigan, to attend Harvard College and later the Yale School of Medicine, she gave her 1994 high school graduation speech in rhyme.
A poem, Arwady says, “is a way to get people to listen differently.”
She composed her recent rhyme in the course of one night this November, thinking she might read it at a news conference.
Then she had a different thought: Why not bring in the voices and faces of some of her hardworking co-workers?
The result is a short video recorded last week in City Hall and released on social media. She and 10 colleagues — among them nurses, an epidemiologist and a clinical therapist — recite the lines with the passion and panache of seasoned actors.
Lines like this:
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We can’t make you wear a mask, or watch you wash your hands
We can’t make you social distance; you must understand
We can’t draw those 6-foot markings on the floor of every room
We can’t make you shift Thanksgiving onto FaceTime or to Zoom.
And this:
This summer, we all settled down with COVID in our nation
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We wore our masks, and washed our hands — I took two days’ vacation.
The line about the two days’ vacation came straight from Arwady’s life. She spent her two days off this summer in Oregon, back before the virus surged there too.
“People are tired,” she said when we talked Monday. It was late afternoon and she’d just come from a meeting on how to distribute the new COVID vaccine when it arrives, presumably in late December.
By “people” she meant everyone. Her co-workers. The people of Chicago. Americans. I asked if she was tired.
Her answer was yes, but.
“You know, the thing is, I’ve been trying to prioritize sleep and getting some exercise and still, at the end of the day, this is the work I’m the most trained for in all the world. This is the most interesting thing I’ve ever worked on. I’d rather not be working on it — for the sake of the city — but I find the daily challenges very interesting and I really trust my team.”
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An infectious disease expert who has traveled the world working with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Arwady is a friendly but frank purveyor of facts. Not everyone wants to hear facts.
I asked if she gets harassed for speaking the truth. Again: yes, but.
Despite wide support from people in the city, she gets nasty email every day. Protesters have shown up outside her house. Trolls show up on her Facebook Live news conferences.
“But I don’t mind,” she said. “It helps me see what misinformation may be spreading.”
As Thanksgiving approaches, Arwady is dismayed by the number of people still determined to travel and gather with people outside their households. She’s not doing either.
“I follow the guidance I give,” she said. “I will be home.”
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She’ll pick up takeout dinner from 16″ on Center in Pilsen, make her own cranberry pie and do Thanksgiving the 2020 way — Zooming and FaceTiming with family in Michigan.
“And,” she added, “catching up on COVID reading.”
And what will she give thanks for this Thanksgiving?
“Lots of things,” she said. “I do this gratitude journaling thing most days. Lots of times I’m writing down names of individual team members.”
On Thanksgiving, her list will include friends and family who have brought her soup, or called, or sent notes, or reached out for a socially distanced walk.
“And I am really grateful — this isn’t politically motivated — that I’m working with a mayor who cares about the science of public health,” she said. “Talking to my counterparts around the country, I know it is not something to take for granted.”
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All of us in Chicago should be grateful to Arwady and her co-workers, who work so hard to help us understand what’s going on and to believe that we’ll get through it.
“We can get through this,” she said, before heading off to another meeting, this one about homeless Chicagoans. “We can get through this as a stronger city.”
But not yet. To quote the final lines of her poem:
We’re a city of live music, of festivals, of plays
Chicago Tribune Opinion Weekdays Read the latest editorials and commentary curated by the Tribune Opinion team. By submitting your email to receive this newsletter, you agree to our Subscriber Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy >
We’re a city made for Insta, and our lakefront goes for days
We want picnics, parties, nightclubs; Bears, Bulls, Blackhawks, White Sox, Cubs
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We want schools and playgrounds open, we want worship, gyms, and pubs.
But before these things all happen, we face winter and the flu
A vaccine will be coming — but for now it’s up to you.
mschmich@chicagotribune.com
Twitter @MarySchmich


Learning to read

Construction for Vista Tower topped out April 26 , 2019 , as concrete for the 101st floor was poured .
@ @ @ @ @ what is soon to be the city 's third-highest skyscraper .
Sales of its condo @ @ @ @ @ 1 million to $ 17 million .

Expand Autoplay Image 1 of 4 Karen Wadden Mueller works virtually with a 57-year-old student as he learns to read on Nov. 12, 2020, in Chicago. (Stacey Wescott / Chicago Tribune)
A 57-year-old Black man, laid off during pandemic, determined that the one thing he wanted to do before he died was to learn to read .


chicagotribune--2020-11-24--Rooftop fire damages solar panels at Ikea in Schaumburg; store reopens after evacuation

There were no injuries caused by the blaze , which was quickly extinguished by firefighters , but it forced the @ @ @ @ @ customers who were inside the sprawling blue and yellow building , Koeppen said .

A rooftop fire at the Ikea store in Schaumburg Tuesday afternoon that damaged more than 20 solar energy panels was likely sparked by a faulty electrical system, authorities said.
The Schaumburg Fire Department, which was alerted to the blaze about 11:45 a.m., arrived at the scene minutes later and observed black smoke rising from the roof of the store at 1800 E. McConnor Parkway, Deputy Fire Chief Ken Koeppen said.
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There were no injuries caused by the blaze, which was quickly extinguished by firefighters, but it forced the temporary evacuation of employees and customers who were inside the sprawling blue and yellow building, Koeppen said.
There was minimal water damage to the building, Koeppen said, and the Ikea store was reopened Tuesday afternoon.
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The cause of the fire is under investigation, Koeppen said.
kcullotta@chicagotribune.com
Twitter @kcullotta


chicagotribune--2020-11-24--Former Chicago Ald. Jesse Evans dies at age 83

Like his predecessor , Evans was a supporter of then-Mayor Harold Washington , the city ’ s first African American @ @ @ @ @ and whose agency appointments were blocked by a majority white band of aldermen in what @ @ @ @ @ .
Washington had secured a second term the same year Evans was elected , but @ @ @ @

Former South Side Ald. Jesse Evans, a one-time postal worker who rose to a seat on the Chicago City Council only to see his success unravel a decade later in the federal Operation Silver Shovel corruption probe, has died. He was 83.
Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot announced Evans’ death at the start of Tuesday’s City Council meeting; the former alderman passed away Nov. 17 at Little Company of Mary Hospital in Evergreen Park, his family said in a news release.
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Born May 27, 1937 in Helena, Arkansas, Evans’ family moved to Chicago when he was young. In 1959, he married high school sweetheart Betty J. Cobbs, according to his family. The couple was married for 61 years. A devout Christian, he was a lifetime member of Third Baptist Church at 95th Street and Ashland Avenue, in the Longwood Manor neighborhood.
Described by relatives as an activist, Evans’ career in politics began when he took on the role of block club president and later managed two precincts in the South Side’s 21st Ward.
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Then-alderman candidate Jesse J. Evans. (Carl Hugare/Chicago Tribune / Chicago Tribune)
In 1987, a 49-year-old Evans pulled off an upset victory over Ald. Niles Sherman, a well-financed two-term 21st Ward incumbent, by just 14 votes on a pledge to attract bigger businesses and jobs to the area.
Like his predecessor, Evans was a supporter of then-Mayor Harold Washington, the city’s first African American person to hold the office and whose agency appointments were blocked by a majority white band of aldermen in what became known as Council Wars. Washington had secured a second term the same year Evans was elected, but died months later.
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A decade later, “Evans and a group of African-American aldermen in Chicago became targets and victims of the infamous ‘Operation Silver Shovel’ political probe which not only ended his political career, but also led to the downfall of several of his colleagues,” his family wrote in the news release.
Evans was convicted in 1997 of accepting $7,300 in bribes — captured on audio and video — for sending city street sweepers to clean near a construction site, extorting $10,000 from a longtime foe to support his unpopular rock-crushing operation and obtaining a new tile floor in the basement of his home from a grocer seeking backing for a liquor license, the Tribune reported at the time.
Ald. Jesse Evans, left, with his wife, Betty, as they talk to his attorney at the Federal Building on the way into his court date. (Chris Walker/Chicago Tribune / Chicago Tribune)
Evans famously launched a three-week partial hunger strike after saying he suspected possible prosecutorial misconduct in the trial; federal prosecutors denied the allegations, and a judge dismissed his bid for a retrial. Evans was sentenced to 3 ½ years in prison.
In 2003, Evans mounted a bid for his old aldermanic seat. At the time, another alderman snagged in the Silver Shovel probe successfully sued over a state law barring convicted felons from holding municipal office, opening the door for Evans to run.
But Evans but was deemed ineligible to run because he was still under court supervision at the time — meaning he hadn’t completed his sentence.
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Ald. Jesse Evans leaves his office on the second floor of Chicago City Hall on Jan. 9, 1996. (Chris Walker/Chicago Tribune / Chicago Tribune)
He did not reenter the political arena. After suffering a stroke in 2008, his health continued to decline, but he maintained a positive outlook, family recalled.
“He will be remembered for his dedication, benevolence, and compassion for his family and the residents of the 21st Ward,” family said.
Evans is survived by his wife, Betty J. Evans; two sons, Minister Karriem Muhammad and Ronnie J. Walker; a granddaughter, A’nesha Shaheed; and great-grandchildren.
Services include a public viewing from 5 p.m.-7 p.m. Wednesday, a wake at 1 p.m. Friday followed by a 2 p.m. funeral. All will be held at Leak and Sons Funeral Home, 7838 S. Cottage Grove Ave. in Chicago.
Lisa Donovan is the host of The Spin, the Tribune’s politics newsletter. Sign up here to have it delivered to your inbox weekday afternoons.
ldonovan@chicagotribune.com
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chicagotribune--2020-11-24--Driver in stolen truck leads police on high-speed chase on I-294 and through Burr Ridge, Darien

At 7:41 p.m. Nov. 23 , an Illinois State Police trooper noticed a man standing next to a silver Ford @ @ @ @ @ ramp to Interstate 294 at the Hinsdale Oasis , the DuPage County State ’ s @ @ @ @ @ .
The trooper approached the driver , who later was identified as 22-year-old Carlos A.
@ @ @ @ @ of North Sawyer Avenue , and told him to pull the truck over on the @ @ @ @ @ Perez got in the truck , but drove away northbound on I-294 , the state @ @ @ @ @ office reported .

A Chicago man was charged with possession of a stolen vehicle, aggravated battery to a police officer and other offenses Monday evening, after he fled police and crashed a Ford pickup truck west of Route 83 in unincorporated Willowbrook.
At 7:41 p.m. Nov. 23, an Illinois State Police trooper noticed a man standing next to a silver Ford F-150, blocking the northbound ramp to Interstate 294 at the Hinsdale Oasis, the DuPage County State’s Attorney’s Office reported. The trooper approached the driver, who later was identified as 22-year-old Carlos A. Perez of the 5500 block of North Sawyer Avenue, and told him to pull the truck over on the side of the road. Perez got in the truck, but drove away northbound on I-294, the state’s attorney’s office reported.
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Other police departments were alerted to the fleeing vehicle, which had been reported stolen in Chicago three hours earlier.
Perez led multiple squad cars on a high-speed chase in excess of 90 mph on northbound I-294, authorities said. The truck then exited I-294, drove through a residential area at a high rate of speed and got back on I-294 southbound, authorities said.
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He again exited I-294 and fled police, driving through residential neighborhoods in Burr Ridge and Darien, at speeds of about 80 mph, according to the state’s attorney.
Burr Ridge officers got into position to help when they heard the truck was heading west on German Church Road from Willow Springs Road at about 7:55 p.m. Burr Ridge police spotted it on German Church and followed the truck to South Frontage Road, where it crossed Route 83 and drove into Tri-State Village subdivision, Burr Ridge Deputy Police Chief Marc Loftus said.
Perez allegedly drove down a dead-end street, turned his vehicle around in an attempt to flee and crashed the truck into two squad cars, authorities said in a statement.
“The vehicle crashed at a dead end on Bonnie Brae Lane, and the driver fled on foot,” Loftus said. “One of our officers and a state trooper chased him on foot. He eventually gave up when the officers chased him towards other waiting officers/troopers.”
As state troopers took Perez into custody, he allegedly spit on one of the troopers and told her that he had COVID-19, according to the state’s attorney’s office.
Perez was charged with aggravated fleeing and eluding in a stolen vehicle, possession of a stolen vehicle, aggravated battery to a police officer and criminal damage to state property.
The Illinois State Police reported Perez also was charged with driving with a suspended license, reckless driving and resisting arrest.
“Thankfully, this ended with no bystanders being injured and the suspect being apprehended,” said state police District 15 Commander Jason Bradley.
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Perez’s bond was set at $100,000 on Tuesday. His next court appearance is scheduled for January 6 for arraignment.


chicagotribune--2020-11-24--First measurable Chicago-area snow tapers off, gives way to 24 hours of rain, forecasters say

“ A lot of the snow came down really hard , really fast , when it did .
The inch-and-a-half @ @ @ @ @ in just about an hour and completely covered the parking lot .
But as soon @ @ @ @ @ ended , with the temperature warming , it began melting just as quickly , ” @ @ @

Drivers in northern Illinois had to contend with slippery road conditions Tuesday morning as the first measurable snow of the season coincided with the morning commute, although conditions generally were not as bad as expected, forecasters said.
National Weather Service meteorologists said northern Illinois travel conditions had been perilous for a few hours after snow began falling around 4 a.m., leaving anywhere from trace amounts to 3 inches of snow in the hardest-hit areas. Along with the fresh powder, forecasters said roads also were slick, in part “thanks to temperatures right around freezing.”
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Meteorologist Kevin Donofrio said most communities had evolved from heavy snow to a rain/ snow mix by about 8 a.m., a few hours sooner than expected.
“Most of the accumulation is probably winding down at this point. Temperatures have warmed up above freezing throughout the area so I don’t imagine you’ll see much more in the way of additional snowfall totals,” Donofrio said.
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But the numbers did jump a bit from weather spotter reports that came in between 6 and 7 a.m. and a final accounting done at 10 a.m., according to snowfall totals released by the weather service. That included the state’s second-largest city, Aurora, receiving a total of 3 inches, more than any other municipality.
Wheaton, New Lenox, Huntley and Rockford all recorded 2 inches of snow, according to the weather service. Sycamore and Medinah had 1.9 inches; Cortland and DeKalb had 1.8 inches; and the Rockford Airport had 1.7 inches.
[ Here’s when Chicago received its first snow of the fall season, going back 135 years ]
Rain falls in Chicago as a person crosses the street at Belmont and Sheffield avenues on Nov. 24, 2020. (Jose M. Osorio / Chicago Tribune)
Donofrio said Midway Airport had 0.8 inches, O’Hare — the city’s official recording site — had 0.7 inches, and the weather service office in Romeoville saw 1.5 inches, he said.
“A lot of the snow came down really hard, really fast, when it did. The inch-and-a-half we got here came down in just about an hour and completely covered the parking lot. But as soon as those heavy precipitation rates ended, with the temperature warming, it began melting just as quickly,” Donofrio said.
[ Thanksgiving weather in Chicago: What to expect Thursday and the warmest, coldest, snowiest and wettest since 1872 ]
Earlier, Donofrio said, in Crystal Lake, a far northwest suburb, 1.3 inches fell and 1.5 inches of snow was recorded in Homer Glen.
“There was a lot of slush on neighborhood roads,” said Donofrio. “In the city, for example, there’s some snow on grass surfaces, but looking at some of the cameras downtown the roads are just wet, not snow-covered.”
Remaining areas that hadn’t already switched to rain or a rain/snow mix did so by about 9 a.m., he said. A winter weather advisory for McHenry County ended at 10 a.m..
Snowfall amounts ending Tuesday, November 24, 2020 at 10 AM pic.twitter.com/r9aXdA8eZK — NWS Chicago (@NWSChicago) November 24, 2020
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Temperatures should warm for the rest of week after a high in the mid-40s Tuesday. Wednesday could see rain showers and possibly even thunderstorms, with highs from the mid-40s to the mid-50s. Thanksgiving should be partly cloudy, with highs in the upper 40s or low 50s.
Check back for updates and visit the Tribune’s weather page for more forecast details.
kdouglas@chicagotribune.com
Twitter @312BreakingNews


chicagotribune--2020-11-24--Running list of Chicago-area closings and cancellations because of coronavirus

Pritzker in the spring issued a stay-at-home order that was in effect into June , but the state has never @ @ @ @ @ have continued to require people to practice such precautions as wearing a face mask covering @ @ @ @ @ going out in public .
On Tuesday , state officials announced a rollback to a @ @ @ @ @ closing many types of public gathering places and further limiting many businesses ' capacity , @ @ @ @ @ allowing local school districts to decide , in consultation with local health authorities , whether @ @ @ @

Chicago Tribune staff, Katherine Rosenberg-Douglas, Liam Ford

We have lifted the paywall on this story. To support essential reporting, please consider becoming a subscriber .
Paca Kujtim of Arlington Heights self-administers a COVID-19 test in his car at the Arlington International Racecourse on March 31, 2021 in Arlington Heights. Kujtim was getting testing as a precaution for upcoming travel. (Stacey Wescott / Chicago Tribune)
In the months since Gov. J.B. Pritzker lifted the state’s coronavirus stay-at-home order, Chicagoans and other residents of Illinois have seen a gradual tightening of restrictions as COVID-19 cases spiked well past levels seen in the spring.
Pritzker in the spring issued a stay-at-home order that was in effect into June, but the state has never fully reopened, and officials have continued to require people to practice such precautions as wearing a face mask covering both nose and mouth when going out in public. On Tuesday, state officials announced a rollback to a Tier 3 mitigation plan, closing many types of public gathering places and further limiting many businesses' capacity, although state officials are still allowing local school districts to decide, in consultation with local health authorities, whether to remain open.
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With more than 10,000 deaths and more than 500,000 known cases reported in Illinois, event organizers, businesses and religious institutions here have reacted to the local transmission of the virus. Starting Nov. 16, Chicago and Cook County went under stay-at-home advisories, and more restrictions could be coming at the state level, as Pritzker has warned the state could be headed for another general shutdown.
Here are Chicago-area cancellations, closings and modifications prompted by the pandemic:
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Events
There are many holiday events planned for November and December in the suburbs, all of them adapted to deal with the coronavirus.
Chicago’s Christkindlmarket and many other events have been canceled or moved online this year, including the city’s Christmas tree-lighting ceremony and the Magnificent Mile Lights Festival.
Theaters, performing arts centers and amusement centers were to close under Tier 3, effective Friday, Nov. 20.
Roman Catholic churches in the Archdiocese of Chicago are still holding services under limited-capacity guidelines put in place in June and the archdiocese in November advised parishes, agencies and its main offices to reinforce current work-at-home advisories, while limiting non-worship gatherings to 10 people.
The annual festival for the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe at the Our Lady of Guadalupe Shrine in Des Plaines has been canceled.
Many other places of worship also remain open, with restrictions, but many are streaming their services.
“Meeting rooms, banquet centers, private party rooms, private clubs and country clubs may not host gatherings” under Tier 3 restrictions, according to the state.
Funerals are limited to 10 family members, not including funeral home staff.
The
Many Chicago-area 12-step recovery meetings were suspended or moved because of coronavirus-related precautions, according to the websites of the local affiliates of Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous.
Museums, parks and sports
All museums in Illinois were ordered closed as of Friday, Nov. 20, under Tier 3 mitigation measures.
The Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago had announced it was closing down for two weeks as COVID-19 rates climb rapidly in Illinois and across the country and the Shedd Aquarium announced that it was closing again effective Nov. 18, with a target reopening date of Jan. 2.
Indoor recreation centers were ordered closed effective Nov. 20 under Tier 3 measures.
All indoor group sporting and recreational activities, including youth and adult recreational sports as well as park district programs and travel leagues, were ordered halted as of Nov. 20 under Tier 3 measures, although individual training may continue, with facility reservations.
Outdoor sports and recreation involving 10 people or fewer, with social distancing and face masks, are allowed under Tier 3 measures.
The Garfield Park Conservatory has had its outdoor grounds open, but the Lincoln Park Conservatory has remained fully closed. Although the Chicago Park District has had online and some in-person programs, its offerings have been limited.
Government
Hospitals
Many Chicago-area hospitals are again restricting visitors because of the spread of the coronavirus, after relaxing rules over the summer.
On Nov. 16, Advocate Aurora Health said it was delaying half of elective surgeries because of surging COVID-19 cases.
Businesses
Under the state’s coronavirus plan, restaurants throughout the state are limited to outdoor dining, carryout or delivery, with limited hours. Bars have limited hours and can’t have indoor service.
Under Tier 3 measures, all Illinois bars and restaurants must close at 11 p.m. and reopen no sooner than 6 a.m. the next day, effective Nov. 20.
All workers who can work remotely should work remotely under the Tier 3 measures.
Chicago is limiting the hours of what it deems nonessential businesses, requiring they stay closed between 11 p.m. and 6 a.m. Taverns and restaurants must stop serving alcohol at 11 p.m. and businesses that sell packaged alcohol must stop selling at 9 p.m.
All gaming and casinos will close as of Friday, Nov. 20, under Tier 3 measures.
Grocery stores and pharmacies can operate at 50% capacity.
Health and fitness centers — including at hotels, where reservations are required — retail stores other than groceries and pharmacies, personal care services such as salons and fitness centers can operate at 25% capacity starting Nov. 20 under Tier 3 measures.
The Tribune is keeping a running list of restaurants that have permanently closed because of the pandemic.
Schools
Schools may remain open under Tier 3 measures effective Nov. 20, but state officials say many are choosing to go to remote learning.
Chicago’s public schools remain on remote learning. CPS has talked about starting in-person learning for some groups of students, but that may be derailed by spiking cases.
The Archdiocese of Chicago’s schools remain open for in-person instruction, with a portion of students choosing online instruction. Archdiocese school officials have said they are allow schools to switch to online learning between Thanksgiving and Christmas—all Catholic schools in the archdiocese will be remote the first two weeks of January—but only about 20% of schools are expected to close after Thanksgiving.
Many colleges and universities are following a hybrid model, with some students on campus and others at home, along with some classes in-person and others remote.
Models for suburban schools vary from district to district, and many have been pulling back from in-person instruction, as school boards feel heat from people on both side of the debate over whether to hold in-person classes. Some of the districts' decisions include:
Check back for updates.
kdouglas@chicagotribune.com
Twitter @312BreakingNews


chicagotribune--2020-11-24--Our Lady of Guadalupe festival canceled amid COVID-19 concerns; event typically draws hundreds of th

Our Lady of Guadalupe festival canceled amid COVID-19 concerns; event typically draws hundreds of thousands to Catholic shrine in Des Plaines

“ The COVID-19 pandemic has caused much hardship and pain for so many , ” the Rev .
Esequiel Sanchez @ @ @ @ @ Plaines church , said in a news release .
“ The message of comfort offered @ @ @ @ @ to St. Juan Diego : ‘ Am I not here , I , who am @ @ @ @ @ particularly to us today .
While we can not observe this feast as we have @ @ @ @ @ is still a time of prayer , petition and hope .
”

Ana Contreras, left, and her 15 year-old granddaughter, Leila Nunez carry incense during the pilgrimage to pay homage to Our Lady of Guadalupe, a Mexican icon of Catholicism, on Dec. 11, 2019 in Des Plaines. (Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune)
It’s hard to overstate the popularity and importance of the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe for the hundreds of thousands who make a pilgrimage each December to a Catholic shrine in suburban Des Plaines to observe the occasion, many on foot.
And while past snowstorms didn’t stop the faithful from attending the festivities, this year COVID-19 will. The Archdiocese of Chicago announced Tuesday that the overnight event, which was planned for Dec. 11-12, has been canceled this year.
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With coronavirus cases surging across Illinois, officials from the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe determined keeping devotees safe wouldn’t be possible this year. Instead, they’ll be livestreaming services and are encouraging people to celebrate the feast day from their own homes or their home parishes.
[ From 2019: Chicago-area Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, 2nd only to Mexico City, grows as faithful aim to honor Mary for what they see as answered prayers ]
“The COVID-19 pandemic has caused much hardship and pain for so many,” the Rev. Esequiel Sanchez, rector of the Des Plaines church, said in a news release. “The message of comfort offered by Our Lady of Guadalupe to St. Juan Diego: ‘Am I not here, I, who am your mother?’ extends particularly to us today. While we cannot observe this feast as we have in the past, it is still a time of prayer, petition and hope.”
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The archdiocese also said churches are “strongly discouraged from organizing any pilgrimages or Guadalupe Torch Runs to the Shrine.” Police, who normally help direct traffic to the site — crowds of up to 200,000 have assembled in past years — will this year keep the grounds secure and “direct traffic and individuals away from the Shrine.” Parking lots at the shrine and off-site locations will be closed.
The festivities celebrate the believed appearance of the Virgin Mary in 1531 to a poor Christian convert named Juan Diego in Mexico. The Des Plaines celebration is one of the largest outside Mexico City.


chicagotribune--2020-11-24--Watch live: Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot makes remarks following City Council meeting

Mayor Lori Lightfoot will hold a news conference about 2:30 p.m. Tuesday after the City Council meeting where aldermen were @ @ @ @ @ plan .
Read more .

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chicagotribune--2020-11-24--With final tweaks, Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle’s $6.9 billion budget wins approval

“ The prudent efforts and sometimes-difficult decisions made by President Preckwinkle , her staff and the Board of Commissioners over @ @ @ @ @ stabilize Cook County ’ s finances have prepared the county for a scenario exactly like @ @ @ @ @ this very moment , ” Msall said in a statement .
“ As a result @ @ @ @ @ fiscal and economic crises caused by the coronavirus pandemic in a better position than many @ @ @ @ @ across the country .
”

Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle’s $6.9 billion budget for 2021 won the approval of commissioners Tuesday on a 17-0 vote after a series of final adjustments, including reallocating money to keep open a health clinic at Morton East High School in Cicero.
Winning approval of her spending plan was a decidedly easier lift than it was for Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot, who proposed a significant property tax increase and costly borrowing plan. The county’s budget included no new tax increases and instead largely relied on eliminating more than 500 currently vacant jobs and drawing down reserves to get through the economic downturn caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
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Cook County Board President President Toni Preckwinkle recites the Pledge of Allegiance in a nearly empty board room before presiding over a virtual meeting of the board on Nov. 24, 2020. (Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune)
“This budget builds on years of hard work, hard votes and fiscally responsible steps taken to reshape Cook County,” Preckwinkle said after the vote. “This is a balanced budget without tax increases ... that addresses the fallout from the pandemic and makes millions of dollars in important equity investments.”
The budget does not anticipate any additional federal relief funding related to the pandemic. “We’re trying not to count on it,” said county Chief Financial Officer Ammar Rizki. “We don’t budget on the basis of hope.”
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Because the budget holds the line on taxes and instead relies on drawing down its more-than-ample reserves and job cuts, it won praise from Laurence Msall, president of the Civic Federation budget watchdog group.
“The prudent efforts and sometimes-difficult decisions made by President Preckwinkle, her staff and the Board of Commissioners over the last several years to stabilize Cook County’s finances have prepared the county for a scenario exactly like the one facing us at this very moment,” Msall said in a statement. “As a result, the county entered the fiscal and economic crises caused by the coronavirus pandemic in a better position than many other governments in Illinois and across the country.”
Since taking office 10 years ago, Preckwinkle has significantly reduced the number of jobs in county government, with a planned head count of less than 21,900 employees next year. That represents a reduction of nearly 15% from what was budgeted at the end of former board President Todd Stroger’s single four-year term.
She’s also enacted a series of tax increases, most notably by restoring a penny-on-the-dollar sales tax increase first enacted under Stroger that was later reversed. That extra 1 percentage point is expected to net the county nearly $500 million next year, with nearly 80% going to augment the county worker pension fund that has seen its finances improve since enactment of the tax.
And county finances benefited from an influx of funding from the Affordable Care Act enacted under former President Barack Obama. That has allowed the county to reduce the local taxpayer subsidy for Cook County Health, which now both delivers care to the needy and runs a health insurance plan under Obamacare.
The health system, which runs two hospitals and several clinics while providing health care at the County Jail, accounts for nearly half the county’s spending. In recent years, the local subsidy has started to climb again because more uninsured people are seeking care. For next year, the subsidy will be $123 million, up from $83 million this year.
And, although U.S. Supreme Court justices seem disinclined to overturn Obamacare, it is before the court and could dramatically increase local taxpayer costs if struck down.
Msall said there’s also a possibility that the county might have to pay back some of the federal pandemic relief funds Cook County Health has received because of “revised interpretations of federal law.” To help prevent any future confusion about federal funding, Commissioner Larry Suffredin, D-Evanston, pushed through a budget amendment requiring that outside funding of that sort for the health system and the county Land Bank Authority, which works to rehabilitate homes off the property tax rolls, be approved by the County Board.
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Commissioners restored about $353,000 in spending for the clinic at Morton, which was sought by Latino commissioners who viewed it as essential to community-based health care, by reducing spending on professional services at the county’s vast public health system.
They also restored about 41 jobs slated for removal at the county Juvenile Temporary Detention Center, where some minors caught up in the criminal justice system are held. That additional $2.3 million expense is expected to be covered by higher-than-first-anticipated state funding for the county court system.
And commissioners also restored $2.4 million in spending to restore 46 jobs in the court system for various categories of workers, including probation officers, law clerks, social caseworkers and court coordinators. That’s funded with higher-than-first-anticipated fee collections and additional reserve money.
They also agreed to reduce a planned increase in the cremation fee to $50 from $100, after an outcry from minority funeral homeowners. The permit fee is now $100 and will go up to $150. The $575,000 tab for that will be covered by reducing costs in other areas.
Preckwinkle started the budget process facing what the county estimated as a nearly $410 million shortfall for next year.
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To help close that gap, the county will draw down nearly $77 million from its general fund reserve of more than $400 million, which county officials say will still leave them with more than two months of operating funds still set aside. And the elimination of more than 500 vacant jobs — many of them in the sheriff’s office — is expected to save more than $61 million.
There also were more than 100 layoffs at Cook County Health, along with consolidations and downgrades at the county’s hospitals, and an anticipated $75 million increase in revenue from insurance rate increases and newly insured patients who were receiving free health care. They also expect additional federal money for the county’s Obamacare insurance plan that’s called CountyCare.
The county also is expecting an additional $30 million or so from an increase in initially projected sales tax revenue, partly because a new law will allow for the collection of more taxes from online sales, and additional tax increment finance district funds expected to be declared as surplus by the city. When that money is declared a surplus, it is divided up among city tax districts, with the county getting a cut.
Cook County Board President President Toni Preckwinkle presides over a virtual board meeting on Nov. 24, 2020. (Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune)
And the county also is using $50 million in pandemic assistance received this year from the federal CARES Act to cover COVID-19 contact tracing costs next year, while expecting $13.8 million from its 3% recreational cannabis tax and $3.6 million from its 2% tax on sports wagering — both of which are new revenue sources.
Although there’s a slight dip anticipated next year in day-to-day operating costs, Preckwinkle did manage to find some additional money to address racial inequity issues. An extra $20 million will be spent on programs for violence prevention, reintegrating former prisoners, housing people charged with crimes released on electronic monitoring and restorative justice. And another $20 million will bolster small business assistance, workforce development, housing aid and other economic programs.
Also, there’s a $30 million allocation in the budget for a pilot program to reduce fares on the Metra Electric and Rock Island lines to improve transit service in southern Cook County.
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In another vote, the board also approved allowing people to pay next year’s property taxes up to two months later without penalty because of pandemic hardships, as was allowed this year. That was proposed by county Treasurer Maria Pappas.
hdardick@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-11-24--Some Catholic schools in the Chicago area will shift to remote learning after Thanksgiving

“ The results were that 80 % of the schools needed no , or minimal , alteration of our current @ @ @ @ @ .
“ The other 20 % were candidates for more extensive adjustments , and it @ @ @ @ @ will be constructing individual ( virtual learning ) plans .
”

Custodian Juan Franco strips and waxes floors at St. Paul of the Cross School in Park Ridge last August in preparation for the school's fall reopening. Some schools in the Chicago Archdiocese are returning to remote learning after Thanksgiving. (Stacey Wescott / Chicago Tribune)
After a fall surge of coronavirus infections, more Archdiocese of Chicago Catholic schools will temporarily transition to e-learning next week.
Catholic elementary schools were scheduled to shift to remote learning for two weeks at the beginning of next year, but “escalating COVID-19 rates within the general population” prompted the Office of Catholic Schools to modify its original plan, spokesman Manuel Gonzales said.
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The decision also comes after the archdiocese surveyed stakeholders at all 162 schools in Cook and Lake counties to measure their comfort with in-person learning during the holiday season.
The survey measured parent satisfaction, preference for in-person or remote learning, and stress and workload considerations among teachers, Gonzales said.
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“The results were that 80% of the schools needed no, or minimal, alteration of our current procedures,” he said. “The other 20% were candidates for more extensive adjustments, and it is for those schools we will be constructing individual (virtual learning) plans.”
The archdiocese will work with the 20% of schools that will transition to remote learning, and those schools should have their plan defined by Wednesday, archdiocese officials said. Officials from the archdiocese did not identify which schools those are.
This adjustment comes as educators continue to try to figure out how best to proceed with in-person and remote learning amid a pandemic.
Most public school systems in the Chicago area decided to continue with remote learning this fall or opened their buildings for limited in-person classes. Chicago Public Schools has remained remote since the March statewide schools shutdown but aims to begin bringing students back in January.
However, schools in the Chicago Archdiocese opened full time, with safety measures in place and remote learning options for parents who were not comfortable with their children returning to the classroom.