32nd Ward Newsletter September 12, 2025 | | |
Greetings!
Congratulations to one of our former neighborhood group leaders and a well respected Cook County Judge, Charlie Beach, who was elected to the position of Chief Judge of the Circuit Court of Cook County this week by his peer judges. The Chief Judge overseas the Cook County Court system with about 400 judges and over 2,700 employees. Judge Beach takes over from Chief Judge Timothy Evans who managed the system for the past 24 years. Judge Beach is a well respected jurist who helped to implement the pretrial fairness changes in Cook County.
A reminder about the upcoming CTA Budget Town Hall meetings next week. After the General Assembly was unable to finalize a plan for funding of the CTA, Metra, and Pace earlier this summer, the CTA is continuing to look at how their even tighter budget will affect riders. Because of the budget uncertainty, the CTA has been asked to prepare two budgets; one in the event that the fiscal cliff is not addressed by Springfield and one that assumes an influx of new public funds. As many of you know, we fought to block reductions in service to the buses and trains on the north side over a decade ago, but CTA ultimately removed the Lincoln Avenue bus from service affecting thousands of riders. Such cuts anywhere in the City for the upcoming CTA budgets would be damaging to ridership, surrounding areas, and the city's economy. As always, we are pressing our state leaders and the CTA to find funding solutions as we work with the CTA to improve services on the entire system.
At the events, riders and community members will be able to share their thoughts on the importance of CTA to their commute, their family and friends, and their community. CTA leadership will be at the townhall and will use this information to prioritize budget decisions.
The Budget Town Hall meetings will take place at the below dates and locations from 5:30 p.m. – 7 p.m.
Tuesday, September 16, 2025
Imani Village
901 E. 95th St
Chicago, IL, 60619
Thursday, September 18, 2025
Truman College
1145 W. Wilson Ave
Chicago, IL, 60640
and
Tuesday, September 25, 2025
Malcolm X College
1900 W. Van Buren St
Have a nice weekend.
Alderman Scott Waguespack
| | 2025 Street Cleaning Calendar | | |
Next week, street sweeping will occur in sections 1, 2, and 3 (Roscoe Village and West Lakeview). Click on the map above to see your section's schedule.
Please be on the lookout for signs and make sure to move your vehicle on your scheduled day (south and east sides of the street are normally done on the first day, north and west on the second; please watch for signs). Sweepers will do more than one pass on the block in their initial cleaning but will not come back to clean sections outside of their officially scheduled day.
Please take the time to help clear the curb in front of your property to keep the sewers flowing well. Any landscaping debris should be bagged and put in the alley by your trash cans. Please do not sweep landscaping debris into the street. Piles of leaves and heavy garbage also clog the sweepers and will cause significant delays. Other large objects like branches and metal will also damage the sweepers, so please remove them from curbs.
Residents can view street sweepers in real time using the Sweeper Tracker online tool.
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Special Thanks to Staffer Aidan Keefe
This week was the last week of public service for Aidan Keefe who has worked in our office since 2022. Aidan came to us through one of our great city youth programs- the Mikva Challenge. Mikva Challenge develops youth to be informed, empowered, active citizens and community leaders. We have hosted Mikva students nearly every year since I became Alderman and we are proud to see so many become great leaders in private and public institutions around Chicago and the country.
Aidan also had a unique experience as an advisory board member of the CTA, providing our office with input and a different perspective of the transit issues facing riders throughout the transit system. Aidan (below on the right at the BCO-Ward 32 Recycling event) handled hundreds of city requests, wrote legislation, and was also out early in the morning helping on our weekend community service cleanups. Aidan has to move on to fully focus on finishing his degrees at Northwestern University but we hope his all around experience will be beneficial to our City again in the near future.
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14th Police District
1432- September 17, 6pm
Holstein Park
2200 N. Oakley
1434- September 24, 6pm
Bucktown Wicker Park Library
1701 N. Milwaukee
caps.014district@chicagopolice.org
14th District Twitter
14th District CAPS- 312-744-1261
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19th Police District-
1921- September 17, 6:30pm
Police Auditorium
2452 W. Belmont
1931- September 24, 6:30pm
Boys and Girls Club
2915 N. Leavitt
caps.019district@chicagopolice.org
19th District Twitter
19th District CAPS- 312-744-0064
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Cortland Street Bridge Closure
The Chicago Department of Transportation (CDOT) announced the start of a major rehabilitation project on the Cortland Street Bridge over the North Branch of the Chicago River. Beginning September 22, 2025, Cortland Street will be closed to vehicle traffic in both directions between Mendell Street and Kingsbury Street. The closure is expected to last approximately 18–24 months. One sidewalk will remain open until winter 2025.
The Cortland Street Bridge was built in the early 1900s and is the oldest bascule bridge in Chicago. The scope of the project involves replacing the bridge deck, steel floor system, and counterweights, and installing new concrete-filled grating, timber sidewalks, railings, and lighting. The bridge houses will also be rehabilitated. The project will retain the character of this historic bridge.
Detour Routes:
- Eastbound Cortland Street: Traffic will be detoured southbound on Ashland Avenue, eastbound on North Avenue, and northbound on Clybourn Avenue to return to Cortland Street.
- Westbound Cortland Street: Traffic will be detoured southbound on Clybourn Avenue, westbound on North Avenue, and northbound on Ashland Avenue to return to Cortland Street.
People biking may use the sidewalk on the Cortland Street Bridge during the first phase of the project. Additional detour details and timing will be shared ahead of the full sidewalk closure scheduled for this winter.
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Alley Reconstruction
This is a notice for an alley reconstruction project for the alley located between Wilmot/Milwaukee/Oakley/Leavitt. The Public Building Commission (PBC) of Chicago has awarded a contract to Capitol Cement Company, Inc. and we want to alert you regarding the anticipated project schedule.
• Contractor Mobilization: September 2025
• Alley Reconstruction: September 2025 to November 2025
• New Landscaping: October 2025 to November 2025
In accordance with the Chicago Municipal Code, the PBC is granting permission to the contractor to begin the workday at 6:00am and to end the workday at 7:00pm, Monday through Friday; 8:00am to 5:00pm on Saturdays (if needed); and 9:00am to 5:00pm on Sundays (if needed) for the duration of the Project. We are coordinating with the Chicago Department of Transportation (CDOT) on these activities.
| | Coco Launching in the 32nd Ward | |
Coco's Zero-emission Sidewalk Delivery Robots have been operating in Chicago since 2024 as part of the city's Personal Delivery Device Pilot Program. Coco partners with local restaurants and grocers to provide more cost-effective and sustainable local deliveries. Coco is beginning to service Ward 32, so you may start seeing them in the neighborhood.
More information available at cocodelivery.com If you have any questions or would like to learn which merchants in your area can deliver to your address via Coco, please reach out to: community@cocodelivery.com
Coco Background
Coco began operating in 2020 and has quickly expanded across the United States and abroad. Coco services markets like Los Angeles, Miami, Chicago, Helsinki, Finland, and more. Cocos have completed over 500,000 deliveries, traveled over 1,000,000 miles, and prevented the emissions of over 1,000,000 lb of CO₂ had the same deliveries been completed in the average car.
| | Bucktown Apple Pie Contest | Join Friends of Holstein Park for their annual fall event hosted at Leavitt Street Inn and Tavern. Sign up to be a baker or just come eat pie the day of! This event will be on October 5 from 3-5pm at Leavitt St Inn at 2345 N. Leavitt. Click here for more info. | | |
Sip delicious, seasonal wines at Lincoln Park Uncorked along Lincoln Avenue while sampling light bites from select local restaurants and bars. Take a pedicab ride between designated tasting spots to keep the evening flowing. Don’t miss this perfect night out - explore Lincoln Avenue one pour at a time!
Thursday, September 18
6:00 - 9:00 p.m.
Lincoln Avenue between Diversey and Webster
Check-In Location: Junior Chefs Kitchen, 2448 N. Lincoln
Tickets can be purchased here.
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Sip, Stroll, and Shop Local This Fall!
We couldn’t wine-d down the excitement for fall—so why wait? Celebrate the season’s arrival in one of Chicago’s most vibrant neighborhoods: Wicker Park!
Join us for the Fall Wine Wobble-Wicker Park Edition, a festive evening of sipping fine wines, nibbling tasty bites, and discovering the best of local small businesses on Division Street—from spas and art galleries to jewelry boutiques and more!
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One Minute Survey: Should the Chicago Police Department be PROHIBITED from Conducting Certain Traffic Stops?
Please complete the one-minute survey below.
THE 18th POLICE DISTRICT COUNCIL WANT YOUR VOICES TO BE HEARD!
Background - On July 31, 2025, a majority of the Community Commission on Public Safety and Accountability (the Commission) voted to support new PROHIBITIONS on CPD's ability to conduct certain traffic stops. This is NOT the final vote and the Commission has requested additional public input.
Proposed Prohibition: "The Chicago Police Department shall be PROHIBITED from conducting a traffic stop or temporarily detaining a driver of a vehicle that is not a commercial, livery or chauffeured vehicle where the primary basis for the stop is any of the following violations:
- A missing or improperly displayed front license plate, so long as the vehicle has a properly displayed rear license plate;
- A displayed registration sticker that has expired within one year;
- Improper license plate fastening or positioning where the license plate is otherwise clearly displayed;
- Improper rear license plate illumination;
- One non-functioning headlight, taillight, or brake light during daylight if the vehicle has at least one functioning headlight, taillight, and brake light; and
- Operating a vehicle with a loud sound system."
THE RESULTS OF THIS SURVEY WILL BE ACCUMULATED, PRESENTED TO DECISION-MAKERS, AND SHARED WITH ALL THOSE RESPONDING.
Click on the box below to complete the One Minute Survey and VOICE YOUR OPINION.
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Alderman Scott Waguespack
2657 North Clybourn
Chicago, IL 60614
(773) 248-1330
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