Upcoming City Council Votes
Public Safety Updates
Art and Music
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Dear Neighbors,
As the summer continues, we want you to know that public safety is foremost in our minds.
More Arrests in Carjacking Cases
Since our last update on April 30, police have arrested 14 juveniles in 14 carjacking incidents and four adults for four incidents.
Carjacking is still a serious issue in our city, but numbers are significantly down since the carjacking task force was enlarged in March.
Print out this flyer with carjacking prevention tips and guidance on what to do if you are carjacked.
What Happens When You are a Witness to a Crime
At our Oz Park Safety Walk, many neighbors expressed concern about co-operating in the prosecution of a criminal case because of fears of retaliation. Without witnesses, many crimes cannot be prosecuted at all. Being a witness is safe. In the ten years as Alderman, I have gone to court many times with witnesses and there has never been any attempt to intimidate or retaliate.
Some neighbors also said they did not understand the process, which of course, is only natural.
Here is our new guide about what happens when you are a witness to a crime. It details our role as witnesses in the administration of criminal justice.
If you have information about any crime in our community, please make the following contacts. Please leave a message if there is no answer. You will get a call back.
18th District (Crimes that occur South of Fullerton).
Phone: 312-742-5778 - Sgt. Chris Schenk or Officer Al Robinson
19th District (Crimes that occur North of Fullerton).
Phone: 312-744-8320 - Officer Kellee Simz or Officer Anastasia Patterson
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Upcoming Votes in City Council
There are several important votes coming up in City Council about which many of you have written and called our office.
Lake Shore Drive
As many of you know, there has been a concerted effort to rename outer Lake Shore Drive in honor of John Baptiste Point du Sable, the first permanent non-indigenous settler of Chicago.
He lived at the mouth of the Chicago River for at least ten years, from sometime in the 1780s through 1800, when he sold his extensive holdings, including "a house, two barns, a horse-drawn mill, a bakehouse, a poultry house, a dairy, and a smokehouse. The house was a 22-by-40-foot log cabin filled with fine furniture and paintings" to an associate of John Kinzie, who was later often recognized as Chicago's founder.
In 1933, as a result of the petitions of Black citizens of Chicago, a replica of Point du Sable's cabin was made part of the Chicago Century of Progress. In 1975, the Afro-American Bicentennial Corporation nominated Pioneer Court, which is the plaza in front of the Equitable Building at 401 N Michigan Avenue, to the National Register of Historic Places, as the site of Point du Sable's landholdings. The site was designated in 1977. A bust was placed at the site in 2009, and the Michigan Avenue Bridge was renamed in DuSable's honor in 2010. Mayor Harold Washington set aside land for the creation of DuSable Park in 1987. Funds to complete the park were designated to be from developers building close to that site; a plans for the site was finally approved last year.
A poll commissioned by my neighbors and colleagues, Aldermen Reilly and Hopkins, found that a majority of Chicagoans do not support the renaming of Outer Lake Shore Drive.
The vast majority of constituents who contacted our office similarly do not support the renaming of Outer Lake Shore Drive. I will not support this effort at City Council next week, and trust that City Council can find more appropriate ways to not simply recognize DuSable, but to do more more to educate our citizens about this important part of our heritage.
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Civilian Oversight of the Chicago Police
Competing Proposals
One key element of the ongoing work to reform our Police Department is creating civilian oversight. As I wrote a year ago, civilian input and oversight is critical to the overall credibility and integrity of the Department.
Two competing proposals are scheduled for a vote this Friday before the Public Safety Committee, on which I serve. Unfortunately, I cannot support either of them.
Empowering Communities for Public Safety
I co-sponsored a previous proposal, the GAPA (Grassroots Alliance for Police Accountability) ordinance in 2019. The GAPA ordinance created a city-wide, civilian-led oversight body called the Community Commission for Public Safety and Accountability, and locally-elected District Councils for every police district. A big strength of this ordinance is that the members of the city-wide commission are nominated by a committee drawn from local District Councils and the mayor choses which of the nominees to appoint. The ordinance is filled with similar “checks and balances” that assure citizen involvement but recognize the mayor’s ultimate executive responsibility for the police. If you’d like to learn more details, click here.
Unfortunately, the GAPA ordinance has been replaced by a new proposal which undercuts these checks and balances. The new “Empowering Communities for Public Safety” (ECPS) ordinance, while seemingly embracing the structure of GAPA, requires that in June of 2022, there would be a city election to ask the voters to pick an entirely different structure that is opposed by the vast majority of City Council.
This is no different than if the Founding Fathers had agreed, after writing the U.S. Constitution, that there would be a guaranteed vote one year later about whether we should bring back the king.
Other elements of the coalition proposal that I cannot support include striking the ability of someone with experience in law enforcement from serving on a District Council or on the Commission, another key element of GAPA.
Mayor Lightfoot’s Proposal
Last Friday, Mayor Lightfoot released her own response to GAPA.
I am relieved that the mayor’s proposal adopts many of the features of the carefully thought through GAPA ordinance. This reflects GAPA's success in creating the structure for increased civilian participation in community policing.
However, many issues with the Mayor's draft demonstrate that this proposal is not yet ready for a vote. I’ll highlight two:
The Mayor proposes to hold these elections at the same time as the Local School Council (LSC) elections or in a similar separate election. This is so that undocumented people can vote under a special State statute. The City would have to get authorization from Springfield, creating a even longer delay in the implementation of the civilian oversight law. Plus, LSC elections suffer from very low turnout, with often fewer than 30,000 voters turning out city-wide. (Even our mayoral elections rarely get more than 500,000 voters).
Regardless of one's political opinions about immigration, undocumented individuals who live, work, and pay taxes in our city should be heard. A better way to give voice to the undocumented is to require that a member of the Commission have expertise in the community policing issues facing the undocumented. Given the abysmal voter turnout in local school council elections, the proposed plan unwittingly creates the appearance of giving people a vote who are practically hesitant to participate.
I also question many of the changes to GAPA made in the mayor’s proposal. The ability of the Commission to weigh in on policy is too sharply restricted, with more hurdles to participation than GAPA. There are so many new “checks” inserted into the process that the “balance” has been lost.
I was prepared to vote for GAPA in February. My intention at this point is to vote “no” on both proposals so that we can work to return to GAPA or to amend the mayor's proposal to restore some of the features of GAPA that are critical to allow for responsible citizen involvement in the oversight of our police department.
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Residential Parking Pass Appointments
You can visit here to sign up for an appointment to pick up residential parking passes at our office. Appointments will be in 15-minute increments from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday and 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday through Friday. Appointments will make it easier to get passes as we continue our reopening protocols. Only one person at a time can be serviced in our office, and masks are required for entry.
The easiest way to obtain vehicle stickers or daily parking passes is to go online at EZBUY at the Chicago City Clerk's Office. You can order 24 hours a day.
watch our video for step-by-step details on how to purchase your passes or stickers online.
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Beach Hazards and Water Safety Awareness
Weekend of June 18th, 2021
Be aware. This weekend, Chicago is expected to see waves ranging from 3-6 feet tall. Waves this large make it incredibly dangerous to swim or be on any type of boat. It is particularly dangerous for boaters or swimmers who are inexperienced.
The National Weather Service has issued an alert through Tuesday of next week. For more information on this, please click here.
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Contactless Kitchenware & Small Goods Drive
Francis Parker School
330 W. Webster St
Saturday, June 19th
10 a.m. - 1 p.m.
Chicago Furniture Bank and Francis Parker School are hosting a Kitchenware and Small Goods Drive this Saturday to collect items that provides dignity, stability and comfort to Chicagoans leaving temporary shelters and moving into permanent housing with few household belongings.
Items needed: Plates, Bowls, Glasses, Cups, Utensils, Pots/Pans, Small Appliances, Lamps, Artwork
The drive will be located at Francis Parker School on the parking lot.
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Auction for Lincoln Park Conservancy
Join the Lincoln Park Conservancy for their largest fundraiser of the year; the virtual Auction for Lincoln Park will take place from June 18 through June 20. Auction proceeds support the Conservancy’s stewardship and programming throughout Lincoln Park and will help close the last funding gap for the North Pond restoration.
They are within $1 million of saving North Pond, but we can't do it without support from the community. Register for the Auction or donate here.
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Make Music Chicago
Monday, June 21st, 2021
10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Make Music Chicago returns again this year. This daylong, musical free-for-all celebrates music in all forms, encouraging people to band together and perform free public concerts. This year, nearly 100 U.S. cities are participating, and there will be thousands of concerts nationwide--Chicago's performance lineup is available here.
As a result of the hard work of 43rd Ward resident Paula Kahn, there will be six Lincoln Park "Make Music Chicago" performances.
Lincoln Park Gazebo – 2550 N Stockton Drive:
- 10 a.m. Fermi String Quartet
- 11 a.m. Ménage a Trio (flute, tenor sax, keyboard)
- Noon Sarah Coco (folk and country singer)
- 1 p.m. Chen Family String Quartet
North Pond Café – 2600 N between Cannon and Stockton Drives
- 2 p.m. Mike Felten (folk and blues singer)
2314 N Cleveland (In the Garden)
- 4 p.m. Cucina String Quartet
Limited seating is available, please bring your own chairs or plan to sit on the grass.
Masks required and social distancing guidelines apply to the events on Chicago Park District properties.
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The Stories Behind the Statues
Gold Coast Neighbors
Thursday, June 24th, 2021
6 p.m.
GCNA is committed to both historic preservation and beautification in our neighborhood. This seminar will focus on the history and meaning of six local monuments in Lincoln Park. This informational seminar will include a critical discussion of individual monuments in terms of current perspectives.
The program will be moderated by Vern Broders, GCNA president. Kim L. Dulaney, Director of Education and Programs at The DuSable Museum of African American History, and Rose Miron, Director of the D’Arcy McNickle Center for American Indian and Indigenous Studies at the Newberry Library will be the panelists.
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Blood Drive
St Teresa of Avila Catholic Church
1950 N Kenmore Ave
Sunday, June 27th, 2021
8 a.m. - 1:30 p.m.
St. Teresa of Avila Church is hosting their bi-annual blood drive. People of all ages are encouraged to donate a pint of blood to those in need.
You can schedule appointment by calling 1-800-7TOGIVE (786-4483) or click here. Remember to bring a photo ID.
All donors will be asked to have their temperature taken upon arrival and all safety measures, including the wearing of masks and social distancing will be required.
The current deferral period for those receiving the COVID vaccines is two full days.
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2021 Chicago Sculpture Exhibit
20 Years of Public Art
Over the past few weeks, new art has been popping up throughout Lincoln Park. These pieces are recent selections from the Chicago Sculpture Exhibit's 20th year of public art.
This wonderful non-profit was founded in 2001 by my predecessor Ald. Vi Daley. Today, about 50 pieces of public art are installed in wards throughout the city.
The exhibit includes sculpture across the city in outdoor public spaces, free for all to enjoy. These works were created by artists from across the country and will be on display for one year after their installation.
Please take the opportunity to visit the sculptures in our community and across the city. More information and a complete list of artists can be found here.
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Stay Safe at the Beach this Summer
Join the Chicago Park District for a free session to learn how to keep yourself and others safe at the beach, recognize a swimmer in distress, and respond in an emergency.
Training will be offered from Memorial Day Weekend through June 25. Orientations are offered throughout the city. Click here for information on locations and times.
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Summer Opportunities for Youth |
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Be Your Own Boss Summer Internship
Applications Due June 24
Join Future Founders for a three-week PAID virtual internship where you'll get a crash course in entrepreneurship, work with awesome high school students from across the city, and build a business of your very own! Interns are paid up to $300 based on their attendance and participation in the program.
Applications are open to Chicago Public and Charter School students only.
Applications are available here and are due by Monday, June 14th.
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Mayor's Youth Commission
The Mayor's Youth Commission is a group of high school and college aged students (14-19) that serve as a liaison between the Chicago Mayor’s Office and Chicago’s youth. Working alongside Mayor Lightfoot and her staff, the commission will meet monthly to foster youth-driven civic engagement and amplify youth voices to impact the city’s critical policy conversations.
Past Youth Commissioners have had the opportunity to:
- Host townhalls and events around topics such as the rise in car jackings, mental health post-pandemic, and high school and college transitions and support.
- Create education resource guides for youth.
- Provide valuable youth input on planning of campaigns through My CHI. My Future. such as Make 2021 Yours and Spring Forward.
- Meet and collaborate with various City staff and leadership.
The application deadline is June 26; learn more and apply here.
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STEM Opportunity for Chicago High School Students
ComEd is launching a summer Science Technology Engineering Mathematics Home Labs program. This session will feature a storyline around a Mars rover and students will build a solar-powered rover of their own while solving many challenges along the way. The program will consist of three virtual build sessions with a final in-person event. The build nights will take place July 22, 27 and 29 from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. with the final event on Saturday, July 31 at Noon. The location will be announced.
ComEd mentors will be working with the students to complete the projects. Mentors include Dr. Kate Biberdorf from the University of Texas, who is working with ComEd engineers to develop the curriculum. Each student who participates in at least three of the four sessions will receive an iPad for the work.
Learn more and apply here.
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My Chi My Future
Click below to learn about all of the opportunities available to kids through My Chi My Future. Resources include summer programs, job opportunities, special events, and college resources.
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Old Town Art Fair
Thank you to everyone who joined us for this year's Old Town Art Fair and supporting our local artists and businesses. More than 200 jury-approved artists showcased their pieces to thousands of attendees, supported by 500 volunteers.
This was one of the first events in the city after all COVID-19 restrictions were lifted and we were pleased to see so many people come out to enjoy the reopening, the weather, and the many great artists.
The successes of this year's Art Fair would not be possible without the hard work of Dorothy "Dee" DeCarlo, president of the Old Town Triangle Association and Anne Giffels, Chair of the Art Fair Committee. Also, a big thank you to the over volunteers who helped make the fair a great success.
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Support Local Restaurants |
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Please donate to the Lincoln Park Conservancy and enjoy the wonderful music and art that is all about us. |
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