February 26
At its meeting, the Chicago Board of Education heard several speakers make statements during the public comment period, most regarding The Chicago High School for the Arts (ChiArts) and the closing of ASPIRA Charter High School. ASPIRA is a non-profit education organization focused on empowering Puerto Rican and Latino youth through education and leadership development. Due to financial mismanagement, the school is scheduled to close April 10, less than three months before the end of the school year. Students and staff have expressed concerns over potential loss of accumulated college credits and, for seniors, graduation. According to its website, ChiArts is the “first public arts high school [in the city].” Its goal is to develop “the next generation of diverse, artistically promising scholar-artists.” The school uses a conservatory model that provides “intensive pre-professional training in the arts” along with college preparatory academics, but budgeting issues have reduced the number of hours reserved for arts training. The Board also learned that after union negotiations, every Chicago Public School Food Service Worker will be earning equal to twenty dollars per hour or more by August.
February 26
At its meeting, the Community Commission for Public Safety and Accountability (CCPSA) heard concerns about an increase in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids in March. Commenters questioned whether the Welcoming City Ordinance (WCO) was being enforced and called for the CCPSA to investigate alleged collaboration between the Chicago Police Department (CPD) and ICE, share regular updates, and hold a briefing on this issue. CPD’s Bureau of Internal Affairs is responsible for investigating alleged WCO violations, but there is a pending ordinance in City Council that would move this responsibility to the Civilian Office of Police Accountability (COPA). COPA was established by a 2016 ordinance as the “civilian oversight agency of the Chicago Police Department.” The CCPSA was created by the City Council in 2021 as “a new model for police oversight, accountability, and public safety.” A city department, it includes twenty-two elected district police councils that work locally with police in each district.
March 3
At their meeting, members of the Chicago City Council Committee on Environmental Protection and Energy reviewed the safest and most cost-efficient ways to update the city’s natural gas infrastructure. Discussion revolved around how to upgrade Chicago’s natural gas infrastructure and, in part, whether Peoples Gas should replace or retire aging pipes. Replacement is more expensive. Members learned that Peoples Gas plans to increase its rates even though it continues to extend the timeline for completing the Pipe Retirement Program. The program is slated to retire more than 1,000 miles of aging iron mains by 2035. Missed deadlines and high construction costs were cited as major issues. Most public commenters spoke against the $202 million rate hike proposed by Peoples Gas. Peoples Gas representatives shared their justifications for the proposed increase.
March 5
At its meeting, the board of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District (MWRD) denied a request previously presented by the City of Crestwood’s mayor at the board’s February 19 meeting. The request was to approve a leasing arrangement that would allow a game and liquor seller to build a casino on a public riverway property. The mayor argued that the leasing approach was necessary to reduce an economic burden on the city. Seven board members voted no and two abstained. A member of the Friends of the Chicago River spoke against the measure. The non-profit organization works to “protect and restore the Chicago-Calumet River System for all people, water, and wildlife,” according to its website, and has been active since 1979. The role of labor unions was discussed, in part, in connection with the MWRD’s goal of making its vehicles either hybrid or fully electric by 2030. One commissioner emphasized the importance of the vehicles being union made. The MWRD also recognized Irish Americans’ contributions in honor of Saint Patrick’s Day and recognized March as Women’s History Month.The MWRD’s mission, according to its website, is “protect the health and safety of the public in its service area, protect the quality of the water supply source (Lake Michigan), improve the quality of water in watercourses in its service area, protect businesses and homes from flood damages, and manage water as a vital resource for its service area.”
March 19
During this openmeeting, commissioners of the Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) assessed and approved orders related to railroads and motor carriers, a report related to a five-year plan to improve crossing safety and a report on hazardous materials, forty-three orders related to electric energy, seven related to gas, eleven related to telecommunications, and three related to water and sewer. The ICC commissioners approved ComEd’s application for an increase in deposit amounts for large-demand facilities the utility might need to build. The deposits apply to new construction that would use large amounts of electricity—data centers, for example. The higher deposits are designed to cover the cost ComEd could incur for building new electricity infrastructure needed to accommodate such large needs for electrical power. Citing lack of new information or arguments, the Commission denied two petitions, one for hearings for clarification regarding the deposits and the other for a rehearing. The meeting adjourned two hours earlier than scheduled. The ICC is a quasi-judicial body made up of five commissioners responsible for regulating several industries, including utilities and transportation services.