40th Forward Newsletter
Words from Alderperson Vasquez
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 Happy Black History Month, 40th Ward Neighbors!
One month isn't enough, especially when its the shortest month of the year, but I am grateful that we have the opportunity every year to reflect on the struggles, accomplishments, culture, and leaders in the Black community that have made our country and our city greater!
Chicago has its own beautiful and powerful Black History that we should all take the time to acknowledge and celebrate, from our founder Jean Baptiste Pointe Du Sable, to our Greatest Mayor Harold Washington, to Ida B. Wells, Fred Hampton, the Greatest Basketball Player of All Time - Michael Jordan, Sam Cooke, Rev. Jesse Jackson and more!
We have much to celebrate, so make the time to do so this month, click this link to find out how!
We have so many updates this week - check them all out below!
Yours in Service and Community,
Andre Vasquez
Alderperson, 40th Ward
40th Ward Office Hours:
Monday: 10am to 7pm
Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday: 10am to 5pm
Friday: 10am to 3pm
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City Council Updates
February 1st Council Meeting
Resolution Honoring State Rep Greg Harris
This week, the City Council paid tribute to former IL House of Representatives Majority Leader Greg Harris for his 16 years serving the 13th District. Greg has been a personal mentor to me since I took office, and has been a truly historic champion for LGBTQ+ rights, Marriage Equality, and so much more. I invite our 40th Ward neighbors to thank Greg by contacting his office here!
Mayor Lightfoot's Bad Com Ed Deal Blocked
On Wednesday, Mayor Lightfoot sought to rush through a 15 Year Franchise Agreement with Com Ed, after two years of negotiation that the City Council was not a part of and a 10 minute briefing about it to our office. Due to a variety of concerns, I moved to send the introduction to the Rules Committee on the following grounds:
1) A lack of transparency - The Lightfoot Administration did not properly inform the council as to the details of a 15 year agreement that is 80 pages long, while looking to pass it quickly.
2) Term of the agreement - Given the concerns about past bad deal the city has engaged in (like the Parking Meter Deal) I am dubious of any long term agreements and believe it should be shorter so that the City has more leverage to negotiate.
3) The minimal payout to the city - Currently Com Ed would pay about $120M to the city at best for a 15 year agreement. To put it in perspective, currently Com Ed has paid double that in settlements to a Federal bribery case. We see how much Com Ed brings in, even as they message out more rate hikes to Chicagoans. This doesn't pass the smell test.
4) It Stifles Municipalization attempts - When I was being briefed, the administration presented a clause in the agreement as a path to municipalization after 5 years. In reality the clause BLOCKS conversations regarding municipalizing the utility for 5 years.
5) Timing - The Mayor was looking to do this during election season, and I firmly believe this is a matter that should be discussed in the next term, when we will see a new council and potentially a new Mayor. To keep anyone from having this discussion for three terms by passing it now is not in the best interest of Chicagoans and good government.
You can read more about what happened in Council regarding this matter here.
City Appropriates $2.5M to Support American Blues Theatre in the 40th Ward
Finally, on Wednesday a TIF Project in the 40th Ward passed out of City Council that awards $2.5M to the American Blues Theater, which would be developed at 5627 N Lincoln. The location used to be a closed dollar store, and will now serve as one of the ends of the Lincoln Avenue Arts District! Read more about the story here.
Zoning Change Request Updates
Zoning change requests may be submitted to the City at any time by property owners and/or developers. The 40th Ward is committed to a transparent zoning process that includes a public meeting and feedback period. Holding of a public meeting does not imply support or opposition from the Ward. Alderperson Vasquez does not issue letters of support or opposition until the public process is complete.
Project: 2300 W Ainslie (St. Matthias Rectory Proposed Redevelopment )
Common Address: 2300 W Ainslie
Current Zoning: RS-3 Requested Zoning: RM-4.5
Owner/Developer Requesting Change: CKG Realty Group, LLC
THE PUBLIC MEETING FOR THIS PROPOSAL WAS HELD VIRTUALLY ON February 2, 2023 7:00pm AT THE FOLLOWING LINK: https://bit.ly/ainslie2300
Building plans and additional info available at: https://40thward.org/currentzoningrequests/
Submit your public comments here.
Now Accepting Public Comments on Liquor Moratorium
The 40th Ward has a number of “liquor moratorium” zones, established by the previous alderman. On streets designated as moratorium streets, liquor licenses cannot be requested, sold, transferred, etc. except under extremely limited circumstances, such as inheritance by a family member. This prevents the opening of new liquor licensed businesses, and also prevents most transfers or changes of ownership and/or plans of operation for existing liquor licensed businesses within the moratorium zone.
Amendment of a moratorium zone requires legislative action. Businesses may request a moratorium amendment, either for sale/alteration of an existing business or for purposes of opening a new liquor licensed business.
Amendment of a moratorium does not guarantee the issuance of a liquor license! If a moratorium is lifted or amended, businesses must still apply for a liquor license and go through the subsequent public notification and comment process. Amendment of the moratorium only makes the application possible, and does not in any other way indicate or provide support for a specific business or application.
Public comment may be submitted on any of the requested moratorium alterations, displayed below:
5208 n Lincoln Ave
Public Comment Form – Please submit by no later than EOD Thursday, February 10th
Applicant: Navinkumar Patel, 100% ownership
Proposed Use: On-premise sale of packaged Liquor, beer and wine.
Proposed Hours: 9am to 11pm
Let Us Know What Needs Repair
Each year, every Ward is allotted $1.5 million of the City’s budget to be used for a “menu” of infrastructure maintenance, projects, and improvements. Neighbors have already voted on where to allocate this money between special projects and ward repairs. Learn more: Participatory Budgeting process and 2023 projects.
Fill out our Menu Repair Form to suggest infrastructure improvements throughout the ward!
Join Weekly Virtual Ward Nights!
Ward Night is held via Zoom every Wednesday night at 5PM! Click Here to Register!
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40th Ward Environmental Board
The 40th Ward Environmental Board meets on the second Monday of every month at 7 pm to discuss all policy, infrastructure and project items related to the natural environment and sustainability. Register for the zoom meeting here!
40th Ward Youth Board
Winter Parking Bans - Please Read!
The Department of Streets and Sanitation (DSS) reminds motorists the Chicago winter overnight parking ban began on Thursday, December 1, 2022, and is in effect through April 1, 2023. The parking ban is enforced regardless of snow on 107 miles of main streets throughout the city during the hours of 3:00 a.m. to 7:00 a.m.
Violators of the parking ban will be towed and face a minimum $150 towing fee, a $60 ticket, and a storage fee of $25 per day. Vehicles in violation of the ban will be towed to Pounds 2 (10301 S. Doty Ave.) or 6 (701 N. Sacramento). Chicagoans can visit chicagoshovels.org or a map of streets impacted by the ban and to view the City’s snow plows in real-time during a storm. Motorists can also call 311 to find out if their vehicle was towed due to the ban.
Improve the CTA
The past year, buses and trains have been running at fractions of their scheduled service, sometimes not at all! If your train is making you miss your job or your bus is running 30 minutes late, visit our page and report it. We'll send your messages directly to the CTA board and hold them accountable for all your lost time.
If you are interested in attending the next CTA Budget hearing please do so by clicking here.
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See below for a list of events announced or sent to us since the last newsletter! To view upcoming events visit our 40th Ward Event Calendar. To view events previously featured in the newsletter, visit this page. If you would like to submit an event for approval to appear on our newsletter, please use this form! Events must be submitted by Thursday at noon to appear on that week's newsletter.
State Rep Hoan Huynh District Office Opening
Please join us Monday February 6, 2023, from noon - 4pm for our 13th District Office Grand Opening! We're located at 1967 W Montrose Ave, Chicago, IL 60613, right off the corner of Damen & Montrose. We'd love to welcome you into our new space. Please know the 13th District office is already open Monday-Friday from 9am to 5pm, so please contact us if you cannot make it and still want to visit or need assistance. You can send an email to billy@rephoanhuynh.com or call our office at 773-661-1891.
Budlong Woods Library 20th Anniversary Party
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Get Vaccinated at Home!
 
 
Resources
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General Updates
Our 40th Ward officers are present and active in the 17th, 19th, 20th, and 24th Police Districts which is why some of the recent cases have been leading to apprehensions, thanks to the investigatory work and follow up. The current resources are addressing the issues, but by nature, police are reactive, rather than proactive, so we are also looking at violence prevention groups to provide added presence, as well as looking to implement measures that address the activity at its root, such as juvenile intervention and diversion programs, and investments in communities that haven't had it in generations, which ends up creating the environment that leads to more criminal activity citywide.
We are also installing License Plate Reader Cameras in a number of arterial intersections to aid in evidence gathering for investigations, and have recommended that neighbors take advantage of the city's Home and Business Protection Program, which can provide reimbursement for neighbors who want to purchase cameras to also aid in evidence gathering if an incident were to occur. Here is the link for the program: https://www.chicago.gov/city/en/sites/cscc/home/home-and-business-protection.html
Because we know neighbors are also concerned about the safety and privacy of the cameras and what they record, we also recommend Eufy as a company to look at for cameras, as it has the most encryption available for the privacy of our neighbors:
https://us.eufy.com/collections/security
We will continue to report out when incidents occur and to work with all public safety stakeholders to make sure that our ward remains one of the safest in the city, and also send stats weekly in our newsletter.
Thank you for your engagement, as we know a connected community is a safer one.
Resources
Find your 40th Ward Beat and CAPS meeting schedule at bit.ly/2022CAPS40
Chicago Police Department Links for 40th Ward Residents:17th District Home Page , 19th District Home Page, 20th
District Home Page , 24th District Home Page
Find my police district - https://operations.chicagopolice.org/FindMyDistrict
Violence and Victimization Trends
Data from the last 28 Days via the City's Violence Reduction Dashboard.
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40th Ward New Migrant Arrivals Meeting
The 40th Ward Office has been receiving calls from recent migrant arrivals who are looking for support following their busing to Chicago. The City, State and various partners are continuing to work on rapid response and long-term integration for our new neighbors. Please join our office as we review existing efforts and brainstorm how we can assist locally in our ward! Register for the zoom meeting here!
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CTA's Second Chance Program
CTA’s Second Chance program is a nationally recognized program that provides valuable job skills and career opportunities to Chicago residents who often face challenges re-entering the workforce.
The Second Chance program takes a holistic approach to preparing individuals to be self-sufficient. It not only provides jobs to returning citizens, victims of abuse and others who face barriers to employment, but also offers a wide range of training, education, mentoring and networking opportunities.
Since 2011 the program has doubled in size to become one of the largest re-entry programs in the country. So far, more than 1,600 Chicagoans have participated—gaining experience they might not have received elsewhere. More than 450 Second Chance participants have been hired permanently by CTA, with many others moving on to private-sector jobs.
The program has helped hundreds of people turn their lives around, and provide for their families.
Please complete the Survey for communication about the time and location of the Information Sessions.
Support our local businesses!
Learn more about the 40th Ward's Chambers of Commerce and their upcoming events by clicking on the links below:
Andersonville Chamber of Commerce
Edgewater Chamber of Commerce
Greater Ravenswood Chamber of Commerce
Lincoln Square Ravenswood Chamber of Commerce
Rogers Park Business Alliance
West Ridge Chamber of Commerce
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Join Shovel Squad and Help Your Neighbors
Shovel Squad is a successful program where volunteers shovel sidewalks for neighbors who are physically unable to.
The 40th Ward will dispatch shoveling volunteers ONLY when:
• Snowfall is 2 inches or more, or
• When conditions are particularly treacherous
We are looking for volunteers who are available to shovel one house all season (every time snowfall is 2 inches+, every time conditions are treacherous)-- please sign up to volunteer if you plan on being in Chicago the majority of the winter.
If you are seeking assistance we will connect you with a volunteer via email or phone. You will be connected with this person the entire season. Please fill out this form and indicate if you’ll need assistance or are looking to volunteer https://airtable.com/shrdHyQaZNpThq1N8 . We can not guarantee that there will be enough volunteers so if we are unable to pair someone who needs assistance we will try our best to send folks from the office to shovel for you. This is to say, please only sign up if you do not have any other way to remove snow.
Volunteer with the 40th Ward Office
Seeking Front Desk Volunteers - Office volunteers provide valuable constituent service assistance for 40th Ward residents who call and visit during regular hours. Shifts are 2-3 hours. This is an ideal opportunity for someone seeking a regular volunteer commitment. Please note, volunteers must be fully vaccinated and be comfortable wearing a mask indoors. Email morgan@40thward.org to learn more.
Stay connected through Slack! If you haven't already done so, please join the Neighbor Network Slack group by clicking here. The 40th Ward office uses slack to post messages about ward happenings and volunteer opportunities. New to Slack? Get more information on how to use the platform here.
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The day after City Council, Alder Vasquez's son Parker spent the day at the office! Luckily, we had just cleaned notes off the whiteboard and it was ready for his art, pictured above.
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Row by Row from Left to Right: Alderperson Andre Vasquez, Deirdre O'Connor, Pooja Ravindran, Morgan Madderom, Bill Hohenadel, Jordan Dubin, and Angel Rubi Navarijo
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Pooja Ravindran, Chief of Staff
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