Inside Chicago Government aims to arm citizens with information-- in print, images, and sound--that helps them shape the decisions made by the invisible others who influence how Chicagoans live. http://www.chigov.com/ Copyright 2018 Wordspace Press en-us Fri, 30 Nov 2018 15:38:37 CST The proposed Lincoln Yards development and the Cortland/Chicago River TIF district have a past rooted in the city's Amazon bid, and a future linked to a mayor's departure. Thu, 29 Nov 2018 02:03:37 CST http://chigov.com/money/tif/lincoln-yards-amazon-tif-origin The city of Chicago has proposed the Cortland/Chicago River tax-increment financing district, which will encircle all of the planned Lincoln Yards development along the Chicago River's North Branch. Wed, 14 Nov 2018 02:03:37 CST http://chigov.com/money/tif/lincoln-yards-cortland-river-tif In this audio and video of a February 2018 speech, budget guru Ralph Martire cuts apart and boils down the sticky sausage of last year's school-funding law. Tue, 17 Apr 2018 12:03:37 CDT http://chigov.com/chicago/schools/illinois-school-funding-martire How to pick from dozens of judicial candidates in a Cook County primary? Luckily, there's help from voteforjudges.org and Injustice Watch. Tue, 13 Mar 2018 17:03:37 CDT http://chigov.com/illinois/elections/cook-county-judge-elections At its February, 2018 meeting, the Chicago Police Board dismissed an officer who drunkenly threatened gun suicide in front of his family, then lied to investigators. Thu, 01 Mar 2018 12:03:37 CST http://chigov.com/chicago/schools/public-safety/police-board-fires-cop-threaten-suicide Now available as an audiobook: Chicago Reader columnist and radio host Ben Joravsky talks with journalist Dave Glowacz about Chicago schools. This audiobook is part of a Glowacz/Joravsky interview series, and features eight hours of Dave and Ben's in-depth interviews about education since 2012. Thu, 22 Feb 2018 13:03:37 CST http://chigov.com/chicago/schools/joravsky-audiobook-schools Now available as an audiobook: Chicago Reader columnist and radio host Ben Joravsky talks with journalist Dave Glowacz about tax-increment financing (TIF). This first-in-a-series audiobook features almost four hours of Dave and Ben's in-depth interviews about TIF since 2014. Tue, 06 Jun 2017 15:14:37 CDT http://chigov.com/money/tif/joravsky-audiobook-tif A new transit taxing district surrounding the Red Line on the North Side could generate at least $5 billion in revenue--far more than the city had previously claimed. Thu, 08 Dec 2016 14:14:37 CDT http://chigov.com/chicago/cta-metra/red-purple-tif-5-billion-revenue Here's Inside Chicago Government's last-minute help for voting in the November, 2016 election. Fri, 04 Nov 2016 14:14:37 CDT http://chigov.com/chicago/elections/2016-election-last-minute-help In a video interview, Inside Chicago Government reporter Dave Glowacz explains to a fellow voter one way to choose Cook County judges in the 2016 election: by using the bar association recommendations found at voteforjudges.org. Sat, 29 Oct 2016 14:14:37 CDT http://chigov.com/chicago/elections/judge-voting-bar-association-ratings The city's Community Development Commission unanimously approved tax-increment financing for the redevelopment of the Lathrop Homes public housing complex. Wed, 13 Jul 2016 09:14:37 CDT http://chigov.com/money/tif/lathrop-cdc-tif-approval The state's official results of the primary election reveal the names of the delegates that Chicago voters "sent" to the July Democratic convention. Mon, 18 Apr 2016 16:02:37 CDT http://chigov.com/illinois/elections/666-democratic-convention-delegates-elected The Illinois State Board of Elections has certified the state's March primary election results--including those for presidential candidate of the Democratic Party. Here's why Hillary didn't "win." Wed, 13 Apr 2016 14:02:37 CDT http://chigov.com/illinois/elections/662-democratic-presidential-primary-delegates-2016 First Ward Alderman Joe Moreno has announced an unprecedented limitation on a tax-increment financing district connected to the redevelopment of Lathrop Homes. Wed, 06 Apr 2016 14:02:37 CDT http://chigov.com/money/tif/661-moreno-tif-contraints-lathrop-diversey.html In Chicago's March 15 primary election, hundreds of people are running to become their parties' delegates to presidential nominating conventions. Many are unknown to voters. Tue, 15 Mar 2016 14:02:37 CDT http://chigov.com/chicago/elections/659-march-primary-presidential-delegates.html Top officials of the Chicago Housing Authority fled a public meeting on the redevelopment of Lathrop Homes on the North Side. Thu, 04 Feb 2016 14:02:37 CST http://chigov.com/chicago/city-services/654-latrhop-redevelopment-meeting-jones-hooker.html Voters inevitably have questions about the many pages of judicial candidates. Here are those questions, along with our answers. Fri, 31 Oct 2014 14:02:37 CDT http://chigov.com/illinois/elections/608-judicial-election-cook-county-retention.html In a report long held confidential by Metra, an investigator finds no wrongdoing by ousted executive director Alex Clifford. Thu, 25 Sep 2014 14:02:37 CDT http://chigov.com/chicago/cta-metra/604-metra-board-heaton-report-alex-clifford.html Cook County board president Tony Preckwinkle is poised to seize a job that's done by the man who wears the sheriff's star: responsibility for putting jail detainees on electronic monitoring. Wed, 19 Feb 2014 21:02:37 CST http://chigov.com/illinois/cook-county/590-preckwinkle-jail-electronic-monitoring.html A state department of veterans' affairs employee has been found guilty of doing political campaign work on state time, then lying to investigators about her wrongdoing. Wed, 22 Jan 2014 20:13:37 CST http://chigov.com/illinois/elections/587-state-worker-wooten-campaign-house-34th-district.html In Chicagoland's latest scandal du jour, it seems that every possible watchdog and oversight body want to join in the take-down. But at what taxpayer expense? Mon, 26 Aug 2013 20:13:37 CDT http://chigov.com/chicago/cta-metra/566-metra-investigations-of-clifford-deal.html A report by the Better Government Association says Clerk of the Circuit Court Dorothy Brown tried--and failed--to hike revenues for a government office that's "as bad as a bureaucracy gets." Mon, 10 Jun 2013 17:00:37 CDT http://chigov.com/illinois/cook-county/412-court-clerk-dorothy-brown-new-revenue.html Members of the Chicago City Council recently introduced laws that aim to strengthen the city's Office of Inspector General. How did this set of legislation come about, and what are its prospects? Tue, 14 May 2013 15:00:37 CDT http://chigov.com/chicago/administrative-regulatory/551-inspector-general-subpoena-power-expansion.html Chicago Public Schools is currently holding public hearings around its plan to close and consolidate over 50 schools this year. What distinguishes these meetings from those that came before, and what are they meant to accomplish? Wed, 24 Apr 2013 16:30:37 CDT http://chigov.com/chicago/schools/548-school-closure-hearings.html Does Mayor Emanuel have the city council in lockstep, even more than his predecessor? Absolutely, says a report by the political science department at the University of Illinois at Chicago. Fri, 12 Apr 2013 16:00:37 CDT http://chigov.com/chicago/city-council/547-aldermanic-voting-analysis-uic.html Second Congressional District primary candidate Robin Kelly violated work-schedule rules while employed in the state treasurer's office, according to a state audit. Wed, 20 Feb 2013 19:00:37 CST http://chigov.com/illinois/elections/534-robin-kelly-time-off-violations.html The new Cook County Recorder of Deeds Karen Yarbrough tried to illegally influence hiring before taking office, according to a federal court monitor. Mon, 03 Dec 2012 22:00:37 CST http://www.chigov.com/illinois/cook-county/469-county-recorder-yarbrough-illegal-hiring-influence.html A recent Chicago Sun-Times article reported a politically-connected construction management firm's take: nearly a billion dollars of taxpayer money under a no-bid contract with the Public Building Commission (PBC). The firm: the Rise Group LLC. Mon, 05 Nov 2012 22:00:37 CST http://chigov.com/administrative-regulatory/427-public-building-commission-costs-taxpayers.html Noelle Brennan, a court-appointed federal hiring monitor, issued a report blasting the City of Chicago. Brennan says the city still refuses to discipline high-level department managers for proven hiring abuses. Mon, 02 Jul 2012 11:24:37 CDT http://chigov.com/administrative-regulatory/425-federal-monitor-punish-misbehaving-managers.html Starting with a 1/27/11 debate, Rahm Emanuel has repeatedly given sweeping, and initially unchallenged, credit to charter high schools in Chicago. Thu, 17 Feb 2011 11:24:37 CST http://chigov.com/chicago/schools/item/315:cooking-the-stats The Chicago Inspector General's Office (IGO) issued a report on 1/13/11 that described wrongdoing by city employees. In its report the IGO identified the city departments involved and the acts committed--but didn't name most of the wrongdoing employees. Can you identify them? Tue, 18 Jan 2011 12:24:37 CST http://chigov.com/chicago/city-services/item/279-id-the-wrongdoers-part-2.html The Chicago Inspector General's Office (IGO) issued a report on 7/15/10 that described wrongdoing by city employees. In its report the IGO identified the city departments involved and the acts committed--but didn't name most of the wrongdoing employees. Can you identify them? Thu, 15 Jul 2010 09:00:00 CDT http://www.chigov.com/component/content/article/79- city-services/264-id-the-wrongdoers-part-1.html http://chigov.com/chicago/city-services/item/264-id-the-wrongdoers-part-1.html