2017 Chicago budget pleases Mayor Emanuel, but tax increase may cause further population decrease

Last week’s unanimous vote on the 2017 Chicago city budget pleased Mayor Rahm Emanuel to no end. Wreathed in smiles, he said, of the $8.2 billion budget, "You can say Chicago tomorrow is better because of the work you have done over the last five years," Emanuel told aldermen.

With the 48-0 vote, the $8.2 billion package is a heady combination of many things, but mostly dependent on things that were previously passed, such as four years of property tax hikes. Next year, City Hall property taxes, will go up by $109 million, following this year's $318 million increase. The money is earmarked for police and firefighter pension funds; raided in previous years when money was scarce,  or underfunded for the benefits promised during more robust years.

Emanuel’s unenviable task was to put much of this debt to rest, in whatever way that he could, and the property tax increases seem to have been his solution. Yet, as many aldermen noted, coming back, hat in hand for future increases is not entirely out out of the picture. As The Chicago Tribune noted, “That won't be the end of the pension-related property tax increases. Total property tax increases of $106 million for the police and fire pension funds are slated for 2018 and 2019.”

Add to that another line item: “Chicago Public Schools property taxes will increase by $245 million in 2017, with most of that money going into the Chicago Teachers Pension Fund,” and the die is cast for even more hikes..

A significant chunk of the budget are a host of, what economists define as regressive taxes..A leading example is that ”Emanuel's budget includes a new 7-cent fee for each store-provided disposable bag, designed to raise about $13 million next year. It replaces a city ban on plastic bags that was deemed largely ineffective. People can avoid paying that tax by bringing reusable bags to the store,” noted the Tribune.

But, there is more much more - here is the breakdown:

• New parking meters, with 460 in the Loop and surrounding business district and 225 in neighborhoods. The $5.4 million raised by the new meters would partly offset the $12 million the city estimates it will pay to Chicago Parking Meters LLC for meters that are out of service.

• Parking rates at O'Hare International and Midway airports would rise, with the daily fee going up by as much as $12.25 under a complex system that varies by the type of lot used. The proceeds will be plowed back into city airport improvements and operations.
• A new so-called surge pricing to $4, from $2, at 820 parking meters near Wrigley Field, starting two hours prior to a game or event.
• Drivers also would pay to use “commercial loading zones with hourly parking rates set at $14 downtown and in two nearby wards. Once fully in place, the administration expects to collect $13 million to $18 million a year.”
• 545 new cops to be added in 2017; and $36 million over three years spent on expanding teenage mentoring programs.
• $994 in property tax hikes for City Hall and CPS. That's based on a $250,000 home.
• $50.40 for the 911 phone tax passed in 2014; based on a total of three phone lines, cell or land.
• $355 from water and sewer fees doubled from 2011.
• $134 from the water and sewer tax passed in September. That's for metered service. Those lacking meters can expect to pay $229.
• $25 from a 2011 city vehicle sticker hike. The increase was $10 per car and $15 for SUVs.
• $19.40 from a cable tax hike approved in 2014, based on an $80 monthly bill.
• $114 a year for garbage pickup approved in 2015: on $9.50 per unit a month for a single-family home.

Even the 2016 City budget had a lot of these types of taxes, including the property tax increases. When I interviewed David Fernandez, a New York based public finance attorney with Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney last year, for my now defunct Examiner column, he said in an emailed statement, ”Perhaps it is time for Chicago to look back at NYC in the ‘70’s and find a way to create its own Municipal Assistance Corporation.  The restructuring of debt within the constraints placed by the courts and utilizing creative ways to provide access to the markets while preserving both the requirements of the existing obligations and the reserves being held by the City are going to be paramount in allowing Chicago to avoid the drastic measures of increased property taxes.”  Prescient words, yet the deed was done.

Also, culprit as the New York Times has noted, “Improvements in the housing market aren’t yet offering significant relief,” and, “on average, collections of local property-tax revenue trail changes in home prices by three years, according to the Congressional Budget Office.”

Regressive taxes are a weak way to shore up city finances, most economists feel, including municipal tax lawyers, and they take more not only from from lower income people, but also are easy enough to get around, and eventually will offer substantially less revenue.

They could lead to even greater, or dramatic turns. Resident, even corporate entities could simply leave Chicago. For the former if the above taxes are added up, then a mythical “owner of a $250,000 home can expect to pay about $348 in additional property taxes next year. Throw in the $53 in estimated new water and sewer taxes for the typical homeowner, total additional taxes next year would come to about $400” calculated the Tribune.

"More money. That's all the city wants, more money. More money. They don't fix the streets, they don't fix anything else. And they give us more taxes," said Melanie Pizano to ABC7 reporters.

Still others defend these taxes --- "These are the same people who want their garbage picked up and their graffiti removed and their trees trimmed. We have to pay for them," said Alderman Ricardo Munoz (22nd Ward).

With population growth abated, fleeing residents is not an unrealistic prospect with the increased taxes. Earlier this year, reports showed U.S. growth a little less than one percent in  2015. And, while many cities saw declines, “the biggest loser in the latest demographic analysis is the city of Chicago. Of all the metropolitan areas that lost population in the last year, it lost the most—more than the greater Los Angeles area, more than Boston, more than Minneapolis.” cited a blogster at Reason.com.

While the amount lost was smaller - in thousands compared to millions of residents - “The City of Chicago itself lost 6,263 residents. Nevertheless, the Chicago Tribune notes that this is the first decline in population for the city since 1990.

“By almost every metric, Illinois' population is sharply declining, largely because residents are fleeing the state. The Tribune surveyed dozens of former residents who've left within the last five years, and each offered their own list of reasons for doing so. Common reasons include high taxes, the state budget stalemate, crime, the unemployment rate and the weather.

”Studies from 2013 also saw trouble on the horizon when Steven Greenhut noted, "Chicago has high taxes and punitive regulations, large and bureaucratic government, and surly public-sector unions.

With the election of Donald Trump the presidency, and a tax plan that has faced its fair share of criticism, as well as uncertainty, and that promises “made during the campaign were big but vague,” as Tribune columnist Gail Marksjarvis noted. And, certainly his tax plan might make Chicago residency even less attractive with most planned savings going to high earners and in one example, “a single parent earning $75,000 would face a tax increase of $2,440.”

“But the depth of the city's problems is mind-boggling, and the results of a fiscal disaster there will be far more spectacular than bankruptcy in more obviously decrepit cities. Noted Greenhut.

“Chicago's metropolitan statistical area, defined by the U.S. Census Bureau, includes the city and suburbs and extends into Wisconsin and Indiana.The Chicago area lost an estimated 6,263 residents in 2015 — the greatest loss of any metropolitan area in the country. That puts the region's population at 9.5 million.,” reported the Tribune.

Normally departures can be offset by birth and migration -- but that has also lessened and many residents are leaving Chicago for southern states such as Texas and Arizona, where they face less taxes and political battles like that between Gov. Bruce Rauner and Speaker of the House, Michael Madigan.

A firewall, of sorts, for population control, is supposed to be Mexican and especially newly arrived Mexicans, but that has slowed to a trickle; and with the election of Donald Trump as president, might show even more, if he builds the proposed wall between the two countries; but, is also affected by a rapidly aging U.S. Mexican population.

As the Tribune notes, “More than any other city, Chicago has depended on Mexican immigrants to balance the sluggish growth of its native-born population, said Rob Paral, a Chicago-based demographer who advises nonprofits and community groups. During the 1990s, immigration accounted for most of Chicago's population growth. The number of Mexican immigrants rose by 117,000 in Chicago that decade, according to data gathered by Paral's firm, Rob Paral and Associates.”

There are things that can be done in coming years to mitigate the further exodus of residents from the state, said Michael Lucci, of the Illinois Policy Institute. He recommends refocusing on manufacturing jobs in the state and curbing property taxes.

"We're never gonna have Colorado's mountains or California's beaches," he said. "But we have historically had an attractive business and job market. The problem is that we don't have that anymore."

Late in the election,Trump perhaps wanting to be more compatible with House Republicans, Trump wants to lessen itemized deductions on Schedule A of both individual and married filers,  and with increased standard deductions of $30,000 for joint filers and $15,000 for singles, “how many will want to file for mortgage interest or property tax write-offs, as they do today,” noted nationally syndicated real estate columnist Kenneth Harney, thus decreasing the incentive to own homes, in even a moderate market like Chicago.

An outlier in the decrease of residents has been the exodus of African Americans from Chicago, especially those with children seeking better schools and an escape from the violence which has reached a crisis stage in 2016 alone; with shootings and homicides, much of which affects their own communities.

The 2010 census reported a 17 percent drop in the city's black population over the previous decade. That number declined another an additional 4 percent through 2014, to 852,756. White people have left the state for years," Paral said. "But African-Americans? That's the one-two punch.”

Chicago teachers ratify agreement, but money problems still linger

Karen Lewis

In a 72-28 vote, 25,000 members of the Chicago Teachers Union voted on Tuesday to ratify the tentative agreement reached between them and Chicago Public Schools. While this was not a nailbiter, in the strictest sense of the word, there was some concern among those that were dissatisfied at the changes for special education students, might be able to rally a rejoinder and reject the agreement, valued at $8.9 billion, some say, over four years.

Cooler heads prevailed and in the end, there were benefits that saved the teachers, say some, from virtual extinction, professionally speaking; and the contention of the pension pick-up was solved with a two-tier system where long-term employees will continue to get the 7 percent paid by CPS, and newer teachers not.at all

This loss by  Mayor Rahm Emanuel and school CEO Forrest Claypool, a creation of both a “stay put” for current teachers and a “pick-up” for new hires, seemed simple enough. But, there could be problems later on. As was noted, at the time,” Perhaps more importantly, the two-tier system would set the precedent of a different structure for compensation for new employees, potentially giving the city a tool to drive a wedge into the union’s ranks in future negotiations.”

The district also agreed to obtain outside funding to pay for as many as 55 "community schools" — at an annual cost of at least $500,000 per school — while creating a task force to select those buildings and determine how they could include community health care, after-school activities and support for homeless or chronically truant students.

Losses were felt with a reduction in ratio of social workers to students, far less than the National Association Of Social Workers recommends. "That was one of the last things to be dropped," said Vice President Jesse Sharkey, who concedes, "Those things cost a lot of money."

“Preliminary results show 72.33 percent of CTU members voted to accept the agreement,” said CTU President Karen Lewis in a statement. “This has taken nearly two years to reach a fair contract settlement. Now educators can focus their full energies on their classrooms as we continue to fight for equity throughout the district. I want to commend the rank-and-file for their leadership, commitment and hard work over the course of several months. This contract goes a long way in protecting our profession and our classrooms.”

Statements from Claypool, have been exuberant, where he actually bragged that the new deal is saving the city money. But, not so fast, says Greg Hinz of Crain's Chicago business, where he noted: "The fact is that by 2019, CPS, by its own figures, will be spending another $110 million a year on teacher compensation and benefits. This in a system that can't afford what it has now. CPS's sales job came in a briefing today [Thursday] during which it borrowed a page from Emanuel's book of exaggeration and bragged that the new deal "will save CPS $400 million compared to the previous contract."

Now, he notes, that “compared to the one entered into in 2012, [it] is not as rich. There will be no cost-of-living pay hikes for two years (one of them already past), but they'll get 2 percent in fiscal 2018 and 2.5 percent in fiscal 2019. Beyond that, pay hikes for longevity and obtaining an advanced degree, known as a "step and lane" hike, will be reinstated immediately after a one-year hiatus. CPS argues that's better than the old contract. Had its terms merely been extended—including COLAs and step-and-lane hikes every year, CPS would be paying an additional $400 million more over four years.”

A matter of semantics or fuzzy math, say critics.

The School Board is next to vote its approval and also the now revised school budget; public hearings are also scheduled in advance of the decision. CPS officials are still mum on the pricetag, and the $8.9 billion is a guesstimate from inside observers.

This is spin at its best, and careful observers are also wondering about what happens next with the still $1 billion shortfall, and the constant borrowing to improve and maintain the physical plant. The current votes and the expected ones from the State, while celebratory, are premature, with a look long down the road of fiscal responsibility.

Chicago teacher delegates approve tentative agreement with high stakes say critics

CTU President Karen Lewis

Wednesday evening the Chicago Teachers Union House of Delegates will decide whether or not they will accept the tentative agreement -- the “not perfect” one that was hammered out in the wee hours of the morning last Tuesday. While the agreement did prevent a repeat of the strike of 2102, it also left Chicago teachers with, if not a less perfect agreement, but one that leaves them open to future problems, with its two-tiered pension structure, for existing and new teachers, albeit one that is evened out with progressive raises.
Set against a background of acrimony from Mayor Rahm Emanuel still stinging from 2012, the lessons he learned from that time proved to give him more ammunition, and firepower as he and school CEO Forrest Claypool fired off salvos, soto voice, and warning signals with layoffs, that the teachers had to sacrifice, and that anything less would result in total chaos for parents in the nation’s third largest school system.  The scapegoating and psychological assault were game on for the sharp-elbowed second term Emanuel.
While CTU can claim a victory in securing $87 million dollars from the TIF surplus, there was a palimpsest, to the proceedings when it was revealed that the 2017 city budget had a line item for exactly that amount, well in advance of the “concession.”
In a game of chicken, or almost chicken, the politicization of education has become part of the package in the city’s economic woes as it attempts to battle both the budget and win the war, in one that has been largely mismanaged for decades by previous mayors, who all but dissolved, goodwill, and good city management, at will, depending on the situation.
As those on the left wrote: “Emanuel and Rauner thought their tough-guy routine would get the teachers to cave. But Emanuel was the one who blinked first — and moreover, he’ll have to dip into his slush fund of siphoned-off tax revenue, destined for his developer pals, in order to meet the teachers’ demands,” noted the socialist press.
Yet, that item was there all along noted The Chicago Sun Times, who reported this: “Emanuel’s 2017 budget book, printed days before that deadline, included this line: “The 2017 declared TIF surplus of $175 million provides $87 million to Chicago Public Schools and $40.5 million to the city of Chicago.” That means Emanuel kept teachers and parents guessing until the very end, knowing full well the price he was prepared to pay to avert a strike.

At issue is “when and how a militant union like the CTU can forge ahead in struggle at a time when most others remain in full retreat. If Emanuel and Chicago Public Schools (CPS) officials, despite all of their tough talk, were prepared to retreat part or most of the way on the most important contract issues, could a strike have forced them to come up with even more?”
There were significant gains: the step and lane raises for seniority and advanced education was unfrozen and there was $10 million to $27 million to help with counseling and mentor programs. As DNA Chicago reported, “to “wraparound” social services for between twenty and fifty-five schools in neighborhoods struggling with poverty and youth violence. School counselors would have the option to turn over case management tasks to administrators in order to spend more time with students.
Losses were felt with a reduction in ratio of social workers to students, far less than the National Association Of Social Workers recommends. "That was one of the last things to be dropped," said Vice President Jesse Sharkey, who concedes, "Those things cost a lot of money."
The most salient issue of pension obligations - and the current pick-up of 7 percent -- was lost by Emanuel and Claypool, but in its place was a “stay put” for current teachers and a “pick-up” for new hires. But, and this is significant:  “Perhaps more importantly, the two-tier system would set the precedent of a different structure for compensation for new employees, potentially giving the city a tool to drive a wedge into the union’s ranks in future negotiations.”
While over 75 percent of Chicago teachers voted to strike, faced with the agreement before them, would or could they reject it and strike anyway? The idea is tantalizing and some are no doubt wondering if, it could be done. That would also endanger negative publicity, and TIF paychecks, in other words no long term solution  And, it might also generate a phone call from the Hillary Clinton campaign, who must have given her thoughts on the spectre of a strike on the eve of the upcoming presidential election.
That move would also create another wrinkle in the ongoing friction between blue state Democrats and Republican Governor Bruce Rauner, who is also adept at scapegoating those who he does not like, or who want to stay in the game. In previous speeches and talks with the media he has suggested that giving money to Chicago, without passing his so-called “turn around agenda” is nigh to impossible. Secondly, the use of TIF monies does not address a weakened budget that has not prepared for an unanticipated shortfall, with no ready solution.
According to the Chicago Tribune, “The district's $5.4 billion operating budget assumed savings of $31 million through renegotiated contracts with unions including the CTU. That budget also assumed it would take in $32.5 million from TIF districts, but that figure would now increase to $87.5 million. It does not appear that they are going to get that savings, although the (TIF) surplus that they have declared will help pay for some of it," said Laurence Msall, head of the nonpartisan Civic Federation budget watchdog group.’”
Another idea in the works are planned buyouts to ease the pains of a fragile budget, yet "In this case, definitely, the new teachers who are replacing them are going to be paying more to the pensions," he said. "They are going to see a lesser pension benefit than existing employees, but we have to see the value of the lump sum that is being added before we can make a determination of how much savings or costs are associated."
There are also brighter days ahead, when “The union would see one of its biggest victories in negotiations start to take shape in the second semester of the 2016-17 school year. That's when kindergarten through second grade teachers with 32 or more students in their classrooms become eligible to receive an assistant to help with instruction, according to the tentative deal. Sharkey estimated that agreement would cost about $10 million a year” according to the Tribune.
What the CTU delegates will analyze, and process anyone's guess, but the agreement while providing much, also creates unhealthy gaps that might come back and haunt those that it proposes to serve.
Late breaking news: The delegates in a 2-1 decision approved the four year agreement. On Oct. 27th, the full rank and file will vote on the agreement. Sharkey noted that there were definite victories that were achieved.

Rahm Emanuel takes different tack with possible Chicago teachers strike

For the second time, as mayor of Chicago, Rahm Emanuel faces the very real possibility of another Chicago Teachers Union strike --- the previous one, in 2012, earning him not only the enmity of his well-established opponents, but also an expansion of them. This time around, Emanuel, battle-scarred by overdue pension payments and a city budget awash in red ink, and high crime, is in no mood to play the bad guy.

Now, he has placed the blame on the teachers, but has also reached out to parents to protest the supposed greedy, non-compliant, and self-serving teachers, and that he cares about the kids. It’s a gamble City Hall sources say that he must do, to try and prevent him from being further mired in negative publicity, and calculated, his advisers say, to keep him above the fray, as he grapples with other pressing problems. Statements such as “strike of choice” and “totally unnecessary,” play to the core of his intended audience, parents.

For many residents this concern rings hollow, after the by now, historic closings of 50 schools, in predominantly black neighborhoods that forced many children to walk, in anticipation,  through drug-infested neighborhoods; which Emanuel was forced to acknowledge with the hiring of a civilian watch force to guide them safely, to and from school.

Education, especially public education has been politicized as an outsized football to be used, or misused, as the occasion demands, and for Chicago, which has the nation’s third largest school system with 396,641 students, the problem becomes enlarged as the district with a junk-bond rating, and facing a debt of over $1.1 billion, is in serious financial distress. So much so that Republican Governor Bruce Rauner said that bankruptcy was not off the chart, although these charges were later refuted by education experts.

Adding more fuel to the fire in contract negotiations, are over 40 alderman, members of Emanuel’s city council, presumably loyal, who have demanded that the city use its Tax Increment Finance  funds, not already committed, (where taxes are frozen for a specific period of time, with anything beyond going into a designated fund, and at the mayor’s disposal) to be used to shore up the ailing district. There are currently 146 of these areas, but some reports give a higher figure of 151. Changes to redirect these monies to CPS would require a change in city law

“Ald. George Cardenas, 12th, has led efforts in the City Council to push Emanuel to use TIF money to help shore up the CPS bank account. Cardenas said he met late last week in Emanuel's office with CTU representatives and the mayor's top aides in a bid to hash out an agreement on using surplus from TIF funds to prevent a walkout, reported the Chicago Tribune.

"We want to avoid a strike, of course, and a (TIF) surplus could give a win to everyone. I want to find a win-win," Cardenas said. "The mayor can claim a victory on avoiding a strike, the CTU can claim victory on the finances of the (school) district and we can all move forward."

In addition, five Illinois State Reps have lent their support to this idea, and addressed their concern, in a letter to Emanuel, where they urged him “to support Chicago Public Education Revitalization Ordinance, which would release necessary TIF surplus funds of $460 million for 2016.”

Those that signed were Ann M. Williams (11th), Barbara Flynn Currie (25th), Will Guzzardi (39th), Sara Feigenholtz (6th) and Jamie Andrade (40th).

Emanuel has countered that the District already has received monies in the past and that in any event it would not be enough, and how could future demands be met, and that their proposal is not a long-term solution. His spokesperson Molly Poppe has said that $32.5 million dollars in surplus is helping teachers and existing school budgets. Yet, critics note that if that were so, then why would principals have to scrape for the current budget cycle, to meet minimum standards?

Eager to turn the tide of public opinion to the teachers, the CTU is just as eager to return the favor back to money. "The settlement hinges on money coming from a development slush fund into the public school system," CTU Vice President Jesse Sharkey said last week. "That's what the settlement hinges on. It's about the money."

Contract negotiations also hinge on teacher layoffs -- with another round of 250 -- less than two days ago, (due to lowered enrollment), budget cuts, pension cut payments, the loss of “step and lane” increases and increasing healthcare costs, and longer school days. Of utmost concern for the CTU is the loss of the 7 percent pension contribution by CPS, which chief Forrest Claypool says is no longer affordable, and which the union says is actually a pay cut, which CPS denies, even as it says that there will be a 13 percent raise.

Donna Kiel, director of De Paul University’s Office of Innovative Professional Learning said, on that school’s news website: “I’m not sure (strikes) are the best solution, that’s for sure,” Kiel said. “But I think given the current situation, I don’t know what other recourse Chicago teachers have (…) last time it was all about the teacher evaluation system and job security, and now it’s all about just being able to exist.”

Some object to the use of TIF monies saying that the loss of revenue, from the surplus would be a decrease in road work, construction, and development of vacant properties, to name but a few. They also point out the newly opened Whole Foods in the Englewood neighborhood, one of the poorest and most dangerous neighborhoods in the city, as the good that TIFs can do.

Critics counter that the funds have been grossly misused, over the years, especially by former mayor, Richard M. Daley, for such trifles as the posh French Market; but Emanuel has also continued in that direction with plans for a hotel and a basketball arena for De Paul University, near the convention center..

The ideological divide between public perception of teachers and the public may be the greatest hurdle, particularly in a large metropolitan area, where teachers have to be teacher as well as counselor, social worker. Parent, and in some schools purchasing agent.  And, then they have to counter the oft quoted, and dreaded statement, “those that can’t, teach,” which says a lot about how the profession is viewed by some residents, and the none too subtle message that the mayor is hinging his argument on: that they don’t as a group, really deserve more than he is willing to give.

Chicago mayor says violence is a problem all must help solve

In an attempt to meet the increasing violence in Chicago, Mayor Rahm Emanuel, on Thursday, in an often emotionally tinged speech, at a local community college, outlined his plans to shore up the police with 500 new police officers, in an effort to help address a situation that has garnered national headlines.

His appearance was also an attempt to redefine himself from the cold-hearted bureaucrat that could hurl F-bombs at unsuspecting staffers, or sneer at reporter’s questions, to one of a compassionate mayor, who deeply cares about the welfare of the city’s residents. For protestors outside, it was not enough as they held aloft placards some that said, “RESIGN,” and “END RACISM.”

Depending on your viewpoint, he was either successful, or was not. One area that he did not specify was how he was going to pay for the new officers, who, with training, could cost $138,000 during the first year. Not to mention how to further pay for those that would supervise the new recruits, and to fill the void for those promoted..

In an immediate concession to the increasing shootings and homicides, Emanuel, was forced to admit that it "threatens everything we have done together,"  and that fighting it will be "our top priority as a city."

"This fight belongs to all of us,"  he said against a statistical background that shows more shootings in less than one year, including the bloody month of August, and a Labor Day weekend that brought even more violence. The 13 killings that happened over Labor Day weekend in Chicago were enough to bring the city to a bloody milestone not seen in more than a decade. “The city reportedly topped 500 homicides for the year over the long holiday weekend, a number reminiscent of the historic violence recorded in the 1990.” noted local NBC affiliate, Channel 5.

Using a multitiered plan, Emanuel said that he would in addition to hiring more police, would harness that to community-sensitive policing, tougher laws for repeat gun felons, and a big increase in spending for mentoring programs for at risk youth and improved economic opportunities, and resources, in minority neighborhoods, where much of the violence has taken place.

In one of his more dramatic lines, the 56 year-old mayor said, "At the end of the day," reading from prepared remarks, "we will be judged by one simple question: Can a mother in any neighborhood in Chicago send her children outside to play with peace of mind that they are safe? The city of Chicago is our home. The people of Chicago are our family."

Crain’s Chicago Business revealed that there had been leaks, before the speech, and one of them “was yesterday's announcement that, after years of resisting, Emanuel intends to add 1,000 sworn personnel to the Chicago Police Department over the next two years, beefing up not only street operations but the corps of detectives, mid level supervisors and department trainers.”

Herertofore, overtime had been the rule and the cost of $116 million, last year, proved to be as ineffective as it was expensive, for the department, as the violence increased along with the evening news showing keening mothers, grieving over the deaths of loved ones, often bystanders, as the unintended targets in gang warfare.

Emanuel did say that the Becoming a Man program would see an increase of $36 million over the next three years. This program, while widely praised, also plays into his remarks about the absent dads, the mayor says he has observed in trials. For this, he has received some criticism, from the black community, which saw them as biased.

“BAM has shown great success in reaching out to young minority men with counseling, mentoring, job training and other activities designed to keep them from gangs and guns. More than 7,000 young men will be reached, said Crain’s. Emanuel noted, that "the deck has been shuffled against our kids. Let's reshuffle the deck and put our kids on top."

The mayor’s critics have noted, both before, and after this speech, if he truly cared about minority kids so much, why did he close more than 50 schools in mostly black neighborhoods?

With the increasing gun violence, the mayor also stated that he wants to have  “law enforcement officials to crack down on gun stores, permitting them to inspect records, mandate safety measures and train store employees to detect traffickers.”

Yet, others, over the years, in previous mayoral administrations, as well as the National Rifle Association, have said they the guns used in most urban crimes are not purchased at gun shops, thus making legislative changes, a moot point.

With police abuse is running rampant across the country, including Chicago, Emanuel’s statement that “the overwhelming numbers of police officers in Chicago are doing good work under difficult conditions. They put their lives on the line every day in institutions none of us can fully comprehend or appreciate,” may not bode well, for him, considering the near erosion of trust between residents and police.

One program Community Alternative Policing Strategy (CAPS)  which proved to be a watershed in improving police and community relations, especially in the 1980s and 1990s, was a recognized success.

As the Chicago Reader noted recently “through regular neighbourhood beat meetings and district advisory councils, CAPSA allowed police officers to work directly with community members to solve persistent problems like drugs and graffiti,” unfortunately had its budget cut, and reassigned to fight increasing violence in other parts of the city, by Mayor Richard M. Daley.

Emanuel continued the path towards financial insolvency and instituted programming changes, across districts, rather than police headquarters. All of which resulted in administrative isolation resulting in ineffectiveness; and making current meetings a mere shell of their former stronger selves.

Eddie Johnson, the new police superintendent has pledged that the program will be revitalized, but has been short on details. This may leave residents even more distrustful of the police, and its once successful program.

While the jury is still out on Emanuel’s proposals, many have said that it was a speech that should have been given years ago, still others say that it is not enough, and the shortage on specifics may renders it as more of a public relations effort. Others still note that conditions forced him to concede that his long allegiance to overtime was simply not working to stem the tide of violence, and that even now, the approach seems sporadic.

Skepticism greets Chicago mayor's intent to beef up police in wake of growing violence

Mayor Rahm Emanuel

Wednesday's announcement by Chicago Police Superintendent, Eddie Johnson, that the city would hire 500 new police officers was met with faint praise by some, and by many that it was not enough to stem the tide of violence that has resulted in more homicides than New York and Los Angeles combined.

The move is also a direct contradiction of the course followed by second term Rahm Emanuel, who felt that overtime, to the tune of $116 million in 2105, was the best way to balance the budget and the void of officers leaving by attrition, along with community policing. In fact, he had the support of now ousted predecessor to Johnson, Garry McCarthy.

Much of the city’s police procedures, including hiring, have changed since the shooting death of black teenager Laquan McDonald, by a white police officer, 16 times. Since that event there was the alleged suppression of the videotape, many of whom feel was a deliberate move by Emanuel, as he sought re election, against a viable contender; a first time for a mayoral run. Later the tape was ordered to be released by a local judge, and in a swift fall from grace, State's Attorney Anita Alvarez, lost her bid for reelection.

In the aftermath, there has been a Department of Justice investigation, and now a special grand jury appointed to determine any wrongdoing. With many residents alternating between anger against the alleged links between City Hall and the State’s Attorney office, the situation has further deteriorated with the uptick in crime.While mostly restricted to the South and West Sides, the city of Chicago, and Emanuel, have garnered national headlines.

Many community activists, and even some alderman, feel that any monies spent - and it’s not clear where the money will come from -- needs to be combined in a comprehensive manner for creating, and improving, neighborhood resources in the poor areas of the city, which have been most affected by the shootings.

The Rev. Gregory Livingston, president of The Coalition for a New Chicago, was perhaps the most vociferous in his condemnation of the proposed hirings, but also got personal with references to the advantages that the mayor’s own father gave him, to propel him upwards. Livingston also said, pointedly, that if the mayor could support a “Star Wars” museum, a reference to the now failed attempt by filmmaker George Lucas to establish a legacy museum, he could then work to avert “a crisis situation,” and one that needs not only improved schools, but a direct confrontation of the “root problems.”

Emanuel, also trying to keep a campaign promise for more officers, said, according to the Chicago Tribune, “It’s a complex problem with multidimensional facets to it," he said this month when noting he'd unveil a policing plan. "It's not just about more police, but it will include that. But it's also about more resources for our children, more resources for our neighborhoods and stiffer laws that reflect the values of our city."

Alderman Ray Lopez, in an appearance, noted that that the increase was a “step in the right direction,” but, like Livingston, wanted to see a collective and comprehensive move in providing increased resources and opportunity both as a deterrent, and also as a corrective, to prevent further violence. Adding that a “transformative effort” was needed, he said it was now “time to do it right.”

These problems, however, predate Emanuel, and are an unfortunate by product of long held citywide segregation, both residential and economic. All of which are the determinants in where a child can go to school, and what type of employment, as an adult, they may get. But, as has been said before, by many community leaders and residents, the time to begin is now.

Alluding to the racial strife between black residents and white policemen, and the arrests and deaths of those in custody, Bishop James Dykes noted that the “culture of disrespect, also ”needs to be addressed.”

If, and when, monies are found, the increases would reflect 516 patrol officers, 92 field training officers, 200 detectives, 112 sergeants, and 50 lieutenants, according to CPD. And, this would be over a 2 year period and not offering, an immediate solution, or alleviating the increase in shootings.

Costs for a first year hire would be $138,000 for the first year and after 5 years would increase to $180,000, and using the 500 figure would be $69 million in the first year and $90 million at year five. Other costs incurred would include hiring replacements for those officers that retire and and any secondary training needed.

While the mayor has said that there would be no increase in property, sales or gas taxes to pay for new officers, this does not rule out other forms of taxation, or fees.

Most of all the problem of illegal guns has to also be addressed, which has provided a long running script to Emanuel, as he faces mounting criticism of his handling, or mishandling, others say, of the violence.

Fr. Michael Pfleger, the pastor of St. Sabina Roman Catholic Church on the city’s South Side, and a long time advocate of gun control, as well as violence prevention said, to CNN: "We can't police our way out of this. If we don't also put the same kind of commitment to jobs, to economic development, housing, to good schools then, you know, we're going to find ourselves with the same problem we have right now.”

One of the more chilling statistics is that children under the age of 18 years old represent more than 3,000 of Chicago’s shooting victims.

In a press statement, Black Lives Matter Chicago noted that “The causes of crime and intra-communal violence exist because of the conditions of poverty that Rahm Emanuel has exacerbated for Chicago. More policing will not “fix” these conditions. What more policing will accomplish is more violence, more lock ups and more trauma for our already suffering communities.”

The mayor is expected to give a televised address on the city’s violence Thursday evening, where he will outline a comprehensive plan to curb it.