Thursday, June 5, 2008

Committee OKs building Children's Museum in Grant Park

I really wish I could see a roll call of those who voted. Sun-Times:
So much for the treasured City Council tradition of deferring to the wishes of the local aldermen on zoning issues.

By a vote of 6 to 3, the Council’s Zoning Committee on Thursday approved Mayor Daley’s plan to build a $100 million Children’s Museum in Grant Park over the strenuous objections of downtown Ald. Brendan Reilly (42nd).

The measure passed after a six-hour hearing.

Reilly got a standing ovation when he entered a Council chambers filled with opponents of the Grant Park plan, only to get dissed by his own colleagues.

The only other time in recent memory that the City Council has defied the local alderman on a zoning issue occurred in 2004, when aldermen rejected a proposed Chatham Wal-Mart pushed by Ald. Howard Brookins (21st). That one-vote defeat for Brookins and Wal-Mart came at the behest of organized labor.

Thursday’s vote was at the mayor’s behest. It sets the stage for a final showdown Wednesday in the full Council, where Daley has reportedly lined up as many as 30 votes, four more than he needs for passage.

“If it was an issue that involved a Mom and Pop store or a high-rise, that is totally within the jurisdiction of that alderman. But, you’re not gonna say the lakefront belongs to one ward. It would be just as absurd to say that, because O’Hare Airport is located in the 41st Ward, that alderman should have sway over development practices at the airport,” said Zoning Committee Chairman William Banks (36th).

Ald. Bernard Stone (50th) added, “When we talk about aldermanic prerogative, this belongs to the entire city. It doesn’t belong to just Ald. Reilly. If this were on the lakefront further north, yes, Ald. Reilly. I vote the way you tell me. But, this is the center of the city. This belongs to all of us.”
This article was advertized over at Gaper's Block as a violation of Aldermanic perogative. Here's another quote from Ald. Reilly...
“With the potential for an Olympic bid, aldermen should hope their perogative is respected because they deserve a seat at the table when major decisions are being made in the neighborhoods they represent,” he said.

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