We have the latest updates from yesterday’s eventful City Council meeting. Plus, stories on dangerous lies targeting immigrant communities and the potential new White Sox stadium in the South Loop.
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Developer Related Midwest hosted an event at The 78 on Sept. 16, 2024, showing off a new baseball field. The White Sox hope to build a new stadium on the site. (Courtesy of Related Midwest)
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There's been a lot of talk this week about stadium funding in Chicago. Let's take a walk through what happened and what's being said.
On Monday, the White Sox and developer Related Midwest invited lawmakers to visit a temporary baseball field on the site of what they hope will be the new Sox stadium. Related Midwest is developing a formerly vacant lot it calls The 78 in the South Loop — between Roosevelt, Clark and the Chicago River — and the Sox want to move there. The team also wants the state’s help with building a stadium with a skyline view.
But according to Illinois House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch, the team shouldn't look to taxpayers for funding. “The reality is, we still represent the taxpayers of the state of Illinois,” Welch said. “How do you pay for it?”
Then at a Q&A Wednesday, Gov. J.B. Pritzker echoed similar thoughts, noting that the Chicago Bears, White Sox, the Red Stars and possibly the Chicago Fire want public funding for new stadiums.
He held firm, saying "nothing has changed" on his position that private money should go to these projects.
“But I do think (these teams) need to recognize that we have a limited opportunity to help people build stadiums,” Pritzker said.
“To come at us in a serial fashion, one after another after another, makes it a little bit hard. If they at least have figured out amongst themselves what they’re going to ask for that is within the capability of the city and the state, that’s helpful.”
Some lawmakers agree.
“They can see a vacant lot and turn it into something special,” state Rep. Marcus Evans (D-Chicago) said. “So it’s good to see, but it didn’t change the bottom line.” He said it comes down to money. “It’s like seeing a new car,” Evans said, noting that he wouldn’t want to buy it
“until I see the financing.
Meanwhile, Friends of the Parks announced yesterday a growing coalition opposed to building a new Bears stadium on the lakefront.
“Stop the ivory tower planning and the backroom deals,” said Linda Gonzalez, representing the People’s Council of Southeast Chicago. “Stop the expeditious transfer of public funds to billionaires; stop the concentration of wealth downtown. Stop the extraction and exploitation of lakefront resources.”
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Cook County Courts (Matt Masterson / WTTW News)
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On Wednesday, the Chicago City Council voted unanimously to resolve a settlement that would pay $500,000 to Alvin Waddy, who spent more than a year in jail on trumped-up charges that he sold drugs in 2007. This is the latest payment related to convicted former Chicago Police Sgt. Ronald Watts. So far, city taxpayers have paid more than $11.2 million to defend him in more than 70 lawsuits alleging he framed people for crimes they did not commit — with a total of 193 lawsuits yet to be resolved, according to documents obtained by WTTW News.
Some backstory:
In 2013, Watts was convicted of shaking down a drug courier who turned out to be an FBI informant. Watts spent nearly two years in prison.
Since 2017, 212 convictions tied to Watts have been overturned, according to Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx
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Former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris during last week’s presidential debate. (WTTW News)
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Last week, former President Donald Trump falsely asserted on national television that Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio, are stealing and eating people’s pets. It's a debunked claim that Ohio's Republican Gov. Mike DeWine called a “false piece of garbage,” but it's still had detrimental effects on communities in the small Midwestern city. Since then, there’ve been at least 30 bomb threats reported across the southwestern Ohio town, which led to emergency closures of schools and government buildings.
These lies have stoked tension in the city’s already taut atmosphere. We spoke to a Haitian immigrant, Sophia Pierrelus, who has been living an hour away from Springfield for 15 years.
Here's what she had to say.
“My children and myself have been threatened."
“So many Haitians fled their country because of political instability, and they wanted a safe place to be. ... (This) is a repeat of what they were facing in their home.”
Trump’s rhetoric is part of a troubling pattern.
“This isn’t surprising given Trump’s history of using race as a weapon,” said Clement Adibe, a political science professor at DePaul University. “It’s a dangerous form of fearmongering that not only targets Haitians but also seeks to instill fear in broader communities.”
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Back in the Day: September 19, 2023 - UChicago Medicine Breaks Ground on Cancer Care and Research Center
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The University of Chicago Medicine, which is the metro area's sixth-largest health system by revenue according to Crain’s Chicago, broke ground a year ago today on an $815 million construction project that will become the “state’s first freestanding cancer care and research pavilion.” Right now, treatment, preventative and remission services take place in at least five buildings on UChicago Medicine’s Hyde Park campus; the proposed building will streamline each area of care into one place. Back in 2022, UChicago Medicine told WTTW News that 67% of cancer patients in need of inpatient care have to leave the South Side, while about 56% of patients on the South Side leave the area to get general health care.
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On the Artbeat With Marc Vitali
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Orion Ensemble (Photo Credit: Devon Cass)
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Enjoy the last few days of summer on a staycation — do people still use that word? Regardless, it’s a good excuse to take a cultural excursion in a city that’s filthy rich with artistic pleasures. Staying home is rarely memorable, so make a memory by going to a film fest or a museum or a play. Just go, Chicago, go...
Global Carnival – The Old Town School of Folk Music and the city of Chicago present a celebration of Carnival season at Millennium Park. Part of the World Music Festival, the evening includes Afro-Brazilian and New Orleans traditions, plus local dance, music and artists. Saturday, Sept. 21.
Reeling: The Chicago LGBTQ+ International Film Festival prides itself on showcasing international features, topical documentaries and experimental shorts. Reeling has been going strong since 1981 and kicks off this year with the Belgian coming-of-age film “Young Hearts.” Through Oct. 6.
Ukrainian Institute of Modern Art – “Agency: Craft in Chicago from 1970s-80s and Beyond” is an ambitious exhibit that spotlights the craftwork of artists often marginalized within mainstream art. Part of the Terra Foundation’s Art Design Chicago initiative — in other words, it’s worth a look. Opens Saturday.
Orion Ensemble – WFMT listeners know the ensemble as one of Chicago’s best chamber music groups. They play an uncommon combo of instruments: piano, clarinet and string trio. The ensemble begin their 32nd season Sunday with a toast to melody. Performances in Aurora, Evanston and on Michigan Avenue.
“Inherit the Wind” – Goodman Theatre launches its new season with a drama that has been called a cultural landmark (and was the basis for the 1960 film with Spencer Tracy). Science and religion clash in a battle between two sharp lawyers played by two fine actors, Harry Lennix and Alexander Gemignani. In previews.
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Other News From Around Town:
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Newsletter Producer: Josh Terry
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