Welcome to Newswire — your weekly guide to Chicago government, civic action and what action we can take to make our city great, featuring public meeting coverage by City Bureau’s Documenters.

Quote of the Week

“With this looming national environment, Chicago cannot afford to wait for a solution that may never come. The Green Social Housing ordinance is a critical step to addressing this crisis.”

— Housing Commissioner Lissette Castañeda

[City Council Joint Committee: Finance; Housing & Real Estate, April 9, 2025]

Home designs

The Green Social Housing ordinance aims to meet the need for affordable housing in Chicago without relying on federal funding. 

The ordinance would establish an independent nonprofit in charge of a $135 million loan fund to finance energy-efficient, mixed-income developments with permanently affordable housing. The city said it expects to produce 1,200 affordable apartments annually through the initiative.

The nonprofit will have a board of five members from the Mayor’s office and five to seven City Council-approved appointments with relevant expertise. “It is an innovative plan that provides permanent affordability, supports mixed-income communities and promotes environmental sustainable housing without relying on overburdened federal programs,” said Housing Commissioner Lissette Castañeda.

City officials also cited the uncertain federal funding landscape as an added reason for the ordinance. Deputy Assistant Director of Policy Jung Yoon said the Low Income Housing Tax Credit is currently the city’s main tool to address the affordable housing supply crisis. However, “it is not enough to meet the demand,” she said.

Alders expressed concerns around ensuring accountability and oversight of the independent nonprofit overseeing these developments. The joint committee on Finance and Housing & Real Estate met twice to discuss the ordinance, and reconvenes Wednesday, April 16, as it works to address these concerns.

What you can do:

Catch up on the headlines: 

  • Green social housing ordinance introduced at City Council meeting | Chicago Tribune

  • The case for green-lighting green social housing in Chicago | Chicago Sun-Times

  • ‘Social housing’ is on the Seattle ballot, but what is it? | Seattle Times

Train botting

The Chicago Transit Authority Board approved a $1.2 million contract to expand a pilot program that uses artificial intelligence to identify guns in surveillance video and alert police. Out of 82 alerted detections since August, 12% turned out to be actual guns. Those 10 guns led to six arrests since the program’s start and has since raised concerns over its effectiveness. 

“They are not relying 100% on AI,” said Kevin Ryan, vice president of CTA security. “AI makes the detection, but they send it to a control center where former military or law enforcement look at the pictures and make a determination.”

In other news, a reduced fair regional transit pass is forthcoming. The combined CTA, Metra and PACE pass will give riders unlimited access to all three transit systems for 24 hours and cost $9.50 on weekends, or $10 on weekdays.

What you can do:

Attend a CTA board meeting: Check for upcoming meetings here at the CTA website. To learn more about how you can give public comment in-person at a CTA meeting, click here.

Text message received

The Public Building Commission Board approved the appointment of minority-owned Mill House Engineering and Construction Inc. as the engineer for the Shoreline and Restoration Feasibility Study. The project helps to maintain, expand and diversify access to the city shoreline. 

“Mill House Engineering and Construction has … extensive project experience with communities of the south and west sides and understanding the public engagement process for outreach in the development of projects,” said board Executive Director Ray Giderof. 

Giderof also announced a new text message service that notifies contractors about invitations to bid on construction projects, requests for proposals and networking opportunities. Users can sign up online to receive these updates from the Public Building Commission, which constructs police stations, firehouses, libraries, schools, parks and other city facilities.

A version of this story was first published in the April 16, 2025 issue of the Newswire, an email newsletter that is your weekly guide to Chicago government, civic action and what we can do to make our city great. You can sign up for the weekly newsletter here.

Have thoughts on what you'd like to see in this feature? Email Civic Editor Dawn Rhodes at dawn@citybureau.org.