“Open access to information and open government are essential to our democracy.”
That’s what Mayor Brandon Johnson said back in April. The mayor talks a lot about transparency and how important it is to his administration, as recently noted in Politico’s Illinois Playbook, although he seems to struggle to match actions to words.
We’ve been in the dark as Johnson determines how and where to house migrants new to our city. We were hardly appeased when he said there was an “entire website dedicated to the spinning of this mission,” as we all know “spinning” is a political euphemism for distorting the truth.
Not unrelated: an ordinance requiring transparency into how COVID-19 relief funds are spent is buried in committee. Then there’s the new NASCAR deal, same as the old one — at least as far as transparency is concerned, since neither residents nor alderpersons were notified until it was a done deal.
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Now comes the backroom deal-making on a potential new Sox ballpark in the South Loop tract known as The 78, near Roosevelt and Clark. Is this a good idea? Is the deal good for the city and for taxpayers? How would we know?
The Sun-Times’ Jan. 28 editorial makes the critical point: “The devil is always in the details when it comes to big projects. And the public deserves to see a lot more of the particulars before declaring the proposal a winner.”
Neighbors who packed a South Loop meeting room recently to discuss the proposed ballpark were clear about the details they deserve to see before taking a position on the idea.
What’s the impact on parking, traffic, the environment? What will happen to Guaranteed Rate Field and the Bridgeport community’s economy that depends on it? With taxpayers still owing $50 million on the renovation of that park (and $640 million on Soldier Field’s 2002 renovation), will we be saddled with a tax hike to pay for yet another sports stadium?
Neighbors weren’t thrilled to see South Loop Ald. Pat Dowell (3rd) put her thumb on the scale in favor of the project, even without these details. Dowell issued a statement saying a new White Sox stadium can be “a positive anchor for the new 78 community.”
We, and the other taxpayers who can’t afford any more stadium financing, deserve to know more — much more — before any deal is done to build a new White Sox stadium.
Marj Halperin, One Community Near South
Gas stoves can harm your health
Kudos to Mayor Brandon Johnson for pushing a plan that would ban gas stoves, and the dangerous fumes they create, in new construction.
Studies have shown that gas includes a host of harmful chemicals, and burning it creates nitrogen oxides that can damage the lungs. Normal cooking with a gas stove can raise levels in your home to hazardous levels. For adults and children living with asthma and other lung disease, that can be life-threatening.
All other gas appliances like water heaters, clothes dryers, and furnaces and boilers are required to be vented to a chimney to get dangerous fumes out of your house and your lungs. Gas stoves get a pass. Many stove hoods simply recirculate noxious gases around your kitchen, giving a false sense of protection. Even if you have one that vents to the outdoors, it likely does a lousy job of removing those gases that trigger labored breathing — assuming you even remember to turn it on.
Recently, new federal emission rules for gas stoves were quietly approved. Not surprisingly, they won’t make gas stoves safer. After fossil fuel-funded politicians railed against doing anything to improve the safety of gas stoves nationally in 2023, the Biden administration blinked. A mere 3% of new gas stoves sold starting in 2028 will have to burn less gas than they do now. Today, 97% of gas stoves sold already meet the so-called tighter standards. Reducing harmful pollution slightly in 3% of new gas stoves will not protect people’s health.
Cleaner, safer, faster and more efficient electric stoves are already in millions of homes. Chicago needs to be smart and look to a healthy future, not our polluted past. Thankfully, we have leaders pointing in the right direction.
Brian Urbaszewski, director, Environmental Health Programs, Respiratory Health Association
Too many pols have double standards
I cringed when I saw politicians in Washington talking tough in front of the cameras and feigning concern about how social media harms kids. These are the same politicians who turn their heads every time there is a mass shooting that kills kids. I’m not interested in defending social media, but I can’t stand the hypocrisy of politicians standing up to Facebook but cowering when asked to speak about addressing assault weapons.
I also saw that Chicago politicians spent time passing a no-impact resolution about the current conflict in the Middle East. I’m glad that we have no local crime or immigrant or school issues to worry about. They should leave the international crisis to the experts and get back to more important issues that they are good at — like renaming streets.
Steve Fortuna, Naperville
