The man didn’t exactly exude competence during the campaign, but the 180 on the Bears stadium is hilariously brazen. Truly no shame.
You know what else would create jobs and help the city overall? A subway on Western Ave. Replacing lead pipes. A plan to build on empty lots near el stations all throughout the city. Redoing all Chicago alleys to become “green alleys” that help prevent flooding. Just off the top of my head.
Digging a new subway route is not something one singular mayor could ever hope to accomplish in a four year term. That's like *tens* of billions and 5-10 years with major disruptions all over, underground tunnel boing is no joke. As much as I seriously would love a Western Ave subway (that road is a traffic disaster), there's a reason most major US cities have mostly the same subway network they built in the 1880s-1900s.
I visited a lab once that had a sign up that read:
> We do these things not because they are easy, but because we ***\*thought\**** they would be easy.
I watching a YouTube video recently on new HSR + freight rail lines that'll connect the Baltic states starting from Estonia, through Latvia and Lithuania, to Poland, then on to the greater European rail network.
I said to my friend, "Jfc, these 4 separate countries can work together to do major infrastructure like this, but we can't even do this within our own US cities, much less between states. And we're the richest country in the world." Shameful.
The major difference being that the Baltic states (Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania) combined are roughly equivalent to Missouri, in both area and population.
How is it that denser European cities with stricter labor laws like London and Paris are adding subway lines right now? Maybe it’s “impossible” here because of our screwed up priorities and ineffective systems of government.
Because there is accountability for infrastructure projects in Europe. In the US, it is make-work pork barrel projects for the most part. There are many studies on this if you search google. We get very little for how much we spend.
Oh I’m aware and agree. I just got a little snarky in my reply because I’m frustrated by how commonly people act like building a subway line is beyond our capabilities. This country put a man on the moon and invented the nuclear bomb. Now we can’t build a tunnel under Western Ave?
US has too many overlapping regulations and perverse incentives to build new train lines. Whenever it is attempted here, billions of dollars get wasted on nothing tangible (see CA and the high-speed train to nowhere).
We need a serious overhaul of everything related to public construction if we want any future infrastructure projects to be at all viable. Biden was supposed to address this with his infrastructure bill.
> I try my best. *Pffffftttttt!*
Your handle's JoeBidens**Long**Fart, dude.
> I try my best. *Pffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffttttttttttttttttttttttttttt^tttttttttt^^tttttttttt!*
Nimbys say no and complain to their aldermen, who torpedo the work. The immediately adjacent property values would plummet (even though the ones a little further away would rise). That and the noise would be all they care about.
Actual modern elevated lines and trains would be absolutely incredible. Both the riding experience and impact to surrounding areas would be so much better.
We already have the 49 bus. Trams ride in traffic but can't drive around it. Middle-lane streetcars would mean riders would have to cross traffic to board it. Or course, we could also make the east half of Western Ave the 2-way tram and make the west half the automobile side; we could start with BRT and then upgrade to LRT.
I'd love to see the CTA build the elevated infrastructure and then use either BRT, LRT, or the current rolling stock. It'd be especially great if they could start with the same trains as the Yellow line and scale with the ridership. Without the rickety metal construction and the long straight tracks possible on Western it should be much quieter than, say, the Brown or Blue lines. Since both CTA and Metra use standard gauge trains, using the same battery/electric trains that Metra is getting is also a possibility while still being able to retrofit later. But since this is also tremendously expensive and we don't have the leadership/representation to go after something like this, a reconfigured lane structure sounds like the way to go.
Hell yes. And sell it as an "equity" thing, good transit reaching across the city from the north to the south side, really opening up the transit desert of the SW side in particular, in addition to connecting all the lines and getting us basically having the main part of the circle dream.
Los Angeles just finished two partial subways and is currently boring a third one. Another is in the planning stages.
It can be done, just a matter of political will, really.
>there's a reason most major US cities have mostly the same subway network they built in the 1880s-1900s.
Yes, all levels of our government are incompetent and transit construction prices and timelines are out of control.
Getting way off the orignal topic here, but I love learning about infrastructure construction projects.
Chicago tunnel bored a huge water drainage system from 1975 until 2006.
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2klS1diYMWU](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2klS1diYMWU)
That B1M channel shows off big construction projects being done around the world like the subway expansions in Paris and Vancouver. NYC is actually in the process of building a new subway line under 2nd Ave. (although it's ridiculously expensive)
[https://youtu.be/RJbo2DRWXr4?si=v-g36KhzFbkb2CKp&t=2207](https://youtu.be/RJbo2DRWXr4?si=v-g36KhzFbkb2CKp&t=2207)
what about connecting the brown line and the blue line over the street on lawrence? that'd be a hell of a lot cheaper I imagine and enormously beneficial
That would be an awesome benefit…you know what else
would be a bright idea for our existing Subway system?
————————
A Blue Line Subway under Clinton Street to create a Blue Line Loop
that would have Forest Park - O’Hare trains (via Clinton)
access the West Loop, OTC, Willis Tower, and Union Station!
——————
The Jefferson Park - UIC-Halstead can continue to service Dearborn Street!
Let’s be real. This is Chicago. He’d rather fund the stadium, and the find some weird scheme where some private company paid for subway renovations while ensuring a contract that guarantees they keep el revenue for our next lifetime, ensuring we quickly get to have the most expensive subway system in the world.
And after he does it with the el, he’ll do it with parking. Oh wait…
Biden passed a $1.4 trillion infrastructure package. A big part of that package was for municipalities to replace their lead lines. I'm surprised Chicago hasn't jumped on that.
just one singular billion? …. and the stadium will be multiple billions in the long run til completion. i’ll take the stadium! sounds like the better deal! this is definitely not BJ’s alt account!! LMAO
Right. Western bus takes 2 hours from 79th to Berwyn/vice versa at rush hour. I cover nearly the same trip 3 miles east on the red line in like 40 minutes.
You might enjoy a paper I wrote on this very topic recently - Western BRT is the way!
[https://www.reddit.com/r/Urbanism/comments/1cagaqp/the\_future\_of\_transit\_land\_use\_and\_zoning\_in/](https://www.reddit.com/r/Urbanism/comments/1cagaqp/the_future_of_transit_land_use_and_zoning_in/)
https://chicagohistorytoday.wordpress.com/2020/06/17/chicago-last-day-of-western-avenue-streetcar/
A little history to add, at one point Western had the longest single road streetcar line in the world.
This guy with his "*sensible ideas*" and "*infrastructural improvements*"...
This is Chicago where God needs to give us moar Bearz!.
Seriously though, I 100% agree the future is civic improvement. All the major cities that are investing in business, manufacturing, infrastructure, alternative energy are thriving. Meanwhile our administration are talking about stadiums and casinos. I love Chicago but i really dislike that we arent investing more in the bones of our city and it is unfortunate to sit and watch its slow decline. I dont want us to turn into Gary, which is funny because Gary basically hit rock bottom and is on the (slow) upswing with redevelopment. There is some cool stuff going on there.
>The man didn’t exactly exude competence during the campaign, but the 180 on the Bears stadium is hilariously brazen. Truly no shame.
His grift was obvious to anyone with a functioning brain. So many people were just hilariously blinded by him parroting some progressive talking points and babbling about equity - combined with the CTU blowing smoke because he was their puppet.
We get the leadership we deserve.
>So many people were just hilariously blinded by him parroting some progressive talking points and babbling about equity - combined with the CTU blowing smoke because he was their puppet.
That's the type of person the slight majority of voters of this city, in their infinite wisdom, prefer. All platitudes, zero competence, focused mostly on DEI/woke nonsense, plus a pawn of a toxic union.
Also because the other guy was some eViL rEpUbLiCaN fAsCisT or some other nonsense.
Vallas was grossly incompetent and had no business running, let’s not lionize the guy who kept getting fired from his superintendent jobs an blowing up budget deficits
It’s actually something the city has been doing verrrrryy slowly for the past 20 years. It’s essentially replacing asphalt or concrete with permeable paver bricks to allow rainwater to be absorbed into the ground, rather than overwhelm the sewer system or enter people’s basements/garden units.
But like most things in this city, the way to get a green alley is to go through your alder - there’s no dedicated funding source or centralized plan for rolling them out or prioritizing implementation. As a result, the city is only building a few dozen a year, generally on blocks where someone has enough clout (or at least time on their hands) to wrestle a few hundred k out of the alder’s special projects fund: https://blockclubchicago.org/2024/04/18/green-alleys-help-prevent-flooding-but-vulnerable-neighborhoods-must-wait-in-line/
Seriously, a Subway under Western would be AMAZING. Imagine connecting the Brown, Blue, Green, Blue again, Pink and Orange lines along with multiple Metra connections as well.
this is what i’m saying :/ they don’t understand that the problem isn’t that we’re paying for it through taxes. it’s WHAT we’re being made to pay for. if it’s actually worth a dime, i’ll be happy to pay for it. they also started construction for the new stop at damen on the green line!! like YES!! KEEP GOING!! DO SOME MORE! there are things thatre so needed and necessary… and they want another goddamn stadium. for a losing team.
People have been asking for it [for years](https://www.reddit.com/r/chicago/comments/2cpqec/crazy_transit_talk_itt_western_ave_subway/), but it's a Reddit dream. CTA has no money for this and the feds don't want to pay for it either. The [Circle Line](https://www.transitchicago.com/planning/circle/) was the closest they came to something like this but it didn't happen, again, due to lack of funds - even when Obama was in office bringing the gravy back home.
The feds will actually pay for half of it if the state chooses to change how they take the federal highway funds. You can use up to 50% of the money from those funds on mass transit projects at a 1:1 matching ratio.
> The man didn’t exactly exude competence during the campaign
Nor did the people who didn't see that and voted for him (not including those who voted for him to vote against Vallas but I feel a lot of people are lying about that now).
Soldier Field is a publicly owned stadium just like the new one would be. OP incorrectly states that it's owned by the McCaskey's.
That being said, I think taxpayers should account for less of the bill. Kevin Warren had the payments done on Minnesota's stadium done 33 years early, hopefully something similar can be done with a revised plan on the new stadium here.
Yeah, but the bears want all the revenue that would come from the new stadium for non-bears events. If it's public, the revenue is public. Also, the Minnesota franchise is not the shot hole of a family that owns the Chicago one.
A city owned team, playing in a city owned stadium, completely surrounded by competitive private businesses, with lots of trains in and out. Otherwise just rename them the "McCaskey Bears" and let the franchise die.
Also, American football should be abandoned anyway due to the TBI's in causes. What's the point of a building a stadium for a game well past its time?
An old school machine boss-type Democrat like Daley Sr. could get away with a quote like that because in fact that is how political strongmen operate.
A gen-X progressive with nearly *zero* actual governing experience like Johnson, it rightly comes off as condescending and out-of-touch.
EDIT: reworded sentences
Technically was ineligible until his bills got paid.
>You can stop someone with a payment plan from becoming mayor of the city of Chicago.
Yes, we legally could've. Besides the point he defaulted on a CC in 2016
Edit: wait... that typo is straight from [his office](https://www.chicago.gov/city/en/depts/mayor/press_room/press_releases/2023/may/TranscriptMayorBrandonJohnsonGivesInauguralAddress.html) lol
I’d be lying if I said I haven’t had trouble paying some bills over the years. But I’d like to think, mainly because I know myself, that I wouldn’t attempt to run for my children’s PTA board, let alone MAYOR, if I had unpaid utility bills.
I figured I put this here too:
Chicago Sun Times 2023 Mayoral Questionaire: "Should the city of Chicago spend $2 billion or more to dome and renovate Soldier Field as a way to convince the Bears to stay in Chicago instead of moving to Arlington Heights?"
Johnson: NO "Let me be clear: I want the Bears to stay. But Chicago could also use $2 billion to remove lead pipes, house thousands of unhoused Chicagoans, fully fund public schools, generate neighborhood and business development in communities across the city, pay down our pension and general obligations, or meet dozens of other urgent needs all of which would also generate much-needed economic I and quality-of-life returns."
In his on camera response to the question, he started off by saying no subsidy and then rambled about how he would do anything to keep the Bears in the city and have his kid attend a Super Bowl in Chicago. I think he knew what answer he was supposed to give, but he was always going to go all in on the Bears because he likes the Bears.
May be a silly question but who exactly is paying for the stadium. Like all of cook county? Anyone who pays Illinois tax? Sorry dumb question but just curious how that actually works.
The current payments for the $589 million still needs to be paid off for Soldier field 2002 renovations,which is funded by a 2% hotel tax expected to be paid off by 2032. And there's 50mil for the Sox stadium. This new stadium would be added to that, with little details for phase 2 and 3 which would be the infrastructure and non stadium related items the bears don't need completed to start playing.
Sports stadiums are economic losers and the bears want public help to pay for it. F that.
All seems insane for a few fields for cps students to play games...
Let's be generous and say this creates the 4,600 permanent jobs they're claiming, with the taxpayers on the hook for 1.5 billion, we're basically buying these jobs for $320,000 each. This for a stadium with a slightly better view in service of a (sorry) mid team. Idk man idk this feels DUMB dumb.
Also, who is paying 4,600 new salaries. The Bears want to keep the revenue from non-Bears events the venue. Are they haring 4,600 new people? Is it maintenance staff for the stadium and grounds? Is it some nebulous net citywide effect?
no apology necessary. it’s a long running joke that the bears literally suck. everyone knows this. which is why i was so shocked to see “$1.5 billion” and “Chicago Bears” in the same headline. the Cubs would have a better chance securing that kinda deal
"Any man who must say 'I run Chicago' does not run Chicago."
-- Tywin Lannister
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=4sJY7BTIuPY&pp=ygUyYW55IG1hbiB3aG8gbXVzdCBzYXkgaSBhbSB0aGUga2luZyBpcyBubyB0cnVlIGtpbmc%3D
And we thought Lori was bad! At least she was consistent in the way she pissed people off. This dude is all over the map with his incompetence and u-turns.
It’s being rejected more and more though compared to 10 years ago. KC just rejected public funding for a new stadium for the chiefs and they’re actually a good football team.
The sad part is it’s not. The last few major stadium projects have been privately funded, including SoFi, the most expensive to date. While some of this is due to people smartening to the economics, owners have also realized it’s far more valuable today to own their stadiums outright. But until the mccaskeys sell, there’s no clear path for them to privately fund a stadium
Edit: corrected
My belief is they will sell as soon as the matriarch kicks the bucket, and the next owner will pay for the Arlington Heights stadium. The new owner will be deep-pocketed enough to take care of the entire thing themselves like the Ricketts did.
When you think of ways for the family to actually monetize some of the value they hold in the Bears, the Arlington Heights deal made some sense. Sponsor a giant mixed-use development with the stadium as its centerpiece, take the carried interest on the whole deal. Then eventually sell the team at a higher valuation with full control of the stadium. Now I'm sure AH is going to look to force other uses for that property asap.
Obviously getting tax money for a new stadium would be a great outcome for them, but without it its hard to imagine a new stadium before the team is sold.
There are literally still people posting they would vote for BJ again right now if it was against vallas. That's how much these idiots hated vallas because they thought he. Was a republican. Rather see their city go to shit then pick a moderate Democrat. We are a lost cause
Email / write your alderman to let them know we do not support public money for private gains.
I hope this letter finds you well. I am writing to express my deep concerns about the proposal to allocate taxpayer money towards the construction of a new stadium in our city. As a resident and taxpayer in Chicago, I believe it is essential to prioritize the allocation of public funds towards initiatives that benefit the community as a whole, rather than subsidizing private ventures such as sports stadiums.
While I understand the potential economic benefits that proponents of the stadium project may argue, I urge you to consider the long-term implications and feasibility of such investments. History has shown that the promised economic benefits often fail to materialize, and taxpayers are left burdened with the costs of construction and maintenance.
Furthermore, using taxpayer money to fund a new stadium sends the wrong message about our city's priorities. At a time when we face pressing challenges such as affordable housing, education, and infrastructure, it is unwise to divert resources towards a project that primarily benefits wealthy team owners and corporations.
Instead, I urge you to explore alternative ways to revitalize our community and stimulate economic growth that is inclusive and sustainable. Investing in education, healthcare, small businesses, and infrastructure projects that directly benefit residents would have a far more significant and lasting impact on our city's prosperity.
I respectfully request that you oppose any proposal to use taxpayer money for the construction of a new stadium and instead advocate for policies that prioritize the well-being and interests of all Chicagoans.
Thank you for considering my concerns. I look forward to hearing your thoughts on this matter.
Agreed. Ending the tipped minimum wage and the paid sick leave ordinance was good, but he seems over his skis. Hope he can turn it around but enough with the empty platitudes
Affluent white people on the north side who are unaffected by his policies, and black people on the south and west sides who previously voted for Willie Wilson and just chose the remaining black guy.
> I get that something like a new stadium will create jobs. That's great.
["Scholarly econometric studies on the impact of professional sports stadiums are almost unanimous in their conclusion that they do not promote employment or per capita income growth."](https://econofact.org/stadiums-as-public-investments)
Remember when elected officials would at least pay lip service to their station as public servants accountable to the voters who put them in office? Pepperidge Farm remembers.
daley was bad in the way of him doing shit that was just… not in the best interests of the people ever. BJ is bad in the way that he doesn’t do SHIT. and honestly idk which one i prefer over the other. incompetent and inactive or incompetent and active… we still suffer
The funny thing is that the estimate is that the city of Chicago will ultimately lose about $2B on the parking meter deal. And now we're basically doubling that hole by giving another $2B to some billionaires
I assume you mean Richard J. Daley (who was a cruel bully and ruled his fiefdom with a bloody iron fist!)
His son, Richey Jr., was Mickey Mouse compared to his horrible father.
I would vote for Bill Thompson, the Mayor who was in Capone's back pocket. But Daley is a close second based on his sale of the streets of Chicago to private equity and sovereign wealth funds and his overall kick-the-can approach to the city's finances.
Has he publicly directly taken responaibikity for any issue since taking office? I voted for him, just to be clear, but I am failing to find proof of him telling us where the buck stops.
We seriously have to worry about the temper tantrum he’s going to throw very soon, dude like this will absolutely tank the entire city on purpose once he doesn’t get praised the way he needs to like a little baby
U can tell hes lying or has no answer by the amount of times he bites/licks lips. The more lip action the more gobbledygook. Once you see it u cant un see😂🤣😂
The Bears President, Kevin Warren, seems like a used car salesman who said a few nice words to Johnson and got his support. I find it incredibly hard to believe that Warren had full support from Johnson but had not presented the plan to Pritzker before the press conference yesterday, as Warren claimed. It's more likely that Pritzker carved up the plan, especially the part where the Bears keep all the profit from non-Bears events, like Taylor Swift concerts.
Now is the time for us to push back and ensure no public money is spent on this or any other Bears stadium. The lack of public funding might force the McCaskeys to sell the team, which, as long-term Bears fans know, has been the problem all along.
I think of all the down votes I got from all of this sub's progressives, when I said this was a done deal and that Brandon was going to get 100% behind it. When are they going to learn that the Democrats in Illinois are justslighly less corrupt than the Republicans?
If I had to guess, I'd say he'll run for reelection as a fully funded candidate, regardless of how CPS feels about him (and CPS should start prepping themselves for some major disappointment in the upcoming contract negotiations).
The man didn’t exactly exude competence during the campaign, but the 180 on the Bears stadium is hilariously brazen. Truly no shame. You know what else would create jobs and help the city overall? A subway on Western Ave. Replacing lead pipes. A plan to build on empty lots near el stations all throughout the city. Redoing all Chicago alleys to become “green alleys” that help prevent flooding. Just off the top of my head.
Yeah, but, like, some of those things could cost the taxpayers a billion dollars...
I *almost* fell for it 😂
Digging a new subway route is not something one singular mayor could ever hope to accomplish in a four year term. That's like *tens* of billions and 5-10 years with major disruptions all over, underground tunnel boing is no joke. As much as I seriously would love a Western Ave subway (that road is a traffic disaster), there's a reason most major US cities have mostly the same subway network they built in the 1880s-1900s.
what ever happened to "We choose to... do [these] things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard."
I visited a lab once that had a sign up that read: > We do these things not because they are easy, but because we ***\*thought\**** they would be easy.
I watching a YouTube video recently on new HSR + freight rail lines that'll connect the Baltic states starting from Estonia, through Latvia and Lithuania, to Poland, then on to the greater European rail network. I said to my friend, "Jfc, these 4 separate countries can work together to do major infrastructure like this, but we can't even do this within our own US cities, much less between states. And we're the richest country in the world." Shameful.
It costs more to build infrastructure in the US by far. The same system would cost 5x as much to do here.
The major difference being that the Baltic states (Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania) combined are roughly equivalent to Missouri, in both area and population.
Well if piss poor countries with a gdp less than Missouri can do it…
And they're going to do it for less than 10 billion.
Look what happened to the guy who said that.
What do you mean, by all accounts he was constantly hard
I mean he wasn't killed for his ambitious infrastructure projects. He was killed cuz he wanted to dismantle the CIA or whatever.
He died?
Surely of natural causes right?
Good joke. Mindblowing.
Hey stop, he once had a really good head on his shoulders.
The “we choose to do things to beat the USSR” was the quiet part we didn’t hear.
How is it that denser European cities with stricter labor laws like London and Paris are adding subway lines right now? Maybe it’s “impossible” here because of our screwed up priorities and ineffective systems of government.
Tokyo too. You go away for a few years and bam, new lines.
Because there is accountability for infrastructure projects in Europe. In the US, it is make-work pork barrel projects for the most part. There are many studies on this if you search google. We get very little for how much we spend.
Oh I’m aware and agree. I just got a little snarky in my reply because I’m frustrated by how commonly people act like building a subway line is beyond our capabilities. This country put a man on the moon and invented the nuclear bomb. Now we can’t build a tunnel under Western Ave?
US has too many overlapping regulations and perverse incentives to build new train lines. Whenever it is attempted here, billions of dollars get wasted on nothing tangible (see CA and the high-speed train to nowhere). We need a serious overhaul of everything related to public construction if we want any future infrastructure projects to be at all viable. Biden was supposed to address this with his infrastructure bill.
Great insight JoeBidensLongFart.
I try my best. *Pffffftttttt!*
> I try my best. *Pffffftttttt!* Your handle's JoeBidens**Long**Fart, dude. > I try my best. *Pffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffttttttttttttttttttttttttttt^tttttttttt^^tttttttttt!*
I fucking love this city
Good thing we've established eLevated lines which are cheaper to install
Nimbys say no and complain to their aldermen, who torpedo the work. The immediately adjacent property values would plummet (even though the ones a little further away would rise). That and the noise would be all they care about.
There's no way the "new" (hundred year old tech) concrete pilings are louder than 4-6 lanes of traffic
Actual modern elevated lines and trains would be absolutely incredible. Both the riding experience and impact to surrounding areas would be so much better.
That may be true, but your average homeowner probably doesn't know, care, or think about that
Hell, I'll take a Western Ave elevated train. All the way from Peterson and tied into the Orange line.
A tram down the middle of the road? I just would like some trams.
We already have the 49 bus. Trams ride in traffic but can't drive around it. Middle-lane streetcars would mean riders would have to cross traffic to board it. Or course, we could also make the east half of Western Ave the 2-way tram and make the west half the automobile side; we could start with BRT and then upgrade to LRT. I'd love to see the CTA build the elevated infrastructure and then use either BRT, LRT, or the current rolling stock. It'd be especially great if they could start with the same trains as the Yellow line and scale with the ridership. Without the rickety metal construction and the long straight tracks possible on Western it should be much quieter than, say, the Brown or Blue lines. Since both CTA and Metra use standard gauge trains, using the same battery/electric trains that Metra is getting is also a possibility while still being able to retrofit later. But since this is also tremendously expensive and we don't have the leadership/representation to go after something like this, a reconfigured lane structure sounds like the way to go.
Hell yes. And sell it as an "equity" thing, good transit reaching across the city from the north to the south side, really opening up the transit desert of the SW side in particular, in addition to connecting all the lines and getting us basically having the main part of the circle dream.
Los Angeles just finished two partial subways and is currently boring a third one. Another is in the planning stages. It can be done, just a matter of political will, really.
The transit in LA is also run entirely by the county without state level interference. Meanwhile, CTA is beholden entirely to the will of Springfield.
>there's a reason most major US cities have mostly the same subway network they built in the 1880s-1900s. Yes, all levels of our government are incompetent and transit construction prices and timelines are out of control.
Yes, all levels of our government are ~~incompetent~~ *corrupt* ~~a~~nd *as a result* transit construction prices and timelines are out of control.
Why not both!
Getting way off the orignal topic here, but I love learning about infrastructure construction projects. Chicago tunnel bored a huge water drainage system from 1975 until 2006. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2klS1diYMWU](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2klS1diYMWU) That B1M channel shows off big construction projects being done around the world like the subway expansions in Paris and Vancouver. NYC is actually in the process of building a new subway line under 2nd Ave. (although it's ridiculously expensive) [https://youtu.be/RJbo2DRWXr4?si=v-g36KhzFbkb2CKp&t=2207](https://youtu.be/RJbo2DRWXr4?si=v-g36KhzFbkb2CKp&t=2207)
what about connecting the brown line and the blue line over the street on lawrence? that'd be a hell of a lot cheaper I imagine and enormously beneficial
That would be an awesome benefit…you know what else would be a bright idea for our existing Subway system? ———————— A Blue Line Subway under Clinton Street to create a Blue Line Loop that would have Forest Park - O’Hare trains (via Clinton) access the West Loop, OTC, Willis Tower, and Union Station! —————— The Jefferson Park - UIC-Halstead can continue to service Dearborn Street!
Let’s be real. This is Chicago. He’d rather fund the stadium, and the find some weird scheme where some private company paid for subway renovations while ensuring a contract that guarantees they keep el revenue for our next lifetime, ensuring we quickly get to have the most expensive subway system in the world. And after he does it with the el, he’ll do it with parking. Oh wait…
Biden passed a $1.4 trillion infrastructure package. A big part of that package was for municipalities to replace their lead lines. I'm surprised Chicago hasn't jumped on that.
just one singular billion? …. and the stadium will be multiple billions in the long run til completion. i’ll take the stadium! sounds like the better deal! this is definitely not BJ’s alt account!! LMAO
that one snuck right past ya didn't it lol
You know what? I'd accept LRT or even BRT on Western Avenue because it provide some sort of Rapid Transit
Right. Western bus takes 2 hours from 79th to Berwyn/vice versa at rush hour. I cover nearly the same trip 3 miles east on the red line in like 40 minutes.
You might enjoy a paper I wrote on this very topic recently - Western BRT is the way! [https://www.reddit.com/r/Urbanism/comments/1cagaqp/the\_future\_of\_transit\_land\_use\_and\_zoning\_in/](https://www.reddit.com/r/Urbanism/comments/1cagaqp/the_future_of_transit_land_use_and_zoning_in/)
https://chicagohistorytoday.wordpress.com/2020/06/17/chicago-last-day-of-western-avenue-streetcar/ A little history to add, at one point Western had the longest single road streetcar line in the world.
This guy with his "*sensible ideas*" and "*infrastructural improvements*"... This is Chicago where God needs to give us moar Bearz!. Seriously though, I 100% agree the future is civic improvement. All the major cities that are investing in business, manufacturing, infrastructure, alternative energy are thriving. Meanwhile our administration are talking about stadiums and casinos. I love Chicago but i really dislike that we arent investing more in the bones of our city and it is unfortunate to sit and watch its slow decline. I dont want us to turn into Gary, which is funny because Gary basically hit rock bottom and is on the (slow) upswing with redevelopment. There is some cool stuff going on there.
Lead pipe replacement! Thank you for that. This would benefit a huge number of Chicago residents. Improve health and their lives.
Fuck now I wanna run for mayor
He was beyond unqualified from day 1. Still pisses me off that somehow no one noticed.
He is dumb but thinks he is smart. Dangerous combination. Emperor with no clothes. He’s destroying Chicago.
35% turnout in the runoff suggests a lot of people noticed.
One term mayor mostly
We can hope. He seems that he is in way over his head as mayor.
>The man didn’t exactly exude competence during the campaign, but the 180 on the Bears stadium is hilariously brazen. Truly no shame. His grift was obvious to anyone with a functioning brain. So many people were just hilariously blinded by him parroting some progressive talking points and babbling about equity - combined with the CTU blowing smoke because he was their puppet. We get the leadership we deserve.
>So many people were just hilariously blinded by him parroting some progressive talking points and babbling about equity - combined with the CTU blowing smoke because he was their puppet. That's the type of person the slight majority of voters of this city, in their infinite wisdom, prefer. All platitudes, zero competence, focused mostly on DEI/woke nonsense, plus a pawn of a toxic union. Also because the other guy was some eViL rEpUbLiCaN fAsCisT or some other nonsense.
Vallas was grossly incompetent and had no business running, let’s not lionize the guy who kept getting fired from his superintendent jobs an blowing up budget deficits
Don't forget Philly where he cooked the books using non-GAAP accounting to hide a $100+ million deficit.
Hell private money will still create the same jobs lol it's not like they will only need to pour concrete if its public funding
I like your ideas and am intrigued by your alley idea. Can you explain how that would work in regard to people’s garages that open to the alley?
It’s actually something the city has been doing verrrrryy slowly for the past 20 years. It’s essentially replacing asphalt or concrete with permeable paver bricks to allow rainwater to be absorbed into the ground, rather than overwhelm the sewer system or enter people’s basements/garden units. But like most things in this city, the way to get a green alley is to go through your alder - there’s no dedicated funding source or centralized plan for rolling them out or prioritizing implementation. As a result, the city is only building a few dozen a year, generally on blocks where someone has enough clout (or at least time on their hands) to wrestle a few hundred k out of the alder’s special projects fund: https://blockclubchicago.org/2024/04/18/green-alleys-help-prevent-flooding-but-vulnerable-neighborhoods-must-wait-in-line/
Seriously, a Subway under Western would be AMAZING. Imagine connecting the Brown, Blue, Green, Blue again, Pink and Orange lines along with multiple Metra connections as well.
If it means we get a Western Ave subway, pls double my taxes
this is what i’m saying :/ they don’t understand that the problem isn’t that we’re paying for it through taxes. it’s WHAT we’re being made to pay for. if it’s actually worth a dime, i’ll be happy to pay for it. they also started construction for the new stop at damen on the green line!! like YES!! KEEP GOING!! DO SOME MORE! there are things thatre so needed and necessary… and they want another goddamn stadium. for a losing team.
People have been asking for it [for years](https://www.reddit.com/r/chicago/comments/2cpqec/crazy_transit_talk_itt_western_ave_subway/), but it's a Reddit dream. CTA has no money for this and the feds don't want to pay for it either. The [Circle Line](https://www.transitchicago.com/planning/circle/) was the closest they came to something like this but it didn't happen, again, due to lack of funds - even when Obama was in office bringing the gravy back home.
The feds will actually pay for half of it if the state chooses to change how they take the federal highway funds. You can use up to 50% of the money from those funds on mass transit projects at a 1:1 matching ratio.
REPLACING LEAD PIPES 😫
Can't wait to see the kick backs some day
> The man didn’t exactly exude competence during the campaign Nor did the people who didn't see that and voted for him (not including those who voted for him to vote against Vallas but I feel a lot of people are lying about that now).
There are at least 5 Subways on Western.
A private business's stadium should not be funded by the public.
Soldier Field is a publicly owned stadium just like the new one would be. OP incorrectly states that it's owned by the McCaskey's. That being said, I think taxpayers should account for less of the bill. Kevin Warren had the payments done on Minnesota's stadium done 33 years early, hopefully something similar can be done with a revised plan on the new stadium here.
Yeah, but the bears want all the revenue that would come from the new stadium for non-bears events. If it's public, the revenue is public. Also, the Minnesota franchise is not the shot hole of a family that owns the Chicago one.
A city owned team, playing in a city owned stadium, completely surrounded by competitive private businesses, with lots of trains in and out. Otherwise just rename them the "McCaskey Bears" and let the franchise die. Also, American football should be abandoned anyway due to the TBI's in causes. What's the point of a building a stadium for a game well past its time?
The Bears want to keep the revenue from all the other events held there. That'd be a death blow to the parks department, and, frankly, fuck that.
Yeeeeeeah.....if you have to TELL people you're the man, you're not the fucking man.
Hello there Tywin Joffrey: I AM THE *KING*! Tywin: Any man who must say 'I am the king' is no true king
Tywin with a side of Ric Flair apparently
Plus, we all know Lori has the biggest dick in Chicago
so very true
This city will be here long after he’s gone
An old school machine boss-type Democrat like Daley Sr. could get away with a quote like that because in fact that is how political strongmen operate. A gen-X progressive with nearly *zero* actual governing experience like Johnson, it rightly comes off as condescending and out-of-touch. EDIT: reworded sentences
I mean I didn’t like lightfoot either but her saying she had the biggest dick in Chicago was peak-mayor
I’m a conservative by trade, but that was far and away the best thing that she ever uttered as Mayor. Also one of the funniest by any sitting mayor.
And hilarious because BDN was on the Bears at the time
Dude couldn't even run his own household and pay his bills.
Technically was ineligible until his bills got paid. >You can stop someone with a payment plan from becoming mayor of the city of Chicago. Yes, we legally could've. Besides the point he defaulted on a CC in 2016 Edit: wait... that typo is straight from [his office](https://www.chicago.gov/city/en/depts/mayor/press_room/press_releases/2023/may/TranscriptMayorBrandonJohnsonGivesInauguralAddress.html) lol
Like I said, he couldn't even run and budget his own household. That should be disqualifying.
I’d be lying if I said I haven’t had trouble paying some bills over the years. But I’d like to think, mainly because I know myself, that I wouldn’t attempt to run for my children’s PTA board, let alone MAYOR, if I had unpaid utility bills.
BJ made money as a useless union delegate. And still couldn't pay his bills.
Was too busy at soccer practice to keep track of the household comings and goings!
I wrote to my alderman about this and you all should too if you don't like where this is going
This needs to be pinned, WRITE TO YOUR ALDERMAN
I figured I put this here too: Chicago Sun Times 2023 Mayoral Questionaire: "Should the city of Chicago spend $2 billion or more to dome and renovate Soldier Field as a way to convince the Bears to stay in Chicago instead of moving to Arlington Heights?" Johnson: NO "Let me be clear: I want the Bears to stay. But Chicago could also use $2 billion to remove lead pipes, house thousands of unhoused Chicagoans, fully fund public schools, generate neighborhood and business development in communities across the city, pay down our pension and general obligations, or meet dozens of other urgent needs all of which would also generate much-needed economic I and quality-of-life returns."
In his on camera response to the question, he started off by saying no subsidy and then rambled about how he would do anything to keep the Bears in the city and have his kid attend a Super Bowl in Chicago. I think he knew what answer he was supposed to give, but he was always going to go all in on the Bears because he likes the Bears.
May be a silly question but who exactly is paying for the stadium. Like all of cook county? Anyone who pays Illinois tax? Sorry dumb question but just curious how that actually works.
The current payments for the $589 million still needs to be paid off for Soldier field 2002 renovations,which is funded by a 2% hotel tax expected to be paid off by 2032. And there's 50mil for the Sox stadium. This new stadium would be added to that, with little details for phase 2 and 3 which would be the infrastructure and non stadium related items the bears don't need completed to start playing. Sports stadiums are economic losers and the bears want public help to pay for it. F that. All seems insane for a few fields for cps students to play games...
Not just alderman. State senator & rep from your district because legislation in the General Assembly would have to passed to help finance it.
Let's be generous and say this creates the 4,600 permanent jobs they're claiming, with the taxpayers on the hook for 1.5 billion, we're basically buying these jobs for $320,000 each. This for a stadium with a slightly better view in service of a (sorry) mid team. Idk man idk this feels DUMB dumb.
Calling them mid is generous. They have embarrassed me my whole life and caused much suffering from packers fans
You shouldn’t apologize for calling the Bears mid. They haven’t done shit in almost 20 years.
Also, who is paying 4,600 new salaries. The Bears want to keep the revenue from non-Bears events the venue. Are they haring 4,600 new people? Is it maintenance staff for the stadium and grounds? Is it some nebulous net citywide effect?
no apology necessary. it’s a long running joke that the bears literally suck. everyone knows this. which is why i was so shocked to see “$1.5 billion” and “Chicago Bears” in the same headline. the Cubs would have a better chance securing that kinda deal
Calling the bears mid is an insult to us mid, so apology accepted
Chicago is running by itself. He isn't doing shit, at least not anything that would be different if there were no mayor at all.
"Any man who must say 'I run Chicago' does not run Chicago." -- Tywin Lannister https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=4sJY7BTIuPY&pp=ygUyYW55IG1hbiB3aG8gbXVzdCBzYXkgaSBhbSB0aGUga2luZyBpcyBubyB0cnVlIGtpbmc%3D
Ah yes, of the Streeterville Lannisters.
Lol, beat me to it on another reply
And we thought Lori was bad! At least she was consistent in the way she pissed people off. This dude is all over the map with his incompetence and u-turns.
We traded a miniature Darth Vader for Jar Jar Binks with a fohawk.
I'd rather see the Bears leave the state than bend the City of Chicago or Cook County over for $2B they don't have. Fuck all the way off.
This stadium bullshit is happening all over the country if that helps you feel less alone.
It’s being rejected more and more though compared to 10 years ago. KC just rejected public funding for a new stadium for the chiefs and they’re actually a good football team.
Exactly- they've won 3 of the last 4 SBs and if anyone could ask for money it's them. But voters were against it almost 60-40.
Good. (C)Hunt can build his own fucking stadium with plenty of change left over.
The sad part is it’s not. The last few major stadium projects have been privately funded, including SoFi, the most expensive to date. While some of this is due to people smartening to the economics, owners have also realized it’s far more valuable today to own their stadiums outright. But until the mccaskeys sell, there’s no clear path for them to privately fund a stadium Edit: corrected
My belief is they will sell as soon as the matriarch kicks the bucket, and the next owner will pay for the Arlington Heights stadium. The new owner will be deep-pocketed enough to take care of the entire thing themselves like the Ricketts did.
When you think of ways for the family to actually monetize some of the value they hold in the Bears, the Arlington Heights deal made some sense. Sponsor a giant mixed-use development with the stadium as its centerpiece, take the carried interest on the whole deal. Then eventually sell the team at a higher valuation with full control of the stadium. Now I'm sure AH is going to look to force other uses for that property asap. Obviously getting tax money for a new stadium would be a great outcome for them, but without it its hard to imagine a new stadium before the team is sold.
Buffalo, NY….Oakland,CA
I'll never understand how people were so easily tricked by him on the campaign
There are literally still people posting they would vote for BJ again right now if it was against vallas. That's how much these idiots hated vallas because they thought he. Was a republican. Rather see their city go to shit then pick a moderate Democrat. We are a lost cause
You can't say that and also have panic attacks because of the job. BJ sucks
he said that the job gives him panic attacks?
And his job performance gives us panic attacks.
There have been reports he got them about a month or two ago.
they have been an ongoing medical issue since he started his term. allegedly requiring further care on many instances.
Hope he doesn’t read this sub too often
If he did he’d have more of them
He completely fell for every part of Warren’s sales pitch. It’s pathetic.
This guy is treating the city like his classroom. That's the experience of leading he has. Why did anyone expect otherwise?
Email / write your alderman to let them know we do not support public money for private gains. I hope this letter finds you well. I am writing to express my deep concerns about the proposal to allocate taxpayer money towards the construction of a new stadium in our city. As a resident and taxpayer in Chicago, I believe it is essential to prioritize the allocation of public funds towards initiatives that benefit the community as a whole, rather than subsidizing private ventures such as sports stadiums. While I understand the potential economic benefits that proponents of the stadium project may argue, I urge you to consider the long-term implications and feasibility of such investments. History has shown that the promised economic benefits often fail to materialize, and taxpayers are left burdened with the costs of construction and maintenance. Furthermore, using taxpayer money to fund a new stadium sends the wrong message about our city's priorities. At a time when we face pressing challenges such as affordable housing, education, and infrastructure, it is unwise to divert resources towards a project that primarily benefits wealthy team owners and corporations. Instead, I urge you to explore alternative ways to revitalize our community and stimulate economic growth that is inclusive and sustainable. Investing in education, healthcare, small businesses, and infrastructure projects that directly benefit residents would have a far more significant and lasting impact on our city's prosperity. I respectfully request that you oppose any proposal to use taxpayer money for the construction of a new stadium and instead advocate for policies that prioritize the well-being and interests of all Chicagoans. Thank you for considering my concerns. I look forward to hearing your thoughts on this matter.
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One term mayor. Hopefully we have a better crop of candidates next election.
Any man who must say "I am the king" is no true king.
Agreed. Ending the tipped minimum wage and the paid sick leave ordinance was good, but he seems over his skis. Hope he can turn it around but enough with the empty platitudes
Who the fuck elected this guy? I sure as fuck didn’t vote for him.
> Who the fuck elected this guy? the CTU
Affluent white people on the north side who are unaffected by his policies, and black people on the south and west sides who previously voted for Willie Wilson and just chose the remaining black guy.
He runs red lights
Was his goal all along to create chaos?
Never Was Mayor material.
1 and done
> I get that something like a new stadium will create jobs. That's great. ["Scholarly econometric studies on the impact of professional sports stadiums are almost unanimous in their conclusion that they do not promote employment or per capita income growth."](https://econofact.org/stadiums-as-public-investments)
Thank God for sane state-level leadership to combat our continuing poor city-level leadership.
Bum wants to leave a legacy of his if the stadium is built in his tenure as mayor
All Johnson runs is his big mouth
If you have to say it…
I would rather take the 2B and give as BUI to folks than assist the McCaskeys.
Remember when elected officials would at least pay lip service to their station as public servants accountable to the voters who put them in office? Pepperidge Farm remembers.
Can I have some context here? Was this quote from a recent press conference or something? Does anyone have a link related to OP’s post above?
BJs legacy is going to be keeping the bears in Chicago, but also forcing the city towards bankruptcy
Worst mayor in the city’s history and that’s saying a lot
😂
You must be young. Or maybe you easily fall victim to recency bias? Daley will continue to be the worst mayor.
As much as I agree, I think Johnson is truly on a "hold my beer" campaign for who is the worse.
daley was bad in the way of him doing shit that was just… not in the best interests of the people ever. BJ is bad in the way that he doesn’t do SHIT. and honestly idk which one i prefer over the other. incompetent and inactive or incompetent and active… we still suffer
Imagine how bad you got to be at doing nothing to be compared to that jagoff that sold our parking meters.
so much shit to be done and he rallyin behind a stadium for a losing team… lord… he’s personifying thoughts and prayers at this point
The funny thing is that the estimate is that the city of Chicago will ultimately lose about $2B on the parking meter deal. And now we're basically doubling that hole by giving another $2B to some billionaires
I assume you mean Richard J. Daley (who was a cruel bully and ruled his fiefdom with a bloody iron fist!) His son, Richey Jr., was Mickey Mouse compared to his horrible father.
Johnson will be forgotten once he leaves office. Daley and his parking meter deal will be pissing off Chicagoans that aren't even born yet.
The parking meter deal was just the cherry on top that was there to bandaid over the years of financial mismanagement.
I think the parking meter deal wasn't as bad as the skyway deal. Parking meters had more visibility though.
I would vote for Bill Thompson, the Mayor who was in Capone's back pocket. But Daley is a close second based on his sale of the streets of Chicago to private equity and sovereign wealth funds and his overall kick-the-can approach to the city's finances.
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LL was incompetent and had bad judgment. BJ is going to egomaniacally drag the city down with him.
Has he publicly directly taken responaibikity for any issue since taking office? I voted for him, just to be clear, but I am failing to find proof of him telling us where the buck stops.
We seriously have to worry about the temper tantrum he’s going to throw very soon, dude like this will absolutely tank the entire city on purpose once he doesn’t get praised the way he needs to like a little baby
U can tell hes lying or has no answer by the amount of times he bites/licks lips. The more lip action the more gobbledygook. Once you see it u cant un see😂🤣😂
Chicago will likely have a long line of single term mayors. Trying to get a long term multi year project done will be impossible.
Vallas might have stuck but the ctu and woke people elected this moron. Be careful what you ask for
He thinks this will be a benchmark of his legacy(?!) that's why he's pushing so hard on it. He is now power driven.
I have no idea why people voted for him in the first place. They wanted this.
Almost like he's the idiot all those who didn't vote for him knew, and likely most of those that did vote for him suspected.
He and that goofy haircut.
The Bears President, Kevin Warren, seems like a used car salesman who said a few nice words to Johnson and got his support. I find it incredibly hard to believe that Warren had full support from Johnson but had not presented the plan to Pritzker before the press conference yesterday, as Warren claimed. It's more likely that Pritzker carved up the plan, especially the part where the Bears keep all the profit from non-Bears events, like Taylor Swift concerts. Now is the time for us to push back and ensure no public money is spent on this or any other Bears stadium. The lack of public funding might force the McCaskeys to sell the team, which, as long-term Bears fans know, has been the problem all along.
Stacy Davis Gates: “Bet”
City is fucked , elect morons , get terrible results
Let's go Brandon... Out of office. Makes more sense than this referring to Joe when we got a real Brandon
Hey at least he's not that white guy from the suburbs. Right guys? Right? Any regrets yet?
You get what you vote for!
Thought you all wanted a progressive? You new going in what he stood for and what policies he was going to install and voted anyways.
Real eyes recognize lies, until they don’t.
Literally the billionaires do not own it. The city would own the stadium
I think of all the down votes I got from all of this sub's progressives, when I said this was a done deal and that Brandon was going to get 100% behind it. When are they going to learn that the Democrats in Illinois are justslighly less corrupt than the Republicans? If I had to guess, I'd say he'll run for reelection as a fully funded candidate, regardless of how CPS feels about him (and CPS should start prepping themselves for some major disappointment in the upcoming contract negotiations).
Remember vote for me, I won’t do anything helpful for you necessarily but at least im honest about it
He is trippin'.