alderman

The City Council Zoning Committee approved the controversial plan to relocate the Chicago Children's Museum from Navy Pier to Grant Park in a 6-3 vote Thursday afternoon.

The proposal still has to be voted on by the entire City Council.

The vote followed nearly six hours of sometimes contentious testimony by opponents and proponents in packed council chambers.

Ald. Brendan Reilly (42nd), whose ward includes Grant Park, was greeted like a rock star with a flood of cheering applause when he entered the chamber. Reilly has continuously rallied for support against the museum proposal, in defiance of Mayor Richard M. Daley.

Inside the large auditorium at a now-closed public school in Bronzeville, six election workers guarded a touch-screen voting machine, a ballot scanner and three write-in booths.

Overkill, on a worker-per-voter basis, considering that when lunchtime rolled around on Tuesday, a whopping six people had come by to vote.

"It's exciting when somebody comes in," said election worker Rosemarie Czech, 21, a student at the University of Illinois at Chicago. "Everyone tries to rush and help them because we're all doing nothing."

Well, nothing election-related, anyway: Czech spent the morning working on her abstract algebra homework.

The story at the 19th precinct of the 3rd Ward, while magnified, repeated itself across Chicago as voters stayed home in droves.

The lack of interest in this year's election was seen citywide, evidenced by the low number of early voters"a 16 percent drop from November's election"or even new registrations.

Voter registration in Chicago is 1.4 million, the lowest it has been in the 65 years the city has been tracking numbers.

One political expert attributed declining interest to the absence of serious contests since 1989"when voters first elected Daley mayor.

"There's no contest, there's no significant challenge, no issues raised," political consultant Don Rose said. "There seems to be nothing to vote for."

The complacency is palpable. But some see it as a positive and not a negative.

"Some would argue that people are generally satisfied with the way the city is operating and don't feel a sense of urgency," City Clerk Miguel Del Valle hypothesized.

Alton Miller, associate dean of the School of Media Arts at Columbia College and former press secretary to Mayor Harold Washington, said, "We are very happy to go along with Daley because we can't see anything from our house that seems to be broken."

But satisfaction with the mayor is what drew one taxi driver to the polls Tuesday.

"Daley's doing a good job for the city and making it look beautiful," said Stergios Pirounakis, who voted in the 38th Ward on the city's Northwest Side.

Daley's win, or "re-annnointng," as Miller calls it, came as no surprise to anyone"except maybe one challenger, William "Dock" Walls III, who predicted that he would beat Daley by a landslide.

Miller explained that when the outcome of the only race that matters to people is not in doubt, it is common sense to stay home.

"If you choose between getting that stuff to the dry cleaner or voting " and nothing's at stake, it's a rational choice not to go vote," Miller said.

The obvious outcome of the election kept Chicagoans away from the polls.

"If you put all the challengers together, they still won't beat Daley," said Angelo Thompson, who lives in the 42nd Ward, where political powerhouse Ald. Burt Natarus was trailing in his re-election bid.

But others say they enjoy exercising the right to vote purely on principle.

"I think of the struggle others went through so we could get the right to vote," said African-American Billy Pearson, 52, who voted in the 3rd Ward on the South Side.

Miller faulted Daley's challengers for not raising any significant issues"which is what traditionally gets people to the polls.

He asserted that Daley's opponents, Dorothy Brown, clerk of the Cook County Circuit Court, and Walls, a former aide to Washington, are actually positioning themselves for a claim to leadership of the African-American political base in 2011, when many predict Daley won't seek re-election.

With the victories by Daley and Del Valle and many aldermen, the success of incumbents falls in line with the 2003 election, when only four aldermen were beaten by challengers.

While this comes as little surprise to voters and pundits, Miller said 2007 may actually mark the "beginning of a new era of political activism""one with more effective field work by progressive labor-based precinct groups. These groups in many cases are supporting challengers.

Accompanying this, Miller added, is the decline of more traditional political organizations, such as the Hispanic Democratic Organization, and Daley's other political machinery.

In a likely backlash from the Big Box controversy earlier this year, only one union endorsed Daley, the Chicago and Cook County Building and Construction Trades Council.

In contrast, unions such as the Chicago Federation of Labor and the Service Employees International Union employed hundreds of volunteers to get out the vote in support of challengers.

If these groups make a difference in elections"for example, by forcing runoffs in wards with contested races"Miller said this will signal a new era of politics in Chicago.

But, Miller stays realistic. While this trend might be groundbreaking for political insiders, the reality is that the public might not care.

"It's much more important who fathers Anna Nicole's baby than that Labor might be slowly and quietly changing the nature of politics," Miller said.

Though the mayoral race typically snags all the attention, candidates for city clerk clamored for some recognition of their own.

"We're not just an office that deals with city stickers " but an office that should be advocating for people," said Jose Cerda III, who lost his bid for the position he calls "the keeper of the public record."

As Cerda explained, the city clerk position has traditionally been a political bargaining chip in the mayor's race. He was different, he said, because he ran as an independent.

The victor in that race, Del Valle, said he spent time campaigning at el stops, senior centers and churches in hopes of brining attention to his race.

"Whenever you engage in a low-profile race " you have to have as much direct contact with voters as possible," said Del Valle, who spent the day at various polling places as he greeted voters.

In some areas, those voters were few and far between. As predicted, voter turnout"which typically helps incumbents like Daley'may have reached a new low.

While many political experts argue that voter turnout is essential for the health of democracy, Miller said poor turnout is not the end of the world.

"There is still democracy when only a small percentage of people participate," he said. "Just not the type of democracy we like to brag about."

Northwestern Home | Calendar: Plan-It P

By: Sara Eisen and Alex Sherman
It’s six days until election day. Inside the makeshift campaign office of 32nd Ward aldermanic incumbent Scott Waguespack, a deserted storefront across from a Shell station on the corner of Diversey and Ashland, the mood is quiet and subdued, but hopeful and determined. The front of the room is open, and in the back there’s a coffee machine, a water cooler, some mailboxes lining the walls, four desks, and shelves with food and papers. “Do you know where the tape measure is Scott?” asks Joan, a volunteer from Roscoe Village, trying to center a “Time 4 Change” sign she is taping to the window.

Joe Lake, 70, a Bucktown community activist who refers to himself as ‘007’ because of his crusade to target local political corruption, is sitting behind one of the three computers. He has just finished posting a new article or tidbit to his Bucktown Public Square Web site, a thorough database of information on the 32nd ward aldermanic race in support of Waguespack. Another young woman sits behind a desk waiting for the phone to ring. Others present include Waguespack’s brother Sylvester and a woman nursing a baby. And of course there’s Waguespack, 36, cool and amicable, chatting on his cell phone, wearing khakis, a black turtleneck and a black fleece jacket, with black square-shaped glasses. His voice is calm and friendly.

A 90-year-old woman named Elvina hobbles in. She hugs Waguespack and tells him she needs to speak with him, that she’ll be around for a while, and then seats herself at a desk in the back. Atop Waguespack’s desk is a pile of thick packets, lists of all residents of the 32nd Ward with their phone numbers and addresses, which the team uses for cold calling and door-to door campaigning. With two cell phones in hand, seated at his desk, he proceeds to share a story about how he decided to run for alderman. He speaks about frustrations with the 8-year reigning alderman, Ted Matlak, who has collected $200,000 for his campaign and is endorsed by Mayor Richard Daley and the Chicago Sun-Times. Waguespack has gathered $30,000 toward his campaign and received endorsements from the Chicago Tribune and the Chicago Journal. While there are no official polls, according to the AlderTrack Web site Thursday, Waguespack’s stock is trading at $56.30, while Matlak’s is $19.13. In other words, according to AlderTrack, Waguespack is the favorite.

****

Wasguespack has lived with his two brothers in Bucktown for 12 years. A native of Chicago, he was raised on a ranch in Colorado. After graduating from Colorado State University with a political science degree, Waguespack volunteered in Kenya with the U.S. Peace Corps. He returned to his native Chicago for his law degree from Chicago-Kent College of Law, Illinois Institute of Technology. He has been involved in various projects, including Global Chicago, the American Bar Association ABA-CEELI, and worked as an advisor to the President of Kosovo and the government following the Kosovo War. His latest feat was managing the campaign of Berwyn mayoral candidate Michael O’Connor, as well as the campaign of the Independent Voters of Berwyn (IVB).

Waguespack’s decision to enter the race originated from frustration with the alderman’s office when Waguespack umpired Little League baseball in the mid-1990s. At the time, Matlak was chief of staff for former alderman Terry Gabinski. “The alderman’s office basically rung its hands of any problems we had with fields or [league] organization,” Waguespack says. “It stuck in my mind.” More recently, Waguespack has become fed up with the lack of notification to Bucktown residents about ongoing construction. In August, his anger reached a boiling point. “I just woke up one morning and said, ‘I’ve had enough of this,’” he said. “I wanted to start forcing [Matlak] to look at issues he has been ignoring.”

The central theme of Waguespack’s campaign is openness. He wants to install cameras in the alderman’s office and stream city council meetings on his Web site to reach younger voters who frequently use the Internet. Waguespack also believes Matlak has purposefully stopped involving community organizations in his decision-making on zoning. Both Waguespack and co-challenger Catherine Zaryczny have hammered away at Matlak’s disregard for current zoning codes throughout the election. In 2004, the 32nd ward restructured its zoning codes to encourage development while preserving the character of Bucktown and Wicker Park. However, Matlak supports “spot zoning,” an aldermanic right to override codes for specific development changes for individuals and business. Matlak admitted to sometimes ignoring the opinions of committees like the Bucktown Community Organization during a Chicago Tribune Editorial Board forum. “The [committees] are only as good as the people in the groups,” Matlak said.

Waguespack’s campaign frames this election as “Scott vs. The Machine.” They point to Daley’s endorsement of Matlak and allegations of patronage and corruption among 32nd Ward officials, such as the Feb. 13 arrest of precinct captain Lester Cioch. The city’s Inspector General’s Office has filed charges against Cioch for collecting signatures for Daley’s campaign while on the job. Matlak campaign spokesman Michael Moffo said the arrest had “nothing do to with Matlak and his campaign,” according to a Feb. 21 Chicago Journal article. Moreover, Waguespack believes members of “the Machine” are paying people to distribute flyers that deliberately smear Waguespack’s reputation. “That’s the way the Machine works. They just took some guy from the South Side and paid him $100 to distribute handouts in people’s mailboxes that spread lies about my campaign,” Waguespack says. “The alderman won’t say anything. I asked him, ‘why don’t you denounce this type of stuff?’ He just looked at me and said, ‘denounce what?’” Multiple phone calls to Matlak’s office were not returned.

****

Joan announces that she has finished taping, and everyone shifts their attention to the front window to admire the new signs. The phone rings; Sylvester jumps to answer it, with a fluorescent post-it pad and pen in hand. “Citizens for Scott Waguespack…” As the campaign has progressed, Waguespack says, he has gained a significant amount of recognition and encouragement. “You’re the Peace Corps guy,” he said people will say to him, “or you’re the Kosovo guy, or you’re the Chicago Tribune-endorsed guy.” Waguespack expects the election to be close—and his campaign will be monitoring “The Machine.” “I’m just waiting for them to pull out the dead people,” Lake said, making reference to past alderman elections when the non-living have voted. On election day, Waguespack will be in his campaign office with his loyal volunteers, win or lose. “I knew it was a long shot when I entered, but people want change.” Waguespack said. “A woman stopped me at the train station and said to me, ‘Kick [Matlak’s] ass!’ You’re kinda sitting there and you’re like, ‘wow!’ That’s the sense you get from people out there.”

Four days before Feb. 27's 32nd Ward alderman election, incumbent Ted Matlak and top challenger Scott Waguespack are approaching the home stretch to pick up last minute undecided votes. Have they persuaded Bucktown voters of Generations X and Y to check their names on the ballot? Apparently not.

"I don't know anything about aldermen."

"I don't really care."

"If I knew some of the issues, I'd definitely vote, but I don't know what I'm voting on."

"I don't know what ward I'm in."

"I was not aware of the alderman elections until yesterday."

"I have no clue."

Confusion and apathy dominated the political mindsets of 20- and 30-something Bucktown residents in two popular coffee shops next to the Damen Avenue Blue Line El stop Friday afternoon. Any "buzz" surrounding the alderman elections was decidedly absent among Bucktown residents enjoying lunch at Filter, 1585 N. Milwaukee Ave., and Half & Half, 1560 N. Damen Ave.

Numerous potential voters said they felt removed from local politics because they did not have family living in the neighborhood. Several said they believed rising property taxes and improving public schools were important issues"just not to them.

"At this point, I'm an abstraction away from the impact of city politics because I don't have kids, and I'm a student in a school not in this area," said Eon McLeary, 32, a law student at the University of Chicago.

"It would probably be of greater interest if I felt like a more permanent part of the neighborhood or if I was directly impacted by any of the alderman's decisions," said Lisa Obradovich, 26. "But maybe that's a stupid statement because I don't know what the issues are anyway."

With the election only days away, Waguespack, a 36-year-old Bucktown resident, has been knocking on doors and passing out literature at subway stations on a daily basis. During the past two weeks, Waguespack's campaign has picked up steam after receiving endorsements from the Chicago Tribune and the Chicago Journal. However, he admits it is difficult to get younger voters interested in the political process.

"It's really hard to get a hold of younger people because they tend to be at school during the day," Waguespack said. "But young people use the CTA, so we try to get them there."

Waguespack has centered his campaign around zoning issues, which he says should be important to younger voters because rising rents are directly tied to property values. If elected, Waguespack plans to build a 32nd Ward Web site that will cater to a younger audience.

"We just met a woman who told me, "I don't know where my ward is." And if you look on the current alderman's Web site, there's a little blob of a map," Waguespack said. "There needs to be information on the Web site that says, "Here's where we are, and here's what we stand for.""

Confusion over where wards begin and end was rampant among coffee shop customers"and perhaps aldermanic candidates, themselves. Kristen Backstreet, 23, works as a nanny in the 1st Ward, which borders the 32nd. She remembered overhearing a phone call a few weeks ago from an aldermanic candidate at the house where she works.

"The family told him he had made a mistake'they weren't in his district," Backstreet said. "He wasn't a candidate in their ward." Manny Flores, the 1st Ward alderman, is running unopposed.

Most respondents claimed not to know, or care, about the job of an alderman.

"They create scandals?" guessed Kelly Hrajnoha, 23, on an alderman's role in local government. "Maybe if there was more publicity about how they get elected, when we vote, and what their goals are . . . maybe then I'd vote."

Matlak, who did not return several phone calls, and Waguespack may be hindered in reaching youthful voters because of the character of Bucktown's neighborhood. Drugs, crime and prostitution are no longer major concerns to residents in the area.

"Unless they're going to shut down the bars, I'm not going to vote," McLeary said.

One resident, however, was at least concerned with neighborhood politics. Mason Dixon, 31, does not want to see Bucktown go the way of Lincoln Park.

"If Filter, the toy store and the Occult Book Store [at 1579 N. Milwaukee Ave.] go out of business, this area will turn into a wasteland," Dixon said. "The character of the neighborhood is very important to me."

But will he vote on Feb. 27?

"Probably not," Dixon said.

A former alderman candidate filed federal and county suits against the Illinois Attorney General and the Chicago Board of Election Commissioners this week saying that he should be allowed to run in the 48th Ward elections despite failing to properly file his Statement of Economic Interest receipt.

Chris Lawrence has asked for a special election so he can campaign against incumbent Mary Ann Smith. Smith was the only candidate who appeared on the early voting ballot distributed Monday.

Smith successfully challenged the paperwork of both her opponents, Lawrence and Christopher Persons, in January. Persons had filed his paperwork with the wrong office and withdrew from the race.

“It is infuriating that four felons can run for alderman but I can’t,” he said. “I have a fundamental right to run in the election if I can show a modicum of support, and I have.”

Lawrence described Smith as “cowardly” for not withdrawing her objections to allow for a democratic public debate.

The election board heard 192 objections against alderman candidates in this election. Lawrence was one of seven candidates disqualified for not filing the Statement of Economic Interest.

But Lawrence did file it; he failed to take the receipt proving he filed back to the election board. After realizing this, Lawrence returned to file the receipt but was told it was too late.

Lawrence argued in his suit that the error was “inadvertent.” Election rules allow inadvertent errors, like failing to write a home address, on filed petitions.

Ald. Danny Solis (25th) is one of several candidates who made such an error on his forms, but was allowed to continue campaigning in the race.

“The bar is not set very high [on filing regulations],” said John Wyman, campaign manager for Ald. Mary Ann Smith. “The courts are biased in favor of ballot access.”

“Every candidate checks the petition of any other candidate in the race,” he said. Wyman denied that Smith’s office played a role in disqualifying Lawrence.

Lawrence is a former support of Smith, and said he decided to run after being disappointed with her performance. He said Smith had failed to increase affordable housing or properly address public safety in the ward.

“She was dismissive to people’s concerns,” Lawrence said. “It’s their tax dollars. It’s not her money, it’s their money.”

After returning from a deployment in Iraq, Lawrence said he took a pay cut to become a community organizer. He was involved with the Clark Street Transportation Access Program (TAP), and served on the Edgewater Community Council Board.

“The lack of leadership and petty corruption, the lack of accountability I saw in Iraq is the same here,” he said.

It was that frustration, and not an expectation to win, that Lawrence said pushed him to run. He said he wanted to encourage public debate about holding officials accountable.

“The incumbents have enormous advantage,” he said. “The irony is if she had just conducted herself in a half-decent way, she would have walked away with this election.”

ALDERMANIC ELECTION STORIES: Catherine Zaryczny (32nd) Scott Waguespack (32nd) Mell Monroe (3rd) Pat Dowell (3rd) 48th Ward Challenger Sues Incumbent.

Four months ago, Catherine Zaryczny returned to her home in Ukrainian Village to find the door plastered with large green stickers. Her water had been shut off. The 34-year-old trial lawyer said she always pays her bill on time, but wasn't surprised to find the notice: just the day before Zaryczny had publicly announced her candidacy for the 32nd ward alderman.

"It's unfortunate but this is how people choose to operate sometimes," Zaryczny said, recalling the incident months later.

A call to the water company and many apologies later, Zaryczny's service returned to normal, but the incident merely strengthened her resolve. Zaryczny filed papers with the Chicago Election Board in December and, along with two other candidates, will challenge current Ald. Ted Matlak (32) for seat on the city council in the elections on Feb. 27.

"I have a great respect for the office of alderman, but I have no respect for Ted Matlak because I believe Ted Matlak has turned his back on this community," Zaryczny said. "He has an obligation as an elected official in the city council to serve the interests of this community and I believe he has turned his back on this community and that he serves the special interests."

The 32nd ward, located on the north side of Chicago includes Lincoln Park, Bucktown and Wicker Park and over the past ten years has experienced a sharp increase in new residents and developments. But Zaryczny, like a number of other ward residents, strongly disagrees with Matlak's pro-development approach to zoning.

Matlak, who was appointed to the council in 1999 by Mayor Richard M. Daley, has supported a number of unpopular projects within the ward, including the demolition of the Artful Dodger, a Wicker Park bar that had been housed in a historic building, and the opening of the Pleasure Chest, an adult-themed store in Lakeview, in spite of protests from residents that the retailer should have been classified as "adult-use."

"[Matlak] does not respect our votes about zoning," said longtime Lakeview resident Liz Larson, 56. "There will be meetings where the alderman will ask about zoning change in our area. - People will pile in to vote against the up-zone. The vote often ends up being 95 percent no and the alderman goes back to the city council and passes it. He never comes back and explains himself. It's like he's just humoring us by asking."

Frustrated with the current situation, Larson joined the 32nd Ward New Leadership Alliance, a group dedicated to finding alternative candidates for the city council seat. At the meeting, Larson met Zaryczny and decided to volunteer for the campaign.

"Catherine is very intelligent and very educated," Larson said of Zaryczny. "She's a fresh face that is not connected to the machine. She has no obligations to contractors or politicians. She is the fresh face I'm looking for to run the ward."

Zaryczny said she thinks voters will appreciate her lack of political commitments.

"I'm the only independent in the race," Zaryczny said. "I'm the only one not beholden to a party. I have no desire other than to work with the community. I have no political affiliations. I don't owe anyone anything other than the people who elect me."

Zaryczny's independence began early in life. The only child of European refugees, Zaryczny always wanted to be a lawyer. She grew up in Ukrainian Village and attended public schools in the area, including Lane Technical High School on West Addison Street.

After receiving her diploma, Zaryczny chose to stay in Chicago for college, graduating with a double major in English and political science from Loyola. As a college student, Zaryczny spent a year studying in Italy and traveling through Europe and Africa.

Her year in Europe helped her master two languages, German and Italian, in addition to the Polish, Ukrainian and Russian she learned growing up.

"This ward is so diverse," Zaryczny said. "I'm able to speak the languages of the people in this ward. That is one of the things that I hope will make me more accessible to people."

After finishing at Loyola, Zaryczny went on to study law at DePaul University, working for two years in the Cook County Public Defender's Office. Her time as a public defender helped her realize her passion for the courtroom.

"I love the ability to be an advocate, to be vocal and to present my positions in what I believe is one of the greatest ways an attorney can present their positions - in a trial courtroom in front of a jury," Zaryczny said. "The most difficult case to handle is a case where someone's liberty is in jeopardy. "Your decisions and the decisions of the court are going to have a major impact on the livelihood or the lives of the individuals involved."

Zaryczny hopes to convince ward residents that she would make a good advocate for the ward on the city council as well.

"People are desperate for an alternative," Zaryczny said. "I talk with person after person who doesn't know who the alderman is or if they do they are unhappy with the fact that he doesn't participate in the community. They feel shortchanged. "I'd like to be the voice of those people. That's one reason why I fought back."

Though Zaryczny said the response from residents has been largely positive,the reactions from people who have long been involved in ward politics have not been as pleasant. In addition to her water being shut off, Zaryczny said she has been heckled and intimidated by workers from other campaigns. The events came to a head on Election Night in October when Zaryczny was collecting signatures for her petition outside the Holstein Park Field House precinct in Bucktown.

"[Campaign workers] were blocking the entrance to the polls, they were jeering at me," Zaryczny said. "One individual kept walking in and out of the polling place, which is illegal. "The people of the ward shouldn't have to tolerate a gauntlet every time they go to the polls."

Not content to simply forget about the incident, Zaryczny filed a complaint with the Chicago Election Board. Though officials from the board said they could not do much after the fact, Zaryczny said speaking out about the situation was reason enough to file the complaint.

"If you go into an old building and turn on the lights, all the rodents scatter. I wanted to ensure it was brought into the light," Zaryczny said. "Every candidate stands for something. Someone has to stand against bad government."

ALDERMANIC ELECTION STORIES: Catherine Zaryczny (32nd) Scott Waguespack (32nd) Mell Monroe (3rd) Pat Dowell (3rd) 48th Ward Challenger Sues Incumbent.