To inform voters and to help the baiduhai Editorial Board make endorsements, the board posed a series of questions to the candidates running for alderman. See their answers below. See how other candidates answered here.
Name: Jessica Gutiérrez
Ward: 30th
Current job: I am currently working full time on my aldermanic campaign. I am a former high school teacher and also worked as a teaching assistant at the University of Illinois and as Director of Policy for the Puerto Rican Cultural Center. I am also pursuing and finishing graduate work towards my PhD in History and Sociology.
Previous political experience: – Campaign volunteer for Congressman Luis V. Gutierrez on various election cycles from 1996 to 2016. – Campaign Staff for Delia Ramirez campaign for Illinois 4th House District in 2018. – North Side field coordinator for Jesus Chuy Garcia for Congress, 4th district.
Education: BA in Sociology from University of Illinois, 2010
Spouse’s occupation: David Hernandez, Director of Operations – Martinez Family Provisions
Sources of outside income: None
The rise in violent crime remains a top priority for City Hall. Homicides, shootings and carjackings are all unacceptably high. Tell us how city government can be innovative in combating crime, and explain what measures you would propose if elected.
Public safety must be approached with short and long term solutions.
Our $1.94B CPD budget is not the problem.
How the $1.94B budget is allocated is the problem. We have to begin addressing public safety for the long term, utilizing sustainable and tangible solutions. To see crime stay down, city council must address the root causes like poverty, mental health care, housing and job instability. When we shift to sending social workers to answer non-violent distress calls instead of cops, we will have more units available to patrol our streets and deter crime. When we put more funding into social services like after school programs, mental health services, affordable housing, and job creation, we will help stabilize families and reduce the stress that comes from not knowing how the rent, mortgage, or bills will get paid.
The CTA, one of the nation’s largest transit systems, remains a troubled agency grappling with issues ranging from violent crime and ghost buses and trains, to flagging ridership. Give us your thoughts on what specific measures CTA should take to make train and bus service safer, more reliable and more equitable for Chicagoans.
Residents of the west end of the 30th ward rely on bus service as the most dominant form of public transit. Jump Buses and TOD development should be looked at as ways to increase reliability and consistency of service. Long term plans to extend relevant rail lines, like the expansion of the Red Line on the south side, should be studied now to determine the scope and funding options that would be needed to better serve the residents of the ward.
My Plan:
Transparency is the starting point. I will introduce a council order that the CTA President appear before the City Council on a quarterly basis. CTA leadership has to be held publicly accountable. Security must be top priority so riders feel confident they can arrive at their destination safely. Increase K9 patrols and install security cameras where needed.
Increase recruitment of drivers and staff to ensure bus and train schedules are consistent and reliable. Commission and publish a ten year infrastructure plan for expanding service to underserved communities. Produce a feasibility study on expansion of the Green line into South Shore and South Chicago neighborhoods. Commission TOD Studies like the one currently underway for Lawrence and Kedzie across the entire system.
Ten years ago, enrollment at Chicago Public Schools was 403,000 students. In September, enrollment stood at 322,000 students. Enrollment at CPS has dropped for 11 consecutive years. What specific measures should CPS undertake to reverse the trend of ever-dwindling enrollment?
As an educator, I have seen the true cost of underfunding our public institutions and top down leadership. We should be fully funding schools across all of Chicago instead of closing them. As Alderman, I will fight to get class sizes down, increase scholarships, and introduce more vocational programs so every kid has a path to high grades, a safe school environment, and resources for all classrooms.
My Plan:
Host and attend regular round table discussions with LSC leaders, principals, educators, members of the Board of Education and CPS leadership. There are too few contact points between those that run the system and those that rely on it. From these discussions we can begin to bridge the information gap that exists.
Hold Education Town Halls to gain an understanding of the community needs and expectations. This input will allow me to represent those needs within CPS and in front of the Board.
Tour and document maintenance issues in every school that serves the residents of the 30th Ward. We need to make our schools the jewels of the community by encouraging community and student volunteer projects. (ie: community gardens, murals and cleanups).
Partner and share data with neighboring Alders to increase the impact of our collective voice in the communities and at the Board of Education.
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Working with the non-for-profit community to establish scholarships and attract philanthropic investment to fill funding gaps that exist.
Raise the profile of our students, teachers and administrators achievements (there are many examples that do not make the evening news) to counter the negative narrative that permeates so we can regain the trust of parents.
Disinvestment on the South and West sides is a decades-long problem with myriad causes. Give us at least one innovative idea that you believe could play a role in reversing South and West side disinvestment, and explain why the idea is realistic and feasible.
Much like the far south and west sides, residents of the west end of the 30th ward have not seen the investment needed to bring the jobs and opportunity they deserve. The Invest South West initiative has increased infrastructure investment that will lead to confidence in the private equity and small business community to plant roots in areas long devoid of opportunity. AS we look to the next four years we can learn from what has worked and evolve this program to have an even greater impact.
The South Shore community needs reliable public transit options. CTA should explore extension of the Green Line to the former South Works sites. This a key to overcoming the long delayed hold on redevelopment of the area that includes Orr Wall Park.
Other options include expansion of the Jeffery Jump Bus pilot program.
The CTA System-Wide Rail Capacity Study shows available capacity at the extremities of all lines. This indicates that Transit Oriented Development (TOD) studies like the one in progress for Lawrence and Kedzie Ave should be started on the lines that reach the south and west sides.
Expanding the One Chicago program from a summer-only program for high school students to a year-long program with mentorship and job training opportunities in the trades.
Develop a small business strategy that lowers start up costs for entrepreneurs. (Reduce or eliminate business license fees, sidewalk cafes fees, fast track inspections for new business)
Do you support giving Chicagoans property tax relief? If yes, please explain how you would accomplish it. If no, please explain why not.
Politically expedient promises of “relief” in the form of rebate checks do little to address the funding issues in our schools, parks and pension funds. Nor does it address the systemic inequities in the property tax system.
Homeowners have to balance ROI on home improvements that may end up increasing the assessed value. I will work on an ordinance that caps assessment increases to 7% per triennial period. This will ensure that fixed income owners and young families can be sure they will not be taxed out of their homes due to gentrification.
We need to work with the Cook County Assessor to ensure there is fair, transparent and accountable implementation of the assessment process. Residents need to know where they can go to get answers to questions about the complicated process that results in the bill we receive. Most importantly, residents should be provided the tools to appeal any home assessment increases to be sure they are uniform with similar properties in their immediate neighborhood.
Finally, if we focus on expanding our tax base through increased business activity along commercial corridors, attracting well planned mixed use development and encouraging residents to invest in upkeep of the existing housing stock we will reduce the tax burden individual homes carry.
Give us your take on the city’s use of tax increment financing districts. Do you feel they have been useful, or do you feel that the problems associated with them outweigh their usefulness? What if any reforms would you want to apply to the city’s usage of TIFs?
TIFs are an outdated model that leaves many parts of the city without options to encourage economic investment. We need to expand our tool box when it comes to economic development incentives.
Where a TIF exists, we need to:
Means test the subsidies we grant.
Ensure claw back provisions are boilerplate language in every Planned Development that receives assistance.
Focus assistance on dormant and/or underutilized properties.
Keep money in our TIFs and close them down at their sunset year.
SSA’s help commercial areas address day to day cleanup and snow removal that left unattended deter commercial activity. I will work with my community groups, chambers of commerce and relevant city departments to establish additional SSA’s where needed and oversee the current SSA’s in the community now.
Once established, we need to place proper oversight protocols to ensure taxpayer dollars are being used efficiently and make the information more widely available. In my first 100 days, I will seek an audit of ward resources to ensure we are putting money toward the most beneficial programs and to address necessary changes that will lead to an increase of economic activity.
Lead in drinking water is a major health concern for the city. It is estimated that in Chicago there are roughly 400,000 homes and small apartment buildings with lead service lines. So far, the city has replaced less than 300 lead service lines. Do you feel the pace of lead service line replacement should be expedited, and if yes, what is the best, most feasible way to accomplish that?
The 30th ward has a diverse homeowner and renter population. Whether I am speaking to a neighbor in Old Irving Park or in Belmont Cragin, neighbors from either side of the ward talk equally about the deep concerns they have about their lead service lines.
The lead abatement programs are a great start, but unless we prioritize education and incentives for neighbors who own their homes but can not afford to pay for it outright, getting to 100% replacement will simply not be accomplished in the necessary expediency we need to see these service lines replaced.
As our alderman, I will push to add additional funding for an education outreach program like we do with property tax assessments or the shared sidewalk program. My office will be using every communication tool at our disposal to ensure awareness of these programs are presented to constituents.
If you are an incumbent, please explain what is it about your service on the City Council that makes you most qualified for the job. If you have never served on the council, please explain what is it about your background that makes you most qualified.
As a teacher, non-for-profit leader and community activist, I have the lived experience to bring people together. To build the bridges that have been neglected. There is more that unites us than divides us, but for too long political expediency and self preservation has been the norm.
The new 30th Ward is a more diverse demographically, economically and geographically. This means the ward office has to be ready to address the disparity of challenges and needs that our communities face. I have detailed efforts I will take to address specific issues. But it is the tone I will set that separates me from the field in this race. Honesty, compassion and a deep understanding of the great impact a government that truly serves its constituents can have on lives now and on future generations.
I served as the Director of Policy at the Puerto Rican Cultural Center when COVID-19 ravaged our city. Day in and day out, our elders, our marginalized members, and our families and children were left struggling – job loss, sickness and school closures became our mid-sized non-for-profits challenge to solve. It took connecting with other non-for-profits in healthcare like Howard Brown Health to find the first batches of the vaccines and pushed to have them serve these populations that have lack of access to a primary healthcare doctor, a reliable ride, or the understanding of how the vaccine works. I was proud to be able to connect over 7,000 residents with their first vaccines during a time that brought so much pain and fear of the unknown.
This is who you will have in your corner as the next 30th Ward Alderman. A woman who does not run from, but runs towards conflict in order to resolve it. A mom who sees that the investment in our youth is an investment in our City. And a deeply-rooted community member and organizer who cares first and foremost about what impacts constituents quality of life and provides quality constituent services.
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What is the most pressing issue facing the people of your ward, and how would you address it?
Attention to constituent services has been lacking for many years. Inconsistent allocation of Aldermanic Menu Program dollars has left some areas far behind others. Old and new areas of the ward have to be treated equally. In my first 100 days my staff and I will tour the entire ward with Streets and Sanitation and CDOT, CTA, Park District staff to document existing conditions. We will then produce and publish an infrastructure plan. This will ensure we are held accountable and residents can have a baseline for our performance in the years to come.
Sum up why should voters elect you and not your opponent(s)? (Please limit this to policy and approach, not a biography recitation.)
The issues that we face today in Chicago call for more than sloganeering or catchy soundbites from our elected officials. Our communities deserve more and are demanding more than a 120 character Twitter post. Our children deserve to grow up in a community where they do not live in fear of being shot at. Crime is out of control and how have our Aldermen responded? They have given themselves a $12,000 raise. I will not take a raise. When crime and property taxes are down, and we have created a City Council that works together for the betterment of Chicago, then we can revisit a raise.
I am ready to re-imagine the police and public safety. I am a strong advocate of police accountability and I know we can get there; I also believe that the majority of the men and women of the CPD wake up every morning to defend us. It is time that we not only call for police accountability but equally restore the faith back into our police officers. Of thousands of doors knocked in the 30th ward, not one family has stated that they do not want the police, on the contrary, they desire a better relationship with our police department. In the 30th ward we want to know our police officers the same way we know our mail carriers. How do we solve the dire issues in public safety? By working together, making the CPD a visible and intrinsic part of our communities make up.
I am pro-women and I am pro-choice and building a society that protects women’s rights and believes women’s issues are a fundamental cornerstone of a strong society. The protection of and access to women’s reproductive rights is something I will fight for everyday.
Experience matters.
I look forward to putting the breath of my lived experience on behalf of every constituent of the 30th Ward and the City of Chicago.