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: JuanPablo Prieto
Ward: 30th
Current job: Director, Diversity Programs, Chicago Transit Authority
Previous political experience: I have never held a political office but the importance of serving my community is something I have seen firsthand since I was young. My dad was very active in Chicago politics throughout the 1970s through the 2000s. He served as Mayor Byrne’s assistant press secretary and assisted many Latino/as get elected. He served over 25 years with the City Colleges of Chicago in various roles and also wrote a weekly column in La Raza. I started volunteering on political campaigns with him and have continued ever since to honor his memory. Some of the campaigns I’ve volunteered on include Gery Chico for Senate (2004), Miguel Del Valle for Mayor (2011), Gilbert Villegas for Alderman (2015 & 2019), JB Pritzker for Governor (2018) Eva Dina Delgado for State Representative (2020) Gilbert Villegas for Congress (2022), Ana Valencia for Secretary of State (2022)
I currently serve on the board of directors of Spanish Coalition For Housing and La Casa Norte. It is the agency staff that are doing the work that positively impacts the residents of Chicago, but I am honored to play a crucial role in the governance and oversight of the organizations as a board member and as a board member I am responsible for setting the overall direction and policies of the organization. I also founded the Northside College Prep Alumni Association and led the organization while also serving as an elected representative on the Local School Council.
Education: I graduated from Solomon Elementary (2000), Northside College Prep High School (2004), and DePaul University (2010) with a B.A. in industrial/organizational psychology.
Spouse’s occupation: CPS School Social Worker
Sources of outside income: A rental unit in a building I own.
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.
We need appropriate levels of policing in our communities and we also need the resources to address the root causes of crime. We need to see meaningful reform of policing in Chicago so that the police can start rebuilding trust with the communities they are serving. As Alderman, I will work with the newly elected District Councils, 30th Ward residents, and the 16th, 17th, and 25th district police leadership and officers to bring everyone to the table to strengthen relationships. I will also bring more resources to the 30th Ward to address the root causes of crime – mental health services, substance abuse treatment, affordable housing, good paying jobs, food assistance, and youth development programs. Finally, I will ensure that CPD is using its budget efficiently and effectively by providing resources to attract and retain rank-and-file officers and create civilian positions to respond to incidents involving mental health crises, residents experiencing homelessness, and domestic violence.
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.
Having the unique experience, compared to the other candidates running in the 30th Ward, of working for the CTA, I know that there is an agency-wide, concerted effort to hire the staff needed to restore service levels. As Alderman, I will meet regularly with the community to understand their concerns with service and meet regularly with CTA officials to ensure those concerns are being addressed. I will hold the CTA accountable to meeting the milestones that they have established for improving service and security on the system and encourage residents to ride the system. Not only will I encourage them, but I will lead by example. I have used the CTA my entire adult life and will continue to do so as Alderman to support the system that provides a vital service to working class families. I will also advocate for more equitable funding of the CTA to ensure that we can maintain the service needed and not raise fares, especially for working class residents that depend on transit.
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 Alderman, I will work with CPS to ensure we are equitably funding and investing in our schools to provide a world-class education to every student, regardless of where they live. I will also work with the community to find resources to improve schools, as I did when I helped a group of parents and community members advocate for a playground at Scammon Elementary. As a CPS graduate and parent, I know the impact that a school has on a child’s life. Using my track record of coalition building, I will organize with other Adlerpeople and elected officials to go to Springfield to advocate for a more equitable funding structure to our public education. This effort does not only fall on CPS though. We need to invest in communities that have suffered decades of disinvestment to provide more middle-class, family sustaining jobs and better services so residents want to stay in the City and send their children to CPS.
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.
With the amount of capital funding coming to the City from the State Capital Plan and the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), I will continue my work with trade unions and other stakeholders to provide the training and resources to create careers for the residents of the South and West sides. As an Alderman, I will ensure the City is investing in those areas, which will bring construction jobs and provide a gateway to the middle class with stable, well-paying jobs with great benefits. These investments will also create opportunities for entrepreneurs to open new businesses and create new business corridors.
Do you support giving Chicagoans property tax relief? If yes, please explain how you would accomplish it. If no, please explain why not.
With the amount of capital funding coming to the City from the State Capital Plan and the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), I will continue my work with trade unions and other stakeholders to provide the training and resources to create careers for the residents of the South and West sides. As an Alderman, I will ensure the City is investing in those areas, which will bring construction jobs and provide a gateway to the middle class with stable, well-paying jobs with great benefits. These investments will also create opportunities for entrepreneurs to open new businesses and create new business corridors.
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 have the potential to be useful but have been mismanaged and are ripe for corruption. As Alderman, I would request an audit of all TIF districts to ensure the funds were being collected and used as intended. Furthermore, I would ensure that the City explored every other funding mechanism before creating a TIF district. Finally, I would advocate for disinvested communities to be made priority in any spending.
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?
Yes, I believe the service line replacement should be expedited and should prioritize historically disinvested communities. The City needs to review the lines that need replacement and establish an aggressive schedule to replace those lines in economically disadvantaged areas first. The City can leverage American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds to hire temporary staff to meet the aggressive schedule so that lines are replaced as quickly as possible.
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.
My expertise in government, small business development, and coalition building makes me the most qualified candidate to bring transparent and responsive representation to the 30th Ward. From my over 7 years in retail sales where I developed my customer service skills to my over 8 years at CTA where I have developed and implemented policies to connect small, minority-and-women owned businesses to hundreds of millions of dollars in contracting opportunities, I am ready to advocate for and create policies that will improve the day-to-day lives of the residents of the 30th Ward and the City of Chicago.
What is the most pressing issue facing the people of your ward, and how would you address it?
I believe the three main issues facing the 30th Ward are public safety, equitable development, and small business investment. We’ve knocked on over 5,000 doors in the 30th ward to date, and the number one concern we hear from residents is public safety, most notably, crime and safe streets. There are short term and long term solutions to public safety and we need both to effectively address the concerns of the 30th Ward. First, we need to ensure that we have the appropriate levels of policing in the Ward and foster relationships between the police and residents to rebuild trust. Police need to be held accountable for misconduct, and the police force needs more resources in the form of civilian positions to address issues that the police are not equipped to: mental health, substance abuse disorders, homelessness, all of which would benefit from a treatment-not-trauma service approach. If we are able to delegate tasks that the police force are currently responsible for to civilian positions, the police will have more time to focus on the work that they are trained for. Additionally, they will have a better work life balance, and avoid burnout and the associated mental health consequences
Sum up why should voters elect you and not your opponent(s)? (Please limit this to policy and approach, not a biography recitation.)
An Alderperson is a resident’s voice for day-to-day services and long-term policy. I am the only candidate for 30th Ward Alderperson with a public record of creating and implementing policies and initiatives and with the experience in city government and coalition building. Residents deserve transparent and responsive representation and, with my expertise in customer service, I will deliver an office that will work with the community to solve issues and implement solutions. I will institute participatory budgeting and multiple committees to ensure I have the community with me for every decision. For the past 8 years, I have addressed short-term challenges and implemented long-term solutions; I will be ready to serve the people of the 30th Ward on day one.