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: Timmy Knudsen
Ward: 43rd
Current job: Alderman, City of Chicago
Previous political experience: Chairman, City of Chicago Zoning Board of Appeals Member, City of Chicago Zoning Board of Appeals Chairman, 43rd Ward Judicial Candidate Review Panel
Education: B.A., University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign J.D., University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
Spouse’s occupation: N/A
Sources of outside income: N/A
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 affects every single Chicagoan and must be a priority for every public office holder. In order to address the unacceptable increase in violent crime, as Alderman I have developed and already started to implement a pragmatic approach that makes immediate investments locally from the 43rd Ward Office as well as champions comprehensive solutions in City Council to address the root causes of crime citywide.
In my first few months in office, I have made public safety a top priority:
Investing ward infrastructure dollars toward stationary cameras that are proven to reduce crime and pushing for consistent, reliable funding from citywide revenue sources.
Helping pass the city budget which invested $3.02 billion in public safety, including an additional $100 million for violence prevention and increased funding for CPD to hire officers and purchase critical equipment.
Building strong working relationships with CPD Commander Jon Hein (18th District) and Commander Amin Jessani (19th District) to whom I speak with daily.
Supporting police officers for their work and commitment to our communities in both big and small ways, from championing better mental health programs for officers to being a present and friendly face as a fellow neighbor.
Co-sponsoring an ordinance that allows the city to impose fines and jail time on people caught with an illegal gun – regardless of what happens in the Cook County court system.
Co-sponsoring a resolution that successfully spurred CTA President Dorval Carter to agree to meet more regularly with the City Council, in part to address inaction towards ensuring rider safety.
Educating residents on ways to increase personal safety, the importance of the police district councils being set up by the Community Commission for Public Safety and Accountability, and other changing safety laws. To my core, I believe that Chicago’s best days are ahead, as a remarkable place to live and stay and an international city worth investment. To ensure we remain on that track, I will be a leader in City Council in advocating for a more data-driven and innovative approach to our public safety crisis.
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.
As a proud CTA rider myself, bringing back our city’s award-winning transit system is a major priority. The CTA is what connects us, creates job opportunities, boosts business revenues, and makes the gifts of different parts of the city accessible for all. In my second month on City Council, I co-sponsored a resolution to ensure the President of the CTA regularly appears before City Council. This ordinance proposed a quarterly meeting requirement, and its introduction pressured the administration and CTA President to agree to appearing for a special City Council hearing bi-annually. As we work to improve the CTA and invest in the CTA system further (such as the recent extension of the Red Line and modernization of the Brown Line), it is essential that its leaders show up at the table to provide vital information, engage with City Council, and hear the concerns of constituents from every neighborhood.
A comprehensive revitalization to the CTA requires increased hiring, security, and innovation. On hiring, we must all acknowledge that the on-the-ground team at CTA are front-line workers that we celebrated during the pandemic. That once-in-a-generation global crisis caused an incredible amount of stress, and eventually, a loss of employees. We must continue increased hiring and retention initiatives while improving job quality through improved benefits, stronger worker-management relations, and more holistic training. On security, we need to increase the police presence across the CTA system in a non-threatening way (such as non-uniformed officers and unarmed security guards). The creation of a dedicated transit district between CTA and the Chicago Police Department could streamline the unique task of monitoring the CTA. Finally, on modernization, until we sustain the staffing metrics required to achieve the outdated train and bus schedule (which is the root cause of many of the ghost rides), we need to move to real-time tracking. As the city government as a whole continues to modernize (and frankly catch up with the times), the CTA must do the same. Like the city as a whole, I believe that the CTA’s greatest days are ahead of us.
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?
Strong public schools are at the foundation of any community. The value of a quality education and support system early in life is ever present as a product of public education myself — from kindergarten to law school — and as someone who has several public school teachers in my family. And as someone who has planted roots and hopes to raise children in the 43rd Ward one day, a goal of mine as Alderman is to ensure every student has a supportive environment to learn and every parent feels confident in their child’s education.
Like many of the challenges that face our city, there is no silver bullet to reversing the declining enrollment at Chicago Public Schools. The pandemic took a destabilizing effect on schools across the globe, and there’s a lot of rebuilding yet to be done as we also work to ensure our city as a whole remains the best place to live, work and raise a family. I am hearted to see that rebuilding start to take shape, in part with the passage of this year’s budget — which will help hire hundreds of teachers, reduce class sizes; expand arts, dual-language, and early childhood education; and provide professional development for educators.
In addition, I see several areas of opportunity to ensure students, parents and teachers can thrive:
Continuing to improve funding for CPS to support more teachers, mental health services, and after-school programs.
Supporting teachers to ensure they are well equipped to nurture our next generation, from improving compensation and benefits to promoting their wellbeing.
Investing in school grounds and facilities to ensure students are taught in an environment that is supportive to their learning needs.
Opening lines of communication with school leaders, local school councils, “friends of” groups, and engaged parents to help share best practices and resources from school to school, which I have already started to do as alderman.
On a local level, there is also a need in 43rd Ward to ensure local public schools are strongly considered among the variety of educational options that parents have. I will use my platform to promote the investments and other supports we are providing CPS schools so that residents see their value.
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.
The only way to reverse disinvestment is through equitable investment all across our city, with a sharp focus on building opportunities in neighborhoods that have been neglected for far too long.
During my time on the Zoning Board of Appeals, I saw firsthand the power and potential of the Invest South/West community development initiative. Not only is this program directing public and private funds to develop and build economic vibrancy and opportunity on the historically disinvested South and West sides of Chicago. These investments also act as a catalyst to further investment, as I recall countless other businesses appearing before the ZBA with bold plans for adjacent properties. As neighborhoods evolve and needs change, we must ensure funding remains consistent and the project pipeline remains robust so that the goals of this groundbreaking program could be achieved.
Do you support giving Chicagoans property tax relief? If yes, please explain how you would accomplish it. If no, please explain why not.
My overarching goal as Alderman is to have people move to the 43rd Ward, stay in the 43rd Ward and invest in the 43rd Ward. I see property tax relief as a key ingredient to ensuring our ward and city remain a great place to live, work and raise a family.
In my first months as Alderman, I pushed to ensure there was no property tax increase in the 2023 city budget. We can’t rely on homeowners every time the city needs additional revenue. We must look at creative ways to reduce costs and generate new revenue streams that don’t put the burden on families. My office is also partnering with Cook County to host property tax appeal workshops from the 43rd Ward Office to provide valuable resources to residents on how they can reduce their property tax burden.
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?
TIF districts have been a useful tool for boosting development throughout the city, as well as creating well paying jobs and tax revenue. Although there have been historical challenges with the use of TIF funds, significant reforms have been put in place in the past few years that have improved oversight and transparency to ensure taxpayer dollars are used properly. Equitable investment is core to reversing historic disinvestment across the city, and a more economically balanced Chicago will lead to a more thriving economy as a whole.
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 pace of lead service line replacement must be expedited, as there is no amount of lead in water that is safe to drink (and science shows that drinking water with any amount of lead can cause significant long-term health issues). As is often the case, the existence of lead in water is more prevalent in disinvested communities, and accordingly, lead service line replacement should be prioritized to achieve health equity. Infrastructure investments of this size must be a shared responsibility across government bodies, and I am pleased with the recent influx of federal and state funds for the city to utilize for the lead service line replacement. The city must operationalize its commitment to achieving this goal while simultaneously leading educational efforts to improve water quality in affected communities.
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 Alderman, I have been an advocate for safe streets, strong schools and vibrant communities — and consensus builder who gets things done. In my first few months on the job, I have advanced each of these priorities while beginning to modernize the way our ward office approaches constituent service.
I represent a new generation of leadership both within our ward and on City Council, and I am proud to carry that torch as we move our city forward. In September, I was honored to be sworn in as the first openly gay Alderman of the 43rd Ward and the youngest member of the City Council – and I carry that weight with me each day I do this job.
In my legal profession, I have counseled innovative start-up companies, founders and their investors, helpeding some of the nation’s premier business leaders reach creative solutions that help their businesses grow. I also founded the pro-bono practice of his law firm, representing LGBTQ+ applicants for asylum in Chicago and Tijuana, Mexico.
On the Chicago Zoning Board of Appeals, I helped foster community participation in local developments and had a front row seat seeing how different Alderpeople showed up for their wards. As Chairman, I ensured local residents, neighborhood groups and stakeholders of all kinds are fully heard and fairly represented. Navigating complex real estate projects and government agencies has equipped me to be an effective problem solver, which I am taking to City Hall.
As an active member of the community, I have worked as a steadfast grassroots organizer organizing a large (and “socially distanced”) food drive during the pandemic, serving as a local voter protection officer on election days, and mobilizing on policy issues like HB40 to protect women’s reproductive rights. I have also served as Chairman of the 43rd Ward Judicial Candidate Review Panel, which was created to champion independent and merit-based endorsement processes. I’ve had an ear to residents’ priorities for years and have continued to take a community-centric approach as alderman.
I have called the 43rd Ward home ever since I’ve lived in Chicago — which was documented on HGTV’s House Hunters — and I would be honored to continue serving our community in City Council.
What is the most pressing issue facing the people of your ward, and how would you address it?
During my first months on the job, it is crystal clear that public safety is the most pressing issue in our ward. I have already started to take action on my approach of making short-term and long-term investments to address crime and its root causes. Since it was outlined above, I also want to highlight the importance of innovating constituent services to ensure our government is responsive to the residents it serves.
Municipal government has not done a sufficient job at keeping up with the fast pace of all of our daily lives. While traditional constituent service systems are set up for us as aldermen to be reactive, I believe we need to rework the wheel to start being proactive. In 2018, Chicago made a positive step for innovation through its massive investment to put 311 onto the Salesforce Platform (a customer relationship management system). Through 311, we started to treat constituent services more similar to customer requests, (For example, similar to the “MyChart” system used by many of our doctors wherein we can track our issues to completion.) However, this system needs to be bridged into aldermanic offices so that the everyday requests residents make to their local officials are effectively managed.
Currently, when a constituent makes a 311 request, in an aldermanic office we only see the requests when they are manually pulled from the system or when we call our busy Ward Superintendents. Because of this, constituents rightfully do not understand if the right place to make the request is through 311 or through their alderperson’s office. In the 43rd Ward, through an independent government technology provider, we are embarking on a system overhaul so that our office is automatically informed as soon as a 311 request is submitted. This streamlining of information will allow us to follow-up directly with the residents who made a request, ask questions, give them additional insight on completion timeline, or to help expedite the request. This type of communication will increase positive outcomes and accountability, which is why it’s been a top priority of mine.
As someone who has helped founders grow their businesses, my strong belief in bringing technology into the way we treat constituent services in the 43rd Ward will better serve our community, and serve as a model for other wards to follow.
Sum up why should voters elect you and not your opponent(s)? (Please limit this to policy and approach, not a biography recitation.)
As Alderperson, I bring a unique combination of leadership from both the private and public sectors. From my career as a law firm partner with a successful practice counseling venture capital investors and start-up companies and founders, I am skilled at negotiating sophisticated issues and value the tension that it often takes to reach consensus. Through my experience as the Chairman of the City of Chicago Zoning Board of Appeals, I understand the importance of leading conversations in a diplomatic manner and listening to all sides. As a long-time community advocate in the 43rd Ward — advancing political campaigns, promoting independent judicial candidate endorsements, and protecting human rights such as a woman’s right to choose via HB40 — I believe that all politics is local.
Strong modern leadership requires someone who does not think they have all the answers and who is skilled in identifying experts and championing their advice. Also, it requires someone who is willing to take this data to make difficult choices. Throughout my career, I have practiced my leadership style outside of my organizations through development programs like Leadership Greater Chicago, and through high stakes pro bono leadership in the immigration and asylum communities in Chicago and Tijuana. I enjoy building authentic connections with people, which has always allowed me to more relentlessly advocate for them. I look forward to continuing to execute this leadership style on behalf of the 43rd Ward.