CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- Chicago aldermen have approved Mayor Johnson's latest plan to help care for migrants sent here from Texas after a long debate.
The 30-18 vote directs an additional $70 million toward relief efforts for new arrivals which includes shelter, food and other assistance.
Before the vote, Jefferson Park alderman Jim Gardiner urged colleagues to vote "no" -- saying the city's spending on new arrivals should be directed toward Chicagoans who need help.
"The only difference from where I stand now and where I stood in November and May of last year was that I was a 'no' then," he added.
"Today, I'm a 'hell no."
On the other hand, Chinatown alderwoman Nicole Lee said the city needs to join state and county leaders and step up to assist the thousands of migrants bused and flown here.
"We need to be taking better care of people who are in our care. The reality is this $70 million is going to help us lock arms with the county and the state together to do this."
Northside Aldermen Scott Waguespack voted yes, but criticized how the administration has handled the money it's already got.
"I'm gonna vote for this today, but I want to see accountability," he said.
"I want to see transparency across the board and I don't want to have us keep coming back and having to fight these fights over and over again and deal with an issue that I understand was not our making."
The city council has just opened debate on another contentious proposal: the mayor's proposal to borrow more than a billion dollars to pay for a host of economic development projects.
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