CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- There were no fireworks yesterday, but the contentious process of redrawing Chicago’s Ward boundaries remains stalled over the balance of power between Black and Latino Aldermen.
Up until now, members of the City Council’s Latino Caucus have refused to sign onto a Ward map that would increase Latino majority wards on the Council by two and reduce Black majority wards by one.
Alderman Jason Ervin, who chairs the Council’s Black Caucus, points out if the Rule’s Committee’s map fails to get the support of 41 Aldermen, the fate of the three competing maps would be left to the voters.
The third is the so-called People’s Map, drawn through community participation.
Aldermen don’t want to give up control of the remap process, but even Ervin admits, without a compromise, they may have no choice.
The Council remap battle is often characterized as a power struggle between Ward Boundaries drawn by the Latino Caucus and the Council Rules Committee map, which the Black Caucus supports.
Alderwoman Silvana Tabares, vice chair of the Latino Caucus, has outlined conditions for her members to work towards an agreement. Rules Committee chair, Alderwoman Michelle Harris, said that's not fair to the majority of Council members who’ve already drawn their wards.
"This diverse group of alderman of Latino, white, and black are among 34 members of the Chicago City Council who support the Rules Committee", she said.
"They share my goals in working collaboratively."
No member of the Council’s Latino caucus vocally expressed their opposition to a map drawn without their participation. But without their votes, the issue will likely result in a referendum among competing maps.
Harris said that will cost millions.
"Somebody's gonna be footing the legal bills for the city's map, so it goes back to an unfunded mandate that the citizens are going to have to pay for, because we've got to pull the money from somewhere."
19th Ward Alderman Matt O’Shea stressed no one gets everything they want in something like this.
"Every part of this is difficult. Every part of this about compromise though," he said.
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