The Chicago Sun-Times reports on the most powerful man in Chicago:
Ald. Edward M. Burke has ruled the 14th Ward for 40 years.
He has used his clout to build himself a palace -- right alongside the CTA's Orange Line near Pulaski.
The house is part of a $4.6 million development that Burke and his partners built on a parking lot over the objections of Mayor Daley's zoning administrators.
Daley's zoning staff thought the development -- one massive, three-story house along with 13 town homes -- wasn't "compatible" with the Archer Heights neighborhood, where it would tower over the surrounding bungalows.
But Burke, the city's most powerful alderman, won permission from his colleagues on the City Council for the project anyway.
You'll want to read the whole article.This is another great investigative piece of journalism by Tim Novak.For more on Alderman
Burke's rise to power.Tim Novak in the Burke article brings up the name of developer Anthony DeGrazia.Here's the
Roti family tie:
Ferro and DiPiazza have been partners with Anthony DeGrazia, another Bridgeport developer. DeGrazia's aunt, Donna Barbara DeGrazia, is a member of the Roti family. She was a secretary to former Ald. Pat Huels (11th). Huels' successor, Balcer, lives in a home built by Anthony DeGrazia. As alderman, Balcer has signed off on DeGrazia's developments, including a townhome project on an industrial site across from the 11th Ward offices.
Imagine that.
