The Chicago Reader reports:
The United deal passed unanimously without debate. Finance committee chair Ed Burke said, "The net effect on the Chicago economy will be tremendous over the next ten years, and this represents an ongoing commitment from United Airlines to its hometown.”
Now that the City Council's Committee on Finance has given its consent, the full council will probably vote tomorrow to approve a deal giving United Airlines $35.4 million in taxpayer-funded subsidies to move its corporate headquarters, along with at least 2,500 jobs, into the Willis Tower. That works out to about $14,356 per job.
This money comes on top of $15.4 million in assistance the city gave United just two years ago to move its corporate headquarters and at least 325 jobs from Elk Grove Village to 77 W. Wacker.
City officials say United's presence in the Loop will produce tens of millions of dollars more in economic benefits than these initial public outlays, most of which are drawn from tax increment financing accounts.
No debate, that's the Alderman Burke way. The taxpayers be damned.Any doubt on who's running things in
Chicago? How could we forgot this quote from the
Chicago Sun-Times:
Burke has a history of voting on legislation involving his legal clients. Ten years ago, the Sun-Times found Burke voted to approve city leases for two airlines represented by his law firm. Burke then used a rare parliamentary move to change four “yes” votes to abstentions. Burke blamed those “yes” votes on the late Ald. Thomas Cullerton, claiming he told Cullerton that he planned to abstain from voting on the airline leases.
There's only one Alderman Burke. Just one.
