60185 🇺🇸

Happy Cyber Monday! Buy local please!

Ward 1 Alderman Dan Beebe describes the 2026 budget proposal that will receive a vote tonight, December 1, 2025. We catch up on what is happening to the grocery tax (!!), explain sewer and water rate increases and why West Chicago treats its own water, and hear the story of how Dan got onto the city council (he wasn’t appointed!).

We also discussed a couple of things I’m still grappling with:

* Why is the council so… quiet? We joke often about how long the meetings are now, but it’s because they used to be 10 minutes, with very little public comment. Now we see lots of public comments, but still less conversation among council members than I would expect. Is it possible that the council before April 1 was borderline rubber-stampy? Which leads into my next question:

* Do we rely more than necessary on consultants? I’ve been thinking about this a lot in the last few months, both in the context of the City and the Library (where I am a board member).

On the one hand, consultants provide institutional knowledge that you just don’t get from a group of 15 ever-changing volunteers. At the state and federal levels this is provided by staff and (gulp) lobbyists, who have been around for decades and may have deeper knowledge and time on an issue than either staff or electeds. Dan Beebe also explains to us in this episode that staff simply just don’t have time to do some of the tasks that we need done, like modernizing city code.

HOWEVER: Dan also told us that in his time with the city (on commissions and on the council), he has watched the city pay consultants to develop at least 3 plans to revitalize the downtown. Then there’s the 20 year old Strategic Vision that basically went untouched. In April, we overwhelmingly heard a direction from voters to work on our downtown—but here we are budgeting even more money for consultants to advise us how to do that.

As a resident, I’d love to not pour more money into consultants when we haven’t tried ideas from the last ones yet. And I’m not talking about real estate deals with bad timing. How about basic recommendations for improving downtown? How about trying out the idea in one of our consulting plans to allow residents to build separate mother-in-law suites in town? This would address our housing shortage while giving residents more chances to make ends meet in our challenging economy.

What do you think? Am I off base here? If you’re a member of the council or city staff, would you be willing to come on the show to explain to me why we need even more consultants? 💙

P.S. We sponsored a soccer team! Eusebian is a longstanding outreach program at New Life Bilingual Church in West Chicago.

Cover photo courtesy of the West Chicago Voice. Alderman Dan Beebe (far right) speaks with protestors in spring 2025 at city hall.

Alderman Al Hallett joins us for an open conversation about his childhood, his time in Vietnam, how he ended up in West Chicago and on the City Council, and what he plans to do in the next 2027 consolidated election.

Trigger warning: this episode mentions warfare, mass killings, and PTSD.

Concejala Alcantar-Garcia habla de cómo la aumentación de actividad de la migra ha afectado la comunidad de West Chicago, los derechos de personas que están detenidos por ICE, y los recursos comunitarios disponibles para los que tienen miedo de salir.

* Alrededor de 19 personas han sido detenido por agentes de ICE desde 15 de Septiembre

* Llame al 855-435-7693 para informar sobre avistamientos del ICE. Se trata de la línea de atención telefónica de apoyo a las familias establecida a través de la Coalición de Illinois por los Derechos de los Inmigrantes y Refugiados.

* La policía de West Chicago no pueden involucrarse en las actividades de ICE, para apoyarles o para pararles.

* Hay esfuerzos de hacer legislación en el nivel estatal y federal haciendo que agentes de ICE no puedan usar máscaras.

* Concejala Alcantar-Garcia está parte de conversaciones sobre la posibilidad de prevenir el uso de propiedades como el Ayuntamiento o la Estación de Policía local por agentes federales, para mantener estas ubicaciones seguro para residentes.

Things we learned from Matt—

• Kamila Cakes’ owner is a TikTok influencer!
• Reducing the barriers small business face in West Chicago
• Of the 118 city staff in West Chicago, how many work with businesses? (Fun fact: we have 51 police officers and 44 public works staff—that's 80% of the city employees)
• Reviving a downtown business alliance for West Chicago
• The financial reserves that West Chicago keeps on hand, always—and what that means for the yearly budget
• Does Matt know what happened to the 13-14M Kerr-McGee funds? (spoiler alert: nobody does)
• What makes Ward 7 so unique
• The grocery tax vs. sales tax debate
• The NEWLY forming Downtown Revitalization Commission—APPLY HERE.
• Why the long meetings in the Bovey Era are a sign of a good meeting.
• What we should be looking out for in the next few months 

Plus, Laura briefly recaps the Sept. 2 council meeting—both the grocery tax and sales tax were tabled until the Sept. 15 meeting.

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During the August 4, 2025 West Chicago City Council meeting, a meeting where Mayor Bovey was absent, Ald. Alton Hallett—a Vietnam war veteran—publicly questioned Ald. Carreto-Muñoz on why she was standing during the Pledge of Allegiance rather than putting her hand on her heart. He questioned her on a number of things—including what the 13 red strips on the flag mean—prompting a quick reaction not from other members of the council, but from the public.

We play the audio from that interaction, and then talk to Denise about what was going through her head in that moment, what Ald. Hallett said to her after the meeting, and what it's like being one of the youngest members of the city council. She talks about her decision to run for office, and recaps the 'backyard chicken' ordinance (seomthing Ald. Hallett also voted for, despite vows in past meetings). We also cover the question of whether and which lawyers would be paid for their services to the city between May and August, 2025.

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Durante la reunión del Concejo Municipal de West Chicago del 4 de agosto de 2025, en la que el alcalde Bovey estuvo ausente, el concejal Alton Hallett, veterano de la guerra de Vietnam, cuestionó públicamente a la concejala Carreto-Muñoz por qué se limitó a permanecer de pie durante el Juramento a la Bandera y no se puso la mano sobre el corazón. La cuestionó sobre varios aspectos, incluyendo el significado de las 13 franjas rojas de la bandera, lo que provocó una rápida reacción, no de los demás concejales, sino del público.

Hablamos con Denise sobre lo que pasaba por su mente en ese momento, lo que le dijo el concejal Hallett después de la reunión y cómo es ser una de las concejalas más jóvenes. Habla sobre su decisión de postularse y recapitula la ordenanza sobre las gallinas de traspatio (algo por lo que la concejala Hallett también votó, a pesar de sus promesas en reuniones anteriores). También abordamos la cuestión de si se pagaría a los abogados por sus servicios a la ciudad entre mayo y agosto de 2025, y cuáles serían esos abogados.

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NOTA: NO haremos un resumen de la reunión del Consejo Municipal de esta noche, ¡al menos no por ahora!, pero puede ver la reunión en vivo por Zoom y a pedido en YouTube.

Aquí están los detalles, a través del sitio web de la ciudad: https://westchicago.org/news/august-4-city-council-meeting-to-be-livestreamed/

Rebecca Holmes, recién elegida Síndica del Township de Winfield, nos acompaña para hablar sobre qué son los townships, qué hacen y por qué se postuló para el cargo. Describe algunos de los servicios que ofrece un township, como asistencia financiera para necesidades básicas (como ayuda de emergencia para el alquiler) y un botiquín para pedir prestado equipo, como sillas de ruedas. El township también ofrece servicios de registro de votantes y notariado en su oficina de Arbor Ave.

Hablamos sobre cómo los townships evitan la duplicación de servicios, lo que Rebecca aprendió durante su capacitación como fideicomisaria y el cambio que puede generar postularse para un cargo local.

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NOTE: we will NOT be recapping tonight's City Council meeting—at least not anytime soon!–but you can watch the meeting live on Zoom, and on-demand on YouTube.

Here are the details, via the city website: https://westchicago.org/news/august-4-city-council-meeting-to-be-livestreamed/

Newly elected Winfield Township Trustee Rebecca Holmes joins to discuss what townships are, what they do, and why she ran for the office. She describes some of the services provided by a township, included cash assistance for basic needs (like emergency aid for rent)—and a medical closet for borrowing equipment like wheelchairs. The township also offers voter registration and notary services at its office on Arbor Ave.

We talk about how townships avoid duplication of services, what Rebecca learned during her trustee training, and the change that can be affected by running for local office.

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Laura and Mayor Bovey unpack last night's City Council meeting, including a tale of two gas stations:

1) the BP on North Ave. and 59, which the the previous city administration took to federal court for staining their bricks;

2) the situation with the Speedway at 38 and Fabyan Parkway, and what the legal term "estoppel" means for them.

They reflect on the Mayor's first 12 weeks in office, Heather Niziolek's bombshell public comment last night (and how the city's approach to FOIAs is changing), the removal of radioactive pipes and waste on Main Street, and Mayor Bovey's dream of a train themed public plaza on West Washington street.

And, a reminder: have compassion for city staff! (And re-submit those FOIAs)

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On July 7, the City Council approved a separation agreement with City Administrator Michael Guttman, appointed interim leadership, and hired a law firm—at least for the next 31 days.

But the city’s legal battles are far from over. We unpack the latest developments in the Bond law firm saga, including withheld payments, legal threats, and competing interpretations of power and process. Plus: What’s next for the third-party city administrator search, and why one council member says delay is the real tactic at play.

Includes commentary from Marcus Brown, Jeff Jacobson, and Ald. Matthew Myers.

Topics:

• Guttman’s soft landing and $60K payout
• Initial confusion over who represents the city legally (and finally, a resolution)
• Interim appointments and hiring updates
• Lawsuit concerns and political maneuvering
• Public trust, transparency, and what comes next

“When people hear updates along the line of a decision making process—you’re allowed to change your mind. That’s okay. The public being able to get a window into the process of what’s going on in an alderman’s thinking is going to build trust. Right now it’s just the black box feeling. This is a really opaque group of people and nobody can really get in their brains.”

—Liuan

CORRECTIONS:

Jeff Jacobsen has not defended the Boveys in their greenhouse lawsuit since January.

(By the way, did you know the Boveys never sued the city? It was the other way around—and the City Council could vote to drop it at any time if they so chose)

Liuan's Excellent Live Notes:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/18dRsM7ssiTuOYAdPz1sdgxgW4_nwry18zTOCYRR9dhg/edit?usp=sharing

This show is not affiliated with the city or any entity.

Next episode: What does a township do?

Next City Council Meeting: Monday, July 21 at 7pm

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