Interview with Ald. Anthony Beale
Ald. Beale Wants a “COP House” in the 9th Ward
During the interview that premiered on June 30 with League member Judi Schindler, Ald. Anthony Beale of the 9th Ward said one of his goals is to open the first “COP house” in Chicago in the Roseland neighborhood. Community Oriented Policing (“COP”) houses are community centers and police outposts in areas of high crime that rehab run-down houses and offer programs to meet the neighborhood’s wants and needs. The concept was pioneered in Racine, Wisconsin. Racine how has six COP houses.
As detailed on the Racine web site, the goals of COP houses are to build relationships between the police and community, improve the quality of life of the neighborhood, reduce crime, and empower citizens to take back their neighborhoods. Racine reports that crime in some of the neighborhoods with COP houses has been reduced by as much as 70%.
A Chicago COP house is already under development. Ald. Beale said that funding is available from S.C. Johnson Company (headquartered in Racine), and a house in Roseland has been selected and is undergoing rehab. Ald. Beale is waiting for the Chicago Police Superintendent to agree to staff the house or for Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart to provide the officers for staffing.
Watch the full interview above or read on for more highlights:
Ald. Beale told us that he would like to see the Council be a stronger body, and not a rubber stamp for what the mayor wants. He said that too often committee chairs, who have their positions because of the mayor, will not bring up proposals for a vote if the mayor opposes them. He gave the example of an ordinance amendment he filed last year to change the speed for which fines can be levied from speed cameras from 6 miles over to 10 miles over the speed limit. The item recently was recently voted out of the Finance Committee with a recommendation to approve after sitting in the Rules Committee for months. Alderpersons at the June 22 City Council meeting moved to defer and publish the item, which sent the item back to the Rules Committee to be again referred to a Committee for consideration. (Item O2021-1227)
One of the many committees on which Ald. Beale serves on is the Zoning Committee. Ald. Beale says that most developments need zoning changes, so he has the opportunity to see projects from all areas of the city and bring back ideas for his own ward.
Ald. Beale says he takes great pride in knowing where funds may be had (from both the public and private sectors) and bringing them to his community. For example, he helped obtain $20 million for the Pullman Community Center at no cost to the taxpayers. His emphasis is on brick-and-mortar projects that produce a lasting benefit, as opposed to program funding that can run out.
The 9th Ward is located on the far South Side, currently starting at 87th Street and extending to the city’s border, and between the Bishop Ford Expressway on the east and State Street/Union/Lowe on the west. The ward includes the neighborhoods of Burnside, Roseland, West Pullman, Pullman (a national monument – the only other one in Illinois being the Lincoln home in Springfield), and the township of Riverdale.