Despite complaints from some alders and advocates that it could saddle future taxpayers with massive debt, the Chicago City Council has given the green light for the city to borrow $830 million to repair Chicago’s streets, sidewalks and bridges.
The 26-23 vote on Feb. 27 clears the way for maintenance work and improvements such as $157.5 million for street repairs and safety upgrades, $115.5 million for new streetscapes, $108 million for projects selected by each alderperson to repair infrastructure in their wards or fund local organizations, $102 million for resurfacing residential and arterial streets and create green alleys to help reduce flooding, $100 million for replacing lead service lines, $98.1 million to replace and repair the city’s bridges, $73.8 million to renovate police and fire stations and other city buildings and $64.9 million to buy new police vehicles and firetrucks.
Supporters of the borrowing plan said the city needs to move forward with improving infrastructure because the future of federal funding for the city’s needs is uncertain. The Chicago budget has grown by over $6 billion since 2019.
“We need to become self-sufficient,” Ald. Walter Burnett (27th ward) said during the city council meeting. “I think this is very wise and very smart and very beneficial to make sure that we can self-sustain ourselves for the future for the infrastructure that we need.”
Opponents objected to how the plan is structured. It allows for the city to pay only interest for the first 19 years. If the city doesn’t make a dent in the principal until 2045 and doesn’t pay off the debt until 2055, it would cost the taxpayers a total of $2 billion.
Ald. Bill Conway (34th ward) spoke against how the borrowing is structured.
“If you find yourself in a hole, the first thing you do is stop digging. Short-term benefits aren’t worth decades of financial harm,” he said.