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Daley breaks agreement, and more on those “racist” high-rise dwellers

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* Mayor Daley appears to be backing out of an earlier agreement not to put the Chicago Children’s Museum on Randolph St. in Grant Park…

“I don’t know why this is an issue now,” [former Ald. Burt Natarus] grumped, arguing that he’d reached an agreement with the Daley administration while he was still in office to prevent the museum from being relocated from Navy Pier to Daley Bicentennial Plaza, the section of Grant Park that is the subject of the current debate.

“It was already decided not to build it there,” Natarus said. “I put it in my campaign literature.”

* Meanwhile, the race issue is still causing sparks to fly…

Carole Brown, the Chicago Transit Authority chairman and a member of the museum board, said she heard a woman at a meeting earlier this month ask why the museum didn’t move to the South Side and another opponent ask if the children visiting a new museum were going to play on a Grant Park playground.

* Let’s take those issues one at a time. Is suggesting that the museum locate on the South Side racist? Perhaps that was the intent of the person who said it, but I would assume that aldermen from all over the city would like to use the museum to help revitalize their neighborhoods. As Cate Plys points out in an excellent piece this week…

However, to buy into that scenario, one must believe some manifestly untrue points: That the Children’s Museum is and will be largely patronized by needy children, rather than the mainly middle-class and wealthy people one generally sees there;

* And what about that crack about the kids playing in Grant Park? More from Plys…

This park area is not a “little-used sanctum.” Neighbors report waiting up to an hour on weekends to get a child on a swing there. (My sister-in-law says only two swings have been functional for most of the summer.) The skating rink is nearly as crowded as Millennium Park’s - so much so, I’d rather have my niece come skate at my neighborhood rink. The Bicentennial rink is free - except skate rental - and wide open to all comers. Particularly in the summer, the area is used by many people who don’t live anywhere near downtown.

UPDATE: I should’ve pointed out here that “Gigi” Pritzker thinks racism has a lot to do with the controversy…

Pritzker, the billionaire president of the board of the Chicago Children’s Museum, which is planning a controversial move to just east of Millennium Park, said the uproar is “just killing me.'’

But in an interview Wednesday, Pritzker, 45, vowed to continue to press for the Daley Bicentennial Plaza site despite opposition by some neighbors and Ald. Brendan Reilly (42nd). While not all who object to the project are racist, the theme is there, she said.

“The thing that’s sad is the loudest voices — it doesn’t mean the whole community — seem to have that component to them,'’ Pritzker said.

Who are those loud people? You got me.

* More from Plys…

I’m sure there must be some Bicentennial Plaza neighbors who don’t want to mix with anyone of a different background or income level. How could it be otherwise? There isn’t a block in this city where you won’t find people like that. The rest of the park’s neighbors, however, have legitimate concerns about welcoming a museum already drawing about a half million people per year to an area buzzing with traffic - and in the process of adding 15,000 new residents.

* And one more point from Plys’ piece…

I guess it’s easy to demonize the residents of East Randolph and Lakeshore East if you don’t know any. I know several families there besides my brother’s, and they’re all decent people who are not attempting to blockade Grant Park against anyone with less money or darker skin. Let’s give them the consideration due any citizen: consider the merits of their actual arguments, rather than inventing nefarious and non-existent motives to debate instead. […]

Instead, they’ve chosen to throw their lot in with Chicago. They understand that cities are important, that you can’t just leave them behind like an old sweater when one piece starts unraveling. They think cities are worth putting up with smaller living spaces, bad traffic and crime. They are the people who have fueled the recovery and reinvention of downtown Chicago, which is nothing short of a miracle to anyone who remembers when the Loop, South Loop and North Loop were ghost towns after normal business hours.

* Meanwhile, a brief mention in the Sun-Times story yesterday was enough to prompt a resignation…

Patrick Thompson, a nephew of the mayor’s who has represented the museum at community meetings, withdrew from the job to avoid having the proposed move “be delayed or eroded by a tangential issue.'’

posted by Rich Miller
Thursday, Sep 20, 07 @ 8:54 am

Comments

The Children’s Museum is a great place. I think the Pier is its second or third home. It has always been a great place for kids of all shapes and sizes to mix, give parents a little break and experience some new stuff.
At one time it had the world’s largest collection of LEGOs.
Reilly is probably wrong, especially if Burt had the same position.
Grant Park is really a regional facility that ought not be controlled by any alderman — even one as bright as the newbie.
Keep the parking off the street.
Let’s not worry about the kids.
Perhaps a confinemen facility for adults is in order
May I propose the alien space ship that crahsed at Solider Field?

Comment by Reddbyrd Thursday, Sep 20, 07 @ 9:12 am
I think a compromise will be reached before a Council vote. When two of Daley’s most reliable rubber stamps (Tom Tunney and Vi Daley) show early support for Reilly it’s not a good sign for the mayor. Sure, Rich Daley has been known to bring a stray alderman back into the fold but is the risk worth it? A loss to a freshman alderman would be embarrassing and could embolden others to take on Daley.

Comment by Independent Thursday, Sep 20, 07 @ 9:19 am
The Cate Plys article was outstanding. My only suggestion is that we should add a little music or possibly do a music video parodying the Mayor using Leslie Gore’ s song, “It’s My Party.”

It’s my city and I’ll do what I want to, do what I want to, do what I want to… You would help you nephew and Gigi too… There would seem to be an infinite variety of potential verses.

I really think the Annual Bar Association musical review should really do a parody along these line in its next performance this fall.So I hope there are some creative lawyers reading this blog.

Seriously, it looks like the Mayor’s tirade has completely backfired - his efforts to “bulldoze” Reilly and the City Council seem unlikley to succeed because of this PR disaster.

Comment by Captain America Thursday, Sep 20, 07 @ 9:22 am
The Garfield Park Conservatory is a great example of how investing a little money out in the neigborhoods will bring out visitors.

I don’t want to lose any park green space but moving these tourist attractions out into the neigborhoods (and upgrading public transportation as done for the conservatory) makes a lot of sense.

My family has gone to Garfield Park around every Easter for years. Last time we couldn’t get in because of the lines.

If you want to play the race card, it’s the failure to invest in the neigborhoods than in the central city that seems sort of racist to me.

Comment by Bill Baar Thursday, Sep 20, 07 @ 9:35 am
BB, you’re right about the conservatory. The city deliberately marketed the conservatory in order to spur a housing rehab boom in that neighborhood.

Comment by Rich Miller Thursday, Sep 20, 07 @ 9:49 am
While I appreciate the care with which the museum planners developed their concept, I have to strongly side with those who say it just doesn’t belong there. And with all due respect to Gigi Pritzker, her “real passion in life: kids” will be just fine on Northerly Island or any one of a dozen other sites.

By example, how many kids trek out to the wonderful Kohl Children’s Museum in Glenview or WonderWorks in Oak Park - hundreds of thousands. This kind of facility will become a destination in its own right and help revitalize the neighborhood it is put in. Given the massive numbers of visitors likely to patronize the new facility, I’m sure every Alderman would give their laft arm to land such a prize.

The racist issue is a red herring. It is pathetic that it is being trotted out by the Mayor and sad that Pritzker believes it is a primary cause of concern. Cate is right - Mayor Daley should stop throwing his temper tantrum and let adults figure it out.

Comment by Chicago Cynic Thursday, Sep 20, 07 @ 10:06 am
Father Pfleger in some earlier stories attempted to make this a racial issue. He told some 42nd ward lady to walk away from him because she wonder why this museum wasn’t being put in his neighborhood. He said it was racist, but I said why not?

What’s wrong with this children’s museum being placed on 88th and Loomis. There are certainly disadvantages, but there’s nothing wrong with that idea.

Comment by Levois Thursday, Sep 20, 07 @ 10:13 am
I’m wondering whether Father Pfleger’s concern on this issue may have more to do with the roof problems he has at his church and the money he needs to fix them than any alleged racism.

Just sayin’

Comment by Rich Miller Thursday, Sep 20, 07 @ 10:24 am
It would be smart to have the CCM be located close to the Stony Island gateway from the Toll Road, which is not that far froma Dan Ryan exist as well. It would pick up traffic coming in on I-57 as well, hitting the Ryan and then exiting east.

Comment by Truthful James Thursday, Sep 20, 07 @ 10:28 am
Rich,

How dare you suggest Father Pfleger would use a bogus controversy to stir up press for himself! That’s just shocking. Next thing you’re going to tell me is that Jesse Jackson might do the same thing. Speaking of which, where is Jesse on this one?

Comment by Chicago Cynic Thursday, Sep 20, 07 @ 10:29 am
Great points. Why not Englewood, Austin, South Shore, etc.? A struggling neighborhood would be given a new anchor around which development would coalesce. The Museum of Science and Industry and Garfield Park Conservatory prove people are willing to visit attractions away from the Loop in droves.

Comment by Independent Thursday, Sep 20, 07 @ 10:34 am
Last I heard, Rev. Jackson was backtracking from some goofy comment he made about Obama.

Comment by Rich Miller Thursday, Sep 20, 07 @ 10:42 am
Unfortunately CCM won’t survive without the pull of a nearby, much bigger attraction. They are getting all they will get, in terms of paid attendees, at Navy Pier

Locating next to MSI is marginally helpful but it would require the loss of park space, something the locals (and others) won’t want. Already the southsiders are facing the burden of holding many Olympic events in their neighborhood.

Northerly Island is too far a walk from the Shedd and it is an Olympics site. The parking lot by the Adler is an idea spot. (There has to be a controversial reason why they are not considering it.)

The Garfield Park Conservatory is not a draw for a children’s museum; it would be the beneficiary.

Across the street from the LP Zoo (on the commercial side of the street) would be a great place for CCM but there is no place for parking unless they put it in their building, which requires a lot more cash than they have. Lincoln Parkers, however, won’t want those school buses clogging up their streets getting to a different location, like the Children’s Memorial Hospital building.

There’s a new condo going up on the NE corner of Michigan and Randolph. CCM should have bought the first 100,000 sf. There are commercial buildings along South Michigan and South Wabash that are being remodeled; they could have bought space there. They can probably still take a floor or two in the old Carson, Pirie Scott department store. At the rate things are going, Macy’s will have space for them.

Comment by RBD Thursday, Sep 20, 07 @ 11:18 am
how about the old main post office building? plenty of room for lots of indoor parking (great in the winter!) and the park could be on the roof, getting richie yet another green-space award.

Comment by been there Thursday, Sep 20, 07 @ 11:32 am
How about a site by Sox park? Its a central location close to the expressways and the el. There is a ton of parking that is not used except when the Sox play.

Instead of spending money on fancy architecture that the kids won’t care about and on the law suits, they can spend the money on building features that the kids will want.

Comment by Objective Dem Thursday, Sep 20, 07 @ 12:17 pm
I don’t see what’s wrong with staying at Navy Pier.

Bicentennial Plaza should be redeveloped as general purpose recreational park space. We already have the “grand space” in the form of Millennium Park. The remaining problem is that with the burgeoning population density of that area, it has become desperately, desperately short of a place for kids to play (not to mention adults). It would be ironic indeed to give that opportunity up for relocating the children’s museum away from a spot that has served it well.

Comment by Angry Chicagoan Thursday, Sep 20, 07 @ 12:39 pm
CCM needs a location that puts its visitors within walking distance of a day’s full of family-oriented activities.

It would be great if an entertainment venue developer did something near Sox park but no group should wait for that to happen.

Comment by RBD Thursday, Sep 20, 07 @ 12:42 pm
Wow, “tangential issue” Good word from Da Mare’s nephew. I’d love to here Boss II say that.

Comment by Garp Thursday, Sep 20, 07 @ 12:46 pm
The Washington park advisory council has voted against having the olympic stadium in Washington park. I wonder will mayor Daley call them racist white black hispanic asian people attend the olympics. Who could be afraid of the olympics. They ust be racist they dont want white black asian and hispanics in the washington park

Comment by FED UP Thursday, Sep 20, 07 @ 1:03 pm
RBD,

I don’t know why you think CCM isn’t a big enough draw and so needs some other attractions to bring people along. Kohl and DuPage get hundreds of thousands of visitors with none of the advantages CCM has. What I think you’re missing is that CCM is a big enough attraction itself. It’s the draw. It doesn’t need a crutch.

Comment by Chicago Cynic Thursday, Sep 20, 07 @ 3:11 pm
I’m still interested in Carole Brown’s role.
She is the Chair of the CTA, which is being run amazingly poorly.

I wish she would spend more of her time doing CTA things rather than getting involved in other issues.

It is a matter of priorities.

Comment by Skeeter Thursday, Sep 20, 07 @ 3:25 pm
I’m with Skeeter regarding Brown’s role. It would be one thing if there was a link between the two groups that would benefit the CTA, like NIPC or whatever they call it now.

Comment by Objective Dem Thursday, Sep 20, 07 @ 3:50 pm
Set aside for a moment whether or not the mayor is guilty of race-bating. There’s a story-inside-the-story here given the media’s almost universal rebuke of Daley.

For a moment, let’s say the new Children’s Museum was planned for a park in a predominately white neighborhood on the Northwest or Southwest Side – and the community opposed construction because of “traffic” concerns. Do you think the Tribune editorial board, liberal columnists like Cate Plys, and other media types would be so quick to defend the local neighbors from charges of racism?

Well, we don’t have to wonder, because an extremely similar scenario played out about a dozen years ago in Mt. Greenwood on the Southwest Side. The Chicago Board of Ed. wanted to transform a closed grade school into 1000-student public high school. The site was located between a neighborhood park and Chicago’s last working farm. (The school would become the Agricultural Sciences High School.)

Community opposition was fierce. Neighbors and the local alderman claimed traffic congestion and fear of kids from other neighborhoods taking over the playground and ball fields at the adjacent park as there reasons for opposing the school. But, of course, race also played a major factor given that the neighbors who opposed the school were almost all white and the students who would be attending the school were predominately black.

The Chicago media were universal in their condemnation of the “racist” Mt. Greenwood neighbors. And no editorials or columns were written defending the local alderman, though she made the exact same arguments about congestion and “preserving the park” that Brendan Reilly does today.

Why the difference between the media’s approach to the two very similar controversies? Because many members of the Chicago press corps live downtown or on the lakefront, or they have friends and family members who do. That’s why their attitude this week has been: “How dare Mayor Daley or anyone else call us racist!”

Conversely, not too many media types live on the Southwest Side or the working class inner-ring suburbs that surround Chicago. So they don’t hesitate to call one of those communities “racist” if it makes for a good story.

Don’t get me wrong. I believe race played a role in the community opposition to the Agricultural School – a bigger role than it does in the museum controversy — but the Mt. Greenwood neighbor’s traffic and park concerns were legitimate too. The editorial boards and columnists were quick to dismiss the those concerns as a smoke screen when they were claimed by the lowly white trash of Mt. Greenwood. But they don’t apply the same cynicism toward the beautiful people in the high rises downtown. What we have here is a classic case of media elitism.

Comment by R.A. Thursday, Sep 20, 07 @ 4:05 pm
CHICAGO CYNIC — At the CCM meetings last year, the museum executives talked about having maxed out both space and attendance at their Navy Pier site. They are the ones that are saying they need the synergy of a bigger attraction (although it makes perfect sense). I have forgotten the numbers of attendees but a significant portion of their visitors are free — school kids who will follow them anywhere. The museum will be in financial trouble if it can’t grow its paid base. There is nothing CCM can do to make Navy Pier more attractive to paid attendees. (Although a casino at the east end might do it.)

My guess is that people have different expectations when they go to a suburban museum. Do they have to pay $19 for parking, for instance? Was it an hour or two drive just to get there? Given the effort involved in getting to downtown Chicago, visitors want more than just one stop. Plus, for a lot of adults, Navy Pier is a once-in-a-lifetime experience (-please-).

My new favorite spot for the museum is the third floor of Carson Pirie Scott on State Street, that Great Street. Block 37 would be good too but Carson’s building is being remodeled now (I think). CCM could be in their space next year.

Comment by RBD Thursday, Sep 20, 07 @ 4:57 pm
R.A., you’re comparing apples to oranges.

By law and tradition, Grant Park is to be “free and clear” of structures. That law has been upheld several times by the Illinois Supreme Court.

In your example, the Board of Education decided to reuse its existing property, already zoned for a school, to create a new high school. In the CCM case, they are seeking a change in the 171-year-old tradition and law of the city. The Art Institute was grandfathered at its location, and is supposed to be the last building east of Michigan Ave. (Although the new wing is questionable, it is at least replacing the theater that had been on site).

So no, the aldermen in these instances are not making the same arguments. Perhaps that is all you are hearing, but that doesn’t make it so.

These are not the same stories, which is why the media rightly called the Mayor on his race-baiting.

Comment by 47th Ward Thursday, Sep 20, 07 @ 5:21 pm
I do find it interesting that the mayors nephew represents the childrens museum. I wonder what other clout has cushy high paid jobs at this tax exempt non profit.

Comment by FED UP Thursday, Sep 20, 07 @ 5:29 pm
Wow, 47th Ward, you’re really disecting the minutia of my analogy. Maybe I’m a lunatic, but I see a lot of similarities here.

Obviously, both controversies aren’t EXACTLY alike, but both involve situations where a local community objected to construction of a new project that would bring a lot of people in to their respective neighborhood. In both instances, the local alderman was against the project and pointed to, among other things, traffic congestion as a concern. In both instances, the locals complained about outsiders taking over their playlot. And in both instances, the locals were accused, (rightly or wrongly,) of racism.

See the similarities? And for the record, 47th Ward, I think the mayor is race-bating, too. The point of my post was the editorial boards and columnists have rushed to the defense of the Grant Park neighbors and Alderman Reilly when no such benifit of the doubt was offered to Mt. Greenwood and Alderman Rugai during a similar controversy in the ’90s.

Comment by R.A. Thursday, Sep 20, 07 @ 9:27 pm
if they increase the sales tax, they can put the children’s museum wherever they want in the 1st ward

Comment by uncle pat Thursday, Sep 20, 07 @ 10:28 pm