Participatory Budgeting - An Open Letter to Alderman Joe Moore

Alderman Joe Moore,

This is Bill Morton. We have met on hundreds of occassions over the past decade. For the readership of this open letter, I am a resident of the 49th Ward and a registered voter.

Despite our differences concerning the best interest of Rogers Park and how the 49th Ward should be lead, I have signed up for your newsletters at least ten-times in your office and at your meetings. As a concerned citizen and a pro-active community activist, I have had to rely on our neighbors to forward your e-mail blasts to me, as you have cut my email from your list as quickly as you establish the addresses connection to me or one of my organizations.

I can only speculate the reason why you would want to exclude my works, expertise and will to better our community for everybody.

My motivation for composing this open letter to you at this time is relative to your latest e-mail blast regarding Participatory Budgeting. I have participated/voted in Participatory Budgeting in the past and upon reading the following, it became timely to address my exclusion.

"Luis Klein, our 49th Ward Participatory Budgeting coordinator, has resigned to return to school full-time and I am looking for someone to assume the task of overseeing the participatory budgeting process in our community. My staff and I already have interviewed a number of very fine candidates for that position, but before we make a final decision, we want to make sure we are not overlooking other well-qualified individuals".

I am routinely overlooked by your agenda and was not included in your quest to "make sure we are not overlooking other well-qualified individuals". Exclusion due to personal or political differences is not acceptable. Exclusion due to personal or political differences is not in the best interest of our community. It is certainly not professional or healthy for your constituency either. I am interested in Participatory Budgeting as well as learning more about the process and how the votes are counted. I am in fact interested in every program and organization that affects the 49th Ward and our neighborhood of Rogers Park.

I am heavily involved in many organizations and businesses within the 49th Ward and need to know your agenda and propositions. Please send me your e-mail blasts as regularly as you send them to the many - who take the time to forward them to keep me informed. My email address is written in pen on at least ten of your email sign-up sheets. If you have any further questions, call me at any time.

- Bill Morton





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A relevant comment

Joe Moore has had 20 years to make an impact on this community. Unfortunately, it seems that every initiative for which he is taking credit either had very little to do with actual efforts by Joe or required at least a decade to make happen. He boasts about things like his ban on foie gras and participtatory budgeting to create murals and dog parks while our streets are still run by gangs and drug dealers, our housing stock is declining and we have yet to attract the kind of businesses we need.

In my opinion, he hasn't actually achieved much of anything that has really made a real difference in our ward.

In truth, Rogers Park is still floundering instead of thriving. After 20 years, that should not be the case.

Just like it was time for Mayor Daley to step aside and make room for new dedication and new thinking, I believe it is time for us to let someone else succeed where Joe has consistently failed.

I believe we have all had enough of Joe's old school Chicago politics of trading favors, making a living off of developer money, bullying those who see through his B.S. and not delivering the meaningful ward services our residents deserve.

I've been very impressed by Brian White's career dedication to public service. He seems educated, committed to our ward and capable of making the kind of difference that Old School Joe frankly cannot.

After 20 years, Joe has done little more than coast through the job, only showing up every 4 years to keep his pay check.

I'm thinking most of us in Rogers Park are ready for new thinking and an alderman who will take the job more seriously.

- Hugh