Kenwood

I've gone through two locksmiths now - Chitown Locksmith and Mega Locksmith, without getting any services. In the 1st case (Chitown) the tech called me 5 minutes before the 2-hour window passed, to tell me he'd be 45 minutes or more late. I told him don't bother. I let them choose whatever 2-hour window they wanted the previous day, and they didn't have the courtesy to show up in the time of their choosing or to let me know they'd be late until 5 minutes before I had waited for 2 hours.

While that sucks, it doesn't suck as much as a locksmith not showing up or calling at all, like Mega Locksmith did. I made an appointment yesterday with them for today, 12/31 between 9 and 10 a.m. Yes, I live on the South Side (on Lake Park in an affluent area) but why should that mean that we can't get any services at all?

The locksmith never showed up, and it is now 12:30 p.m. I got no call saying that they would be late or that they couldn't or wouldn't come. I am sick and tired of businesses not serving the South Side with any professionalism whatsoever. If they had at least called before the time passed for the appointment I would have given them some credit for professionalism which ChiTown Locksmith (barely) had a little of.

I called Ashland locksmith and made an appointment for next Tuesday at 9:30 a.m. - we'll see if they show at all. What they said was troubling though - 'we only have one tech and we can't send him to the South Side today - we have to keep them here for business on the North Side. So North Side business is 'better'?

I'm considering cancelling them as well and going through the rest of the phone book until I find one business willing to come to the South Side and do business professionally and without comments like that.

Does anyone have any other suggestions for locksmiths (that come out and fix/change locks) on the South Side?

The recently published Urban Institute report on the impact of CHA relocatees on crime rates has stoked tension in communities between CHA and non-CHA residents.

The report is very nuanced. The topline summary provided by the media has served to only confirm the worst fears of middle class residents of communities with CHA relocatees.

While media attention has been focused on the impact of CHA relocatees on crime rates, some points must be made. First, crime rates dropped across Chicago in the 2000s. Second, the amount of the reduction in crime in communities with CHA relocatees is related to the concentration of CHA relocatees. Communities with low numbers of relocatees experienced a larger reduction in crime rates than communities with high numbers of CHA relocatees.

More importantly, the report demonstrates that communities that converted traditional public housing to mixed income transformation sites experienced significant reductions in crime rates. For many years the Fourth Ward has had traditional public housing projects such as Washington Park, Ida B. Wells, Madden, Darrow, and Lake Michigan Homes. The CHA transformation plan has converted traditional public housing into mixed income developments.

Mixed income housing disaggregates toxic concentrations of poverty, increases the median income of neighborhoods, grows population density, and spurs retail development.

Current and future mixed income housing developments in the Fourth Ward require drug testing for all residents, regardless of income, and prospective tenants submit to a rigorous selection process.

Finally, I have made it clear to CHA in public and private meetings that lease provisions must be enforced and that CHA residents who fail to comply with their leases must be evicted.

Today the Mayor's Ethics Task Force released its first report with recommendations on how to improve Chicago's ethics ordinance and the enforcement of the City's ethics policies.

The Task Force, attorneys, and consultants spent countless hours reviewing best practices from other cities and states and benchmarking Chicago's ordinance against those practices. Key leaders in this field including inspectors general, ethics commissions members, and reform advocates provided important insight on ethics policy.

I believe that this report strikes the right balance. The Task Force recognized that most employees and officials want to do the right thing. Here are some the highlights of the Task Force's first report. The report:

• calls on the Mayor's office and the Board of Ethics to revise its ethics guidance materials;
• recommends lowering the amount of gifts allowed from $100 to $50 for City employees and officials;
• urges pre-clearance by the executive director of the Board of Ethics for trips and educational missions taken by City employees and officials;
• offers cleanup language for conflicts of interest that make it simpler for employees and officials to understand;
• recommends disclosure of additional information on financial interest statements;
• encourages the City to incorporate the State's ban on prohibited political activities into the Ethics Ordinance.

The Task Force will continue to work on other issues related to the Ethics Ordinance and plans to introduce a second report in late July of this year.