Earth Day, Mayor Daley and Fake Grass

April 22, 2010 - Chicago laughingly calls itself a "City in a Garden." Mayor Richard M. Daley prides himself on being a green guy, very environmentally sensitive. Don't make me laugh. The next time you pass a public school in Chicago or walk through a park, take a closer look at the "grass" - particularly on athletic fields. It just might be fake.

While Mayor Daley is vocal about planting weeds on the "green" rooftop of City Hall, he's rather quiet about the fact that a lot of natural grass is being ripped up and replaced by artificial turf. That's right, fake grass. It contributes nothing to the environment. It doesn't produce oxygen. It provides no habitat for insects, no feeding ground for birds or other small animals. The Chicago Park District says it will save money because it's cheaper than maintaining real sod.

Today, Mayor Daley played host to Ray LaHood, Secretary of the U.S. Department of Transporation. They addressed a crowd in Daley Plaza downtown, surrounded by concrete, steel, glass and asphalt.

LaHood told the crowd, "You are in the greenest city in America with the greenest mayor in America! And we all oughta be happy about that!"  I don't know whether LaHood was serious, just naively mistaken, or really that ignorant of the thousands of cities, towns and villages across America that are far greener than Chicago. 

As Bill Cameron reported on WLS News this afternoon, LaHood's words "sounded good, but Chicago still lags far behind many other big cities on the basic environmental discipline of getting normal household garbage recycled."  

Cameron did not mention the fact that Mayor Daley seems intent on getting ahead of other urban communities in the replacement of natural grass with artificial turf. 

The cost-savings argument made to justify the fake grass is insulting. The city is doing a very anti-green thing by destroying natural grass in the name of cost savings. If a private company tries to save a few dollars by not "going green," however, they chance being ridiculed or even fined. Let the city rip up the environment, however, and it's called "another park improvement."

Furthermore, to carry the Park District's cost-saving argument to its logical end, real trees should be replaced with artificial ones. After all, it costs a lot of money for tree trimming crews to maintain the tens of thousands of trees in parks and along the public way. A single new tree planted by the city can cost well upwards of $200, not including labor costs for sticking it in the ground.

The next time you hear Mayor Daley talk about being green, ask yourself this: How green is it to replace hundreds of acres of natural grass throughout Chicago with what amounts to outdoor carpeting?

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Nice Work, Pratt Beach Lifeguards

James Laden, 36, drowned on Wednesday after he and "another person" jumped from the concrete pier into rocky, shallow water at Pratt Beach (part of Loyola Park at 1045 W. Pratt Blvd). Why did it take lifeguards up to 12 minutes to pull him out of shallow water? It's reported that Laden and a friend jumped into Lake Michigan Wednesday afternoon. "The men had reportedly been fishing on the pier at Pratt Boulevard," reports ABC7 Chicago, "They went into the water, and one may have gotten tangled up in a fishing line. The police marine unit was able to rescue one of the victims, who was unharmed. James Laden, 36, was under water for up to 12 minutes before a lifeguard got him out. He was pronounced dead at St. Francis Hospital in Evanston." WBBM 780 AM reported that a Fire Media Affairs spokesman claims that a lifeguard pulled Laden out of the water, but that he may have become tangled in fishing line. What we don't hear is why two "fishermen" would jump off of that pier, where everyone knows the water is shallow and very rocky. Authorities don't explain why lifeguards are rarely seen on that pier. Was there alcohol involved? Drinking is a common practice on the end of that pier, in part because the lifeguards rarely bother to patrol it. I suppose it's possible that the light fishing line used at that pier by most fishermen prevented the big strong lifeguard from pulling him the 6 to 10 feet to the surface, but it seems unlikely. Reports all say that Laden was under the water for 10 to 12 minutes before the lifeguard got him out. There's no excuse for that. Had a lifeguard been stationed nearby, as one should have been, Laden might be alive today. Think about that. A young, healthy lifeguard can run the length of that pier in about 30 seconds. In the 10 years that I frequently visited that pier, in all weather, I have never seen a lifeguard stationed on it. The nearest ones are either lounging in a trailer or bobbing in a row boat in a part of the lake where the end of the pier cannot be seen. In other words, the pier has been a disaster waiting to happen for years. We have reported on the lifeguards at Pratt Beach previously: NO WARNING: Chicago Lifeguards Clueless (with video) No White Shoes (or Lifeguards) After Labor Day Update #2: Parking on Pratt (with photos) Are YOU a citizen of the United STRAIGHTS of America? Leave a Comment... Chicago News Bench RSS Feed We're on Twitter...

Eco-Nuts Grab More Chicago Lake Front

While the Chicago Park District is publicly plotting to extend the lake front four more miles (against the wishes of voters, it should be noted), a stealthy move has already been made to appropriate portions of our lake front. There are a number of "dunes," or "nature areas" that have been in place since at least 2007. Chicago Park District lists the areas as: Burnham Park , Gompers Park, Humboldt Park, Indian Boundary Park & Cultural Center, Jackson Park, Lincoln Park, Loyola Park, Montrose Beach, Nichols Park , North Park Village Nature Center, Osterman Beach, Rainbow Beach , Ridge Park Wetlands Park, Sherman Park, Washington Park and Winnemac Park. We'll look at Loyola Park here, but I just want to note that some of the locations, such as Osterman Beach, resemble little more than strips of scrubby weeds wedged between sand and high rise buildings. These "dunes" projects are, purportedly, designed to provide sanctuary to wildlife. One such project is Loyola Park, on Chicago's North Side, a block east of N. Sheridan Road at the end of W. Pratt Avenue. The "dunes" are suddenly larger this year than last, and not by natural action. Rather, humans have essentially confiscated more of the beach for the purpose of well, for the purpose of some idiotic tilt at windmills. See the slideshow, below. It is, to be frank, ridiculous. Volunteers spend full days hunched over, seeking out non-native plants and hand pulling them from the sandy soil. It's a futile battle, of course. Dandelions are an "invasive" species, for example. Dandelions are native to Asia, and I seriously doubt that the well meaning, simple minded eco-volunteers will win their war (let alone a single battle) to keep the "dunes" dandelion free. That's just one of a hundred non-native species that the volunteers cannot realistically hope to keep out unless they enclose the area with a dome. Another problem: The three willow trees nearby have spawned thousands of foot-high offspring in the dunes, and volunteers last year told me that they, like dandelions, are undesirable. Again, a losing battle unless those willows are removed, and that would set off a public relations disaster for the dune fanatics. The projects are still just laughable oddities, but they hold a menacing promise. Do beach-going Chicagoans really want the eco-lunatics to enlarge their anti-dandelion battlefields to take more and more precious beachfront away from human enjoyment? That's their goal, you know. They'll deny it, of course, but ask them this: How much more space for the "dunes" will you need, and when will it be enough? RELATED: Take care of what's of there first - Chicago Tribune Nature Area Volunteer Stewardship Days - Chicago Park District Leave a Comment... See Our Online Store Chicago News Bench RSS Feed We're on Twitter...

Police Scanner Soundbites, 24th District, Chicago

JUNE 1, 2009 - 24TH DISTRICT, CHICAGO JUST ANOTHER DAY The raw notes, taken in real time: 6130 N. Claremont 2:03 PM - Female Officer - "6130 on Claremont, ASSIST!" Dispatcher starts help rolling toward her to assist. 2:05 - Female "STEP IT UP! STEP IT UP!" 2:06 - Male officer, "Slow it down" 2:06 - Dispatch "Offender in custody" 2:06 - Male, "Get an ambulance rolling toward Claremont" 2:08 - Male, "No more units needed here" Dispatcher, "Ambulance is rolling" 2:08 - Male, "We need a wagon and leg irons over here" 2:10 - Dispatcher asks a unit to look for a black man who is scamming businesses on W. Howard. Unit comes back and says he's trying to disperse a crowd at "1500-1600" W. Howard. He added, "It's a warm day and it's pretty busy up here." 2:11 PM Dispatch says "Male white, light colored shirt, balding on the top, gray van, 65 yrs of age, last seen eastbound on Farwell. He's asking women if they need a ride." Gray minivan, license plate starts with 231." 2:12 PM Suspicious auto with occupants, Farwell at Lakewood. 2:12 PM - 2808 W. Touhy - Sex offense in progress... Now walking southbound on California... 2:17 PM - Officer radios, "...at 6180 N. Claremont , one officer going to hospital, some officers going to station with offender" RELATED: Rogers Park Resident Calls CAPS "Silly" Leave a Comment Here... See our cool merchandise... Chicago News Bench RSS Feed Hey! ChiNewsBench is on Twitter

How Will the Olympics Affect Lincoln Park?

The Lincoln Park Advisory Council (LPAC) invites you to attend a forum, free to the public: The Olympic Games and Their Impact on Our Park When: Wednesday, January 14 6:45 pm to 8:45 pm There will be ample time for audience participation and Q&A Where: The Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum 2430 N. Cannon Drive, just north of Fullerton Ave. Street parking is usually available on Cannon Drive. The CTA bus #151 runs along nearby Stockton Drive For more information, contact LPAC Board Secretary, Tom Tresser at 312-804-3230 or tom@tresser.com ABOUT THE SPEAKERS: Gyata Kimmons is the Director of Community Relations for the Chicago 2016 Olympic Bid Committee. Before that, Mr. Kimmons was Deputy Director of Intergovernmental Affairs for the Chicago Public Schools and prior to that he was an Assistant to the Mayor. Mr. Kimmons has a law degree from Howard University and a B.A. in Political Science from Hampton University. He also serves as Leadership Development Chair for the YWCA Future Leaders Council. Web site: http://www.chicago2016.org Dr. Allen Sanderson is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Economics at the University of Chicago and a Senior Research Scientist at the National Opinion Research Center. Mr. Sanderson is an oft-cited authority on sports economics issues, a contributor to op-ed pages on sports and non-sports topics in newspapers around the country and a frequent guest on national and Chicago-area television and radio programs. Mr. Sanderson serves on the editorial board of the Journal of Sports Economics and as a referee for the Journal of Political Economy, Journal of Business, Journal of Law and Economics, Journal of Economic Education, Journal of Labor Economics, Journal of Human Resources, and Southern Economic Journal. His local community/volunteer commitments include STRIVE (a tutoring program), and the Intercity Youth Charitable Trust. Web site: http://home.uchicago.edu/~arsx ABOUT THE HOST The Lincoln Park Advisory Council is an all volunteer organization that advises the Chicago park District on policies and programs affecting Lincoln Park (from Ohio Beach to Thorndale Avenue). The Council provides a forum to discuss Lincoln Park concerns and issues; strives for consensus about Lincoln Park concerns and issues; advises and makes recommendations to, and to work with the Chicago Park District; encourages maintenance and improvement of environmental conditions in Lincoln Park; encourages participation of a diversity of organized and non-organized park users; encourages long-range planning; monitors the implementation of the Lincoln Park Framework Plan; and communicate regularly by means of publications and programs with members, users, and other interested parties about Lincoln Park concerns and issues. Web site: http://www.lpacchicago.org/ Subscribe to Chicago News Bench

Update #2: Parking on Pratt (with photos)

The Bench seems to have had an impact on the policing of tow zone violators in the 1000 block of W. Pratt in Rogers Park. Yesterday, it was observed that three vehicles parked there were ticketed.

Recently, The Bench noted one month ago that police were ignoring the two "Tow Zone" signs and allowing lifeguards - and others - to park there illegally. (See "Waiting for the Chief of Staff ")

There was, allegedly, "a deal" between 49th Ward Alderthing Joe Moore and the Chicago Park District to allow lifeguards to violate the tow zone.

Why the 24th District police were cooperating is subject to speculation.

The Bench contacted Moore's Chief of Staff Betsy Vandercook nearly a month ago about this. Vandercook has still not provided an answer, despite of her promise to do so.

JOE MOORE IN THE HOT SEAT

Ben Joravsky is an asshole, but he's also a damned good writer. He's written a scathing piece about the discredited and failing 49th Ward Alderman, Joe Moore, in this week's Chicago Reader.

An excerpt:

Now Moore is in the hot seat. Setting aside the issues of whether public facilities are best run by private entities or whether the Park District should have a more open process for awarding contracts, his choice is this: betray his old union friends or concede to the union and irritate his new friends at the Boys & Girls Club.

It seems Moore is looking for a face-saving way out of the dilemma. On Friday he sent out an e-mail assailing the McCann faction for distorting the issue and assuring his constituents that the Park District would staff the center. Saying they don’t trust Moore, McCann and her allies held a protest rally Saturday, brandishing signs that said “Parks for the People” and “No to Joe.” FULL BLAST...

RELATED: ALDERMAN SHILLER ON DEATHBEAD

Park District CEO Contradicts Joe Moore

Tim Mitchell, General Superintendent and CEO of the Chicago Park District has shown 49th Ward Alderdungheap Joe Moore to be a lying liar - on two separate occassions. Now, we're not saying that it was Mr. Mitchell's intention to do this, and he certainly didn't actually say it. But Toni Duncan, in a must-read post on her blog, writes that what Mitchell did say proves that Joe Moore is a dishonest fool. (As if we didn't already know that.) READ FULL POST...

SURVEY: GALE COMMUNITY CENTER

Gale Community Center survey is closed. Watch Toni Duncan's web site for updates.

No Smoking at Chicago Beaches?

The Chicago Park District has a rule against smoking at the beach. The rule is silly when you consider the immense amount of smoke put out by people allowed to cook over open fires in the parks.

This hot coal receptacle had a fire burning in on Saturday, June 28 at Loyola Park, adjacent to the lakefront of the Rogers Park neighborhood in Chicago. Heavy smoke that smelled of burning plastic engulfed a good portion of the beach front. The receptacles are supposed to be for hot coals only, but people commonly put other trash into them.

The Great Outdoors!

Ah, this is the life. Drag half of your furniture, the baby and a bunch of crap to the park, drop litter all around you, light up a smoky fire and slap some kind of meat on the grill. Would it be easier to stay home? Sure, but then you wouldn't be outdoors, enjoying all that fresh, smoky air!

One Classy Beach

These photos were taken around 6:30 a.m. on June 24. Let's see, we have a tent person in Katy Hogan's bird sanctuary. We have a chair set up under a tree, which is reminiscent of a couch in somebody's front yard. We have an a cucina set up in the park, complete with leftover, rotting fruit. Man, this is one classy beach.

Smoke 'Em

Click for larger image

YOU CALL THIS A CLEAN WALL???

ONCE AGAIN, it looks like "Artists of the Wall" will be screwed with a poorly prepared wall to paint.

After several days of "prepping" and "cleaning" the wall at Loyola Park in Joe Moore's 49th Ward, the wall is still in bad shape.

Workers from Chicago's Streets and Sanitation started the work on May 21, but were blasting the wall with baking soda in high pressured air, not real sand blasting.

(Why Streets and Sanitation, not the Chicago Park District?)

RELATED: Artists Up Against the Wall and I Hate to Say I Told You So...

Loyola Park Pathways Repaired (No Thanks to Joe Moore)

Nice! Yesterday, a crew from the Chicago Park Department repaved the pathways in Loyola Park.

The pathways had been in severe disrepair for years, and posed many hazards to bicyclists and pedestrians alike.

Ah, the smell of fresh asphalt! That's progress, folks, and the crew did a great job.

This would probably have been done years ago if 49th Ward Alderman Joe Moore had any sway with Mayor Daley. The mayor hates Joe Moore.

I'm told that they will paint the paths next week.

Even Lake Westgard was repaired (bottom photo).

Unfortunately, the dangerous Westgard Canal Zone remains, with its deep gouges in the earth.

In the bottom photo, a woman with a cane is seen carefully negotiating her way through the dangerous hazard that was illegally dug last summer by a local mechanics lien lawyer.

Loyola Park Repairs Continue

Repairs by the Chicago Park District in Loyola Park are progressing nicely. For years, hundreds of feet of crumbling curbs along the inner pathway posed a hazard to people trying to sit on the benches.

The pathways, along the western perimeter of the park, are also in bad need of repair.

Photo by contributor geOrge

Public Works Update: Loyola Park

Kudos to the Chicago Park District for beginning repairs on the curbs along the beautiful rows of benches along Loyola Park's beachfront in Rogers Park. Better late than never, we say.

These benches are a favorite hangout of 49th Ward senior citizens and habitual drunkards alike.

For years, the curbs have been a hazard to negotiate, especially if you're a senior citizen or a habitual drunk. Habitually drunk senior citizens were in mortal danger every time they stepped onto or off of these curbs.

Meanwhile, along the same stretch of beachfront, the twice-failed Westgard Canal Zone and Lake have flooded over, imperiling thousands of local residents.

Recently, the canal was doubled; a second trench was dug out of the Chicago Park District soil in an effort to increase drainage capacity, but this failed as miserably as the first trench did nearly a year ago.

Danger in Loyola Park

Thanks to George for this warning:

This “exercise area” is near the Morse Avenue entrance to Loyola Park. There are two 6-10 inch bolts that are bent over, and someone could very easily catch their foot in one - especially a young child. ~ George

Blue Tent Finally Removed From Loyola Park

Exclusive photo(left), taken by contributor George today at 1:30.

The Chicago Park District removed the makeshift tent from the pier at Pratt and the lake in Loyola Park yesterday, but stashed it in a trash can in the park until they could haul it away today.

It took the Park District nearly a week to remove the tent, which was hazardous to people walking or biking on the pier, and contained empty liquor and beer bottles, firewood and half a bag of charcoal (small photos 4/13/08).

Joe Moore did not go to the pier to investigate the tent, its contents or it origins.

Westgard Needs a Do-Over

Last summer, Rogers Park attorney and former Joe Moore lackey wannabe Thomas J. Westgard went over the edge and just couldn't take it anymore.

He was upset about a puddle in Loyola Park, along Lake Michigan at W. Lunt Avenue.

Spade in hand, he marched solo to the park and (illegally) dug an ugly trench in the grass to drain the puddle. Westgard's hasty attempt at civil engineering failed miserably, as the photo taken this evening shows conclusively.

Will Mr. Westgard see this project through? Or will he be a guy who doesn't finish things, as has called former political rival Don Gordon. Will Mr. Westgard seek a permit from the Chicago Park District before vandalizing the park land? Will Mr. Westgard repair the ugly trench, which is a hazard to people walking on the grass?