As we wrote in March, the city of Chicago unveiled plans two months ago to close over 50 schools, mostly in the poorest areas.
Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s plan has sparked fierce protests, with thousands of protesters hitting the streets last weekend to oppose the school closures –arguing that they would put children at risk by having to travel further to overcrowded schools.
But while the city insists it must close these schools to close budget gaps, it has just announced that it will be dedicated as much as $100 million in public funds for the construction of a new basketball arena at DePaul University — which is about a third of the cost of the project.
Emanuel justified such a large public investment by saying that building the arena and surrounding event center will bring “huge opportunity” to the city of Chicago in the way that it would attract business and tourists.
This statement came at around the same time the Board of Education — despite desperate pleas from city residents as, Progress Illinois documents here — voted in favor of the mayor’s plan to shutter 50 schools. The Board, it should be noted, is not elected like it is in some municipalities. It was appointed by Mayor Emanuel.
Without expressing an opinion in whether the closing of those schools is a good or bad thing, something I just don’t know enough about to have an opinion, I think that you will find that the monies saved through any school closures helps a completely different budget than any money spent to build a facility at a college. I doubt that Mayor Emmaneul has the option of shifting the money for the arena over to the public school budgets.
I may be wrong, but public school systems have funding streams and budgets that are largely independent of the other parts of a city’s budget.
Bublhead, I definitely have questions regarding that as well…
Any school getting an injection of 2m would have at lest a couple of hours to get over the shock.
They certainly could make good use of it.
DePaul University does not need a basketball arena. Their basketball teams can play at the United Center whenever the Bulls and Blackhawks are on the road.
I believe DePaul currently plays at the Allstate Arena in Rosemont IL