Chicago Mayor Could Appoint Progressive to Zoning Chair

Chicago’s business community is on guard as Mayor Brandon Johnson continues to stoke drama when it comes to the city’s power over development, with reports indicating he’ll back an “progressive” alderman who’s fresh off a flag-burning controversy to oversee the Zoning Committee.

Alderman Byron Sigcho-Lopez, a member of the city council’s Progressive Reform Caucus who represents the 25th Ward, recently survived an effort in the 50-member body to punish him for attending a rally where a flag was burned as part of a protest of U.S. support for Israel in its ongoing campaign against Hamas in the Gaza region of the Middle East. A faction of aldermen wanted to strip Sigcho-Lopez of his role as chair of the Housing Committee, the Chicago Sun-Times reported.

Sigcho-Lopez avoided that fate and is instead on the verge of taking charge of the Zoning Committee, which has significant say over major developments in Chicago, the outlet reported, citing sources with knowledge of the machinations at City Hall. Sigcho-Lopez would replace 35th Ward Alderman Carlos Ramirez-Rosa, who recently quit the post amid charges of intimidating behavior in his public capacity.

The mayor will be sending a “negative signal to a business community” if he gets his way on the Zoning Committee post, said Jack Lavin, president of the Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce. “We need to set the rules, follow them and not move the goalposts. If we do that, then businesses can make their decisions on investments.”

Alderman Bill Conway, who represents a significant portion of downtown in the 34th Ward, called Sigcho-Lopez a “divisive person” who would run counter to recent talk of “trying to take the temperature down” throughout the nation.

The zoning chair must show “predictability and … a collaborative approach,” Conway said. “Byron is neither of those things. We have a massive housing shortage in Chicago, and we need somebody who is able to provide a predictive process so we can motivate investment in all areas of this city.”

Sigcho-Lopez deferred to the mayor in responding to inquiries about the possibility of chairing the Zoning Committee.

“If the mayor believes I can serve well in this position, then I will do my best to serve the people of Chicago with integrity, honesty and fairness,” he told the outlet.

The buzz about a Zoning Committee chair comes as Johnson attempts to restock the city’s Zoning Board of Appeals, a separate, appointed body that also wields power over development in the city. Johnson recently nominated former alderman Helen Shiller and nonprofit executive and lawyer Swathi Staley to the board, which has been hamstrung by vacancies since Johnson took office about a year-and-a-half ago.