Chicago alderpeople say they finally have clarity when it comes to handling of migrant crisis
CHICAGO (CBS) -- For the first time in almost a year, Chicago alderpeople say they feel they are getting answers and action when it comes to the migrant crisis.
But they believe taxpayers will still need to pony up millions more to help stabilize the situation.
As CBS 2 Political Investigator Dana Kozlov reported, members of the City Council Migrant and Refugee Rights Committee say clarity is long overdue when it comes to the migrant situation.
Now, they have some.
"The amount of detail and the transparency that you all have exhibited on this issue is refreshing – and something that we have not had," Ald. Pat Dowell (3rd) said at the hearing.
It was the committee's first meeting under Mayor Brandon Johnson. His deputy chief of staff, Dr. Christina Pacione-Zayas, provided detailed information about the number of asylum seekers the city has received so far, the cost, and a plan to manage the issue moving forward.
"As of this morning, there were 4,988 individuals in 12 shelters across the city," Pacione-Zayas told the alderpeople. "Over 650 are in our police stations."
The meeting came about a month after the full City Council approved $51 million to handle the migrant issue. But Pacione-Zayas says the full cost – since the first buses full of migrants arrived last August – is actually $101.3 million in total.
That figure includes $72.6 million spent on shelter staffing, $10.6 million on shelter leases, and $9.1 million on meals.
Kozlov asked if Chicago taxpayers would be asked to fork over any more dollars in the immediate future.
"So I don't know that yet, but I would say considering that we approved $51 million that we anticipated would run out at the end of June, July, I can see us coming back to questions," said Committee Chairman Ald. Andre Vasquez (40th).
Vasquez and others say federal help is a must to manage the ongoing situation – and Pacione-Zayas says outreach is already under way.
In the past, many alderpeople – including Ald. Jeanette Taylor (20th) – expressed frustration that millions could so quickly be found for asylum seekers, but not for long-struggling Chicago communities.
Pacione-Zayas says $15 million will now go toward the city's unhoused population.
"It does make me say that the city is moving in the right direction," Taylor said.
While the city continues to work on federal outreach, very soon, a representative from the federal government will be embedded in the Mayor's office to help manage housing.
The committee plans to meet once a month, with weekly updates delivered to members by email.
President Joe Biden, in town Wednesday, said nothing about Chicago's migrant situation.