I would prefer either Haithcock or Fioretti. I know of some reliable people who have spoken to Fioretti, and not only is he receptive to the neighborhood, but he has a good understanding what urban development is and how important density and transit are in creating a dynamic and healthy environment.

While I'd prefer one of the above, I'm guessing the rest would be reasonably decent, with the exception of Doody.

The major issue is for Doody to not get elected (which he very likely won't). Otherwise I don't care. Doody has no concept whatsoever of how a city develops or how it works–he probably is taking all of his cues from how suburbs are designed. He actually said he wants parking lots to remain parking lots, and he wants to double the parking ratio of residential developments from 1:1(unit/parking) to 1:2. He would be a complete disaster–this guy needs to stick with finance, which I'm sure he'll end up having to do.

Bottom line, the best Alderman would be one who wouldn't oppose the gorgeous Park Michigan project.

By the way, my apologies that the link to the story keeps defaulting to the Trib's log-in page. We hope to get you a direct link.

Urban P - something we can agree on.

However, regardless of who is in office, there needs to be some fundamental changes on how development is handled, reviewed, or approved from an accountability perspective. I am not talking from the 'NIMBY' review, just the entire busines process including infrastructure overview, impact etc. out in the Ward, not city hall. Checks and balances outside of DPD and other Departments are needed. Any large corporation or City organization has problems with the left hand not knowing what the right hand is doing. Stuff happens…however-you need to have the organization and right people in place to address it right away.

The 2nd Ward has seen development that rivals anything in North America. I just do not think and Alderman's office alone can handle all the day to day responsibilities yet give proper attention to the development impact. This may be an issue of ward size, organization of the Alderman's office, and hiring capable support staff based on qualifications (not family members or Democratic Machine appointees).

The special interests and campaign donations still play to much of a factor vs. merit in development for some developers. The top of the line developers try and stay out of the political fray.

Developers should not be allowed to walk away from projects with millions of dollars of repairs needed, only to move on to the next project with permits in hand. ( These issues should not have to be decided by lawyers wasting money that could fix the problems in the first place. Lofts, modern architecture, or classical - it does not matter if it is poorly spec'd and built.

By the way, do you think there is a reason every candidate's race or ethincal identity had to be pointed out in the article? Should it matter? Kind of a strange slant so close to election time, no?

Let's see…a candidate named Doody…an alderwoman-under-suspicion talking about her "colon cleansing" compound…boy, this election season is really sinking into the…mire…yeah, some jokes write themselves but I'm too much of a puritan to write them…

Look on the bright side, anon.

We also have four fully-rehabilitated ex-felons running for alderman.

And we probably have some unindicted co-conspirators to look forward to.

Maybe Jesse Jackson should enter race for the 2nd Ward.

I actually attended a forum with the second ward candidates and I thought David Askew was the most impressive. He seemed to be knowledgeable and had a well thought out plan in terms of growth for the ward as a whole.

I too, believe that the best candidate was is neither Bob Fioretti nor Madeline, but David Askew. David has been an active community member for years, as well as truly committing his legal career to public service.

Fioretti did not begin his quest to become alderman 2 years so as David did, but last summer. Bob brags about his work as a civil rights attorney for 30 years and a "grassroots" candidate. But the fact of the matter is, he began his legal practice not defending the poor and downtrodden, but as a lobbyist to drug companies, and has donated over $50,000 to Republican causes. This is not conjecture, but a matter of public record.

Furthermore, he constantly brags how he is the only candidate who has pledged not to take money from developers, but conveniently fails to mention that he has $500,000 of his OWN money and is ready to spend all of it to buy this seat, if necessary. (Madeline has $300,000 in her war chest acquired from developers, and though she has not yet appeared to spend much of it, she could bury everyone in barrage of mail pieces.)

I am not fooled by Blair Hull-esque Bob, and doubt his sincerity about wanting to go from his lucrative practice to the important, yet sometimes mundane tasks of a $98,000 civil service job. This is about ego and entitlement, not a sincere desire to serve the people of the Second Ward. Go David go.

You have to wonder what makes an aldermanic seat so valuable that people are willing to spend this kind of money to acquire it.

There are congressional races on which less is spent.

EGO. Plus, if you get elected in the right ward it would be relatively easy to get hundreds of thousands in donations from real estate interests fairly quickly and repay any campaign loans.

Plus some wealthy folks may see an aldermanic job as a stepping stone to da office of da MARE.

I think that while most of the candidates intentions are genuine. To me after having met all of them (except Haithcock) David Askew by far has the best vision for the entire 2nd ward. It is so diverse yet most of them want the same things. No one area should take presedence over another. I live in the South Loop and have been alarmed at the development rate in the past 10 years. Haithcock does not seem to have a plan. Doody his main concern is parking, Fioretti talks generalities and gives sound bites that are meaningless. David has a plan for all the issues and you can see his website for more information. Thanks for this chance to let e resident speak his mind about this upcoming election. May the best person win!

I think Askew is clearly an intelligent, well-spoken person, but not the best choice for this Ward by far.
First of all, if you want to talk about EGO, this guy referred to himself as a "hero" at a recent forum. Starting phone trees and calling 911 because you see a drug dealer on your street doesn't classify one as "heroic" in my book. A good guy, maybe. But lets not get carried away.
I like Fioretti. I see him in my neighborhood on a regular basis. As far as I can tell, he's the only candidate with the background and qualifications for an undertaking as large as the 2nd Ward. I think all the other guys would have a steep learning curve ahead of them.

“Whenever a man has cast a longing eye on offices, a rottenness begins in his conduct.� ~Thomas Jefferson
Fioretti and Developer Money
• Bob Fioretti has repeatedly said throughout his campaign that he is “the only candidate� not taking money from developers in the 2nd Ward race.
• He has even said that he has “been criticized by other candidates in this race for not taking money from developers�.
• But the truth is that Bob Fioretti HAS taken money from developers.
• Bob Fioretti has said that he will also stop Pay to Play in Chicago Politics.
Case In Point
• Bob Fioretti tried on several occasions to get real estate developer Robert Krilich, Sr. out of jail after he had been convicted in Federal Court on racketeering, fraud, and bribery charges.
• In short, the first time Fioretti represented Krilich, it was because he violated a U.S EPA decree to repair environmental damage cause by one of his developments. He was eventually fined just over 1.2 million dollars by the U.S. EPA.
• The second time, Fioretti tried to get Krilich out of jail after he had bribed a government official on various occasions to help divert public funds to one of Krilich’s real estate developments.
• Despite convictions based on Krilcih’s written admission of guilt and “significant evidence of (his) guilt�, including eyewitness testimony and documentary evidence of false invoices and claims, Bob Fioretti willingly championed Krilich’s attempt to escape his punishment.
• The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that Fioretti and Krilich were wrong and Krilich remained in Federal prison. Original Case No. 92 C 55354 Appellate Case No. 96-3730 Appearance Filed By Robert Fioretti Representing Krilich, et al. – July, 22, 2003.
Original Case No. 94 CR 419 Appellate Case No. 00 CV 06078 Appearance Filed By Robert Fioretti Representing Krilich – January 27, 2005.
• So what Bob Fioretti should really start saying is that he doesn’t take money from developers as political contributions. But he DOES take money from crooked developers for personal profit.
Closing Point
• This was one of the first “Pay to Play� cases in the State of Illinois. Bob Fiorettti had no problem taking money from a crooked developer in this instance. He also had no moral issue with representing someone involved in a “Pay to Play� case.
• He has used this money from representing crooked developers to fund his race for alderman, which in politics is called SOFT MONEY.
• Bob Fioretti has spent thousands of SOFT DOLLARS of DEVELOPER MONEY on his campaign for alderman up to this point. Just look at money transferred from his law firm to his campaign fund. This is evident in his campaign disclosures. More “soft dollars� should be evident in the upcoming weeks as more campaign contribution reporting is required by law.
Fioretti and Excessive Legal Billing with the City
• Bob Fioretti keeps saying that excessive legal billing is one of the reasons the City has money problems.
• But Bob Fioretti is one of the people who is responsible for excessively billing the City.
Case In Point
• Bob Fioretti represented a City of Chicago employee who, during random drug testing, tested positive for morphine. The employee requested a drug test a month later and tested positive for morphine a second time.
• The City employee had no prescription for morphine and could not offer any excuse or explanation for morphine in his system TWICE and was subsequently fired.
• Bob Fioretti represented the employee against the City of Chicago. He filed a lawsuit saying that the level of morphine wasn’t high enough for the employee to be fired and that the employee had his urine “searched� unconstitutionally and unreasonably.
• Fioretti demanded that the City rehire the employee and that YOU, the taxpayers of the City of Chicago, reimburse the paramedic for the employee’s back pay, and that the drug testing service and the doctor who retested the sample pay punitive damages.
• Fioretti also demanded that the legal fees for representing the employee, who had twice tested positive for morphine, be paid by YOU, the taxpayers of the City of Chicago.
• City of Chicago attorneys argued that the City fired the employee to maintain the public safety of the citizens.
• A Federal Judge dismissed the case completely.
Closing Point
• Bob Fioretti is one of the reasons the City has problems with excessive legal billing.
• By representing someone like this, Bob Fioretti is saying it’s okay if City workers are on drugs at work while being paid by YOU, the taxpayer!
• I understand it is Bob Fioretti’s right as an attorney to represent whoever he wants, but it is a double standard to represent a City employee who tested positive twice for morphine and say that it is okay for this to occur. Then a few years later he decides to run for alderman. I’m absolutely sure he would say that it is not right for a City employee to be under the influence of drugs on the job now that he is a candidate for alderman.
• Enough double talk Bob. Take a stance on an issue and stick to it.
Case No. 02 C 7267 Appearance Filed By Robert Fioretti October 9, 2002
“Fioretti is a righteous defender of the underdog.�??
Bob Fioretti is a trial lawyer and lobbyist. He claims to be a good-hearted civil rights attorney and “Great White Hope� for the 2nd Ward. He is on pace to spend the most money ever in an aldermanic race. His campaign contribution reports are fabricated. He hasn’t reported nearly half of what he has spent. Paying people $50 dollars for the day to collect signatures on election day in November at polling places throughout the ward, at least 5 mailers by the first of the year, etc.
The truth is that he’s just another rich white guy with an ego trying to buy a public office. Voters have seen this before. We didn’t fall for it then and we won’t fall for it now!
Here’s more. Bob is a registered lobbyist representing Alanco Technologies.
ROBERT W. FIORETTI Midwest Public Affairs Group 39 S. LaSalle St., Suite 1400 CHICAGO, IL 60603 (312) 315-0848 ALANCO TECHNOLOGIES, INC This company is one of the largest nanufactureres of electronic home monitoring devices in the United States. Bob profits from the pain of people who wear these devices.
Bob has done some noble work, with cases such as the Baby Tamia case. But should someone who calls themself a “civil rights attorney� also be lobbying for government business on behalf of a company like this?

So bottom line, we should not vote for him because he is white. If I read between the lines "he is just another rich white guy"…as opposed to taking $$$ above and under the table, is that correct?

come on! In 30 years of civil rights practice you could only come up with this? Please. Furthermore, if you are only going to tell of half the story don't waste our time. Not sure what planet you are on, but it is called the fourth amendment…due process? Familiar with the term. From what I have read and investigated Mr. Fioretti is a successful defense attorney. If you thought your civil rights were being challenged by the government wouldn't you want the best? I don't think I will Mr. Fioretti for putting the best defense forward for poor and wealthy clients alike. As a matter of fact, I will congratulate him for protecting my civil liberties. Nice try. We need leadership in the ward not cute little one liners on blogs. Mr. Askew is nothing more than another Madeline Haithcock. He doesn't even know what his own neighbors want. See his little slip up on youtube. The guy can't get his story straight and like the current alderman will say anything to get elected. I've seen him at more than one forum at this point and he doesn't say anything. He actually thinks he is better than the rest of us. What a pompous jerk.

I LIVE IN THE WEST LOOP AREA - ALSO ALD HAITHCOCK'S DISTRICT - SHODDY CONSTRUCTION ALSO HERE AT PARAMOUNT LOFTS. WE DEFINATELY NEED TO HAVE NEW LEADERSHIP TO GET RID OF THESE DEVELOPERS TO PAY TO PLAY IN ALD. HAITHCOCK'S WARD.