UN35’s January membership and community meeting, held on Sunday, January 21st, included a teach-in on the “Bring Chicago Home” referendum, which will appear on the March 19th ballot. The referendum restructures the one-time Real Estate Transfer Tax (RETT) and creates a dedicated funding source to build affordable housing and provide supportive services to our unhoused population. Representatives from the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless and the Illinois Union of the Homeless provided informative presentations and powerful testimonials in support of the ballot referendum, which would bring Chicago within average spending on homelessness in comparison to other major U.S. cities.
Alderperson Carlos Ramirez Rosa shed light on the legislative hurdles that had to be overcome to present us with this opportunity to vote YES on a progressive Real Estate Transfer Tax reform — and the obstacles we’d need to clear again if this referendum falls short.
You can learn more at www.bringchicagohome.org. Watch a live stream of the presentations HERE.