Walter Burnett

The 2024 Central Area Plan will guide Downtown development through 2044. Residents can weigh in through surveys and at public meetings through September.

Burnett, an ally to Mayor Lori Lightfoot, said Paul Vallas has helped him with important projects in his ward over the years — and fully supports the Chicago casino project.

First elected in 1995, Burnett is now City Council's elder statesman. He'll be busy in his next term overseeing the development of Chicago's first casino.

"It didn't feel like it fit in, and we went back to the drawing board," the developer's attorney said. The building will replace two two-flats.

The company behind the 2019 hotel proposal went bankrupt. The new plan would bring nearly 400 apartments to Fulton Market.

Burnett was first elected in 1995. He said he expects the 27th Ward to explode with growth over the next four years and asks voters to give Mayor Lori Lightfoot "a chance to finish what she started."

The transit-oriented development is near several train lines and three bus stops. Developers are pitching 20 parking spots at the site, but Ald. Walter Burnett asked them to add more.

Bally’s still requires licensing approval from the Illinois Gaming Board to operate the casino along the river between Grand and Chicago avenues.

The Bally's-operated casino still needs approval from the Illinois Gaming Board to operate.

Alds. Walter Burnett and Brian Hopkins are running unopposed, while Ald. Brendan Reilly has a challenger. Two newcomers are vying for the newly relocated 34th Ward.

Wealthy neighborhoods frustrated with crime have turned to private security. One West Loop alderman supports the idea while another wants locals to consider other options.

Neighbors fought a gas station proposed for the site last year. The apartment building will contain ground-floor retail and 11 parking spaces.

The changes came after a few neighbors said the 40-unit project didn't have enough parking to accommodate new residents. Located near a Metra station and several bus lines, the site qualifies as a transit-oriented development.

Logistics Property Company, LLC sought a zoning change to construct the Division Street complex near the Salt Shed music venue.

Developer Onni Group wanted out of its obligation to include affordable units in its luxury Old Town highrises. Onni paid a Burnett friend more than $417,000 to lobby City Hall, helped sponsor a Burnett fundraiser and pledged $25,000 to a charity run by Burnett’s wife. Some tenants said the alderman abandoned them.

Nearly 500 neighbors came out to oppose the casino planned for the prime riverfront site at Tribune Publishing Center. But Ald. Walter Burnett Jr. said, "A lot of my senior citizens who don't come to these things like to gamble."

The Bring Chicago Home campaign wants a referendum in November that would ask residents if they'd supporting increasing the real estate tax for high-end properties to support more housing services.

Another developer wanted to build a gas station at the site last year, but he canceled the project after overwhelming opposition from neighbors.

The sports betting ordinance was amended to include a 2 percent tax on gambling revenue, but several alderpeople said it's not enough.