Fran Spielman Article in hidden Business Section Again

Read this Article, things stink to high heaven in Daley corrupt and clout infested Building Department.
City puts building fee hike on hold:
July 12, 2007
BY FRAN SPIELMAN City Hall Reporter/ fspielman@suntimes.com
Two years ago, the City Council approved new building permit fees — tied to Mayor Daley’s 2006 budget — that were so high that Trump Tower’s tab alone would have jumped from $80,000 to nearly $1 million.
The construction industry raised the roof — so much so that the Jan. 1, 2006, effective date of the increases was pushed back repeatedly.
On Wednesday, the City Council’s Buildings Committee postponed the day of reckoning yet again — this time, until Jan. 1, 2008.
Even more important, aldermen were assured that the proposed increases will never take effect. Newly appointed Buildings Commissioner Richard Rodriguez plans to propose new rates that allow the city to recoup only the cost of processing permits and conducting inspections.
That wasn’t the case with the 2-year-old increases proposed by former Acting Construction and Permits Director Chris Bushell.
According to Buildings Committee Chairman Bernard Stone (50th), Bushell mistakenly copied building permit fees in New York, ignoring the legal limits imposed in Chicago. Now the first deputy in Construction and Permits, Bushell could not be reached for comment.
“We shouldn’t be losing money on handling permits. But, at the same time, we’re not supposed to be making money.”
Rodriguez said, “We’re just trying to make it more transparent. There’s no reason why taxpayers can’t go onto the Web site and calculate their own fees.”
Thanks Fran. Patrick McDonough

3 Replies to “Fran Spielman Article in hidden Business Section Again”

  1. Whatever happened to them Union honchos that tried to get their kids cushie jobs with the city? Were they asked to resign or diciplined by the Carpenters Union? Were they asked by the feds to testify at the Sorich trial?

  2. I guess you ain’t got kids, or you’d appreciate a parent’s desire to get their offspring a steady gig.

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