RESOLUTION
WHEREAS, the Honorable Rahm Emanuel is retiring as Mayor of Chicago on May 20, 2019, after two distinguished terms of office; and
WHEREAS, born in Chicago, the Honorable Rahm Emanuel is the son of Dr. Benjamin Emanuel, a pediatrician at Michael Reese Hospital and Marsha (nee Smulevitz) Emanuel from the West Side ofthe city; and
WHEREAS, the Honorable Rahm Emanuel attended the Bernard Zell Anshe Emet Day School in Chicago and later, the Romona School, Locust Junior High School and New Trier High School in Wilmette before entering Sarah Lawrence where he earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree in 1981; and
WHEREAS, the Honorable Rahm Emanuel received a Master of Arts in Speech and Communication from Northwestern University in 1985; and
WHEREAS, the Honorable Rahm Emanuel launched his political career with Illinois Public Action, a consumer rights organization; and
WHEREAS, as recognition of his political acumen and talents spread, the Honorable Rahm Emanuel led fund-raising initiatives for both local and national Democratic Party candidates; and
WHEREAS, the Honorable Rahm Emanuel was instrumental in the Honorable Paul Simon's successful run for the U.S. Senate in 1984; and
WHEREAS, in 1988 the Honorable Rahm Emanuel served as national campaign director for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee in 1988, and as senior advisor and chief fund-raiser to the Honorable Richard M. Daley during his successful electoral bid for the Chicago mayoralty in 1989;
WHEREAS, as the director of Governor Bill Clinton's campaign finance committee, the Honorable Rahm Emanuel helped propel Governor Clinton into the White House through a highly successful donor campaign that raised $72 million dollars; and
WHEREAS, appointed to serve as an Assistant to the President for Political Affairs and later as Senior Advisor to the President for Policy and Strategy to President Bill Clinton, the Honorable Rahm Emanuel strategized efforts to institute NAFTA and universal health care for all American citizens; and
WHEREAS, after serving in the White House from 1993-1998, the Honorable Rahm Emanuel accepted a position with the investment banking firm Wasserstein Perella & Company in New York, becoming managing director of the Chicago office in 1999; and
WHEREAS, in 2002, the Honorable Rahm Emanuel announced his candidacy for the U.S. House of Representatives from the 5th District of Illinois and;
WHEREAS, the Honorable Rahm Emanuel won his primary bid and went on to defeat Republican Mark Augusti in the general election; and
WHEREAS, as a strong advocate for many worthy causes including gun control, same sex marriage, LGBT rights, and "to help make health care affordable and available for all Americans" the Honorable
Rahm Emanuel articulated his viewpoints in a 2006 published volume with Bruce Reed titled The Plan: Big Ideas for America; and
WHEREAS, on November 6, 2008, the Honorable Rahm Emanuel was named White House Chief of Staff for President Barack Obama; and
WHEREAS, the Honorable Rahm Emanuel resigned his Congressional seat effective January 2, 2009 to faithfully execute his duties as Chief of Staff to President Barack Obama until stepping down from the post on September 30, 2010; and
WHEREAS, on February 22, 2011, the Honorable Rahm Emanuel won his election bid to become Chicago's fifty-fifth mayor, succeeding the Honorable Richard M. Daley; and
WHEREAS, over the next eight years the Honorable Rahm Emanuel helped stabilize City of Chicago finances and restructured the city's four pension funds to begin meeting their obligations; and
WHEREAS, during his tenure as Mayor of Chicago, various corporate entities relocated their headquarters offices to Chicago, elevating the status of the Windy City as a global destination point for business and commerce; and
WHEREAS, as Chicago's "education mayor, " the Honorable Rahm Emanuel addressed school over-crowding by investing in more than $3.2-billion-dollars in infrastructure, including new schools and annexes, improved access to technology, and by working with educators to identify new ideas and solutions to enact positive change throughout the Chicago Public School system; and
WHEREAS, the Honorable Rahm Emanuel's commitment to our city's children and to quality education included expanding pre-K programs, day-long kindergarten, and free college tuition for Chicago Public School graduates who maintain a B grade point in high school; and
WHEREAS, passionate and deeply committed to elevating the quality of public education in Chicago the Honorable Rahm Emanuel's ambitious plan of school reform has resulted in graduation rates that are four times faster than the national average according to a Stanford University study; a steady increase in after-school and summer reading programs; and jobs for teens; and
WHEREAS, citing his significant accomplishments in championing education reform in Chicago, NUI Galway, a university in Galway, Ireland, bestowed the Honorable Rahm Emanuel an honorary Doctor of Laws degree in April 2018; and
WHEREAS, Honorable Rahm Emanuel boldly stood up to Big Tobacco to reduce youth access to tobacco products and e-cigarettes, resulting in a nearly 60 percent decline in youth smoking last year over 2011;and
WHEREAS, among the Honorable Rahm Emanuel's most significant achievement was the modernization and expansion of O'Hare and Midway airports, at no cost to the Chicago taxpayers, improvements that will preserve Chicago as the leader in aviation; and
WHEREAS, the Honorable Rahm Emanuel addressed decaying and obsolete infrastructure needs by making significant public investments resulting in replacement of city sewers and water lines and replacing city streetlights with smart lighting; and
WHEREAS, further to his influence on infrastructure development, Honorable Rahm Emanuel directed the investment of $35B that supported the construction and renovation for schools, parks, transit, water/sewer main replacement, etc. which created an estimated 150K jobs; and
WHEREAS, regarding housing, the Honorable Rahm Emanuel supported affordable housing in every neighborhood by expanding the affordable requirements ordinance; implementing and expanding transit-oriented development; and, building or preserving over 60,000 affordable homes and apartments; and
WHEREAS, as a result of the Honorable Rahm Emanuel's efforts to recruit jobs and companies, Chicago has been ranked the top metro area for corporate relocation and investment for six consecutive years; and
WHEREAS, since 2011, the Honorable Rahm Emanuel has announced fifty-seven corporate relocations and one hundred ninety-one business expansions, which translates into more than fifty thousand jobs created; and
WHEREAS, demonstrating his commitment to promote growth throughout the city, the Honorable Rahm Emanuel created the Neighborhood Opportunity Fund to generate funding from downtown development projects to support commercial growth on Chicago's south, southwest and west sides; and
WHEREAS, recognizing the critical influence of technology in achieving urban progress, Honorable Rahm Emanuel championed Chicago's tech scene and helped to create a thriving tech sector from the ground up; and
WHEREAS, Honorable Rahm Emanuel helped to modernize the CTA for the 21st century with $8.5 billion investment including reconstructing Red Line South, Red Purple Modernization, and Your New Blue; and
WHEREAS, fueled by his aspiration to showcase the magnificence of his beloved Chicago with people from around the world, Honorable Rahm Emanuel has significantly increased tourism in Chicago, creating more than 22,000 new tourism-related jobs since 2011; and in 2018 setting a new tourism record with more than 57.6 million visitors; and
WHEREAS, the Honorable Rahm Emanuel achieved his significant goal of making the Chicago River the next recreational frontier by significantly extending the Chicago Riverwalk and building four new boat houses; and
WHEREAS, helped expand the quality of Chicago's Park District and its offerings through his support and advocacy of: over $1 billion in capital throughout the City; Mayor's Night Out in the Parks delivering cultural events to neighborhood parks across all community areas in the City; and created a separate trail for bikes and runners along 18 miles of the Lakefront; created the Student recreation centers across the
city: Gately, Addams, Read Dunning, XS Tennis, and Clark Park; and Created the 606 and 312 River Run; and
WHEREAS, Mayor Rahm Emanuel spearheaded the development of four new libraries in Chicago, including in Little Italy, Northtown, Independence, and Altgeld, co-located with housing and the Gautreaux settlement; and
WHEREAS, the Honorable Rahm Emanuel has described his years steering the helm of Chicago government as his "best job ever;" and
WHEREAS, through his wisdom and guidance, the Honorable Rahm Emanuel has helped to craft a brighter and more verdant future for the people of Chicago; now, therefore
BE IT RESOLVED, that we, the members ofthe Chicago City Council assembled this tenth day of April, 2019, do hereby recognize, honor and thank the Honorable Rahm Emanuel for his eight years of distinguished leadership in the City of Chicago as Mayor, and wish him, his wife Amy Merritt Rule, and their three children the very best as they begin the next phase of their lives; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to the Honorable Rahm Emanuel.
Margaret Laurino Alderman, 39,h Ward