O R D I N A N C E
APPROVAL
By my signature below, I hereby approve and enact into law effective on June 26, 2021 the attached ordinance (Chi Biz Strong Initiative), which the City Council of the City of Chicago passed in its divided form on June 25, 2021.
Dated June 26, 2021
Approved as to form and substance.
ORDINANCE
WHEREAS, The City of Chicago has worked tirelessly for over a year to help businesses and workers survive the most devastating pandemic in a century; and
WHEREAS, Chicago's businesses and workers persevered through the unprecedented COVID-19 crisis lo provide critical services to City residents and to keep Chicagoans safe; and
WHEREAS, The City executed an array of robust emergency relief measures to provide businesses with much-needed financial support and regulatory relief during this uniquely challenging time in its history; and
WHEREAS, The City's emergency relief measures include providing Chicago businesses with more small business grant and loan relief than any other municipality in the Nation, totaling over $100 million; rolling out an Expanded Outdoor Dining program to enable restaurants to serve diners safely outside; issuing 241 outdoor dining permits to more than 400 establishments encompassing over 30 closed streets and 150 parking lots available for outdoor dining; reforming the sidewalk cafe permit-issuance process by expediting the permitting of approximately 1,000 sidewalk cafes, discounting the sidewalk cafe permit fee by 75%, and allowing pennittecs to expand their cafes in front of neighboring storefronts; establishing eight Chicago Business Centers across the City to provide additional licensing and business support in neighborhoods; and operationalizing an innovative pandemic public safety strategy to ensure adherence to health guidelines through education, including nearly 40,000 educational outreach calls to individual businesses; and
WHEREAS, With a robust COVID-19 vaccination program now underway, the City's focus...
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