We now know that former White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel will take over as mayor of Chicago -- the third largest U.S. city -- in May. But will Emanuel be able to improve on Mayor Richard Daley's attempts to make Chicago the greenest city in America?
During his tenure, Mayor Daley improved green building codes, added acres of open green space, along with miles of bike lanes, and adopted a complete streets policy. Will Emanuel be able to improve on what his predecessor has already done? From the looks of his campaign promises I think it's safe to say that he will.
Chicago is an international city and the economic center of the Midwest. Essential to its success and continued growth is a diverse, multi-modal transportation network, linking the city to the region and to the world, and neighborhoods to downtown and to each other.
He plans to:
Investments in weatherization and efficiency upgrades create jobs, lower household utility bills, make Chicago businesses more competitive and lessen our impact on the environment. Reducing Chicago’s energy demand also keeps money in people’s pockets and in the region’s economy.
He plans to:
More than 600,000 of Chicago's three million residents live in neighborhoods that lack access to fresh food. Located primarily on Chicago’s south and west sides, these "food deserts" make it difficult to purchase healthy and fresh fruits, vegetables and meat. ... While there is no simple solution to eradicate food deserts, the public health and economic development consequences require action.
He plans to:
His plans are certainly ambitious. But, we'll have to see if the city's budget crisis keeps him from realizing his green dreams.
Fortunately, for the city, his ties with the White House will be an advantage, especially when it comes to federal transportation funding. U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood told the Chicago Tribune that, while there are no big pots of federal money for Emanuel to tap into, "there are several smaller pots, and Rahm knows where they are, knows who the people are who control them and he knows the requirements to use these resources."
A big advantage indeed. We'll see if it pays off.
Photo: juggernautco/Flickr
This post was originally published on Smartplanet.com