City: Chicago, IL

Category: Relocation

Telephone: (312) 744-6861

Address: 121 N. LaSalle St.

Description: Divided into 50 legislative districts or wards, each with its own representative called an alderman, the Chicago City Council comprises the city’s legislative branch of government, which is led by and answers to the mayor. The aldermen are elected for 4-year terms and have a great deal of clout within the city. They also serve their ward constituents, and their offices are the places to call for things like requesting a new stop sign or getting a yard sale permit. But on a larger scale, the aldermen meet regularly to discuss subjects such as traffic code changes, utilities, taxes, and public health. Chicago claims to have the second-­largest city council in the US (New York’s has 51 members, but Los Angeles has just 15). But this is not necessarily a good thing, according to some people—aldermen salaries cost taxpayers upwards of $100,000 each, and their 20 or so committees cost another $4.5-plus million. Other detractors complain that the size of the council makes it difficult to get anything done; and a whopping 30 have been convicted of federal crimes, including bribery and embezzlement. In fact, Chicago’s new mayor Rahm Emanuel has broached the idea of cutting the number of aldermen in half. However, overhauling a time-honored system will likely be met with its own set of naysayers and will take time to sink in, if it ever does.