North Chicago Mayor’s Luxury Car Raises Questions About Wasteful Spending
ICPR Executive Director Sarah Brune was quoted in this article
via – Chicago Tribune
“North Chicago Mayor Leon Rockingham Jr.’s new 2017 Hyundai Genesis G80 — a luxury car worth $47,000 and leased for $524 a month at taxpayers’ expense — has some in the city, including three aldermen, worried about wasteful spending, while Rockingham and others say the vehicle is necessary for travel and entertaining business and government leaders.
A measure to approve leasing the car for the mayor was narrowly approved by the council in a 4-3 vote during a Feb. 27 City Council meeting. The three aldermen who voted no — Ald. Bobby Allen, 4th; Ald. Torrance Markham, 5th; and Ald. Kathy January, 7th — questioned whether the mayor needs the car at a time when North Chicago’s rising labor and pension costs and declining property tax values are contributing to potential structural imbalances in the city budget.
Rockingham and Public Works Director Ed Wilmes said the car is justified because the mayor often has to travel on the city’s behalf to Springfield and other places and frequently hosts business leaders, taking them around North Chicago in an effort to lure development and jobs.”
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