New CTA chief Terry Peterson
If you wanted to do business with the Chicago Housing Authority a few years back, you gave money to the 17th ward.
Strange, really. The 17th ward doesn't contain a single unit of public housing.
So why would 63 CHA contractors regularly give gobs of cash to the 17th ward Democratic Organization?
One firm even got a contract worth $3 million the same day it just happened to make a $2,500 contribution to the 17th ward.
The connection? Terry Peterson, Daley's new pick for head of the Chicago Transit Authority.
Peterson used to be the Alderman of the 17th ward and later became CEO of the Chicago Housing Authority. As the head of CHA, the 17th ward brought in numerous donations from CHA contractors, according to a 2005 investigation by the Residents' Journal, the Sun Times, and the Better Government Association.
"From 2001 to 2004, the 17th Ward Democratic Organization took in a total of $673,333.05, of which $225,318.32 - 33.46 percent - came from contractors at the CHA."
2005 was the most profitable year for contractor donations to the 17th ward. That year they took in $70,445, and $42,850 of that - 60.8 percent - was from CHA contractors.
What happened? Not too much.
The investigation stated that Peterson could be at risk for violating the Hatch Act, a piece of national legislation that prohibits employees of government agencies that receive federal dollars from participating in some kinds of political activities.
But as far as I can tell, Peterson was never charged with anything.
The donations? They stopped flowing in and became a slow trickle. The investigation states:
During the second one-half of 2005, the 17th Ward Democratic Organization took in just $35,550. In a similar period of 2004, the fund took in $161,383.33. During the last six months of 2003, the fund took in $140,830. In the same period of 2002, the 17th Ward Democratic Organization took in $148,425.Guess the embarrassment stopped the money stream, but it didn't hurt Peterson's career much. He became Daley's campaign manager and sits on the 2016 Olympic committee.
The fact that the SunTimes uses the word "embarrassed" to describe this scandal just plain weirds me out. No one should be embarrassed. Embarrassed is what you are when your fly is open. Peterson should be ashamed, and we should be outraged.
We've gotten too used to corruption in this town. An onslaught of political contributions by business owners who just happen to receive lucrative city contracts is nothing compared with a governor willing to sell our President's Senate seat. That doesn't mean it's nothing.
No one at the CHA ever commented on the investigation. Neither did Peterson. Guess he wasn't sorry. Just sorry he got caught.
CTA reporters and bloggers, keep an eye on those contracts. Pay-to-play isn't one strategy in this town. It's the entire game.
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