Aldermen reluctantly embrace new garbage ‘fee’

By Mark Brown – Chicago Sun-Times

Six brave, or at least somewhat emotionally secure, Chicago aldermen stepped before a bank of microphones Friday in the second-floor lobby at City Hall.

They nudged Ald. Roderick Sawyer (6th) to the front.

“All right, Rod, we’re right behind you,” one of them said with a laugh.

Sawyer, son of a former mayor, turned and shot them a what-am-I-getting-myself-into look.

Then, after a meandering preamble, Sawyer got to the point: “We’re here today to propose a fee that none of us really want but think it’s necessary, and that is a garbage fee.”

With those words, the prospect of a first-ever separate garbage-collection fee for Chicago homeowners took a giant step toward becoming reality. read more…….