Blue Behemoth Survey Results

Over 570 people read the last 43rd Ward United email featuring the Blue Behemoth on Armitage survey, over 80 participated and there were over 100 comments logged. Those comments ranged from outright support to staunch opposition.

Here is a pdf of the survey: Blue Behemoth Survey Results

Here is a file with all of the comments: Blue Behemoth Survey Comments

Please understand before opening both the Survey and the Comment documents that they have been presented as they were obtained. The results and opinions, especially those in writing, are not those of Tim Egan or 43rd Ward United. Some respondents have posted swear words and one even makes a reference to Hitler. These, again, are presented 100% as they came in. Slight spelling corrections were made for clarity purposes only and not to protect those who cannot spell.

A Way To Support Our High Rise Neighbors in the 2012 Budget

Because I ran for Alderman of the 43^rd Ward which has many high rise buildings, I proposed to create a High Rise Advisory Council and that effort would have made a big impact on the 2012 City of Chicago Budget. Although I would have strongly disagreed with the elimination and the eventual reduction of the refuse rebate, I believe a compromise could have been reached. Now proposed at a reduction to $25 per owners, our condo owners and high rise residents would be less likely to feel the sting of the reduction if the City Council would restructure the Life Safety Ordinance. I  would have brought a proposal to Mayor Emanuel and the entire City Council featuring a “New & Improved Life Safety Ordinance.” Current enforcement is costing some of our high-rise residents hundreds of thousands of dollars, sometimes needlessly.  The elimination of the high rise refuse rebate could have been an easy sell if the City Council created a better plan for making high rise buildings meet outdated codes, especially when it comes to façade updates and mandated communication improvements that will be outdated shortly after their installed.

"Art is art"; The Blue Behemoth on Armitage

My good friend John Novak is a great lover of the arts. So much so in fact, that he wanted to give the 43rd Ward a gift of viewing a John Henry original in the yard of his beautiful new home on Armitage. Some art critics however, do not have the same eye for art as the fun-loving Novak. NBC's Blue Behemoth Complaint. On the other hand there are those who appreciate Novak's sharing of what has become known as the Blue Behemoth. The real question here is whether or not the steel structure's over hang on the public sidewalk is dangerous or not. Maybe it is, so Novak is willing to make a few new twists and turns and ensure the whole piece of work is entirely on his property and no threat to pedestrians. How does that impact the 43rd Ward and neighbors? We'll have to ask the Alderman, but apparently she's a little hard to track down as CBS 2's Mike Parker and some concerned residents have found: 43rd Ward's Unavailable Alderman. Apparently Parker is not on Alderman Smith's fundraising email list or he would know where to find her. No open meetings about Lincoln Park Hospital's redevelopment as promised, no returned calls about art, no statements about the proposed budget...but there were a ton of fundraising outreach efforts the last two weeks.

So what about the Blue Behemoth? "Art is art," Novak said and he's right. In no way should someone's taste in art be a danger to anyone, especially walking down the street. But contained on his own property, Novak has the right to display his art.