Participatory Budgeting Can Work. Hear How.

Alderman Joe Moore of the 49th Ward and Elizabeth Vitell, Executive Director of the Rogers Park Community Council are going to discuss participatory budgeting at an event sponsered by Roving Café Society discussion and  WBEZ 91.5 FM June 23 at 6 p.m.

Each alderman traditionally gets a pot of money each year, that is designated as discretionary funds. The aldermen have been able to use the money to fill potholes, get stop signs, and take care of ward problems that weren’t taken care of through normal city operations. Ald. Moore was the first alderman to try an open government strategy and bring in the public to decide how to allocate the discretionary funds.  Chicagotalks has featured “participatory budgeting” with a short documentary by Ines Sommers that highlights what happened. Now you can hear more about this novel (at least in Chicago) way to bring the voices of the people some control over the money the city collects from the people.

Ald. Joe Moore has represented Chicago’s 49th Ward since 1991. The ward covers Chicago’s Rogers Park community and portions of the Edgewater and West Ridge communities, and  is one of the nation’s most economically and racially diverse communities.

Elizabeth A. Vitell has been serving as the Executive Director of the Rogers Park Community Council and the Rogers Park Community Development Corporation since December of 2007.

Free and open to the public. For more information please call 312.422.5580.If you need a sign interpreter or require other arrangements to fully participate, please call 312.422.5580. For parking locations near the facility, please visit ChicagoParkingMap.com.

via Roving Café Society with WBEZ: Participatory Budgeting in Rogers Park | Illinois Humanities Council.