Property Tax Hike, Transit Board Vote, and Thompson Center Transformation

Earlier this week, Mayor Brandon Johnson announced his $17.3 billion budget proposal for 2025 . Staring down a $1 billion budget gap, the mayor announced a $300 million property tax increase to avoid what he said would otherwise be mass layoffs and cuts to critical city services. We are joined by Illinois Answers Project’s Alex Nitkin and City Bureau’s Ariel Chung to discuss other cost-cutting measures, key investments, and the remaining budget season timeline. Plus, we discuss the regional transit authority’s new board , Google’s Thompson Center transformation , and Chicago-area Palestinians returning to their home country for olive harvesting season . Good News: Huge improvement in city tree trims Nominate City Cast Chicago for best podcast and Hey Chicago for best email newsletter . Want some more City Cast Chicago news? Then make sure to sign up for our Hey Chicago newsletter . Follow us @citycastchicago You can also text us or leave a voicemail at: 773 780-0246 Learn more about the sponsors of this Nov. 1 episode: Chicago Board of Election Commissioners Mubi BetterHelp – Get 10% off at betterhelp.com/CITYCAST Become a member of City Cast Chicago . Interested in advertising with City Cast? Find more info HERE