Members of the Sweet Home Chicago coalition aren't resting until their affordable housing ordinance gets a vote in the City Council. Last Wednesday, the group held a press conference outside of the council's chambers urging passage of their bill, which would set aside 20 percent of tax increment financing (TIF) dollars collected each year to fund new and rehabbed developments. This morning, they moved the proceedings up to the fifth floor in a deliberate attempt to pressure Mayor Daley, who has not taken a public stance on the legislation. SEIU Healthcare Illinois and Indiana's Director of External Relations Jaquie Algee told us why dozens of coalition members made the trip to City Hall this morning:

After congregating in front of the mayor's office, Sweet Home Chicago allies packed the council chambers for a hearing of the Joint Committee on Finance/Housing and Real Estate. No vote was taken on the bill and the debate was at times heated, particularly because there appeared to be some confusion among aldermen about the mechanics of the legislation. (The coalition, for what it's worth, blames officials in the mayor's Intergovernmental Affairs office for providing council members with misleading information.)

The lead critic was Ald. Bernie Stone (50th Ward), who suggested (correctly) that TIF money generated in a specific TIF district can't be transferred to another part of town to fund a housing project unless it's "ported" to an adjoining district. "You can't use it wherever you choose to use it," he said from the back row.

Advocates of the bill countered that the city's only obligation under the bill would be to spend 20 percent of the revenue it generates in a given year from the TIF network on affordable housing projects in the next fiscal year. Money raised in a specific TIF district can't and won't be routed from the original district to another located elsewhere. Instead, aldermen, developers, community groups, and the city's Department of Community Development will work together to develop projects in existing TIF districts that qualify as "affordable" under the guidelines of the ordinance.

In other words, if an alderman does not want to build affordable units in his or her district, that's not a problem. As long as 20 percent of the total TIF revenue goes towards rehabs or construction somewhere within existing TIF boundaries, the city will meet its goal. "All we're asking is to do what we're doing but to do more of it," said Julie Dworkin of the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless during her presentation.

What does that mean in practical terms? A number of developments that would be pursued will probably be located in a small number of rich TIF districts, many of which are located in and around Chicago's downtown area. That's not necessarily bad policy.  There's plenty of demand for mixed-income developments in gentrifying neighborhoods and maps developed by the coalition show that virtually every TIF district boasts a very large number of foreclosed properties. Even more important is that the downtown TIF money, if not spent on housing, will continue to fund what lead sponsor Ald. Walter Burnett (27th Ward) aptly described as "corporate welfare."

As for some of the city's poorer neighborhoods, which are ravaged by foreclosures but whose TIF districts don't currently generate as much revenue, the mandate will provide an incentive for aldermen to prioritize housing above other non-urgent capital improvements or business giveaways.

Even supporters of the ordinance stressed that the plan is not perfect. Some raised concerns about the weak consequences the city would face if it failed to meet its annual goal. The Sun-Times editorial board offered some legitimate criticisms yesterday, as well; namely, the bill gives the developer (and not city officials) the responsibility to verify a participating family's income.

The other obstacle is support at City Hall. Twenty-five aldermen have signed on as co-sponsors and the coalition says two more -- Alds. Latasha Thomas (17th Ward) and Frank Olivo (13th Ward) -- have agreed to vote in favor. That would give Sweet Home Chicago majority support in both the joint committee and the full chamber. Still, Committee Chairman Ray Suarez (31th Ward) did not seem eager to schedule the initial vote.

We'll be following the machinations over at City Hall in the coming days.