CHICAGO (FOX 32 News) -
A Chicago alderman said he has a way to put more police on the streets. He thinks residents would be willing to pay a fee for safety.
The Chicago Police Department hasn't had the numbers it had in the past, and with this year's dramatic increase in drug, gang and gun violence, Chicago residents are constantly asking for more uniforms on the streets.
Alderman George Cardenas of the 12th ward believes most everyone would be willing to pay $5 a month for fewer shootings in Chicago.
"This is not even a cent a day," Alderman George Cardenas said.
Cardenas said his "new" $5 safety and security fee is just a proposal to help get 700 more police officers out on the streets.
"I want my kids to go out and play and feel safe," the alderman said. "I want to live in a place with peace and tranquility. You can't put a price on that."
The alderman said he has no doubt that Chicago homeowners and businesses would be willing to swallow a $5 monthly fee if it means having safer streets and fewer homicides and shootings.
"I've talked to people and they've said, ‘If it helps bring the violence down, let's do it.' In certain neighborhoods, we need more boots on the ground. Simple as that. I'm not sounding the alarm. I'm just saying in some communities, there's a fear factor."
At one time, the city had about 13,000 police officers. Hiring has been reduced, due to the economy and now there are fewer than 12,000 officers on the force.
"I like the specialized units. They serve a special purpose," Cardenas said. "They're very good at what they do. Let's reinstate them without taking beat cops away."
Here's how his proposal breaks down: For police protection, Chicago residents would be hit with an extra $5 fee each month on their ComEd bill.
"Seems a bit odd to put it on your electricity bill," one Chicago resident said.
The alderman said "all" of that money would be used to hire more police officers to be deployed in some of the city's high crime neighborhoods.
City officials are not talking about the proposal, but taxpayers are.
"There are already a lot of hidden fees on the bill," Chicago resident Lakisha Thompson said. "I'm clearly paying for things I don't know about just yet. So just to add another $5? I'm pretty opposed to that."
"If you want the protection it has to come from somewhere," resident Larnzell Harper said. "The city doesn't have the money."
"I stay on the South Side and it is kind of rough over there," Chicago resident Vicki Jefferson said. "It would be worth it to see more police officers over there patrolling the area, to bring down crime."
Fraternal Order of Police President Mike Shields said he would welcome "any new source of revenue" that could be used to bolster a police force that stands at 11,799 after a three-year hiring slowdown, but argued that should have been part of the city's budget.
"This is a basic city service," FOP President Michael Shields said, "something that should be in the city's general budget."
Through Aug. 15, 420 police officers had retired, but only 127 new officers had been hired, he said.
"Why is it that we have to go to another source of revenue to pay for these officers? Policing is a basic city service that should be in the budget without a new fee," Shields said. "The mayor eliminated 1,252 police vacancies. The 2012 budget should not have been balanced at the expense of public safety. Those vacancies should have been filled."
So far this year, there have been 386 homicides and 1,829 shootings incidents in Chicago. That's up 24.5 and ten percent respectively from the 310 murders and 1,657 shootings by this time last year.
Chicago's surging homicide rate has become a media obsession both locally and nationally — and a political embarrassment for Emanuel.
The mayor campaigned on a promise to add 1,000 police officers not then on the street, 250 of them newly-hired with funds generated by tax-increment-financing (TIF) districts.
Instead, he has reassigned 1,019 police officers to beat patrol, half of them already on the street in now-disbanded specialized units. The mayor's first budget was balanced, in part, by eliminating police vacancies.
During the NATO summit, the FOP paid to put up billboards and electronic signs that stated, "Keep Chicago Safe. Hire More Police Officers."
"There are beat officers who respond to 911 calls but there is no pro-active policing. There isn't the time of day in between 911 calls," Shields said Thursday. "You've seen manpower go down and homicides go up. It's time to get serious about true hiring."
Sources said the mayor's 2013 budget will call for the hiring of 500 police officers. But, that's barely enough to keep pace with attrition.
Cardenas is the aldermen who championed Chicago's nickel-a-container tax on bottled water.
He also proposed an anti-obesity plan to tax Chicago consumers of soda pop, energy drinks and other sugary beverages anywhere from 15 to 30 cents-a-contain to a penny-an-ounce.
That tax has the potential to trim waistlines and fatten the city's coffers by $118 million. But, it needs approval from the Illinois General Assembly.
ComEd has a million customers in the city of Chicago.
The Sun-Times Media Wire contributed to this report.
