Mary Ann Smith
Encyclopedia
Mary Ann Smith is alderman of the 48th ward of the City of Chicago
; she was appointed in 1989 by Mayor Richard M. Daley
to replace Kathy Osterman; she was first elected in 1991. On February 27, 2007 she was re-elected to her fifth full term of office.
Programme Award for Citizen Action to Protect the Global Environment. She worked with the Chicago Park District to restructure their department and provide more recreational access to all Chicagoans. Smith is on the Advisory Council on Chicago Green Development.
Smith has tried to implement innovative ideas in her ward, employing new alternative energy and flood control technology. The city’s first water permeable alley was installed in her ward, the system allows for rain gardens to divert water from the sewer system.
In 2000, Smith helped organize the funding for Walkable Edgewater. Smith earned an award from the Chicago Civic Federation and a Soles and Spokes award from the Chicago Area Transportation Study.
Smith was an early supporter of the Human Rights Ordinance and the Domestic Partner Ordinance.
As a member of the city council, Smith is Chairperson on the Parks and Recreation Committee. Smith serves on seven additional committees: Budget and Government Operations; Buildings; Committees, Rules and Ethics; Finance; Historical Landmark Preservation; License and Consumer Protection; and Traffic Control and Safety.
In 2005 Smith was instrumental in the controversial decision to open Rickover Naval Academy in the facilities of Senn High School. This decision met with intense opposition from residents and anti-war activists concerned about military recruitment of the community's poor.
Smith worked with People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals
(PETA
) to draft the proposed Elephant Protection Ordinance, which if adopted would mandate humane treatment of elephants within the City. After two unsuccessful attempts at passage, Smith on December 16, 2009 for the third time introduced the ordinance.
In 2007 Smith ran unopposed for re-election to a fifth term after Smith got two of her supporters, Susanne J. Henning and Albert L. Lewis, to file with the Chicago Board of Elections objections to her opponent's nominating paperwork.
Smith used the 48th ward aldermanic expense account to reimburse $27,428 in costs initially covered by her campaign committee. Of that amount, more than $7,000 was spent on computer equipment, and $20,000 was paid to a lawyer for research on issues ranging from Medicaid fraud to animal cruelty.
Smith was one of the top three alderman lagging in spending so-called "aldermanic menu" funds, which allows aldermen to choose from a menu of street, sidewalk, alley and anti-crime improvements.
Smith appeared in the documentary Uptown: Portrait of a Palace about Chicago's Uptown Theatre
.
On July 2, 2010, in response to the overturning of the Chicago handgun ban by the Supreme Court, she said "that law was written for militias and, “they guaranteed the right to carry around muskets not Uzis."
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
; she was appointed in 1989 by Mayor Richard M. Daley
Richard M. Daley
Richard Michael Daley is a United States politician, member of the national and local Democratic Party, and former Mayor of Chicago, Illinois. He was elected mayor in 1989 and reelected in 1991, 1995, 1999, 2003, and 2007. He was the longest serving Chicago mayor, surpassing the tenure of his...
to replace Kathy Osterman; she was first elected in 1991. On February 27, 2007 she was re-elected to her fifth full term of office.
Appointment
In 1989 48th ward Alderman Kathy Osterman stepped down to take a post with the Daley administration. Mayor Daley filled her aldermanic vacancy by appointing Mary Ann Smith, who had been Osterman's chief aide.Aldermanic career
Smith earned a United NationsUnited Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
Programme Award for Citizen Action to Protect the Global Environment. She worked with the Chicago Park District to restructure their department and provide more recreational access to all Chicagoans. Smith is on the Advisory Council on Chicago Green Development.
Smith has tried to implement innovative ideas in her ward, employing new alternative energy and flood control technology. The city’s first water permeable alley was installed in her ward, the system allows for rain gardens to divert water from the sewer system.
In 2000, Smith helped organize the funding for Walkable Edgewater. Smith earned an award from the Chicago Civic Federation and a Soles and Spokes award from the Chicago Area Transportation Study.
Smith was an early supporter of the Human Rights Ordinance and the Domestic Partner Ordinance.
As a member of the city council, Smith is Chairperson on the Parks and Recreation Committee. Smith serves on seven additional committees: Budget and Government Operations; Buildings; Committees, Rules and Ethics; Finance; Historical Landmark Preservation; License and Consumer Protection; and Traffic Control and Safety.
In 2005 Smith was instrumental in the controversial decision to open Rickover Naval Academy in the facilities of Senn High School. This decision met with intense opposition from residents and anti-war activists concerned about military recruitment of the community's poor.
Smith worked with People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals is an American animal rights organization based in Norfolk, Virginia, and led by Ingrid Newkirk, its international president. A non-profit corporation with 300 employees and two million members and supporters, it claims to be the largest animal rights...
(PETA
Peta
Peta can refer to:* peta-, an SI prefix denoting a factor of 1015* Peta, Greece, a town in Greece* Peta, the Pāli word for a Preta, or hungry ghost in Buddhism* Peta Wilson, an Australian actress and model* Peta Todd, English glamour model...
) to draft the proposed Elephant Protection Ordinance, which if adopted would mandate humane treatment of elephants within the City. After two unsuccessful attempts at passage, Smith on December 16, 2009 for the third time introduced the ordinance.
In 2007 Smith ran unopposed for re-election to a fifth term after Smith got two of her supporters, Susanne J. Henning and Albert L. Lewis, to file with the Chicago Board of Elections objections to her opponent's nominating paperwork.
Smith used the 48th ward aldermanic expense account to reimburse $27,428 in costs initially covered by her campaign committee. Of that amount, more than $7,000 was spent on computer equipment, and $20,000 was paid to a lawyer for research on issues ranging from Medicaid fraud to animal cruelty.
Smith was one of the top three alderman lagging in spending so-called "aldermanic menu" funds, which allows aldermen to choose from a menu of street, sidewalk, alley and anti-crime improvements.
Smith appeared in the documentary Uptown: Portrait of a Palace about Chicago's Uptown Theatre
Uptown Theatre (Chicago)
The Uptown Theatre, also known as the Balaban and Katz Uptown Theatre, is a massive, ornate movie palace in the Uptown neighborhood of Chicago, Illinois. Designed by Rapp and Rapp and constructed in 1925, it the last of the "big three" movie palaces built by the Balaban & Katz theatre chain run by...
.
On July 2, 2010, in response to the overturning of the Chicago handgun ban by the Supreme Court, she said "that law was written for militias and, “they guaranteed the right to carry around muskets not Uzis."
External links
- Alderman Mary Ann Smith, 48th Ward Chicago, political action committee web site
- 48th Ward Web Page
- Save Senn, an organization opposing the establishment of Rickover Naval Academy