Charter School Plan Stirs Debate
The newest battleground in the citywide conflict between the teachers’ union and charter schools has emerged at a parcel of vacant land near Chicago’s far northwest edge. And on Tuesday evening, rookie Ald. Nicholas Sposato (36th Ward) will find himself in the middle of the fight over a new charter school proposal for the site from one of Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s most prominent allies.
The United Neighborhood Organization, led by Emanuel mayoral campaign co-chairman Juan Rangel, wants to buy the land in the Galewood neighborhood and build a new school that would open next year. UNO first would need a zoning change from the City Council, which traditionally has deferred to the wishes of a site’s alderman.
Sposato said Monday he would withhold judgment on the plan until receiving feedback from constituents at a public hearing on the zoning change proposal. The meeting is scheduled for 7 p.m. Tuesday at the Shriners
