John Arena is an American politician. A member of the

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

, he represented the 45th ward in the

Chicago City Council The Chicago City Council is the legislative branch of the government of the City of Chicago in Illinois. It consists of 50 alderpersons elected from 50 wards to serve four-year terms. The council is gaveled into session regularly, usually mont ...

from 2011 to 2019.

Career

Aldermanic career

In 2011, Arena was elected as the alderman of the 45th ward. The 45th ward includes

Portage Park Portage Park is a park in the Portage Park community area of Chicago, Illinois on the National Register of Historic Places. The park stretches from Irving Park Road on the south to Berteau Avenue between Central and Long Avenues. The largest p ...

, Gladstone Park,

Mayfair Mayfair is an affluent area in the West End of London towards the eastern edge of Hyde Park, in the City of Westminster, between Oxford Street, Regent Street, Piccadilly and Park Lane. It is one of the most expensive districts in the world. ...

, Edgebrook, Forest Glen and Jefferson Park. In 2015, Arena was reelected to another four year term in 2015. On February 26, 2019, Arena was defeated by challenger Jim Gardiner. As an alderman, Arena was a member of the Committee on Aviation, Committee on Committees, Rules and Ethics, Committee on Economic, Capital and Technology Development, Committee on Finance, Committee on License and Consumer Protection and the Committee on Special Events, Cultural Affairs and Recreation. He is also a founding member of the Chicago Progressive Reform Coalition and the Democratic Ward Committeeman for the 45th Ward. In May 2018, Arena was accused of entering a Chicago Police station and demanding to utilize free parking reserved for officers so he could attend a Chicago Cubs game. As an alderman, Arena was noted as an advocate for developing affordable housing, even in communities where local residents opposed it. When public safety officials opposed his development plans on social media, Arena had the Anti Defamation League crosscheck their names with city employee databases. He then filed complaints with their respective departments accusing them of making "racially charged" comments. In December of 2019, after two years of investigations, the Civilian Office of Police Accountability announced allegations made against 29 of the 31 officers accused were groundless. The investigation is still going on for the firefighters accused, with none of the accusations yet to be proven. Arena was also noted as one of the council's most vocal opponents to mayor Rahm Emanuel.

Post-aldermanic career

On September 30, 2019, Arena was hired by the administration of mayor Lori Lightfoot (whom he had endorsed in the runoff of the

2019 Chicago mayoral election The 2019 Chicago mayoral election was the 2019 edition of the quadrennial elections held to determine the Mayor of the City of Chicago, Illinois. The election was held on February 26, 2019. Since no candidate received a majority of votes, a run ...

) to work as a special advisor in the city's planning department. In December 2019, Arena's opponent James Gardiner and a political ally claimed Arena, engaged in political activity and made a rude gesture at a community meeting, which led to Arena being forced out of his job in the city's Planning Department. Through a city spokesperson, Arena denied the charges at the time.

References

External links

Constituent Services WebsiteCampaign Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Arena, John Living people Chicago City Council members Illinois Democrats Northern Illinois University alumni 21st-century American politicians Year of birth missing (living people)