How will Paul Vallas, Brandon Johnson work to reverse Chicago's population loss?
CHICAGO (CBS) -- The candidates for mayor in Chicago are gearing up for one of their final debates before the runoff election a week from Tuesday.
Brandon Johnson and Paul Vallas will meet on CBS 2 Tuesday night. On Monday, Johnson visited the City Club of Chicago – while Vallas appeared with leaders from more than 20 labor organizations.
Also on Monday, CBS 2 Political Investigator Dana Kozlov took a look at what the candidates plan to do about another pertinent issue – the city's declining population. It is a serious issue, because when people exit, they take their tax dollars with them.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 50,000 people left Chicago in just two years – from April 2020 to July 2022. It is a trend that concerns both mayoral candidates – and both Vallas and Johnson want to reverse it.
"I want more teachers," Johnson told Kozlov in January. "I want more nurses."
But how does Johnson plan to entice professionals back to the city, or keep them from leaving altogether? For one, he wants to create programs to make it easier for public employees to own a home.
"So we can rehab homes, put them back on the market, incentivize public employees – whether you are a community college professor, a bus operator," to buy those homes, Johnson said.
Johnson also pledges not to raise property taxes – which, as they spike, have driven many homeowners out of the city. Johnson also wants to invest in and remove barriers to creating affordable and public housing.
Some ideas for that includes freezing Chicago Housing Authority land from being used for anything but housing, and giving vacant properties to community groups and developers.
He also wants students, seniors, and disabled residents to be able to ride the CTA for free.
"I'm ready and willing to negotiate the details of the plan, as long as we could agree on the values," Johnson said at the City Club of Chicago recently.
Vallas would also target raising property taxes, by capping them. Kozlov asked Vallas what that would look like in practice.
"What that looks like in practice is you're a homeowner, and you know, you're never going to see your property tax rise by more than 3 percent a year."
Vallas, like Johnson, would also make it easier for people to convert unused spaces like basements and attics into apartments – in Vallas' platform, for seniors.
Vallas also wants to create pathways toward developing vacant land into homes – and both candidates agree safe city streets are critical.
"What I'm about is ensuring that public safety is a human right," Vallas said at a recent event.
Both Vallas and Johnson also want to increase mental health and other supportive services to further meet the needs of Chicago residents. Johnson, though, is particularly focused on the city's long-underserved Black and brown communities.
CBS 2 Chicago is hosting a debate at 6 p.m. Tuesday along with our partners – the Business Leadership Council, the Chicago Urban League, the National Association of Black Journalists Chicago, and WVON.
CBS 2's Irika Sargent will be joined by WVON'S Rufus Williams, and Danielle Sanders from the Chicago News Weekly, to ask the questions.
You can stream the debate live on all our platforms, or watch on CBS 2.
