The first map of Chicago’s political battle lines was submitted to City Council Thursday, and it adds two new aldermen to the South Loop, splitting the neighborhood between a total of four representatives in city council.

Pitched by the council’s Hispanic Caucus, it would divvy up the South Loop, which right now is almost entirely represented by Ald. Bob Fioretti (2nd), with the exception of a sliver represented by Pat Dowell (4th).

The neighborhood’s massive population boom in the last 10 years made the 2nd Ward one of the few in the city that gained population, while most others lost people. Though it’s often used as a political tool, the remap’s goal is ostensibly to balance out the wards to balance population between them.

As a result, the South Loop was prime to be split up, and it has been. In the Hispanic Caucus’ map, Ald. Brendan Reilly (42nd) moves south from downtown to claim the neighborhood east of State Street but north of Roosevelt Road. Ald. Will Burns (4th) moves north from Hyde Park and Bronzeville to claim the entire neighborhood south of Roosevelt.

Fioretti maintains only a sliver of the neighborhood, keeping the South Loop west of State and north of Roosevelt — essentially Printers Row and part of Dearborn Park.

The West Loop, University Village and Pilsen are mostly unaffected, with the same faces (27th Ward Ald. Walter Burnett, 25th Ward Ald. Danny Solis and Fioretti) but boundaries slightly shifted.

Mapmakers have dubbed it the taxpayer protection map because they believe it can withstand legal scrutiny. In addition to the Hispanic Caucus, aldermen John Pope (10th), James Balcer (11th), Marty Quinn (13th), Scott Waguespack (32nd), Michele Smith (43rd), John Arena (45th) and James Cappleman (46th) have signed off on it.

It does eliminate two majority black wards, while adding three majority Hispanic wards; it also moves Ald. Willie Cochran’s 20th Ward from the South Side to the North Side. The council’s black caucus has previously cried foul at any attempts to cut their number of seats in the city council.

For any map to take affect, it must get 41 votes in the city council. Otherwise, voters would choose a map in a referendum.

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By SD from Old Town
Posted: 08/16/2012 7:32 PM

We are part of Old Town that will no longer be in Michelle Smith's ward next yer and she could CARE LESS about our neighborhood concerns...funny how aggressive she once was when there were votes to be had, now you cant even get a response from her office. SO SAD. Let this be a lesson to the Lincoln Parkers when they go to vote for Michelle Smith in the next election. SHE DOES NOT CARE ABOUT YOU OR YOUR PROPERTY ONLY HER SELF SERVING INTERESTS.

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By Ken Gaines from West Loop
Posted: 12/27/2011 11:56 AM

Mary Ann Sullivan really shows her total lack of knowledge about the South Loop and the development. The development was started and approved by former Alderman Haithcock who never met a developer she did not like because of campaign contributions. Mary Ann you show your ignorance by blaming Fioretti.

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By SouthLooper from South Loop
Posted: 12/23/2011 6:14 PM

Good panoply of comments here. I sense lots of justifiable anger/disgust! But I must ask where this anger was during last election when aldermen were elected who are now pushing these racially motivated maps, or during previous to last election when state reps/senators were elected who, led by similar racial impulses, split up the South Loop at state level like it's now likely to be split up at ward level? Expressing anger on this blog is like closing the barn door after the horses have escaped!

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By Hopeless and Changeless from 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 27th Ward - You Pick
Posted: 12/23/2011 10:18 AM

Ironically, these are Obama's crew leading the way on this new Hope and Change! I hear they want access to the South Loop TIF bucket to port to their other ward areas.

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By Paul from University Village
Posted: 12/23/2011 10:09 AM

Ward politics based on racism is just plain wrong. The South Loop should not be split at all. Some Chicago politicians are still behaving that we live in 1970. Barack Obama is President, people!

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By maybe from Printer's Row
Posted: 12/23/2011 9:09 AM

So much for the South Loop being a diverse neighborhood. All we get for that is disgusting politicians trying to divide us.

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By No Dowell from Printers row
Posted: 12/23/2011 1:09 AM

Zeke, you are so out of touch. She told many non-tax paying constituants that she derailed the deal for NTA because she is still hoping to bring public housing back to the area, and wants to save the school for future welfare babies that could atten t the school

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By Anonymous
Posted: 12/22/2011 8:10 PM

I agree w/Zeke that Ald. Dowel wanted an open process. In an act of community disrespect though, the dictators at CPS tried to force their horrible plan down the throats of both South Loop & NTA parents. Neither of them wanted this plan & the outcry at both schools was deafening. Unfortunately but not surprisingly, Horrible Alderman (I'm a flip-flop & have zero clout at Council & will now end up in Lakeview after remap) Bob Fioretti (through his lackeys) tried to push this bad plan as well!

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By Zeke from S. Loop
Posted: 12/21/2011 7:51 PM

Maxwell, what a sweeping statement on Dowel's education vision. What I heard her say was that NTA's principal, teachers and parents needed to have a say in how the SLS moved in. Remember SLC wanted separate entrances, facilities etc. CPS never notified the principal about the proposed plan. Dowel sought an open process.

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By Maxwell from 2nd Ward
Posted: 12/20/2011 10:22 PM

Likely Fioretti's support of the WLoop plan was about his only option as he is being gifted some serious anal love by fellow Alderman & machine hacks. Mel's map giving S of Roosevelt to Dowell would set us back for years. Our area needs real leadership to finally deliver educational assets & a comprehensive vision of educational excellence for Jones, SLC, NTA, etc. Dowell does not support this; her vision is to hold NTA (at 40% cap) for future CHA housing not even planned and SLC overcrowded.

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By Mary Ann Sullivan from Central Station
Posted: 12/20/2011 9:47 PM

Thanks Bob. We have over development and abandoned projects that are eye-sores all over Michigan Avenue , Wabash and State. You've been invisible as far as our area is concerned and now you will be gone. Nothing has really changed

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By Anon
Posted: 12/20/2011 1:18 PM

There is no agreement as to what constitutes the South Loop. And it has never been represented by anything but a hodge podge of all politicians. Over the years my home has been in the 42nd ward, 3rd ward and 2nd ward and I have never lived anywhere but an area typically defined as a S. Loop location. Now I may be in the 25th. The interesting thing is that in the ward he signed off on Fioretti gave up on the S. Loop in favor of the west loop. Guess that explains the great parks built there

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By SLOOPER
Posted: 12/20/2011 1:14 PM

Andy: How do you know what options the Alderman had? How do you know that the result in the majority map is a response to him supporting another map? maybe he should have pulled a Cappleman and signed both maps.

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By Andy from South Loop
Posted: 12/20/2011 11:13 AM

Maps can be found at: http://www.nbcchicago.com/blogs/ward-room/Comparing-The-Ward-Maps--135860248.html Fioretti went with the Latino Caucus map b/c the 2nd Ward was completely moved in Mell\'s map (Black Caucus). At least Burns used to represent the South Loop while State rep. He\'s not a complete stranger. On the other hand, Chinatown is still split in both maps, which is ridiculous. That neighborhood has an even stronger case as defined community of interest than South Loop.

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By An Angry South Loop Voter from The South Loop
Posted: 12/19/2011 7:58 PM

Believe me Jerry/Eric, I'm quite angry about this remap! Worthless Fioretti has thrown South Loopers under the bus by letting us be split into wards south of us. Maybe the only poetic justice is that the powerful alderman (Mell, Burke, etc, but not Worthless Fioretti who has no clout at Council whatsoever) will get their horrible map passed & Worthless Fioretti will be remapped into Lakeview. Then he's sure to lose in 2015 because the committeemen up there probably already have someone in mind!

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By Jerry from South Loop
Posted: 12/19/2011 7:34 PM

Someone needs to do something about this. The South Loop needs to be united as a neighborhood otherwise it will have no direction in it's residential and retail development and the development of it's infrastructure and institutions. This sounds like a really bad idea. South Loop residents should be pissed off!

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By South Loop Votes Lost from South Loop
Posted: 12/19/2011 5:13 PM

Depending on map, it appears a few things are at play: #1 - The MACHINE is going to stick to either Fioretti or to Brendan Reilly. One Map sticks it to Reilley's North side & downtown $donor$ base, while moving Fioretti\'s 2nd Ward further west (Ouch!) - - #2 - In the Hispanic / Black Ward trade0ff, they appear to be trying to create an AA 2nd Ward. -- #3 - SCREW all SOUTH LOOP Residents -- #4 - MARGINALIZE SOUTH LOOP Caucasian Voter impact by dumping us into Historically AA 3rd & 4th Wards.

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By Eric from South Loop
Posted: 12/19/2011 4:36 PM

South Loop residents should be pissed off! The South Loop is a model modern diversity expermiment being ripped apart by other wards' RACE segragation!!! On top of that, at a time when we need clear direction on education facilities, some map versions show giving ward oversight of educational facilities to to Alderman 'Do-well-nothing', Solise, and Burns. Get ready folks, the southside, Free-sh!t, free-loading socialist agenda is coming to the South Loop if this happens, excellence be damn!

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By Jerry from South Loop
Posted: 12/19/2011 2:54 PM

What a pain in the butt for people living in the South Loop. They shouldn't be able to split up neighborhoods four ways between alderamn like that. How are we supposed to have our voices heard?

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By W Jones from Ether
Posted: 12/18/2011 7:18 AM

There are two maps on file: See page 4 of http://chicityclerk.com/headlines/2011/dec/O2011-10252.pdf and http://chicityclerk.com/headlines/2011/dec/F2011-371.pdf The second map has Fioretti getting relocated to the north side near Tunney and Pawar.

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By Dave
Posted: 12/17/2011 7:07 PM

Have they provided a map of what the wards will look like?

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By Jeff Burdick from River North
Posted: 12/17/2011 8:08 AM

Given that the Aldermen have done little more than rubber stamp the acts of the current and previous mayors, any remapping of the wards should be called the Aldermanic Placebo Act. The only re-mapping that should interest voters is one that reduces the number of Wards from 50 to 30. This would at least reduce the number of uncompetitive Aldermanic races, as well as the number of \"persons of interest\" followed by the U.S. Attorney\'s Office. But hey, in the spirit of annual year-in-reviews, let\'s

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By Jeff Burdick from River North
Posted: 12/17/2011 8:08 AM

Given that the Aldermen have done little more than rubber stamp the acts of the current and previous mayors, any remapping of the wards should be called the Aldermanic Placebo Act. The only re-mapping that should interest voters is one that reduces the number of Wards from 50 to 30. This would at least reduce the number of uncompetitive Aldermanic races, as well as the number of "persons of interest" followed by the U.S. Attorney's Office. But hey, in the spirit of annual year-in-reviews, let's