By Steve Rhodes
At least we now know what Chicago would look like if martial law were ever declared. For more NATO noddities, see today’s NATO Notebook.
Now on to the rest of the news.
The Ghost Of Richie Daley I
“Eight months before leaving office, Mayor Richard M. Daley hired a friend, Patricia C. Bobb, as inspector general of the Public Building Commission of Chicago, which builds schools, police stations and other government buildings,” the Sun-Times reports.
“It was a power play by Daley, a move to block his nemesis, City Hall Inspector General Joseph Ferguson, who wanted to examine the multimillion-dollar construction deals approved by the commission and expose bogus minority subcontractors.”
So a politically strategic obstruction of justice.
“On the job for 17 months, Bobb has little to show for her work . . . Bobb hasn’t filed any reports with the commission, whose 11 members include the mayor and Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle.
“Nor has Bobb spent much time on the job. She put in a total of 100 hours in her first 11 months as the commission’s part-time inspector general, according to eight bills that she’s submitted for payment. So far, she’s been paid $29,155 – at a rate of $290 an hour, plus expenses.”
So a veritable ghost-payrolling politically strategic obstruction of justice.
And it gets worse.
“Even as she worked as the commission’s part-time inspector general, Bobb began representing Shelley Davis and her husband Omar Roberts, in a lawsuit against City Hall. Davis and Roberts were injured five years ago when a 50-pound chunk of concrete fell from a viaduct downtown and landed inside their car. Bobb argued that City Hall knew concrete had been falling from the viaduct, but ‘they just didn’t do anything’ to fix it. The city settled the case in April by paying Bobb’s clients $450,000.”
So a veritable double-dipping, ghost-payrolling, politically strategic obstruction of justice. Jackpot!
“Bobb and her ex-husband, Robert J. Bobb, are longtime friends and supporters of Daley. Robert Bobb is a co-founder and operator of Cardinal Growth, a venture capital firm that invested in two companies that landed lucrative city contracts under Daley while his son, Patrick Daley, was working in Cardinal’s offices. Patrick Daley has made more than $1.2 million on his deals with Bobb.”
And the inevitable:
“Bobb didn’t return calls seeking comment.”
Patti Bobb, you are Today’s Worst Person in Chicago.
The Ghost of Richie Daley II
“Hoping to recover $24.1 million in taxpayers’ money that was invested with a troubled venture capital firm involving former Mayor Richard M. Daley’s son, federal authorities have given 34 private investors a choice: Pay up, or end up in court,” the Sun-Times reports.
“Cardinal Growth – founded and operated by Chicago businessmen Robert J. Bobb and Joseph McInerney – raised money from private investors and obtained another $24.1 million in SBA loans to buy up businesses.
“One of the companies it invested in – Municipal Sewer Services – got multimillion-dollar, no-bid contract extensions from City Hall during a period in which Daley’s son, Patrick Daley, held a secret ownership stake in the company. MSS is out of business. Anthony Duffy – who ran MSS – has pleaded guilty in federal court to minority-contracting fraud.
“In all, Patrick Daley made more than $1.2 million on his deals with Cardinal Growth, including $708,999 from a City Hall deal to install wireless Internet service at O’Hare and Midway airports.”
Why They Occupy
“Pay Packages Keep Rising For Chicago-Area CEOs.”
Media Mogul’s Message
Michael Ferro, the new owner of Sun-Times Media, refused to speak to Crain’s about suspicious side-deals involving a health care IT company he bought a few years ago. I wonder what he would tell his reporters to do in a similar situation.
*
Every CEO a Sun-Times reporter attempts to interview: Hey, why should I talk to the press when your own boss won’t?
The Weekend In Chicago Rock
Monster.
Crosstown Coverage
* SportsMonday: Crosstown Crapper.
* The White Sox Report: Samardzija’s Head.
* The Cub Factor: Kerry Wood’s Weird Retirement Party.
* SwingsBothWays: Don’t Got Wood.
Chicagoetry
Re*ac*tor.
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The Beachwood Tip Line: Hari hari.
Posted on May 21, 2012