Progress Illinois

Although pressure is building on Mayor Daley to release the details of Chicago’s stimulus wish-list, there’s no indication that he plans to disclose the specifics to either the City Council or the public in the near future. When initially pressed on why this public information remained under wraps, he blamed the big bad media. “We did not put that out publicly,” he said, “because once you start putting it out publicly, you know, the newspapers, the media is going to be ripping it apart.”

Yesterday, he played the same unconvincing tune. The Sun-Times has the story:

Mayor Daley said Thursday he’s holding back his wish list of projects Chicago wants to fund with largesse from the federal stimulus package because he’s afraid of raising political expectations.

“If I go out and announce 20, 40, 50 projects, it would be great. Oh, big headlines. Then you turn around and only two of those projects go forward, and you announced them in 40 different communities. I mean, you’ll destroy me overnight. And the public will destroy you,” Daley said.

Of course, the more sensible alternative is to release the city’s top priorities without promising that all projects will be funded. That’s what mayors across the country have done over the past two months. Philadelphia provides a great example:

[Mayor Michael] Nutter is armed with 100 city projects totaling $2.6 billion, saying they have the potential to create nearly 25,000 jobs.

The mayor’s senior aides acknowledge that they do not think a majority of what’s on the list will receive federal funding – but they do think some projects might, as Obama moves to stimulate the economy with a massive infrastructure effort. With Obama considering a stimulus package designed to create 2.5 million jobs by 2011, the Nutter administration’s strategy is to offer up a wide range of local projects, with hope that some will fit into the new president’s priorities.

Also instructive is the case of Boston Mayor Thomas Menino. In December, he disclosed a $190 million wish-list that included programs of “dubious economic benefit,” according to the Boston Herald. After discussions with various public officials, funding for faith-based community initiatives went out the door and in came more infrastructure spending. The result: a program that is slimmer and better targeted. For what it’s worth, Menino even promised to set up a website where Bostonians can track how the city spends its funding.

As with the schools, the police, and his tax increment financing (TIF) system, what Daley fears is public scrutiny. If the stimulus projects were actually chosen on merit, the local press and most citizens would pat him on the back and let the issue rest. But merit isn't always paramount on the fifth floor of City Hall.