Chicago’s Catalyst Fund Under Fire | Chicago News

Chicago’s City Treasurer Melissa Conyears-Ervin is pushing to shut down the decade-old Catalyst Fund, redirecting its $57 million to plug a $90 million budget gap and prevent layoffs for police and firefighters. Originally launched by Rahm Emanuel to spark private investment in underserved neighborhoods, the fund saw limited success but helped 762 small businesses survive the pandemic—now fully repaid. Conyears-Ervin argues that protecting frontline services is more urgent than maintaining the fund, and she’s drafting an ordinance to make it happen, hoping City Council will see the value in using those funds to avoid cuts while still supporting South and West Side communities. Listen in comfort:Get a discount on a Soli Pillow: http://solipillow.com/discount/dnn. Advertise on DNN:[email protected] This is an automated, high-level news summary based on public reporting.Report issues to [email protected]. View sources & latest updates:https://sources.thednn.ai/5dba31bf49228f6a