Mayor-elect Rahm Emanuel named the former CEO of R.R. Donnelly & Sons Co. on Wednesday as his deputy mayor, a job that pays $1 a year.
Mark Angelson also will chair the newly created Mayor's Council on Budget, Business Development and Economic Issues, a council charged with "putting our city on solid financial footing with an integrated approach."
The five-member council led by Angelson is tasked with examining the city budget, finding ways to bring down costs and spurring economic growth, Emanuel said. Mostly, it aims to stabilize Chicago's daunting financial situation.
Angelson's team includes Lois Scott, a friend of Emanuel's since Clinton's presidency, as chief fiscal officer, and Alexandra Holt, who specializes in infrastructure privatization, as budget director.
Also named were Amer Ahmed, senior vice president at Cleveland-based bank KeyCorp, as comptroller and John Tolva, IBM's director of citizenship and technology, as chief technology officer.
In the face of a Chicago budget that's nearing bankruptcy with a nearly $1billion deficit, Emanuel said Wednesday he's confident in the new team.
"I want the people of the city of Chicago, the country and the world to see that this city's leaders are not afraid of the future," Emanuel said. "We are facing our city's future directly and head on."
Wednesday's announcement was part of a string of staff announcements from Emanuel. This week, the mayor elect also announced the appointments of Forrest Claypool as CTA president and Jean-Claude Brizard as Chicago Public Schools chief.
