Snow Job: Privatization Pitch Dies

The Daley administration’s plan to privatize the plowing of Chicago’s side streets has been buried under an avalanche of opposition by the city’s aldermen.

Most aldermen are up for reelection in February when snow plowing a hot button issue and none of them wants to test the political waters with a change in the status quo snow removal, the Sun-Times reports.

"This is a very sensitive city service that people rely upon. They also want accountability. Accountability spells aldermen. There's much less accountability when you out-source city government," Transportation Committee Chairman Tom Allen (38th) told the Chicago Sun-Times last week.

What’s more is that few private firms even wanted the job and those who acted on the mayor’s request for proposal were asking for too much money.

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