Chicago Tribune Opinion Friday, June 19, 2026 | | |
| | | | | Happy Friday, Chicago. It feels like fall in June. Those of us who love the cool, crisp air are in their element. CTA, Metra and Pace riders were spared a fare hike after lawmakers approved a $1.5 billion transit rescue package, but somebody has to pay. The editorial board warns that Chicagoland drivers will be left picking up more of the tab, with tolls expected to rise by 45 cents. The board’s lead editorial offers a message for the City Council: Don't let attorney Dan Webb scare you. Aldermen should use their leverage over the proposed sale of Chicago's parking meter lease to seek a better deal for taxpayers. In the opinion section, columnist David Greising asks whether the Obama Foundation should play a larger role in addressing the gentrification pressures that have accompanied the Obama Presidential Center. Linnea Wicklund, a crew member for “Ferris Bueller's Day Off,” muses on the Chicago film classic’s enduring appeal. Finally, a quartet of aldermen make the case for publicly financed campaigns, arguing that matching small-dollar donations would give ordinary Chicagoans more influence in local elections. Don’t forget to check out reader letters. — Hilary Gowins, editorial board member Submit an op-ed | Submit a letter to the editor | Meet the Tribune Editorial Board | Subscribe to this newsletter | | | | If lawmakers had not diverted hundreds of millions of transportation dollars toward transit, would a 45-cent toll increase still be necessary? | | | | | The parking meter flap just got even uglier. | | | | | Chicago was not up for the job of protecting the neighborhood to the west of the Obama Center from gentrification. | | | | | John Hughes understood the young people around him better than we knew ourselves. His superpower was insight into the teenage mind. | | | | | Dozens of cities and states have transformed their democracies with voluntary public financing programs. | | | | | Since November, I’ve dreaded the coming of spring, then summer and now Father’s Day. | | | |
