As Mick Dumke reported on the Reader‘s blog last December, the 20-year no-bid contract with a joint venture made up of two firms that know their way around City Hall—Interstate (a contributor to Emanuel’s campaign fund) and JCDecaux (which has the city’s bus shelter contract)—got five hours of testimony before a council committee whose members admitted that they didn’t get it but recommended the contract to the City Council anyway. A week later it sailed through the council, 43 to 6.
In fact, the first year’s proceeds from digital billboards ($15 million) were in the city budget that the council had already approved. Mayor Emanuel said the deal will guarantee the city $155 million over 20 years (he didn’t mention that the city will be footing all bills for construction), and will serve as an emergency broadcast system. JCDecaux issued a press release pegging expected revenue at $700 million, and co-CEO Jean-Francois Decaux proclaimed that “Chicago is becoming the Silicon Valley of digital outdoor media.”
After that, Emanuel needed the state legislature to revise its highway regulation law to exclude the city network from restrictions laid out by the HBA that would, among other things, prevent the signs from going up so close to the roadway. The legislature obliged, and Governor Pat Quinn signed off on it last month.