You love to go out. We love to go out. You love to eat. We love to eat. You love to drink. Well, you get the idea. So when you're itching for the lastest Chicago nightlife has to offer, check out The Extrovert for up-to-the minute details on the scene.
Now hear this...
Last week we updated you on the well-intentioned but terribly misguided proposed ordinance that would, in effect, prevent a great deal of Chicago concerts--including our annual Rock 'n' Vote event--from happening. Now, we're only a day away from the City Council voting on the ordinance, so there's no time like the present to speak up and let the city's decisionmakers hear what a negative impact this ordinance would have on the local music scene--rather than simply achieving its intended effect, which is to keep audiences safe.
Sign a petition here at SaveChicagoCulture.org, and see here to find your Alderman and speak your mind directly to the city.
UPDATE: According to a statement by the Chicago Music Commission (found on Chicago Sun-Times music critic Jim DeRogatis' blog ), voting on the ordinance is being postponed until it can be fine-tuned, following the waves of public outcry inspired by the proposal.
Some choice quotes from the story:
Efrat Dallal Stein, spokeswoman for the Business Affairs & Licensing Department: "With any ordinance, there's going to be things that cannot accommodate every single person in a particular industry because the range is so large. It's a growing industry and it is in need of some sort of regulation, just like any other growing industry. I mean, you need a license to sell a T-shirt in the city of Chicago."
Ald. Eugene Schulter (47th), chairman of the licensing committee: "Unfortunately, we've had incidents in the city where people have been murdered, people have been accosted [and] there have been fights. Our goal is not to hurt anybody, but to really help the promoter as well as the person in charge of the venue, because right now, the only person that really is responsible is the person that runs the venue."
Christian Picciolini, founder of the local punk-rock record label Sinister Music: "Passing an ordinance like this will virtually destroy the diversity and importance of an independent music scene."
Stay tuned for updates.
What do you think about the ordinance? Where do you see it going from here?
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