City Council honors outgoing Ald. Walter Burnett Jr. as he prepares to step down
Burnett, 61, is the dean of the City Council, having represented the 27th Ward on the West Side since 1995, and the longest-serving African American ever on the Chicago City Council. He's also the vice mayor and chairman of the Zoning Committee, and received a standing ovation from his colleagues after presenting his final committee report.
Convicted for his role in an armed robbery in the 1980s, Burnett got his first job in politics working for Cook County government in the 1980s before first being elected to the City Council in 1995, and later receiving a pardon which he said allowed him to continue serving in elected office.
"Thank you for the honor to allow me to be the vice mayor of the City of Chicago. Thank you for the honor to allow me to be the Zoning chair. Thank you for the honor for a young kid who made a mistake, grew up in the projects, to be where I am today. Thank you. God bless you," a tearful Burnett told his colleagues from the council's rostrum at City Hall.
Burnett has worked in city or county government roles for more than 40 years, starting as a draftsman for the Cook County Highway Department – meaning he's spent his entire political career working in the building that houses both Chicago City Hall and the Cook County Building.
"I love everyone in this building. I've been in this building for 41 years," Burnett said. "I know just about everybody on the county side, from the janitors to the executives, because I love people. I know everybody here."
Despite being one of the more moderate members of the City Council, Burnett has been a staunch ally of Mayor Brandon Johnson, a political progressive.
Johnson called Burnett "a true example of what it means to be a public servant."
"You have given so much to so many people," Johnson said. "We love you, and we know that God is not done with you yet, but we certainly are grateful. We give God the glory for the things that he has done through you."
Burnett's colleagues repeatedly hailed him as a bridge builder who consistently worked to find consensus in debates between the council's progressives and moderates, which have grown more heated in recent years.
"What I'm grateful for is that Walter has always helped simmer down the room. When tensions are high, when people are upset, he reminds us why we're here, he reminds us what we're fighting for, and he reminds us that there is a middle that we can achieve," said Ald. Jessie Fuenes (26th).
Ald. David Moore (17th) praised Burnett for never taking political disagreements personally, regardless of the issue.
"We can argue, we can disagree, and then tomorrow we laugh and we're shaking hands," Moore said.
Ald. Raymond Lopez (15th) said Burnett regularly urged his colleagues "not just to be showhorses, but to be workhorses."
"It's remarkable to think of what we're losing as you turn the chapter. This body will never be the same. Whether people love you or hate you, they cannot deny it," Lopez said. "You've always been able to see the best and the craziest of us, and make us understand about ourselves as well."
Burnett grew up in the CHA's Rockwell Gardens and Cabrini-Green housing complexes.
As a teen, Burnett served two years in prison in the early 1980s for his role in an armed bank robbery in Kankakee. While in prison, he earned an associate's degree in political science as well as certificates as a draftsman and an emergency medical technician.
A month after his release from prison, Burnett got his first job in Cook County government, working under then-Board President George Dunne. He later went on to work for 11 years for then-Cook County Recorder of Deeds Jesse White, his political mentor, before managing White's successful 1998 campaign for Illinois Secretary of State.
Burnett was first elected to the City Council in 1995, and in 1998 Gov. Jim Edgar pardoned him for his bank robbery conviction, and Burnett said without that, he wouldn't have been able to run for re-election. Since his release from prison, Burnett has been a staunch advocate for programs that provide second chances to convicted felons.
"I never underestimate everyone, and I believe everybody is a human being and they're important, and you never know where they're going to be in life," Burnett said.
During his time in office, his ward hosted two Democratic National Conventions – in 1996 and 2024 – and has undergone a dramatic transformation from a hub of manufacturing and meatpacking businesses into one of the trendiest residential neighborhoods in Chicago with a booming restaurant scene. The ward will also be home to Chicago's first permanent casino, which is currently under construction.
Several members of the City Council said they've looked to Burnett as an example of how to successfully develop their own wards.
"I think we've all learned from you in one way or another, and there's so much more that we can learn from you. When it comes down to building a ward, I quietly watched what you do, and I tried to emulate that in my ward. You've done a great job at it, and I don't think anyone can say anything different," Ald. Chris Taliaferro (29th) said.
The Sun-Times reports Mayor Brandon Johnson is seriously considering appointing Burnett as the new CEO of the Chicago Housing Authority.
The CHA has been led by interim CEO Angela Hurlock since November, when former CEO Tracey Scott stepped down.
The CHA board is scheduled to meet Tuesday, when they could vote on a new CEO.
With Burnett stepping down from the City Council, Johnson will be tasked with choosing his successor, and the Sun-Times reports Burnett is hoping the mayor will pick his son, Walter R. Burnett, to fill his seat. Johnson also would have to pick someone to replace Burnett as vice mayor and Zoning Committee chair.
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