- Thomas M. Tunney
Thomas M. Tunney (born
August 22 ,1955 ) is aUnited States entrepreneur andpolitician from the state ofIllinois . Since 2003, he serves as the firstgay alderman of theChicago City Council .citation |url=http://www.glbtq.com/social-sciences/chicago,4.html |last=Gianoulis |first=Tina |title=Chicago |periodical=glbtq.com |year=2006 |accessdate=2007-08-20 ] He represents the prominent 44th Ward of the City ofChicago ( [http://egov.cityofchicago.org/webportal/COCWebPortal/COC_ATTACH/Precincts_Maps_44_1.pdf map] ) and is formally a member of the Democratic Party. His constituency includes major tourist destinations, Boystown and Wrigleyville neighborhoods.Education
Tunney was born and raised in the Irish Southwest Side of
Chicago . Upon graduating from Brother Rice, a localCatholic high school , he attended the University of Illinois where he obtained his bachelor's degree in restaurant management. Tunney succeeded in obtaining a master's degree in hotel administration fromCornell University . He had hopes of following in his parent's footsteps with a career in the hospitality industry.Entrepreneur
Upon returning from
college , Tunney settled into the Lakeview neighborhood and worked in his family's restaurants. Upon hearing that Chicago fixtureAnn Sather was retiring and closing her famous restaurant in Lakeview in1981 , Tunney met with Sather offering a proposal to purchase her business. Tunney gained full ownership of theAnn Sather Restaurant and expanded it into a successful chain of restaurants.Tunney joined several prestigious entrepreneurial circles and became chairman of the Illinois Restaurant Association. He founded and led the Lakeview Center Business Association and White Crane Wellness Center. As a result of his success, Tunney was inducted into the Chicago Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame in 1995.
Public service
Finding himself in prominence as a local small-business neighborhood leader, Tunney sprang into public service. He opened his restaurants to grassroots and nonprofit organizations as town halls, serving as free meeting places. He committed himself to helping people with
HIV andAIDS through programs he created, adopted by the Illinois Masonic Hospital. With a growing business network, Tunney became a fundraiser for local gay and lesbian political advocacy groups.Upon notice of Tunney's activities as well as the influence of his political contributions to local campaigns, Chicago politicians offered Tunney positions in city governance. He became chairman of the small business subcommittee of the Chicago Economic Development Committee. Mayor
Richard M. Daley appointed Tunney to the mayor's Parking Task Force.Alderman
Upon the announced retirement of ward boss
Bernie Hansen in 2002, Tunney was prodded to enter elected office. Hansen, with the consent of the mayor, hand-picked Tunney to replace him as the ward's principal voice in city governance. Hansen resigned just months before the election so as to avoid a primary election, allowing the mayor to appoint Tunney as the replacement candidate. With the support of the political machinery of Chicago's Democratic Party, Tunney was elected alderman onFebruary 25 ,2003 .As alderman, Tunney has faced criticism over his handling of the Cubs’ demands for more night games and expansion of
Wrigley Field . Residents are concerned over how these issues will affect traffic and safety in the neighborhood. Some feel he has given in to theTribune Company (which owns the Cubs) too easily, and not extracted enough concessions from the team.Recently Tunney used a parliamentary procedure to delay a vote on the raising of the minimum wage for so-called "big-box" stores. This move has angered some residents in the 44th Ward leading to a potential boycott of his Ann Sather restaurant chain.
Notes
References
* [http://www.44thward.org/index.htm Office of Alderman Thomas Tunney]
External links
* [http://www.glhalloffame.org/index.pl?todo=view_item&item=79 Biography in the Chicago GLBT Hall of Fame]
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