JoAnn Thompson

JoAnn Thompson was born on the South side of Chicago. She was elected into the Chicago City Council on April 17, 2007. On May 21, 2007 JoAnn was inaugurated as the 54th Alderman of the 16th Ward. On April 5, 2011 JoAnn was re-elected to a second term as Alderman of the 16th Ward. Alderman JoAnn Thompson is also the Committeeman of the 16th Ward. As the Alderman and Committeeman of the 16th Ward, JoAnn Thompson envisions bringing sustainable economics to the ward. During her first term in office Alderman Thompson realized several accomplishments including: Supporting the Bontemps School Campus Park; Securing funding for Nicholson Elementary School to take their first ever college tour; Securing funding for new windows and in the process of getting a new play lot for Carson Elementary School; Appropriating $3.5 Million for a new lunchroom, a play lot, restored gymnasium, green space and teachers’ parking lot at Oliver Wendell Holmes Elementary School; Initiating the renaming of Copernicus School in honor of the first African American female alderman, Anna R. Langford who lived in the 16th Ward since 1954; Co-Sponsoring a $1.5 million TIF/NIP program which awarded 68 residents of the 16th Ward a grant to pay for sorely needed repairs on the their homes; Co-sponsoring erection of Access Health Medical Campus currently under construction at 52nd and Ashland that will include a WIC facility and a research center, the first of its kind medical facility in the State of Illinois; Founding R.E.A.P. (Restoring, Elevating, Advancing and Promoting), an ex-offender program; Sponsoring an Expungement Seminar on February 19, 2011 at Kennedy-King College; Amending an ordinance increasing fines from $150 to $250 for un-maintained vacant lots; Writing over 8,000 tickets on abandoned homes and vacant lots; Establishing the first ever 16th Ward Music Festival ; Co-sponsoring “Lots of Change”, which brought 2,100 college students from across the country into the 16th Ward to assist in the clean-up of vacant lots; and Appropriating $5.28 million in 16th Ward repairs which include: new alley and street humps, sidewalks, street and alley resurfacing, and curbing, just to name a few. Her philosophy: “The Prosperity of a Community is Expressed by the Advancement of its People”” can be seen through the efforts of the staff in the 16th Ward Service Center as they work tirelessly to put the needs of the residents first.