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Alderman Carother's Biography

Isaac “Ike” Carothers

Ike is a dedicated public servant, coming from a family of public service. His grandfather was the first African-American Democratic Committeeman of the 28th Ward and a former State Representative.

His father is a former Alderman and Committeeman of the 28th Ward.

Ike attended public elementary schools and is a graduate of DePaul University, where he received a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. He received his masters from Chicago State in Criminal Justice.

Ike started his public career as an investigator working for the Cook County Public Defender’s Office investigating cases for the poor and disadvantaged who could not afford private attorneys.

In 1989 he was appointed Superintendent of Chicago Department of Water, where he was responsible for the sale of water to city residents and suburban customers.

In 1993 he was appointed Director of Internal Audit for the Chicago Park District. He was responsible for the auditing performance for Chicago’s 550 parks and playgrounds.

In 1997 he was appointed Deputy Commissioner with the Department of Streets and Sanitation where he was responsible for 54.5 million dollar budget with 508 employees. He was directly responsible for snow and ice removal for the city and the maintenance of the Chicago Loop area.

Ike ran successfully for Alderman in 1999 and Ward Committeeman in 2000. Since that short time, he has garnished 60 million dollars in projects for his ward.

In August of 2001 he was appointed Chairman of the Chicago City Council’s Police and Fire Committee.

Some of the projects implemented by Ike are:

• two new schools,
  
• a 13 million dollar police station,
  
• a 22 million dollar project rebuilding the Central Avenue Bridge,
  
• a new Water Park located at Austin and Lake, the re-pave of Austin Boulevard from North Avenue to Roosevelt Road,
  
• the new street-scape project for Madison Street from Austin Boulevard to Central Avenue,
  
• a new fountain at Midway Park and Waller,
  
• the openings of a new “Save-A-Lot”, “Family Dollar”, and an “Aldi” in the 29th Ward.
  

Ike and his wife Sharron have two sons. He is a member of Original Providence Baptist Church.

Labels: Chicago Alderman, Ike Carothers