CALUMET HEIGHTS RESIDENT RUNS FOR 8TH WARD ALDERMAN

Sean Flynn is a candidate for 8th Ward Alderman. He is a resident of Calumet Heights and has worked for Alderman David Moore and Alderman Leslie Hairston. Photo provided by Sean Flynn.
Sean Flynn is a candidate for 8th Ward Alderman. He is a resident of Calumet Heights and has worked for Alderman David Moore and Alderman Leslie Hairston. Photo provided by Sean Flynn.

CALUMET HEIGHTS RESIDENT RUNS FOR 8TH WARD
ALDERMAN

BY TIA CAROL JONES

Sean Flynn has announced that he is running for 8th Ward Alderman. His run for office is an extension of his background, working in community service.

“I would like to step up a little bit more in the 8th Ward
community, to bring more systematic changes and provide
more services to the residents of this community,” Flynn said.

Flynn has worked with at-risk youth in Altgeld Gardens
and Englewood for a faith-based organization. From working
with young people, Flynn has learned that you aren’t just
working with the young people, you’re also working with
their families. With that, he has learned to provide access to
resources, being supportive, being a mentor, being a positive
role model and sowing seeds of encouragement into young
people.

Flynn also worked with the Chicago GEAR UP Alliance
at Morgan Park High School mentoring and being supportive
of the young people and their families. He was an enrollment
and recruitment coordinator with Distinctive Schools.

Flynn realized it was more impactful to seek out ways to
change the quality of life for the young people he encountered
through his work. It led him to work in public service. He
worked with the17th Ward Alderman David Moore and 5th
Ward Alderman Leslie Hairston.

Flynn has met with community residents and they have
told him about the lack of responsiveness from the current
Alderman. He believes that all the constituents in the Ward
should have access to the Alderman’s office and receive
responses to their calls. If elected, Flynn will provide service
to all the constituents. On day one, he wants to go back to
the people who expressed their concerns and issues and solve
those issues.

“Anybody in the Ward that needs services, my job is
to help them, plain and simple,” Flynn said. “I want to help
everyone. Every call will be regarded as important.”
Flynn believes if people pay taxes, they should have safe
and secure neighborhoods. He said the response to his run for
office has been positive. He believes people are eager to see
change in the 8th Ward.

When it comes to what constituents want from their Alderman,
Flynn said it is responsiveness and they want to feel
represented. Flynn believes that there should be relationships
built between the police and the community, to build trust
between the community and the police who patrol the community. Flynn is a proponent of economic development. He wants to see 87th Street and Stony Island return to viable commercial corridors.

“There’s no reason why Stony Island shouldn’t look like La-
Grange. It’s no reason why we shouldn’t have big box businesses or even small boutiques, or mom and pop businesses like you see in Wicker Park. There’s no reason why we shouldn’t have those same things on the 87th Street Corridor or along Stony Island, especially with the Obama Center coming right up the street,” Flynn said.

Flynn also wants something to be done about the speeding on
Stony Island. He believes there should be collaboration between the Alderman, Chicago Department of Transportation and the Chicago Police Department to implement processes to get the traffic situation under control.

Flynn has lived all over the South Side – Chatham, Beverly,
Hyde Park, West Pullman, Roseland and Grand Boulevard. He
believes he is relatable to the residents in the Ward because he
has been through what other people have been through. He was a young parent, grew up in a single parent home, worked with at-risk youth and gained experience from working with two Aldermen.

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