Ward Night Recap: November 4, 2024
Thanks to everyone who attended our November 4 Ward Night. Here’s a brief summary of what we discussed:
Recent Gun Violence. Many neighbors raised concerns about recent gun violence including the November 1 shooting at Winthrop and Winona. We’re incredibly discouraged by these recent incidents and we’re angry that policy at the city, state, and national levels has failed to protect our communities and young people from loss of life and lifelong emotional trauma due to guns. We’re working every day to build a safer 48th ward where everyone can feel comfortable living and raising their families. We’re doing this through:
collaboration with police and state agencies to follow-up on cases that affect the ward,
advocacy for increased police presence, especially in CPD-designated “hot spots,”
addressing root causes of violence by supporting workforce, housing, and economic development initiatives,
and bolstering resources and opportunities available for our youth including both employment and recreation.
Read more about all of these points here.
Unhoused Neighbors/Tent Communities. Some neighbors asked questions about our office’s response to unhoused neighbors living in tents along our lakefront. The data shows us that the best way to respond to this problem is by connecting unhoused neighbors with resources and moving them into permanent housing. While this process takes time, we find that it’s effective in keeping people safe and housed long-term. We do this through accelerated moving events (AMEs) and direct outreach with the Department of Family and Support Services.
CPD and DFSS recently held a cleanup at The Meadows behind the 5400 block of N Sheridan in which they removed the many unattended bicycles which neighbors were reporting to our office.
Read more about AMEs here. more than 60 people were housed through AMEs in 2023.
If you are aware of someone in the community who needs to be connected to resources, including housing, reach out to our office at 773-784-5277 or info@the48thward.org. These reports help us point the DFSS outreach teams in the right direction. DFSS outreach teams are at work in the ward every morning.
Housing Development. Our office is excited about recently-approved development projects that will bring more affordable housing to the ward including The Mabel, 4920 N Sheridan, and Bickerdike.
See details about our recent meeting regarding land use and proactive rezoning on Broadway here.
See zoning change requests currently open for feedback here.
Reach out to development@the48thward.org with any additional questions
Register for the next Ward Night on December 2 here. Note that the November 15 has been canceled due to ongoing budget hearings.
