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Friday, October 29, 2010

GROUNDBREAKING FOR PARK DOUGLAS THAT WILL CHANGE THE FACE OF NORTH LAWNDALE

An architect’s rendering of a Park Douglas rental building being constructed in North Lawndale. Rents will range from $675 to $1,075.
 Alderman Ed Smith presided over the October 26 groundbreaking for Park Douglas, an innovative 137-unit mixed-income rental housing development at Roosevelt Road & Talman Avenue in North Lawndale. The $44 million initiative is a partnership of the City of Chicago, Chicago Housing Authority, Mount Sinai Hospital, and B-M Ogden LLC, developers.
    Park Douglas will provide attractive, modern apartments for households with a range of incomes. Sixty units will be public housing and will serve as replacement units for the demolished Lawndale Gardens complex. Another 49 units will be funded with Low Income Housing Tax Credits and will be targeted to low- and moderate-income households, while the remaining 28 units will be market rate with no income restrictions. The first move-ins are expected in July 2011.
    The development is being built on vacant land with more than $10 million in highly competitive stimulus funds provided by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. The project will also bring over 200 construction jobs and five permanent management positions to the community.
    Park Douglas will provide 1-, 2-, 3-, and 4-bedroom apartments with appliances, including in-unit washers and dryers. Residents will also have access to a new community center, meeting space with kitchen, and a computer lab. The structures incorporate green and sustainable features.
The 137 rental units are the first phase of a comprehensive redevelopment program that will ultimately include over 300 units of rental and for-sale housing in 19 buildings, as well as the new Mount Sinai Hospital, which is moving to the north side of Ogden Avenue.
    Alan H. Channing, President & CEO of Sinai Health System stated, “Sinai Health System’s Board of Directors and family of caregivers conceived of the community development and health care project. The hospital’s social service arm, Sinai Community Institute, will also provide residents with a variety of social services, including health care consultation, job training, and family counseling. The City of Chicago donated land and provided a Low Income Housing Tax Credit allocation, as well as HOME funds.
 
Ald. Ed Smith, executives of Sinai Health System, Chicago Housing Authority, HUD, and Brinshore Dev., break ground for the 137-unit Park Douglas rental housing complex in North Lawndale. (Photo by Isaac Jones) 

Howe School Comes Down

Like giant transformer vultures, cranes are eating away at the steel frame of the “new building” at Julia Ward Howe School, 720 N. Lorel Ave. The structure is being torn down to make way for sports fields, a running track, and playground space for students. (Photo by Brad)
Then, the huge mechanical monsters push the building’s skeleton over. (Photo by Brad)

The school building is gone – just a memory in the minds of Howe students who attended class in it. (Photo by Brad)

DON’T MISS THE NOVEMBER 17 DEADLINE TO REGISTER WITH FEMA FOR FLOOD ASSISTANCE

POINTS TO REMEMBER:

1.    If you suffered flood damage and losses not covered by home insurance, come to the FEMA Disaster Recovery Center at 4905 West North Avenue (the former Old Navy store in the Harold Washington Plaza Shopping Center); or
2.    Call the toll-free Disaster Hotline at 1-800-621-3362, 7:00 AM-10:00 PM daily;
3.    If you filed an application prior to August 19th, you did not file with FEMA, so you must, come to the Center or call the Hotline at 1-800-621-3362 and file an application BEFORE NOVEMBER 17;
4.    File a SBA Disaster Loan application at the Center or by calling 1-800-659-2955 – EVEN IF YOU DO NOT WANT A LOAN OR DON’T THINK YOU QUALIFY. IT COULD GET YOU MORE AID FROM FEMA!
5.    Don’t forget to check your furnace to see if it still works – BEFORE THE WEATHER TURNS COLD! If it doesn’t work because of flood damage, report it to FEMA and get it replaced NOW!
6.    If you received a Rejection Letter from FEMA, bring it to the Disaster Recovery Center. Your application may need a signature or may be missing required information. You may also want to appeal a claim rejection decision. The staff at the Center can help you.
7.    Your home may be harboring potentially toxic mold. Meet with specialists at the Disaster Recovery Center to learn how to remove mold and sanitize your home. This service is free.
8.    FILE YOUR CLAIM BEFORE NOVEMBER 17!

REP. La SHAWN K. FORD LAUNCHES DRIVE TO GET VAN FOR COLUMBUS PARK FOOD PANTRY

 Rep. LaShawn K. Ford kicks off a fund-raising drive with his check. The goal is buying a van for the Columbus Park Food Pantry to use for picking up its weekly allotment of food, to pay for gas, and to pay the Greater Chicago Food Depository for the food the Pantry distributes to needy Austin families. (Photo by Brad)
The Columbus Park Food Pantry serves nearly 2,300 people in need each month, providing basic food to families struggling through the economic recession. Each Friday morning, from 8:30 to 11:00 AM, a steady line of people carrying empty boxes moves through the basement of the Columbus Park Refectory, 5710 West Jackson Boulevard, to receive enough food to tide their families over. No one in need is ever turned away.
The Pantry has been a 17-year labor of love for its founder, Marjorie Cobbs, and her crew of dedicated volunteers. No one working in the Pantry has ever earned a dime for their service to others. In June, Marjorie Cobbs received the Wal-Mart Community- Builders Award for Community Service from THE VOICE Newspapers.
Although the Greater Chicago Food Depository tells everyone the food it provides needy Chicagoans is free, the fact is that the Columbus Park Food Pantry must pay 7-cents a pound for the food it obtains from the Depository to distribute to hungry client families. Marj Cobbs has held gospel fests over the years to raise the money to pay the Depository. However, illness, a near-fatal car accident, and deaths in her family prevented her from hosting her fund-raiser this year.
Undeterred, Marj, who is nearly 80 years old, dips into her Social Security to keep the Pantry running. This also means renting a U-Haul van each week to pick up the food from the Depository.
“Well,” she asks, “what can I do? I can’t let all those people go hungry who depend on me.”


 State Rep. LaShawn K. Ford gets a lesson in the operation of the Columbus Park Food Pantry from founder & Director Marjorie Cobbs as he is taken on an inspection tour of the agency serving 2,300 people in need each month from the basement of the Columbus Park Refectory. (Photo by Brad)
Enter State Representative LaShawn K. Ford, who has become an enthusiastic champion of the Columbus Park Food Pantry and an outspoken admirer of Marj Cobbs. “I an amazed,” Ford said while conducting an inspection visit of the Pantry, meeting its staff, and hearing Ms Cobbs tell how the agency operates.
“She is a modern day saint who is always thinking of other people when she has long ago earned the right to sit down and take it easy. She is an inspiration,” Ford declares. “How can you not want to help her?”
So, Rep. Ford is depending upon the generosity of West Siders to open their hearts and wallets to ensure the Columbus Park Food Pantry continues to help neighbors in need as we head into the holiday season. Ford has set a goal of $5,000 to be used to purchase a van for picking up the Pantry’s weekly order of several thousand pounds of food. If more money is raised, it can pay for gasoline and maintenance for the van, plus pay the Food Depository for the Pantry’s weekly order of food. Alderman Deborah Graham of the 29th ward says she is joining the campaign.
Marj Cobbs notes that pressure is increasing on her Pantry to serve more people because many Chicagoans who obtained their food from Oak Park pantries are being turned away and told to visit Chicago pantries. This has boosted the number of weekly patrons at the Columbus Park Food Pantry.   
The Columbus Park Food Pantry is a tax-exempt not-for-profit agency and all contributions are tax-deductible. Checks may be sent in care of Representative LaShawn K. Ford, 5104 West Chicago Avenue, Chicago, Illinois 60651. Designate that the money is for the Columbus Park Food Pantry Fund and a receipt will be mailed to you.
 
Columbus Park Food Pantry Director Marjorie Cobbs tells Rep. LaShawn K. Ford that the number of clients coming in is increasing because of the recession and because Oak Park pantries are turning away Chicago residents needing food. (Photo by Brad)

RON LAWLESS MEETS WITH JUVENILE DETENTION FACILITY COUNSELORS

Ronald Lawless, Green Party candidate for Cook County Commissioner, meets with counselors outside the Juvenile Temporary Detention Center. They told him of inappropriate disciplinary actions, dangerous conditions, staffing shortages, and abuse by the federal court-appointed Director. Lawless promised to meet with them formally if he is elected on Tuesday. (Photo by Brad)

“The safety of the children and the counselors must always be paramount,” Ronald Lawless told disgruntled counselors outside the Cook County Juvenile Temporary Detention Center, 1200 South Hamilton. Lawless is the Green Party candidate for 1st District Cook County Commissioner.
    Lawless was responding to published reports that Earl Dunlap, the federal court-appointed Director of the Juvenile Temporary Detention Center, called counselors “bottom feeders and dirt bags.” He is said to have requested assistance from Jody Weis and the Chicago Police Department if staff members at the facility make good on violent threats against supervisors.
    Counselors told Lawless of what they termed inappropriate and unwarranted disciplinary measures being taken against them by Dunlap and charged that the Center is dangerously understaffed.
    Lawless promised counselors that if he is elected to the County Board on Tuesday, he would meet with them and call upon the federal judge overseeing operation of the facility to investigate the allegations.
    Dunlap told the Chicago Sun-Times that he has credible information that staff members are plotting violence against supervisors when a transition plan is implemented. On November 1, veteran staff members are being required to reapply for their jobs. Dunlap says if there is any violence, police will be called.

ST. MARTIN’S EPISCOPAL CHURCH PRESENTING JAZZ IN THE SANCTUARY NOV. 13

St. Martin’s Episcopal Church, 5700 West Midway Park, is presenting its 7th Annual Jazz In The Sanctuary on Saturday, November 13, 8:00 PM, in the church. The Lucy Smith Quartet is featured. Tickets are $25 each, available by calling 773/378-8111. This event also features a market place and an auction. Food and beverages are available.

RETRO Current THE VOICE NEWSPAPERS, MALCOLM X COLLEGE & Pathfinders Prevention Education Fund Present ACHIEVING ACADEMIC SUCCESS IN A CULTURE OF CALM

A Conference Providing Resources to End Youth Violence and Maximize Student Scholastic Performance.
REGISTER HERE

SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 13, 8:30 AM-1:30 PM
MALCOLM X COLLEGE, 1900 WEST VAN BUREN STREET

ADMISSION IS FREE AND THE PUBLIC IS INVITED

KEYNOTE ADDRESS – 9:45 AM
BY SUN-TIMES COLUMNIST MARY MITCHELL

Topic: That Problem Kid in the Neighborhood IS YOURS!

    Get into action to protect your child and yourself. Find solutions to your child’s problems, and help children reach their academic potential at interactive workshops and panel discussions, including:

    • How Parents Can Help Children Maximize Their Learning Potential
    • Mental Health & Youth – Acting on the Warning Signs of Depression, Substance Abuse & Gang Involvement
    • Grandparents & Foster Parents Acting as Primary Parents
    • Keys to Peaceful Conflict Resolution
    • Helping Young People Manage Their Anger
    • Youth Workshop: Adults Don’t Have a Clue What We’re Going Through
    • Into Action: Joining Safe Passage Patrols & Becoming Youth Advocates
    • Other workshops on Education, Child & Teen Health, and the Law
    • Agencies & Vendors will provide Resource Tables on the Malcolm X Concourse


This Conference is presented in partnership with Black Star, Chartwells Dining Services, Dori Wilson Public Relations, and other agencies committed to youth safety and advocacy.
REGISTER HERE

For More Information Call
(773)889-0880