Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s office recently released information on the mayor’s revitalization initiative for INVEST South/West on their three-year anniversary.
The mayor’s office announced $2.2 billion in investments have gone to historically disadvantaged South and West communities.
Lightfoot celebrated with city leaders, philanthropic and corporate partners and the local community on Tuesday. According to a press release from the Mayor’s Office, a $47 million Austin United Alliance mixed-use project at 5200 W. Chicago Ave. and an adjacent $26 million streetscape project led by the Chicago Department of Transportation (CDOT) were the main cause to celebrate.
"Thanks to the $2.2 billion in investment commitments from the public and private sectors since the fall of 2019, INVEST South/West is ready to expand its reach beyond retail districts to include nearby residential blocks that are vital to sustainable neighborhood growth," Lightfoot said in the press release. "We will soon say goodbye to the pervasive vacant lots across the South and West Sides and say hello to new two-flats, three-flats and other walk-up structures that have been home to Chicago families for generations. As I look forward to this next phase in INVEST South/West, I am grateful for the citywide collaboration and commitment that has already brought incredible transformations to our communities."
According to the press release, the mayor also announced the initiative will be expanding to include residential blocks to increase housing build up and increase the residential populations in the South and West communities of Chicago. There are 5,600 city vacant lots that will be targeted.
Strategies for this plan include supporting construction of single-family homes, townhouses and small multi-unit buildings on residential blocks within Auburn Gresham, Bronzeville, East Garfield Park, Englewood, Humboldt Park and Woodlawn beginning in November; a plan to develop upper-story homes and ground-level stores with architectural drawings and promote minority-led development firms; and an online portal “that streamlines the sale of surplus city of Chicago properties to private buyers.
“These programs are prioritizing the development of ‘missing middle’ buildings that small developers can finance and make available to affordable home buyers and renters,” Department of Planning and Development (DPD) Commissioner Maurice Cox said, according to the press release. “By reducing pre-development costs and streamlining the land acquisition process, these efforts will fast-track new home construction that complements that commercial corridor progress that INVEST South/West successfully expedited in the last three years.”
The INVEST South/West program began in 2019 with a $750 million commitment by the city, but since then has accumulated private and public funds to total $2.2 billion. Austin United Alliance is in the process of developing a mixed-income complex with “a traditional financial institution, business incubator, coffee lounge and a community art platform that includes the long-vacant Laramie State Bank building and adjacent land.”
“The Austin United Alliance partnership brings together Heartland Housing’s development expertise and Oak Park Regional Housing Center’s 50 years’ experience building vibrant communities to create a community housing and gathering space uniquely designed for the Austin community,” executive director of OPRHC and Earl Chase, Executive Director of Heartland Housing Athena Williams said, according to the press release.
Investments in streetscapes include “improvements along Chicago Avenue between Austin Boulevard and Cicero Avenue, including wider, more comfortable sidewalks, added street trees and parkway pavers, new lighting, community identifiers, new bike lanes, dedicated bus boarding islands and traffic safety improvements.”
Total new construction is expected to be completed by the end of 2025.