Hosted by: Garfield Park Community Council, Garfield Park Conservatory Alliance, Institute for Housing Studies at DePaul University, Metropolitan Planning Council
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Beginning in 2019, East Garfield Park residents gathered to preserve affordability and prevent displacement in their neighborhood, part of a unique community-driven pilot led by the Garfield Park Community Council, the Institute of Housing Studies at DePaul University, and the Metropolitan Planning Council. This process, called Preserving Affordability Together (PAT), is a rare example of a Chicago neighborhood organizing proactively against the potential negative impacts of catalytic investments.
Why East Garfield Park? After decades of disinvestment, the neighborhood is seeing a rise in new housing development, increased private investment, and new, wealthier residents moving in. Unfortunately—as we have seen across Chicago—new amenities often don’t benefit everyone. Neighborhoods can quickly go from disinvested to overpriced, especially hurting longtime residents, people of color and those on limited incomes. Renters, homeowners, businesses, and community institutions are forced to leave or involuntarily displaced.
On March 10th, we will be celebrating the release of a “Blueprint for Community Action,” a community-created booklet that outlines a shared vision, goals, and strategies for preserving affordability in East Garfield Park. The colorful, engaging action plan is the culmination of an 8-month process that used data to inform collective priorities and ensure that future development benefits everyone, especially longtime community members.
Please join us for light refreshments and a resource fair to celebrate the hard work of local residents and leaders! You’ll learn about the blueprint for action, about how to get more deeply involved, and about the local community groups making East Garfield Park strong.
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This event is in partnership with:
MPC thanks event sponsor, Groupon.
MPC thanks programmatic sponsors JPMorgan Chase, US Bank, Bank of America, People’s Gas, Polk Bros. Foundation, Bowman Lingle Foundation, Dr. Scholl Foundation.