Profile of public housing redevelopment in Chinatown.
When public housing high rises were first built, some
designers made sure that residents would have access to the outside by creating
open air corridors that also functioned as common space. But as the years went by and communities
changed, chain link fencing was used to close in the corridors. The result was dark and oppressive —
negating the initial impulse of the designers.
Today many of those buildings are being torn down in Chicago
— Cabrini-Green, Robert Taylor and Stateway Gardens for example. But in Chinatown, the rehabilitation of
a mid-rise development from the 1950s is catching the eyes of public housing
advocates and being touted as a model for the future. Archer Courts was built in the 1950s to
provide homes for people displaced by construction of the Dan Ryan and
Eisenhower expressways. The
seven-story building has a similar design to the high rises – including the
chain link fenced corridor. Unlike
the high rises, Archer Courts is part of a larger community and close to public
transportation. These two things
made it an attractive prospect for redevelopment to the Chicago Community
Development Corporation (CCDC), and in 1999 it purchased Archer Courts from the
CHA. CCDC and architect Peter
Landon decided Archer was worth saving, and a $6.5 million project got
underway.
At the heart of the matter for Landon was the inclusion of
residents’ ideas and preferences for the re-design. Landon made a point of visiting each
tenant and listening. The resulting design is dramatic — bright and
comfortable. Landon reclaimed the
corridors by installing a glass wall (some call it a curtain), new light
fixtures, colorful flooring and apartment doors painted bright primary
colors. The effect is stunning and,
more importantly, makes the space a more appealing place for residents to
use. Landon's Web
site features the project and says that the glass
paneled curtain, “completely changed the
function of the corridors, and dramatically altered the appearance of the
buildings to the benefit of both the residents and the community at
large.”
Sunlight streams into the colorful new corridor at Archer Courts.
The success of this redevelopment is as much about process as
physical change and design.
Remarkably, each resident was able to stay in the building during the
rehab. With some expert planning,
the developers managed to avoid disrupting the community with displacement and
may even have helped to strengthen it with their inclusionary planning
practice. In addition,
redevelopment took residents’ concerns about services seriously, and added a
number of different types of community space including a large multipurpose
room, laundry rooms, a wellness center and a computer-learning center that
offers residents access to the Internet and classes on how to use the
technology.
Residents are quick to point out just how much they like
having these things so close to home and how they have served to make the
complex feel and function more like a community. “I’m 87 years old and I never thought I
could learn how to use a computer,” says one resident, “Now I can check the
library (Chicago Public Library) catalog to find out if the book I want is
available – it saves me a trip to the library if it isn’t!” Another resident uses the wellness
center’s services to keep tabs on her blood pressure, “this is such a wonderful
thing to have right in my building!”
A community health worker agrees that many of the residents have minor
health problems and provide…just steps from their front doors.”
Archer Courts is a noteworthy success story but not a blue
print. The lessons learned from
this project are simple and straightforward – designing living space, both
personal and community, works best when the people who will use the space are
included in the planning and design process. The process used at Archer Courts is the real
model.
A young boy enjoys the new courtyard. 