Chicago's plans to turn vacant South Side, West Side lots into homes is seeing results

Gerald Warren feels like he’s part of his block in North Lawndale.

Warren, 56, was born in the West Side neighborhood like his wife Valerie, and he’s seen it evolve into a diverse community.

“We really do like the community,” Warren said. “It has flaws, but this is really growing into something that I want to be a part of.”

After living in Plainfield, Warren now owns a home among new and familiar neighbors thanks to the largely community-led campaign Reclaiming Chicago. The campaign, which has drawn support from the city of Chicago, the state and private lenders, aims to build 2,000 homes on the South Side and the West Side.

The homes are being built on vacant lots in neighborhoods including North Lawndale, where Warren and his wife closed in March on one of the newly built homes.

“This year is very special,” Warren said. “The kids, they just love it. I can’t get them away from the house.”

When the city-backed campaign was announced in June 2021, the homes were expected to be built over the next three to five years. Now, organizers say the 80 homes under phase one are complete.

Phase two is underway, with the campaign closing on 81 vacant lots in Back of the Yards, North Lawndale and Roseland, United Power for Action and Justice lead organizer Amy Totsch said.

“This is really a strategy that is led and shaped and driven by local institutions and seeking out a strategy for vacant land for the population loss in many of the neighborhoods for decades of disinvestment,” Totsch said.

Organizations like United Power are helping to lead the charge, along with Lawndale Christian Development Corp., The Resurrection Project and the Southwest Organizing Project. Together, they've sold 47 homes built in phase one, Totsch said, and they expect to have all 80 sold by the end of the year.

Totsch said the organizations expect to start construction on 155 homes by the end of December, as well as on some of the newly-acquired homes.

She said many of the buyers are working-class families and first-time homeowners with professions ranging from Chicago Public Schools teachers to postal workers. And many are multi-generational households.

Adjua Adjei-Danso, Reclaiming North Lawndale project director at Lawndale Christian Development Corp., said buyer demand for the North Lawndale homes is high — there’s more than 600 people on its waiting list.

“I have folks that are basically hounding me every month, asking when there are more homes coming. That's how much interest there is,” Adjei-Danso said.

For families of color, who can be disadvantaged in the traditional homebuying process, owning a home can be a pathway to creating generational wealth.

Organizers provide services to potential buyers that demystify the process. Warren said he attended a few classes on the ins and- uts of homebuying. Adjei-Danso said the Lawndale Christian Development Corp. hosted a meeting in North Lawndale with the Cook County assessors office to discuss property tax bills.

“We're not getting the complicated conversation — it’s simplifying what homeownership is,” said Imelda Salazar, community organizer with the Southwest Organizing Project. “All these things have opened up the doors for communities that were denied before.”

Making progress

The wheels are finally turning after the group of organizers expressed their frustrations last year over the city's red tape that held up construction, as well as rising development costs.

Totsch said Mayor Brandon Johnson’s Cut the Tape initiative to speed up housing and commercial development has helped a bit, but “there's still lots of room to keep things moving.”

Allocations in the state’s budget have allowed organizers to offer subsidies to new homebuyers. But higher construction costs have led to higher prices — the average mortgage for the new homes ranges between $180,000 to $260,000, depending on the neighborhood.

United Power is seeking to grow its Reclaiming Chicago fund from $22 million to $40 million, which would allow it build another 100 homes. The organization is also speaking with donors, and it plans to ask the state in the next legislative session to commit $15 million. In 2021, the groups said it received $10 million from the state to provide average subsidies of $30,000 to each homebuyer.

“We believe that, in the $47 billion state budget, there's room for affordable homeownership — creating homes for working families,” Totsch said. “We think the state can continue to do that. They've been a great ally, and there's lots of room for that going forward.”

Lizette Carretero, director of financial wellness for the The Resurrection Project, said families like the Warrens aren’t just experiencing big milestones such as their their first holiday as homeowners — they’re also experiencing the smaller first moments like sleepovers and washing clothes at home instead of the laundromat.

“We have families that are eager to continue to invest in their blocks,” Carretero said. “They want to be able to build a community with their neighbor. They want community gardens to come in; they want the ecosystem that's supposed to complement housing. I think families understand the investment that comes into owning a home, and they want to contribute back.”