3659 S. Halsted | Chicago, IL 60609 | 773.254.6677

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June 23, 2024



Hello, Neighbors, 

With this extreme heat, I hope you’re taking care of yourself and taking advantage of the summertime Chicago amenities—including our pools. Chicago Park District Pools opened early this week and are open for business! 

My office was in attendance at the 24th Annual Chinatown Chamber of Commerce Chicago Dragon Boat Race for Literacy yesterday. It was wonderful seeing so many people come from all over the city to watch the race, which is not only a great event but also serves to support literacy efforts in our schools. A special congratulations to the Legacy Dragons who came in first place this year! 

Public Safety 

We mourn the devastating loss of 11th Ward resident, Charnette Walker, whose life was taken far too soon last week. Ms. Walker was a periodic visitor at our ward office who, on every occasion, visited our office to seek assistance for her family. We ask that you focus our prayers on her loved ones, especially her daughter and granddaughter for whom she cared dearly, as they recover from this horrific attack.

If you or someone you know are being impacted by domestic violence, please call the Illinois domestic violence hotline at 1-877-863-6338. This 24-hour hotline is toll free and confidential. They can provide referrals to a shelter or other services.

This week in City Council

There were no City Council meetings this week. 

Housekeeping 

Construction Season is Underway!

For full details about upcoming construction in the ward, please see the section below.

Sox Parking 

Anyone who did not receive stickers in the mail or require courtesy stickers are welcome to drop by the office. 

For your calendars

Veterans Administration Office Hours 

We're excited to announce that the Veterans Administration (VA) will be holding office hours at our ward office (3659 S Halsted) to help our veterans and their family members access VA services.

VA office hours will take place every second Tuesday of the month beginning next month. Walk-ins are welcome!

Farmers Market Season

Farmers market season is underway! Pick up some local produce and enjoy the tastes of summer. More information about Chicago Farmers Markets can be found here. Closer to home in the 11th Ward, Ramova Theatre will be hosting a monthly Community Market with local artists, makers and farmers with goods for purchase in their theater lobby and beer garden. They will also feature local non-profits and kids activities at each market. Interested in vending? Fill out the application here.

Summer Office Hours

Please be advised that our office is operating under summer hours from now until Labor Day—closing at 3PM on Fridays. 

Have a good week ahead, 

Nicole

I know residents of Parnell have been waiting for the Department of Water Management (DWM) to complete the sewer main replacement between 35th St. and Pershing Rd. It must be frustrating not to have the end in sight, just as it is frustrating not to be able to repave Parnell despite the condition it is in. This past week I was notified why this project has been paused. The explanation below is a summary of the information that was provided by the project's coordinating engineer.

The original scope of the project was the reconstruction of the sewer on Parnell to increase its size. However, due to the date the previous sewer project started, the estimated duration of the sewer project would extend into 2023 which would mean that any lead service lines crossed by the sewer would need to be replaced to comply with the state law. Due to the large number of water services on Parnell, the project needed to be redesigned to include the water service replacement within the sewer project. For this reason the project is being readvertised for bid.

The redesign and readvertising of the Parnell project will allow DWM to competitively bid not only the planned sewer work but also the lead service line replacement. This means that not only will the residents on Parnell have a new, larger sewer, they will also have new copper water service lines as well as a fully resurfaced street without the need for a separate future contract to reconstruct the water service lines.

DWM will be working closely with me once the new project is awarded to notify the residents and encourage their participation in the Lead Service Line Replacement from the water control valve into their homes. I hope that with improved outreach and encouragement there will be a larger number of residents that will agree to the “private-side” replacement.

Thank you for your patience and understanding!

26th St from Canal St to Stewart Ave

Railroad repairs are scheduled to be completed by June 24. Only one direction of 26th St. will be closed at a time and detours have been established for the duration of the repairs.

Westbound detour: westbound 26th St. to northbound Wentworth Ave., to westbound Cermak Rd., to westbound/southbound Archer Ave., to southbound Canal St., and back to westbound 26th St.

Eastbound detour: eastbound 26th St. to northbound Canal St., to eastbound/northbound Archer Ave., to eastbound Cermak Rd., to southbound Wentworth Ave., and back to eastbound 26th St.

Traffic on Canal St and Stewart Ave. will be allowed throughout repairs. Local, business, and driveway access is not expected to be affected. The CTA has not contacted my office about possible bus reroutes or stop relocations, but I will make sure to relay any information I receive.

31st St from Wentworth Ave to LaSalle St

Last Monday, I received notice that 31st St. will be closed between Wentworth Ave. and LaSalle St. The Illinois Department of Transportation is working on the 31st St. I-90/94 overpass. The closure is expected to last until June 30, 2024.

Eastbound traffic is being rerouted to northbound Halsted St., to eastbound Cermak Rd., to southbound State St., and back to eastbound 31st St.

Westbound traffic is being rerouted to northbound State St., to westbound Cermak Rd., to southbound Halsted St., and back to westbound 31st St.

Now that construction season is underway, our office will be updating you on the scheduled Department of Transportation Projects that are occurring throughout the ward and are expected to impact you the most. Please take note of posted parking restrictions that may already be in place or of any that will be posted prior to upcoming construction. NOTE: all dates are estimated and all construction is weather permitting.

Ongoing Projects

The following projects are already underway and we have received notice of the scheduled start dates on which asphalt will be poured.

Paving date of alleys

15 May - Between 29th Pl./30th St. and Shields Ave./Stewart Ave. Completed

16 May - Between 29th St./30th St. and Lowe Ave./Union Ave.

16 May - Between 30th St./31st St. and Halsted St./Poplar Ave.

17 May - Between 32nd Pl./34th Pl. and May St./Racine Ave.

20 May - Between 41st Pl/Root St. and Normal Ave./Wallace St. Completed

Upcoming Projects

The following projects are scheduled to begin in the following month. These streets and alleys will be ground down and utility lids will be adjusted as necessary to lay flush with the new asphalt.

Projected grind date of streets

27 June - 29th St., from Wells St. to Wentworth Ave.

27 June - Stewart Ave., from 25th Pl. to 26th St.

28 June - 27th St., from Wallace St. to Canal St.

1 July - Union Ave., from 26th St. to 28th St.

1 July - Lowe Ave., Archer Ave. to 25th St.

2 July - 25th St., Emerald Ave. to Lowe Ave.

2 July - Emerald Ave., Archer Ave. to 25th St.

2 July - Green St., Archer Ave. to dead end (2511 S Green St.)

2 July - Hillock Ave., Loomis St. to Short St.

2 July - McDermott St., Grady Ct. to Archer Ave.

3 July - Lloyd Ave., Bonaparte St. to Lyman St.

3 July - 32nd St., Benson St. to dead end (1315 W 32nd St.)

5 July - Lituanica Ave., 31st St. to 32nd St.

5 July - Emerald Ave., 31st St. to 32nd St.

8 July - Lituanica Ave., 34th St. to 34th Pl.

9 July - Emerald Ave., 34th St. to 36th St.

9 July - 36th St., Sangamon St. to Morgan St.

10 July - 38th Pl., Sangamon St. to Morgan St.

10 July - Emerald Ave., 38th St. to Pershing Rd.

10 July - Parnell Ave., 43rd St. to 43rd Pl.

16 July - 33rd Pl., Wood St. to Archer Ave.

Projected grind date of alleys

27 June - Between Canal St./railroad tracks and 30th St./31st St.

27 June - Between Cermak Rd./22nd Pl. and Princeton Ave./Wentworth Ave.

1 July - Between Lowe Ave./Union Ave. and 28th St./29th St.

8 July - Between Halsted St./Lituanica Ave. and 33rd St./33rd Pl.

11 July - Between Wallace St./Union Ave. and 43rd Pl./44th St.

The Chicago Office of Inspector General (OIG) announces the launch of its newest data dashboard, City Services by Address. This dashboard is a one-stop shop to see City services and service area designations as they apply to any Chicago address. Users can input an address, and the dashboard retrieves valuable information related to that location, including ward, community area, zoning information, schedules for City services, and more.

The City Services by Address dashboard will, for example, allow users to find the police district and beat in which a specified address falls, trash and recycling pick-up days for that address, voting precinct, and whether a specified address is part of an Industrial Corridor or historic district, among other data points. Updated 2023 ward designation and community and neighborhood areas are reflected in the dashboard, and a terminology glossary and a user guide overlay are included for ease of use.

This new dashboard initiates the creation of a new category of dashboards on the OIG website, Transparent City.

OIG’s dashboards were created to make City data more accessible, understandable, and engaging. The data for this dashboard comes from multiple sources, including the Chicago Data Portal, internal City of Chicago databases, and a list of valid Chicago mailing addresses. OIG follows a rigorous protocol to validate and clean data before presenting it in our Information Portal.

Visit the dashboard

The 11th Ward office is happy to announce has a free ‘Constituent Education Resource Card’ available to residents wishing to visit select museums and zoos in the Chicagoland area. Constituents can reserve our Constituent Education Resource Card on a first come first serve basis (more instructions below), to visit any of the following museums in 2024:

• Adler Planetarium
• The Art Institute of Chicago
• Brookfield Zoo
• Chicago Botanic Garden
• Chicago Children’s Museum
• Chicago History Museum
• Dusable Museum of African American History
• The Field Museum
• Illinois Holocaust Museum & Education Center
• Lincoln Park Zoo
• Museum of Contemporary Art
• Museum of Science and Industry
• National Museum of Mexican Art
• National Museum of Puerto Rican Arts & Culture
• Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum
• John G. Shedd Aquarium

Only one group of up to four (4) can reserve the pass at a time. The pass must be picked up and brought back to the 11th Ward Office. Constituents need to call for an appointment to come to the office to pick up the pass before visiting the museums. We recommend calling two business days before your scheduled visit. 

It is strongly recommended that families utilizing the card contact the museum they plan to visit to learn if pre-registration is required to visit. 

Richard J. Daley Branch

Canaryville Branch Library

Recordings of Beat meetings can be found on our YouTube channel here.

The office has extended hours on Monday nights until 7:00 p.m., is open on the first Saturday of each month from 9:00am - 12:00 pm, if it's a holiday weekend, the office will

be open the following Saturday and/or Monday.

Alderwoman Lee will be happy to see residents on Monday nights from 5:30 - 7:00 p.m. If you'd like to make an appointment, please call the ward office at 773.254.6677.

11th Ward Office| 3659 South Halsted Chicago, IL 60609 |

773-254-6677