Rebuilding Homes and Lives

Rebuilding Homes and Lives

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According to Angela Caputo’s recent blogpost on the Chicago Reporter’s website, Chicago “has collected 169 million dollars to address the vacant properties left in the wake of the foreclosure crisis. But her report goes on to uncover that “the city spent money on buildings with luxury finishes in gentrifying areas while distressed properties in some of the city’s hardest hit neighborhoods were left to languish.” This week Angela Caputo, investigative journalist at the Chicago Reporter, joined us at the shop. We were also joined by: • Kevin Jackson, Executive Director of the Chicago Rehab Network , and • Ghian Foreman, the executive director of Chicago’s Greater Southwest Development Corporation. They also talked about the impact of just one vacant property on a block, as well as how community engagement can tip the scales in the right direction. Speaking of community engagement, we also heard from Al Rider, who gave us an update on Pastor Corey Brooks’ Brothers on the Block community mentorship initiative. Lastly, NPR’s David Schaper joined us to talk about a story that he recently covered about community engagement in Englewood. While talking to a community organizer on her porch in the middle of the afternoon, a shooting took place just down the street. They witnessed the whole thing.