Chicago’s Little Village Residents Renew Call for Environmental Revitalization Plan

Residents of Chicago’s Little Village neighborhood are renewing calls for a neighborhood revitalization plan that addresses their environmental concerns.  Little Village, located on Chicago’s southwest side, is the former site of a coal plant that closed in 2012.[1]  Following the closure of the plant, the Little Village Environmental Justice Organization (LVEJO) spearheaded an effort to transition the site into recreational, open space, and economic development assets that serve the needs of the community.[2]  Those efforts culminated in a set of draft guidelines released by the City’s Department of Planning and Development (DPD) in January 2019.[3]

The guidelines framed an effort to improve economic and environmental conditions in the area, including a plan to integrate on-site renewable energy, increased landscaping, and encourage the use of alternative fuel vehicles for industrial operations in the neighborhood.[4] However, residents felt the plan did not go far enough to address their environmental concerns, and prioritized continued industry development in the neighborhood.[5] Progress on the environmental revitalization efforts stalled soon after the draft guidelines were released.[6]

The owner of the former coal plant site, Hilco Redevelopment Partners, intends to turn the site into a one‑million‑square‑foot warehouse.[7]  LVEJO members hosted a press conference at City Hall on February 26, 2020 to voice their opposition to the plan.  LVEJO, joined by representatives from the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), the Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments, Warehouse Workers for Justice, and the Union of Concerned Scientists called on the DPD to resume efforts to modernize the neighborhood by increasing environmental regulations on current and future industrial operators in the area, continuously monitoring air pollution levels, and performing a traffic study every five years.[8]  Following the press conference, LVEJO expressed their hope that Hilco and DPD will engage Little Village residents in crafting environmentally equitable solutions that benefit the community as a whole.[9]

*Featured Image: LVEJO 

[1] Little Village Environmental Justice Organization, Coal Power Plant Shutdown, http://www.lvejo.org/our-accomplishments/coal-plant-shutdown/ (last visited Feb. 29, 2020).

[2] Id.

[3] City of Chicago Department of Planning and Development, Mayor Emanuel’s Industrial Corridor Modernization Little Village Framework, Draft for Public Comment (January 2019), https://www.chicago.gov/content/dam/city/depts/zlup/Planning_and_Policy/Publications/draft-little-village-framework.pdf.

[4] Id., p. 2.

[5] Mauricio Peña, Environmental Groups Call On City To Regulate Polluters By Relaunching Little Village Modernization Plan, Block Club Chicago (Feb. 27, 2020), available at https://blockclubchicago.org/2020/02/27/environmental-groups-call-on-city-to-regulate-polluters-by-relaunching-little-village-industrial-corridor-modernization-plan/.

[6] Kari Lyderson, Chicagoans demand answers, input and oversight for former coal plant site, Energy News Network (Feb. 27, 2020), available at https://energynews.us/2020/02/27/midwest/chicagoans-demand-answers-input-and-oversight-for-former-coal-plant-site/.

[7] Id.

[8] Id.

[9] Peña, supra note 5.