Feast your eyes on these letters from the police department discussing the Wilson Yard development and its impact on Uptown. They don't sound too supportive of the development, but you can judge for yourself. One of the more interesting parts mentions that because of the "homeless and career criminals...police resources will be stretched beyond present capacity." Yikes.
Those remarks are from 2005. Have there been any additional comments from police on the proposal since then? Or have I missed them?
ReplyDeleteSounds like CPD has been concerned for the safety of UpTown as a whole and most ironically the future senior residents of WY from the get-go.
ReplyDeleteis this the police study that was mentioned at the meeting this week at Truman?
ReplyDeletei know some folks were going to try and find it via the FOIA.
???
Yes, this is the report that was mentioned in the Town Hall Meeting.
ReplyDeleteFunny how Helen's never released any of it to the public.
I wasn't able to take off work to attend the Wilson Yard Task Force meetings; you know, that sham committee that pretended to get community input. Does anyone know if they ever got to see this safety report?
ReplyDeletethanks for posting, this is fascinating!
ReplyDeleteIt's interesting to see how the message softens as it percolates up the police bureaucracy, you can watch your govt at work
kudos to the Sargent who spoke truth: "Police resources will be stretched beyond capacity"
then the district commander slaps a cover letter on it which opens claiming to "reiterate" the good sarg but concludes optimistically: "With the proper precautions, the overall impact on the Department will be minimized."
and the chief softens everything to "revealed several concerns" by the time it gets back to DPD
I wonder if Planning asking the police dept's opinion is routine for planned developments?
The CPD says the development will be an improvement to the current situation. Their biggest concern seems to be the traffic and congestion that will result.
ReplyDeleteI think we all need to take this report with a grain of salt. While interesting, it is somewhat dated. One of their other chief concerns was people dropping off family and friends at the theater and the traffic and safety issues that would present.
ReplyDeleteUmmm, yeah, about the theaters...
"While interesting, it is somewhat dated."
ReplyDeleteSounds like a winner to me when I read the document with my super cool Shillerista goggles on.
Since our constituent service office in the 46th ward at 4554 Broadway has an artists mockup of the Wilson Yard development I guess it would only be just to post this 2005 police study right next to it.
I will ask the Alderman's office to post this next to the artist rendering of Wilson Yard.
Also, this safety study should be relevant to the new parking garage at Truman. This is a CTA funded project now as it is designated as a "park and ride" location.
ReplyDeleteDid the CTA or Truman have to do a safety study for the parking garage/student center?
Anybody else notice this on Shiller's site posted on the 10th?
ReplyDeleteWilson Yard Officially Commences
Ha-ha! Your comments about the bureaucracy are classic, Hugh!
ReplyDeleteFrom Butternut's link:
ReplyDeleteResidential
The project will also include two rental buildings with affordable units managed by the Holsten Management Company. One residential building will offer 80 one-, two-, and three-bedroom apartments. An accompanying seniors complex will feature 98 one-bedroom units. Both residential complexes will feature on-site property managers and stringent tenant selection processes.
I do like Holsten's comment:
"With a top-level retailer like Target, badly needed housing and job training, an eye towards green technologies, this development makes everyone a winner."
Hear that? We're all winners! The alderman's propaganda arm has told us so.
Who wrote that tripe, by the way? No one in Shiller's office could possible be that nifty with vocabulary.
I like the phrase "homeless and career criminals"
ReplyDeleteThe stringent tenant selection process? You just notify Helen and she decides if you go on the list. If you gave money or volunteered on her campaign, you're in!
ReplyDeleteArea residents will also have the opportunity to be trained in construction trades and be employed on the project through an apprenticeship program jointly managed by Dawson Technical Institute and the nonprofit Inspiration Corporation[ed. zoning permit change for 4554 N Broadway?]. Tuition cost will be funded in part by the Mayor's Office of Workforce Development.
ReplyDeleteAre these details reported ANYWHERE other than the Alderman's website?
It's the first I heard about any of this.
The Jump Up Program has an abysmal record of graduating people from their program who become employed. However, their director Johnny King has campaigned for Helen so that's reason enough to use them.
ReplyDeleteThe stats for Jump Up are amazingly bad. Over 200 local residents signed up for initial consideration.
ReplyDeleteOnly 7 passed the reading and writing tests and enrolled for training. Of those 7, I have no idea how many actually completed any training and got any work related to the trades.