Redevelopment of Old Harold Ickes Homes Moving Slowly

WBEZ shines light on the lack of action around the plan to redevelop the former site of the infamous Harold Ickes Homes:

Old Harold Ickes Homes (Image from WBEZ)

Residents of a former Chicago public housing development in the South Loop are angry that the DePaul University stadium is moving faster than replacement housing for them. 

In 1999, the Chicago Housing Authority began tearing down public housing as part of its $1.6 billion Plan for Transformation. The agency promised residents the right to return in new mixed-income communities. That included residents living in the Harold Ickes Homes near 22nd and State Street. The last building came down three years ago.

So what's next for this large, high-profile piece of property:

In an annual plan CHA sends to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development says this about Ickes: “CHA plans to issue a joint developer solicitation with the City of Chicago in FY2014 to redevelop the proposed portions of land pending disposition approval as a mixed use development, which may include public housing and other residential, commercial, institutional, recreational and other land uses. CHA plans to bring back mixed-income housing, including public housing units, on remaining portions of the Ickes site.”  

Originally, the Plan for Transformation was a five-year plan. Today, it’s supposed to be completed by 2015. That would mean the CHA would have to deliver a whopping 7,000 units by then to meet its 25,000 replacement unit goal.

Should be interesting to see how this one plays out.