Altgeld Gardens Homes (Chicago, Illinois)

Altgeld Gardens/ Phillip Murray Homes
2009 photograph of the Altgeld Gardens housing project.
Location	Bounded by 130th and 134th Streets and S. Doty and St. Lawrence Avenues Chicago, Illinois United States
Coordinates	41°39′19.08″N 87°36′10.80″W / 41.6553000°N 87.6030000°W / 41.6553000; -87.6030000Coordinates: 41°39′19.08″N 87°36′10.80″W / 41.6553000°N 87.6030000°W / 41.6553000; -87.6030000
Status	1,498 units (renovated)
Constructed	1944–45
Governing Body	Chicago Housing Authority

Altgeld Gardens Homes is a Chicago Housing Authority (CHA) public housing project located on the far south side of Chicago, Illinois, United States. It sits on the borderline of Chicago and Riverdale, Illinois. The residents are 97% African-American according to the 2000 US Census.^[1] Built between 1944–1945 with 1,498 units, the development consists primarily of two-story row houses spread over 190 acres (0.77 km²).

History

It was built by the federal government (Department of Housing and Urban Development) to satisfy the need for improved housing for African American veterans returning from World War II. In 1956, the project was transferred to the Chicago Housing Authority. Located in an industrial area on Chicago’s far South side, Altgeld was named after John Peter Altgeld, an Illinois governor of the 1890s. As one of the first public housing developments ever built in the United States, it has been determined to be eligible for the National Register of Historic Places.^[2]

In the early 21st century, 3,400 residents live in the Altgeld / Murray complex.[1] This complex includes public schools within its borders, and the Housing Authority has maintenance staff, on-site social services, and medical facilities for residents. Altgeld Gardens' northern boundary is 130th Street, its southern boundary is 134th Street, the eastern boundary is the campus of George Washington Carver Military Academy (formerly known as George Washington Carver Area High School) a public 4-year public high school and the Beaubien Woods Forest Preserve of Cook County.

Existing conditions

Numerous manufacturing plants, steel mills, landfills and waste dumps—once bordered the 190 acre Altgeld Gardens site. The residents have a growing concern about the number of deaths annually from cancer and other diseases that may be related to environmental hazards of their industrial neighborhood.^[3] In addition, Altgeld Gardens was constructed at a time when asbestos was widely used in construction materials such as insulation, tile and other products. It has been found to be hazardous and in 1980, residents organized a grassroots campaign in the project to advocate for its removal from the complex flats.

US President Barack Obama, then a local community organizer, participated in this campaign. He wrote about it at length in his book Dreams From My Father. Altgeld Gardens is located in one of the most dense concentrations of potentially hazardous pollution sources in North America. Many of the landfills that surround the project are unregulated, and some are still active. Since most of these landfills as well as many industrial plants are located along the waterways surrounding the area, 11 miles (18 km) of the 18 miles (29 km) of rivers and lakes surrounding Altgeld Gardens have been assessed as having water quality unfit for human consumption and recreation. Many local residents continue to fish in these waters, increasing their exposure to hazards by eating local fish.

Gang violence

Located just south of Chicago's Roseland neighborhood and directly north of Riverdale, IL, Altgeld Gardens is one of Chicago's oldest housing projects. Isolated from the rest of the city and almost 5 miles from the closest police station, Altgeld Gardens has had its share of violence and unrest.Adjacent neighborhoods such as the Golden Gates community and Concordia Place Apartments are also victim to some of Altgeld's gang activity. Splintered factions of the Gangster Disciples and the Black P Stone Nation such as the Bar None Gangster Disciples and the Black Pirate Stones often clash.

Notable residents

External links

References

↑ "Journey Through Calumet". Retrieved 2007-08-17.
↑ "IHPA HARGIS". Historic Architectural Resources Geographic Information System.
↑ "PCR, What is PCR?". Archived from the original on 2007-04-03. Retrieved 2007-08-17.

City of Chicago

Architecture Beaches Climate Colleges and universities Community areas Crime Culture Demographics Economy companies Expressways Flag Geography Government History political Landmarks Literature Media Museums Neighborhoods Parks People Performing arts music theater Public schools list Skyscrapers Sports Timeline Tourism Transportation Visual arts Portal

Cook County Metropolitan area Illinois United States

Community areas in Chicago

Far North	Rogers Park West Ridge Uptown Lincoln Square Edison Park Norwood Park Jefferson Park Forest Glen North Park Albany Park O'Hare Edgewater

Northwest	Portage Park Irving Park Dunning Montclare Belmont Cragin Hermosa

North	North Center Lake View Lincoln Park Avondale Logan Square

Central	Near North Side The Loop Near South Side

West	Humboldt Park West Town Austin West Garfield Park East Garfield Park Near West Side North Lawndale South Lawndale Lower West Side

Southwest	Garfield Ridge Archer Heights Brighton Park McKinley Park New City West Elsdon Gage Park Clearing West Lawn Chicago Lawn West Englewood Englewood

South	Armour Square Douglas Oakland Fuller Park Grand Boulevard Kenwood Washington Park Hyde Park Woodlawn South Shore Bridgeport Greater Grand Crossing

Far Southwest	Ashburn Auburn Gresham Beverly Washington Heights Mount Greenwood Morgan Park

Far Southeast	Chatham Avalon Park South Chicago Burnside Calumet Heights Roseland Pullman South Deering East Side West Pullman Riverdale Hegewisch

Neighborhoods in Chicago

Recognized by the City of Chicago	Albany Park Andersonville Archer Heights Ashburn Auburn Gresham Avalon Park Avondale Back of the Yards Belmont Cragin Beverly Bridgeport Brighton Park Bronzeville Bucktown Burnside Calumet Heights Chatham Chinatown Clearing Dunning East Side Edgewater Edison Park Englewood Forest Glen Gage Park Galewood Garfield Ridge Gold Coast Greater Grand Crossing Greektown Hegewisch Hermosa Homan Square Humboldt Park Hyde Park Irving Park Jefferson Park Kenwood Lake View Lincoln Park Lincoln Square Little Italy Little Village Logan Square The Loop Magnificent Mile McKinley Park Montclare Morgan Park Mount Greenwood Near North Side Near West Side New City North Park Oakland O'Hare Old Town Pilsen Printer's Row Pullman River North Riverdale Robert Taylor Homes Rogers Park Sauganash South Chicago South Deering South Shore Streeterville Ukrainian Village Uptown Washington Heights Washington Park West Elsdon West Ridge West Town Wicker Park Woodlawn Wrigleyville

Other districts and areas recognized by the community	Altgeld Gardens Armour Square Big Oaks Bowmanville Boystown Budlong Woods Buena Park Canaryville Central Station Chicago Lawn Chrysler Village East Garfield Park Edgebrook Fernwood Fuller Park Fulton River District Gladstone Park Goose Island Grand Boulevard Groveland Park Heart of Chicago Hollywood Park Illinois Medical District Indian Village The Island Jeffery Manor Jackowo Kilbourn Park K-Town Kosciuszko Park Lilydale Lower West Side Margate Park Marquette Park Marshall Square Mayfair Museum Campus New Chinatown Noble Square North Austin North Center North Halsted North Lawndale North Mayfair Old Edgebrook Old Irving Park Old Norwood Park Old Town Triangle Oriole Park Palmer Square Peterson Park Pill Hill Portage Park Prairie District Polish Village Prairie Shores Princeton Park Pulaski Park Ravenswood Ravenswood Manor River West Roseland Rosemoor Roscoe Village Saint Ben's Scottsdale Sheridan Park Smith Park South Lawndale South Edgebrook Tri-Taylor Union Ridge The Villa Waclawowo West Beverly West Englewood West Garfield Park West Lakeview West Lawn West Loop Gate West Pullman West Rogers Park Wildwood

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Monday, February 29, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.