Woodlawn is all over the news this week

Neighborhood news

• A neighborhood summit is being held for South Shore residents on Saturday, 4/29, similar to the ones held in Woodlawn and Washington Park in the last two months (Eventbrite)
• Relatedly, some South Shore residents are opposing the effort to create a new development company that would control development in South Shore, Woodlawn, and Washington Park, areas said to be impacted by the Obama library development.
• People are moving to Woodlawn for a “stronger community”, not because a family’s home value might go up a tiny bit — Crain’s interviews some of the people who are buying homes in Englewood and nearby
• Property tax appeals are open for the Lake View township (townships in suburban Cook County are also open) (Assessor)
• Streetsblog Chicago is hosting its monthly happy hour, themed around transportation and land use, at Maria’s Community Bar in Bridgeport on Wednesday, May 10
• Theaster Gates reveals proposal for a new park & theater on the “arts block” in Washington Park across from Garfield Green Line station that would require the purchase of five city-owned lots (DNAinfo)
• The corporate partnerships with local organizations is what makes the introduction of Whole Foods and Starbucks to Englewood different than those companies’ typical store openings (Urban Land Institute)
• Inform the Jefferson Park plaintiffs fighting an affordable housing development that there is “no support for the proposition that growth in housing choice voucher [Section 8] holders leads to growth in violent crime rates”, and no property crime increase in low-poverty neighborhoods. This is from a journal article that studied Chicago data and was published in 2015. (How Housing Matters)
• Chicago City Council approved financial support last week for various affordable housing developments in Auburn Gresham, Englewood, Logan Square, and West Englewood.
• More Woodlawn news: “Ain’t She Sweet” cafe will open its third location inside the Woodlawn Station development under construction; across from that Jewel will build a new store; also across the street, the CTA will renovate the Cottage Grove station on the Green Line
• A small lot in Logan Square (only about 4,100 square feet) around the corner from the Western Blue Line station sold for half a million and the developer plans to build an unspecified number of apartments (DNAinfo)

(Woodlawn has only had two demolition permits this year so far.)