State of the Ward - January 31, 2006

Alderman Flores discusses the accomplishments of the previous year and his vision for the community in the upcoming year.

Hello. My name is Manny Flores and I am alderman of the 1st Ward in the City of Chicago. I would like to welcome you to my very first podcast. I hope that this tool will further allow all of us to communicate more effectively and will act to keep all of you well-informed as well as address concerns, issues, and events that are important to our neighborhoods. I would like to take this time today to discuss the State of the Ward. To reflect on the previous year’s accomplishments and look forward to the challenges and expectations of the following year.

Some of the most visible changes in our neighborhood include the amount of infrastructure improvements which act not only to beautify our streets but to reduce crime and encourage business to set up shop in our communities. The streetscape on North and Chicago Avenue are not just a complete overhaul of the sidewalks and curbs or street repaving but an instrument to improve our quality of life.

I want to make tree planting a priority in the upcoming year. We must constantly look at creative ways to increase our green space and incorporate a community commons for all neighborhoods.

We have, though, accomplished a significant amount in enhancing and augmenting our green space and park facilities this past year. We are lucky to live in an area with so much park talent and commitment by the residents of our area to make the most of our green space.

Commercial Park renovated the gym floor of their fieldhouse and is pro-actively looking to renovate the playlot as well as possibly incorporating a dog park. The gardens at Wicker Park continue to be a major attraction to residents and with plans to further beautify the park underway, it will continue to be a focal point of the area.

We also are looking forward to two major accomplishments at Maplewood Park and Haas Park.

Maplewood Park is scheduled to break ground this coming spring with a new and improved park along with a new playlot. And finally Haas Park will begin its expansion this spring as well. Just a few weeks ago, the Chicago Park District announced that it has purchased a warehouse on the western end of the park. The expansion will not only include doubling the green space of the park but improved facilities such as a state-of-the-art fieldhouse with a gymnasium, a new playground and ballfield.

I would also encourage all of you to take a walk along the 2400 W. Bloomingdale, to view the Street Gallery of Fine Art. The Bloomingdale Mural is an important piece of work to showcase our local artists. Or visit Sabin Magnet School. Where a sculpture was crafted with the work of local students and teachers under the direction of world renowned artists who focus on participatory art.

We need to continue in this direction and work with our local artists to support our local economy and to feature the unique character of that makes our neighborhood that makes our neighborhoods different than other areas of Chicago.

We closed one chapter in preserving the character of our neighborhoods. Just three weeks ago, the nearly two year process of landmarking portions of East Village has become official; by a unanimous vote by the Committee on Historical Landmarks Preservation. The East Village Landmark District will now be a permanent face in our changing neighborhoods.

With this, we must strive to balance the commercial and residential growth in the 1st Ward. Looking to the future, a project on North and Bosworth near the Kennedy Expressway will become an exciting gateway into our community. We have secured livable commercial partners to the project.

Another major capital improvement that our residents will be able to take advantage of is the Bucktown/Wicker Park Branch Library that is slated to open in the end of March.

Our new, full-service library is a state-of-the-art facility that will feature an enhanced literary collection, a children’s library and free Wi-Fi or wireless Internet access to the public. The library will provide much needed access to informational resources and programs to residents. We need to increase this access to all residents, which is why I plan to work on securing another library in East Village area of the 1st Ward.

All of our schools continue to improve and we are fortune to have a new, multi-cultural school open by Erie Neighborhood House organization. A long-time advocate of early childhood education and an anchor in our community, Erie Neighborhood House has a superb reputation in the neighborhood and continues to allow our children to reach their potential.

We continue to work with public-private partnerships to secure affordable housing to all residents. Chicago Partnership for Affordable Communities or CPAN units are critical to offering residents of our community the opportunity to own their own home while giving them the necessary tools to remain financially solvent.

I am also continuing my work on the legislative front. In the negotiations with the Dominick’s store that will be replacing Edmar’s Food, we passed ground breaking legislation to regulate the use of restrictive covenants in grocery and drug retail stores.

Restrictive covenants are an industry-wide practice in which stores prevent competition by not allowing a competitor to purchase their vacant property. This practice prevents residents’ access to basic needs such as food and medicine. We have put together a Grocery Task Force to address community access to grocery stores. The goal of the task force is to bring together members of the grocery store industry, urban planners, and the city to work towards targeting areas with limited or no access to basic goods such as food and medicine.

However our work here is not done. And I am committed to work with all of you to improve upon the great work we have accomplished this past year. I look forward with great optimism to the future, our future, the future of our 1st Ward.