A Look At Chicago's Cabrini Green-Pt 2

[Edie Antoinette]

The sitcom Good Times (1974-1979) was ostensibly set in Cabrini-Green. Although Cabrini-Green was never mentioned by name as the housing project in which the Evans family of Good Times lived, exterior shots of Cabrini-Green were shown in both the opening and closing scenes.
In the latter half of the 1980's, the backstory of DC Comics character Amanda Waller, leader of the third incarnation of the Suicide Squad was initially tied specifically to Cabrini-Green.

The 1994 film Hoop Dreams chronicles the life of Cabrini-Green youth William Gates (along with Garfield Park resident Arthur Agee) in pursuit of his dreams to someday play in the NBA.

In the sitcom The Bernie Mac Show (2001-2006), Bernie's two nieces and nephew Van...

In the 1999 film Whiteboyz, a group of white hip-hop fans from Iowa come to Cabrini-Green to buy drugs.

The book Cabrini-Green in Words and Pictures (compiled by David T. Whitaker, 2000) tells the story of this community from the perspective of those who lived there. Through interviews with three generations of residents, young and old share thoughts and memories of a place they called home.

In the 2001 Film Hardball, an aimless young man (played by Keanu Reeves) struggles with alcoholism, gambling and ticket scalping. Desperate for cash, he secures a loan from an acquaintance by agreeing to coach the Little League team of the Cabrini Green. His new job gives him purpose and he starts to turn his life around. This is also when Reeves had his famous line, "whooooa," with a blank look on his face.

The 1990 futuristic fictional comic book series Give Me Liberty by Frank Miller and Dave Gibbons begins in Cabrini-Green. As of the opening of the story in 1995 the neighborhood has already been enclosed in a gigantic walled and roofed structure, turning it into a prison for its impoverished residents, reflecting the decision to enclose several buildings in steel mesh. The enclosure is demolished years later by direct order of Howard Nissen, the future United States President, who does so after being informed of the horrible living conditions by the story's protagonist, Martha Washington, who grew up there.

The 1999 documentary, Voices of Cabrini: Rebuilding Chicago's Public Housing (by Ronit Bezalel and Antonio Ferrera) is a half-hour look at the redevelopment/demolition of Cabrini through the stories of its residents. The film interviews resident Mark Pratt and his son Trevonte. In addition, Cabrini Green Barber George Robbins is also interviewed and eventually has to move out of the community. The website can be found at http://www.voicesofcabrini.com which I brought over for you.

Redevelopment

As Cabrini Green is being torn down, it is important to photograph the community. So that in ten years, we can have a record of what used to stand in the area. Below are pictures taken after the documentary Voices of Cabrini was completed. They show further changes to the community, which are ongoing.

The new Starbucks with a Cabrini Green building in background Unfortunately, this says it all

This building was once called "the palace". It was 19 stories tall.

This used to be a little league field at Cabrini

The Neighborhood

Cabrini Green is often divided into three sections based on the type of buildings - the "reds", "whites" and "rowhouses". Each cluster of buildings has its own feel, each place is like a neighborhood unto itself.

One of the "reds". These buildings (15 in all) were completed in 1958. They are now the first buildings to be demolished

A "white" Cabrini Green building. Dedicated in 1962, there are 8 of these buildings.

The rowhouses were the first Cabrini buildings. They were constructed in the 1940's for returning war veterans. Future Homes What will happen in the future as the Cabrini buildings are torn down? Where will residents live? Many have taken section 8 certificates, some will move to the suburbs, a few will moved back to the area, and many more will be homeless. The question always remains...how many residents will move back, and what happens to everyone else? Mixed Income Communities being built in the Cabrini Green Area: North Town Village is a mixed-income development consisting of 261 units, 79 of which are CHA units. This site is located on North Avenue and Halsted. Holsten Real Estate Development Corporation and Kenard Development Corporation are the developers for this site. Source: thecha.org Old Town Square is 113-unit development of which 16 units are reserved for CHA residents. Developed by MCL Companies, construction for this site began in 1998 and was completed in 2001. Source: thecha.org Renaissance North is a mixed-income community containing 59 units. Public housing residents will occupy 18 of these units. The Renaissance Company is the developer for this site which is located on North Avenue. Source: thecha.org Orchard Park Townhomes The CHA purchased 13 units (in the Orchard Park Townhomes) which were formerly owned by the Chicago Metropolitan Housing Development Corporation in a 54-unit mixed-income town community built on 2.75 acres of CHA land. CHA residents occupy these 13 units. Source: thecha.org The site of the new, mixed income development at North Town Village, located next to Cabrini Green. Of the 261 housing units, 30% are public housing, 20% are affordable housing, 50% are market rate. Two completed buildings at North Town Village. A handful of Cabrini Families were scheduled to move into these buildings by Summer 2001 North Town Village Today

In Alex Ross's Kingdom Come miniseries, he created a background character named Kabrini. He is a green monster in chains whose name is basically a joke re... Chronology * 1850 - Shanties first built on low-lying land along Chicago River; population predominantly Swedish, then Irish. Acquires "Little Hell" name due to nearby gas refinery, which produced shooting pillars of flame and various noxious fumes. By 20th century, known as "Little Sicily" due to large numbers of Sicilian immigrants. * 1929 - Harvey Zorbaugh writes "The Gold Coast and the Slum: A Sociological Study of Chicago's Near North Side," contrasting the widely varying social mores of the wealthy Gold Coast, the poor Little Sicily, and the transitional area in between. Marshall Field Garden Apartments, first large-scale (although funded through private charity) low-income housing development in area, completed.
* 1942 - Frances Cabrini Homes (two-story rowhouses), with 586 units in 54 buildings, completed. Initial regulations stipulate 75% white and 25% black residents. Holsman, Burmeister, et al, architects. (Named for Frances Cabrini, an Italian-American nun who served the poor and was the first American to be canonized.)
* 1958 - Cabrini Homes Extension (red brick mid- and high-rises), with 1,925 units in 15 buildings, is completed. A. Epstein & Sons, architects.
* 1962 - Green Homes (1,096 units, north of Division Street) is completed. Pace Associates, architects. (Named for Great Society era congressman William J. Green.)
* 1966 - Gautreaux et al vs. Chicago Housing Authority, a lawsuit alleging that Chicago's public housing program was conceived and executed in a racially discriminatory manner that perpetuated racial segregation within neighborhoods, is filed. CHA was found liable in 1969, and a consent decree was issued in 1981.
* July 17, 1970 - Sergeant James Severin and Officer Tony Rizzato of the Chicago Police Department are fatally shot.
* 1981 - Mayor Jane Byrne moves into Cabrini-Green as part of a publicity stunt.
* October 13, 1992 - Seven-year-old Dantrell Davis is fatally shot while walking to school with his mother. Some of the shots came from 500-502 W. Oak Street.
* 1992 - Candyman is released, the story taking place at the housing project.

The demolition of one of the Cabrini-Green buildings

* 1994 - Chicago receives one of the first HOPE VI (Housing Opportunities for People Everywhere) grants to redevelop Cabrini-Green as a mixed-income neighborhood. * September 27, 1995 - Demolition begins.[citation needed] * January 9, 1997 - Nine-year-old "Girl X" found in a seventh-floor stairwell at 1121 N. Larrabee Street after being raped, beaten, choked, poisoned with insecticide and scrawled on with gang symbols. Her attacker allegedly stepped on her throat. She was left for dead but survived, though the attack blinded her. [4] * 1997 - Chicago unveils Near North Redevelopment Initiative, a master plan for development in the area. It recommends demolishing Green Homes and most of Cabrini Extension.
* 1999 - Chicago Housing Authority announces Plan for Transformation, which will spend $1.5 billion over ten years to demolish 18,000 apartments and build or rehabilitate 25,000 apartments. Earlier redevelopment plans for Cabrini-Green are included in the Plan for Transformation. New library, rehabilitated Seward Park, and new shopping center open.
* January 19, 2004 - The man who portrays the mascot of the Chicago Bulls, Chester J. Brewer, is arrested on the suspicion of selling marijuana out of his car at Cabrini-Green. [1]
* August 8, 2006 -A 14-year-old boy is still hospitalized Tuesday morning after being shot by Chicago Police, while residents of the Cabrini-Green neighborhood protested that the police shooting was not justified.
* August 14, 2006 - A 17 year-old teen is arrested after spitting on a police officer. Officers alleged the teen hit an officer during a protest and attempted to assault that officer.
* October 18, 2006 -A 21-year-old man was shot to death Saturday night as he crossed the street near the Chicago Housing Authority's Cabrini-Green Homes, police said. Source: www.chicagotribune.com
* April 1, 2007 -A fire breaks out in the garbage chute of 1230 north larabee cabrini green,all of the breeze ways filled with smoke, and three people were injured with minor burns.source:www.cbs2chicago.com

See also

* Robert Taylor Homes, Chicago

Notes

1. ^ "Man behind "Da Bull" in trouble with law". ABC7 Chicago (2004). Retrieved on 2006-12-08.

External links

* Cabrini Green: Gangsta City
* Chicago Housing Authority: Cabrini-Green Homes
* Cabrini Residents Human Rights Page
* Residents' Journal (written, produced & distributed by Chicago Public Housing residents; archives contain many articles on activism at Cabrini-Green, particularly around the plans for redevelopment).
* Chicago Coalition to Protect Public Housing
* Photos, Paintings and Discussions about Cabrini-Green
* Voices of Cabrini (Documentary film)
* Cabrini-Green in Words and Pictures (book, 2000) ISBN 0-942986-80-6
* CBS News: Tearing Down Cabrini-Green
* Chicago Tribune: Cabrini-Green Columns
* North Town Park site plan (redevelopment of Cabrini Extension site)
* Business & Professional People in the Public Interest Information on Gautreaux lawsuit and continuing litigation against CHA on behalf of tenant interests
* Map of Cabrini-Green Area at Google Maps

The Encyclopedia of Chicago has very detailed background information on the history of public housing and the Near North neighborhood: