City to remove homeless camp for cleaning
Safety concerns raised after recent violence at site
City authorities plan to remove a group of tents under several West Loop viaducts for cleaning after residents raised safety concerns following recent violence.
The encampments near Union and Ogilvie stations are the subject of an ongoing debate between Mayor Brandon Johnson’s office and Ald. Bill Conway, 34th. Conway previously told the Tribune that a top Johnson adviser tied an offer to address safety concerns there to the alderman’s votes on two key City Council ordinances.
The cleaning is scheduled to begin Monday morning and will include power washing and graffiti removal that requires encampment residents to temporarily remove their tents, a Conway spokesperson said.
The area’s encampments were the site of a fatal shooting Dec. 7. A week earlier, police arrested a man at one of the campsites with a gun and $60,000 in drugs.
Johnson spokesperson Ronnie Reese on Friday described the move as “routine cleaning” that is generally done twice a year.
But while the mayor’s office played down the cleaning, Conway celebrated the decision that came “after months of requests.”
“This expanded cleanup effort is a big step forward,” he said in a statement. “But I recognize it does not solve this problem. Many people may return, some immediately, as these viaducts remain a viable location for drug dealing and distribution.”
People living under the viaducts have been notified and asked to move their belongings, Conway said. As city workers reached out to them, seven encampment residents accepted rapid rehousing and were provided with shelter, though 15 more declined rehousing, he added.
The alderman previously said city plans to remove the tents in October were canceled by the mayor’s office. Efforts to remove new winterized tents and clean the area last winter also faced resistance from activists.
Emails recently released by the city show that plans to power wash the viaducts were underway in October but canceled because the mayor’s office didn’t approve the work.
On Oct. 16, a Department of Family & Support Services staffer emailed colleagues, saying that city Streets and Sanitation crews would be “posting the Clinton, Milwaukee and Fulton area on Wednesday for power washing next week. If this needs to be cancelled, we should let them know by today or tomorrow, the latest.”
Minutes later, another city official emailed back, “It needs to be cancelled. It wasn’t approved by MO,” referring to the mayor’s office.
Conway told the Tribune last month that top Johnson adviser Jason Lee offered him a trade: The administration would support tent removal if Conway voted in favor of a referendum for an increased real estate transfer tax on properties over $1 million to help fund citywide homeless services and an ordinance ending subminimum wage for tipped restaurant workers.
Lee acknowledged linking the issue of the camps with votes for the marquee Johnson policies, but defended it as an appropriate deal and said police would continue to respond to the encampments. Conway ultimately voted against the real estate transfer tax referendum, and both ordinances passed.
In mid-November, around 1,500 area residents signed a petition calling for the mayor’s office to remove tents from the area’s sidewalks, citing safety issues.
On Dec. 8, the mayor’s office responded to the petition, stating its goals to reduce unsheltered homelessness, ensure public safety at encampments and prevent them from growing.
“We strive to balance the rights and safety of all residents regardless of their housing status,” said the letter, signed by Deputy Mayors Jennifer Johnson and Garien Gatewood.
At least four armed robberies and four shootings have occurred near the camps since early October, including the fatal shooting of a 59-year-old man on Dec. 7, according to Conway’s office.
“This used to be a peaceful homeless encampment,” Conway said at a news
conference at the site hours after the shooting, gesturing to the tents under a viaduct on Lake Street. “Those things exist certainly, but this is very far removed from that situation.”
The alderman sent Johnson a letter Tuesday describing the tents and furniture on sidewalks as an impediment to residents who use wheelchairs and a violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Potential ADA violations could leave the city vulnerable to lawsuits, he wrote.