City now plans to bring migrants at shuttered Woodlawn school on week of Jan. 23
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Two years – that is how long a migrant shelter for hundreds of adults could operate at in old school in the Woodlawn neighborhood.
Residents learned Thursday night that the city's mind is made up. The vacant school is set to open for asylum seekers before the end of the month to the shuttered Wadsworth Elementary School, later University of Chicago Charter School, at 6420 S. University Ave.
As CBS 2's Lauren Victory reported, hundreds of Woodlawn residents showed up in person and virtually to the community meeting at the Apostolic Church of God, 6320 S. Dorchester Ave. Some got the sense that the meeting was over before it started.
People walking in received a paper with frequently asked questions. The answer to when migrants are moving in that it will be as soon as the week of Monday, Jan. 23. The shelter will be used for migrants for up to two years, officials said.
"They're inviting you to the table - now that it's done," said one disgruntled resident.
Once again, tempers flared over the temporary shelter for asylum seekers that is coming to the old Wadsworth elementary.
"Nothing I say here tonight is going to change nothing," another angry resident said.
Many in the audience said they are not anti-migrant, but they are opposed to how the city has gone about making the plans at the closed Chicago Public Schools building.
City officials actually apologized to the crowd for not including them in conversations sooner – calling it an "oversight."
"We didn't think and talk to you first," said Chicago Department of Family and Support Services Commissioner Brandie V. Knazze.
Officials then moved on to one of the residents' biggest concerns – safety when the migrants move in.
It was revealed at the meeting that 24/7 security will be provided, and contracted officers will post up at every entrance. They will be tasked with indoor and outdoor monitoring.
In addition, Chicago Police will conduct checks on every shift, officials said.
"I just want you guys to understand that we will definitely, definitely continue to work to make sure that my officers there present," said Chicago Police Grand Crossing (3rd) District Cmdr. Roderick Watson.
Other city promises include outdoor lighting repairs, installation of Chicago Police POD cameras, biweekly updates bout security, and monthly community meetings.
"We will start with 250 individuals that we will place in the building," Knazze said.
CBS 2's Victory has been covering the drama since Oct. 24, when she learned of work being done inside the school. At the time, CBS 2 had learned the school was being prepped to become a shelter for migrants – but there had been no official announcement on why the work was happening.
"We have no idea what the background of the people are that they're talking about bringing here," Woodlawn resident Tracey Thompson said on Oct. 24. "We as taxpayers, we deserve a lot more transparency and forthrightness."
Ald. Jeanette Taylor (20th) also expressed her concerns about the silence from City Hall.
We went back to Wadsworth the very next day after obtaining pictures of the extensive rehab taking place inside – new pipes, buffed floors, and bathrooms under construction.
The Mayor's office told us on Oct. 25, "There are no plans to use the vacant Wadsworth Elementary School as a temporary shelter for newly-arrived asylum seekers at this time."
The Chicago Public Schools said it was "routine maintenance work." CPS never got back to us when we discovered a records request we obtained showing $1.5 million spent on plumbing, environmental, and other rehab work at Wadsworth.
Late in December, the city finally acknowledged that yes, migrants would be going to the old Wadsworth Elementary School. The plan was to begin housing migrants there on Friday, Jan. 6, but it was revealed two days before that the date was going to be delayed.
As of a few days ago, the shelter did not have any beds yet. We just obtained photos taken this week inside the school.
"We have no idea what the background of the people are that they're talking about bringing here," Woodlawn resident Tracey Thompson said on Oct. 24. "We as taxpayers, we deserve a lot more transparency and forthrightness."
Ald. Jeanette Taylor (20th) also expressed her concerns about the silence from City Hall.
We went back to Wadsworth the very next day after obtaining pictures of the extensive rehab taking place inside – new pipes, buffed floors, and bathrooms under construction.
The Mayor's office told us on Oct. 25, "There are no plans to use the vacant Wadsworth Elementary School as a temporary shelter for newly-arrived asylum seekers at this time."
The Chicago Public Schools said it was "routine maintenance work." CPS never got back to us when we discovered a records request we obtained showing $1.5 million spent on plumbing, environmental, and other rehab work at Wadsworth.
Late in December, the city finally acknowledged that yes, migrants would be going to the old Wadsworth Elementary School. The plan was to begin housing migrants there on Friday, Jan. 6 – six days ago now.
Two days before the announced move-in date, there was yet another flip-flop from City Hall. The date was going to be delayed.
Why? We don't know.
Is it for more community input? Or perhaps the school just isn't ready?
We just obtained photos taken this week inside the school. They document missing titles, ceiling panels not there, an incomplete light switch, and a dangling speaker – to name just a few items still on the punch list.
They document missing titles, ceiling panels not there, and outstanding electrical work including an incomplete light switch and a dangling speaker – to name just a few items still on the punch list.
The city acknowledged the to-do list.
"We've got to make sure we get in the fire extinguishers," Knazze said. "We've got to get in the smoke detectors, the carbon monoxide detectors."
All of this is apparently to bed one in the next 10 days.
Meanwhile, a Chicago Public Schools higher-up told the crowd Thursday night that construction crews were initially working on the building to convert it into a custodial training facility – and then someone realized its potential as a shelter.
Some residents are holding out hope that the whole plan will be scrapped.
"We're speaking up for our neighborhood," a resident said at the meeting.
This meeting comes five days after several politicians gathered outside the school in a show of unity.
"We do believe that this community has a right to have a voice in what happens here," said state Rep. Kam Buckner (D-Chicago).
The local leaders expressed their frustration about not just the plan, but also the process thus far.
"This was not thought through. This is not fair to the community," said Ald. Taylor. "This is a democracy, not a dictatorship."
On Thursday afternoon, Mayor Lori Lightfoot said she has been speaking with Ald. Taylor and others regularly about the plan for the school. We asked about the perceived lack of transparency.
"Our team has been engaging with other stakeholders there for a couple of weeks now, since made the decision that it was necessary for us to open up Wadsworth School – so I would not say that there's any lack of transparency; quite the opposite," Mayor Lightfoot said.