Chicago Abandoned Lot Project 
Community Development of Blighted & Vacant Property
Page last updated: June 16, 2008

Brought to you by Sean Parnell, creator of the Chicago Bar Project

Imagine... Chicago 100 years ago. The city played host to the world for the 1893 Columbian Exposition, and the world was stunned by the impressiveness and innovation of Chicago and its residents. The South, West and North Sides featured wide boulevards with stately homes, other homes affordable for people no matter their income, and beautiful parks and lakefront beaches accessible to all. Chicago still has beautiful parks and lakeshore, but something happened to the neighborhoods...

Recently, the North Side and parts of the West and South Sides closest to the Loop have been regentrifying, but abandoned buildings and vacant lots still plague large portions of the South Side and West Side. There are an estimated 70,000-80,000 vacant lots in the City of Chicago, and the number of abandoned buildings numbers well into the thousands. Abandoned buildings are particularly troubling as they are magnets for drug use and squatters, and become major fire risks. If we are to win the bid for the 2016 Summer Olympics, then I propose that we transform Chicago into a world-class host city by transforming these abandoned buildings and vacant lots into something the neighborhood can be proud of – without demonizing property owners or displacing honest, hard-working residents.

Chicago Abandoned Lot Project in the news!
Click here for the article by Anitra Rowe in the Wicker Park Booster

Targeted Properties

Chicago Abandoned Lot Project – Top 20

More Targeted Properties (click here)

Questions? Comments? Suggestions? Please e-mail them to me.

Want a vacant lot cleaned up? Request a vacant lot clean-up from the City of Chicago here. That's what it's for!

Know of an abandoned building that should be boarded up?
Dial 311 and report it! What are you waiting for? It takes only a few minutes and can save lives.

Contact Your Alderman or Alderwoman
(click here for an Excel spreadsheet with alderman contact information)

What is the Chicago Abandoned Lot Project?

The Chicago Abandoned Lot Project is a community project whose purpose is to transform blighted properties in Chicago into something to be proud of by the surrounding neighborhood and everyone that cares about this great city. These troubled properties feature abandoned buildings or vacant lots that are an eyesore at best and dangerous to the community at worst. Far too often, these properties sit neglected for years either because of unclear ownership, court battles and liens, or property owners that are content with the properties as they are, perhaps waiting until they increase in value or simply because of inattention. The specific goal of this project is to transform 5 troubled properties into something the community can be proud of by March 22, 2007. Upon completion of the project, the project will be documented and what we have learned will be shared here so that it can be replicated elsewhere around Chicago, Illinois, the United States, and throughout the world.

Highest and Best Use – new possibilities for community development

• Transformation into a safe place

  • Many vacant lots are filled with broken bottles, garbage, weeds and broken trees, and they simply need to be cleaned up for a start so they are no longer dangerous to neighborhood residents and an eyesore to all

  • Many vacant buildings first need to be boarded up or torn down completely as fire damage and broken glass are dangerous for neighborhood residents and often turn into crack houses; call (312) 744-6140 to request the City of Chicago to board up an abandoned building in your neighborhood

• Transformation of troubled properties into a commercial business – many communities suffer from a lack of such neighborhood staples as grocery stores, salons, restaurants serving good quality food, all of which can bring jobs to the area and profitability to local proprietors or regional/national chains

• Transformation of vacant lots into a community garden or  park

• Transformation of troubled properties into something for the Olympics – did you know that Chicago is vying to become host for the 2016 Summer Olympics in 2016? Learn more about it here and vote if you support Chicago's Olympic bid

• Temporarily transform abandoned buildings by painting boarded up windows the color of the facade, or perhaps something artistic by local artists

• Temporarily transform vacant lots into vegetable farms (leased or rented) possibly in conjunction with Ken Dunn of Resource Center Chicago, or into community gardens

One of the aims of the Chicago Abandoned Lot Project is to determine the status of each troubled property. Who owns it? The City of Chicago, a private owner, a bank, or is ownership unclear? Whoever owns it, what is their plan for the property? Warehouse it for future use, perhaps waiting for land value to increase? Perhaps they have no plan at all, or the property might be caught up in a court battle that could last for years. Perhaps there is a great plan in place for the property and things are in process (planning, financing, construction, etc.) The Chicago Abandoned Lot Project aims to create a plan of transformation when one does not exist, and to be in harmony with those that do. We do not want to recreate the wheel.

Next Steps

• Identify additional troubled properties – the initial goal is a total of 50, with 5 ultimately transformed by March 22, 2007

• Determine the status of each property

• Determine the Highest and Best Use of each property

• Create a Plan of Transformation for each property

• Execute each plan

• Evaluate lessons learned from each property

• Document and improve the process

• Replicate globally through an army of others dedicated to the idea of world harmony

More Troubled Properties (most are for sale)

Abandoned building in Washington Park	Boarded-up building in West Garfield Park
Vacant Lot in East Garfield Park	Vacant Lot on Wood Street in Wicker Park
For sale by Baird & Warner in West Englewood (MLS# 06372948)	For sale by Baird & Warner in Austin (MLS# 06368099)
For sale by Baird & Warner in West Englewood (MLS# 06355794)	For sale by Baird & Warner in West Englewood (MLS# 06339120)
For sale by Baird & Warner in Chicago Lawn (MLS# 06328921)	For sale by Baird & Warner in Chicago Lawn (MLS# 06356342)
Vacant Lot in Washington Park	For sale by Baird & Warner in Greater Grand Crossing (MLS# 06376177)
For sale by Baird & Warner in Greater Grand Crossing (MLS# 06227611)	For sale by Baird & Warner in Chicago Lawn (MLS# 06348714)
Let's do something about these!

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