The Lawndale Alliance

Contacts: Valerie F. Leonard, 773-521-3137, valeriefleonard@msn.com

Joe Ann Bradley, 773-450-2400, joebradley@yahoo.com

August 22, 2007

Honorable Robert Steele

Cook County Commissioner
3333 West Arthington
Chicago, IL 60624

Dear Commissioner Steele:

Thank you for attending Monday’s meeting of the Lawndale Alliance, featuring representatives
of the Chicago Department of Planning and Development (DPD). You publicly stated that you
were very concerned about the manner in which the Proposed Ogden-Pulaski TIF was being
implemented, and admonished the DPD staff to brief you on the specific details of the
redevelopment plan before proceeding any further. You expressed particular concern about the
potential displacement of up to 1,200 persons as a result of the implementation of the TIF.

Since this time, our core leadership team has had the opportunity to debrief on the meeting as
well. We remain concerned that the issues raised in our correspondence to Ms. Mary
Richardson-Lowry, Chairman of the Community Development Commission, have not been
resolved. The Proposed Ogden-Pulaski TIF Redevelopment Plan has been advanced to the Joint
Review Board, and is slated for review on September 7, 2007. Likewise, the Community
Development Commission has scheduled a public hearing on the Proposed Ogden-Pulaski TIF
for October 9, 2007, subject to review by the Joint Review Board.

We respectfully request that you

1. Write a letter to Eric Reese, Chairman of the Joint Review Board, indicating that your
constituents have grave concerns with the proposed Ogden-Pulaski Redevelopment Plan.
The plan was developed without broad based community input. As a result, it seems to
provide less opportunity for real economic empowerment for African American residents
while promoting growth in social services such as day care, welfare to work programs
and employment for ex-offenders. While these are very necessary services, there seems
to be very little focus on entrepreneurial opportunities for North Lawndale residents.
Moreover, the plan is fraught with inaccuracies among the lists of properties to be
acquired and the housing subject to displacement. Most appalling is the fact that
implementation of the TIF, including a proposed change in zoning from residential to
commercial in and around the intersection of Kedzie and Cermak Road could potentially
uproot nearly 1,200 African American North Lawndale residents in favor of extending
the commercial and light manufacturing districts that currently exist on Kedzie/Cermak,
south of Cermak Road, and other redevelopment. Please demand that Mr. Reese not
release the plan for a public hearing with the Community Development Commission until
these issues are resolved to the community’s satisfaction.
 Mr. Reese’s contact information is as follows:

Mr. Eric Reese

Deputy Director of Budget and Management
Chicago Park District
541 North Fairbanks
Chicago, IL 60611
Fax: 312-742-6836

Please send a copy of your signed letter to Joe Ann Bradley (773-542-1133), Valerie F.
Leonard (773-522-1832), and JoAnn Worthy (312-744-0759) of the Department of
Planning so she can include it in the public record.

2. Please include members of our core leadership team in your briefing with DPD staff. This
would allow a key opportunity to identify win-win solutions that involve members of the
community who are not typically represented in decisions concerning community
development.

In closing, we thank you once more for offering to assist the community in this matter. We
look forward to working with you, and have enclosed for your convenience copies of the
Redevelopment Plan, letter to the CDC and our draft issue paper. Ideally, we’d like to have
these action items completed by August 30, 2007. If you have any questions, feel free to
contact us as follows:

Valerie F. Leonard, 773-521-3137, valeriefleonard@msn.com

Joe Ann Bradley, 773-450-2400, joebradley@yahoo.com

Sincerely,

THE LAWNDALE ALLIANCE