Community Asset Map East Garfield Park, Chicago IL

Youth
Center
Community
Garden
Food Pantry

Economic
Development
Center
Borderbends
Art Collective

Garfield
Community
Center
Garfield Park
Conservatory
Church

Community Hea
Center

Public Schools

CTA L
Station

Key Assets Explained

CTA L stations and access to public transportation allow the residents in the
Garfield Park community to have the means to utilize key resources within and
outside of their neighborhood.
Economic Development Center Programs and incentives are offered to
commercial, retail, industrial, and non-profit organizations that are retaining and
adding jobs for community residents. Assistance includes grants, tax reductions,
loans, land-write downs, fee waivers and other forms of business aid.
The Borderbend Arts Collective presents boundary-pushing arts programming
by connecting artists with communities to create year-round musical, literary
and multi-arts programs involving new and unique arts practices. The
programs include site-specific events; work presented on web-based
platforms; and collaborations among local, regional, and international artists
and organizations, all with the goal of building community.
The Garfield Park Conservatory occupies approximately 4.5 acresinside and
out and contains a number of permanent plant exhibits incorporating
specimens from around the world (including some cycads that are over 200
years old). TheGarfield Park Conservatoryprovides significant horticultural
collections, educational programs and community outreach efforts.

Understanding the Community

Historical
Population
Year
1930
1940
1950
1960
1970
1980
1990
2000
2010

Comparison to Greater
Chicago
East Garfield Park
Chicago

Population
63,353
65,789
70,091
66,871
52,005
31,580
24,030
20,881
20,567

Racial
Demographic
White
Black
Hispanic
Asian
Other

3.39%
90.9%
4.13%
0.40%
1.17%

Median Household
Income:
$24,488
Per-capita Income:
$13,596

Households below
poverty level
Unemployment
11.1%
No High school diploma
Age: under 18, over 64

39.7%

18.7%

16.4%
26.2%
43.2%

Garfield Park
Fieldhouse

20.6%
34.0%

Crime
Of the 77 Chicago neighborhoods:
4th in violent crimes (e.g. battery, assault,
homicide, sexual assault).
10th in property crimes (theft. burglary,
shoplifting, motor vehicle theft).
2nd in quality-of-life crimes (narcotics,
prostitution, criminal damage).

Quality of Life
2nd highest proportion of IDUs (i.e., injecting
drug users)
3rd highest proportion of HIV/AIDS prevalence in

Garfield Park
Conservatory

Action Plan Leveraging East Garfield Parks Assets

The City of Chicago currently holds several foreclosed, vacant lots in the East
Garfield Park Neighborhood. In the past, they have auctioned these off at
incredibly low prices (advertised as low as $1 for adjacent lot owners). These
vacant lots present a clear asset of the community that can be leveraged by city
planners Instead of selling these to land proprietors, entrepreneurs, etc.,
partner with non-profits & city agencies to provide discounted land, subsidized
tax structure, incentive programs to create positive infrastructure in the
neighborhood instead to benefit greater proportion of neighborhood.
A Planned
Parenthood in
the
neighborhood
would provide a
vulnerable pop.
with HIV
screening and
counseling,
among other
valuable
services.

Policy Infrastructure
Change

Direct Service
Work

In order to achieve meaningful change, the plan must consider the two feet of social change
to (a) meet the basic needs of individuals through direct service work and removing
root causes of injustices through policy/infrastructure change

Action Plan Continued

Add additional CTA Bus-lines running in North and South directions to adjacent
neighborhoods with affordable/available goods and services rather than just East
toward downtown.

Direct Service
Work

In order to combat the food desert issue, leverage the community gardens, bus
stations, and nonprofits in the community. East Garfield Park has several
community gardensthrough programs in local churches and the community
center, provide those in-need with workshops/rentable tools to garden the lots in
the spring/summer. The convenience stores provide the means to carry fresh,
affordable produce work with owners/franchisees to keep produce in stock.
Strategically re-route busses to utilize current stops and provide routes to muchneeded resources surrounding Garfield Park.

Policy Infrastructure
Change

East Garfield Park is a quintessential example of a food desert (i.e. an urban are
where it is difficult to find affordable and high-quality fresh food.
14 Convenience Stores
Vs.
4 Grocery Stores

Action Plan Continued

In addition to ensuring the youth are preserved, introduce a program through

partner-schools/universities, or the Economic Development Center in order to
provide means/classes for adults to gain their GED.
In order to increase youth participation in after-school youth centers, create
alliance among local schools. In this program, the schools will rotate in
providing shuttle systems to-and-from the youth center and school on an
afternoon, daily basis. Providing a way for students to safely get to the youth
center will ensure the child (a) does not get involved with street/gang related
relationships after school and (b) has a safe community to be involved in if
parents work late, rather be alone/unsupervised .
In response to the high IDUs, work alongside the Garfield Park Community
Council to create physician-user rehabilitation/counseling program for those
struggling with addiction. In this program, a drug user can develop a close
relationship with a professional to create a custom tailored rehabilitation plan.

Policy Infrastructure
Change

Direct Service
Work

High-rates of theft and shoplifting most often stem from economic concerns.
Ensuring the youth in the neighborhood utilize after-school programs in order to
(a) stay in school (countering the high proportion of those without a diploma),
(b) generate a community of peers outside of gang-relation/crime-affiliated
activates.

Works Cited

"Crime in Chicago -- Chicago Tribune." East Garfield Park. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Mar. 2015.
"Borderbend Arts Collective." Borderbend Arts Collective. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Mar. 2015.
"Public Safety." Garfield Park Community Council. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Mar. 2015.
"Chicago Community Area Historical Data". Chicago Community Area Historical Data. 29
August 2012.
"East Garfield." - New Communities Program. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Mar. 2015.