CUED
Center
for Urban Economic Development
University of Illinois at Chicago
Economic Development in South-East Chicago
Project Number: 182
Report Date: 1983
Author(s): Dorothy Hall, Judy Meima
The United Neighborhood Organization of Southeast Chicago (UNO) has requested the assistance of the Nathalie P. Voorhees Center and the Center for Urban Economic Development at the University of Illinois at Chicago, in assessing current economic development activities in the Southeast Chicago area and in determining potential future economic development strategies for UNO. During the course of the project the Centers analyzed public and private planning documents, interviewed staff at several community organizations, reviewed background material, and worked closely with the UNO Employment Committee.
Representatives of the UNO Employment Committee
set the criteria for the Centers' analysis. These criteria required that all planning
efforts for the area address the current and future needs of Southeast Chicago
residents. The Centers, review revealed the following major
findings:
1. Many organizations are directly involved in the economic
development of Southeast Chicago, but there is little coordination among these
groups.
2. The City has identified industrial attraction as a goal for
the Southeast Chicago area but has done little to implement this goal.
a. Proposals for infrastructure improvements in the Lake Calumet area suggest
that the city plans to develop, or initiate development, for an industrial park
in the area. Capital improvement plans for 1971-1981 repeat the same improvements.
b. Toxic waste disposal companies continue to locate and operate in the Lake Calumet
area. The City has made no real effort to prevent this despite the obvious incompatibility
with new industry.
3. Several Southeast Chicago organizations have experience
in job training and placement and have attempted to target the needs of displaced
workers with varied degrees of success.
This report recommends a series of actions that UNO can undertake fairly quickly, such as beginning the process of negotiating with the city and/or contacting other organizations to discuss areas of common concern. The report also outlines a plan for action for UNO's continuing involvement in the economic planning of Southeast Chicago.
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