Residents skeptical of promises for change at West End

She's lived here for 13 years, back when it was Rockwell Gardens, eight high-rise buildings on Chicago's West Side that were known for rampant drug problems, violence and physical decay.

Jackson Square at West End. Photo: CHA website

East Lake Management has redeveloped the site, and so far, just Phase I has been built. The meeting was to talk about Phase II and the developer's plans to modify units because of resident concerns. Phase I has encountered problems with shoddy building materials, design problems, and not enough market-rate buyers in a troubled market.

After a lengthy PowerPoint presentation by East Lake about how they're going to make Phase II much better, people raised their hands to ask questions.

Tiffany was one of those who raised her hand. She raised issues about the work requirement, about mold, about space for her children to play.  At one point, she was told her problems could be addressed one-on-one, maybe with someone from the management company.

She shook her head no.

"When we out here," motioning to the room, "we address stuff. It gets done. When we're closed and it's just us, nothing gets done."

She left the meeting early, frustrated with the situation, and I followed her out in the hallway.

I asked her about that comment she made, about things not getting addressed unless you talk about them in public. "Do you trust them?" was my question.

Photo credit: Paul Goyette

She shook her head again. She talked about how she feels like public housing residents get treated badly. How everyone looks down on them, accuses them of things, blames them for things. She says it's the management company, the staff, and even her neighbors.

"They look at us like we shouldn't be here," she said. "I just feel like the new Rockwell isn't for low-income people."

Then I asked the question I wasn't supposed to ask. The question TV journalists are raked over the coals for: When people treat you like that, how does it make you feel?

And that's when the tears broke out.

"I feel bad," Tiffany said. " Like I'm bad. I feel like....like I'm a failure to my kids."

In every meeting, the responsible parties come prepared. They come with promises of how things are going to get better. They come with pictures and charts and prepared statements.

But they only get so far. The level of distrust in most any public housing meeting I've been to is like the thickest layer of icing on any cake you've ever seen. It's hardened and sticky, and you can barely cut through it to get to what's underneath.

It wasn't just Tiffany, and it's not just Rockwell Gardens.

This level of distrust has been building for generations. And it's all tied up in feelings about race and class and privilege. I watch CHA staff working hard to try to undo it, but it's not easy.

I took a friend to the meeting last night. What did you think? I asked her.

"It's messy," she said. "It's so messy."

It is messy. It's something a bulleted PowerPoint presentation can't clean up. I sometimes lie awake at night, staring at the ceiling, wondering how it can be fixed.

I haven't come up with an answer yet, and I don't know if I ever will.

For more about Rockwell and the controversy there, you can read Micah Maidenberg's article from April from the Chicago Journal. I expect that Micah will post an update soon as well. Look for it in my weekly round up.