A South Side alderman told constituents Friday that Mayor Brandon Johnson’s administration is seeking to open a new migrant shelter in her ward and move asylum seekers away from a downtown shelter ahead of the Democratic National Convention, a move she vehemently criticized over environmental and safety concerns.
Ald. Nicole Lee, 11th, sent an email to her Near South Side constituents Friday afternoon informing them of Johnson’s team approaching her with plans to build the shelter at 3951 S. Canal St. and 3909 S. Normal Ave., in the New City neighborhood. City officials explained the reason was because of the planned closure of the Standard Club migrant shelter downtown ahead of the DNC’s arrival this August, Lee said in the message.
The mayor’s press office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
“Earlier this week, Mayor Johnson’s administration notified Ald. Lee that they are considering plans to build a new temporary migrant shelter in the 11th Ward at 3951 S Canal St. to replace the Standard Club shelter downtown before the Democratic National Convention,” Lee’s email reads. “Yesterday, Ald. Lee met with Mayor Johnson about these plans and outlined in no uncertain terms that she is fully and unequivocally opposed to standing up this shelter at this location.”
The reasons Lee cited were concerns over migrants staying on land in a heavily industrial area that she said was not fully vetted for residential use and is surrounded by train tracks. Furthermore, she said, “The administration has not provided us with an adequate justification for why this proposed relocation of migrants from the Standard Club shelter to this property is appropriate, necessary or fiscally responsible.”
The question of how Chicago handles the 40,000-plus asylum seekers who have made their way to the city since 2022 has dogged Johnson throughout his first year in office, and is expected to remain relevant this summer as the DNC arrives in August.
In the past couple of months, however, the pace of buses from Texas has slowed and the city has shuttered many shelters and begun evicting longtime residents of those sites in an effort to right-size its costly apparatus for housing and feeding the migrants. There are currently 17 active shelters.
The mayor’s task ahead is to prove the city will live up to its reputation as a welcoming city for all — without drawing negative attention during the DNC to President Joe Biden and the Democratic Party. Republicans have pointed to past scenes of migrant families sleeping outside of police stations as proof Biden is weak on immigration, and the nation’s eyes will be on the footprint of the United Center as well as the downtown business district that includes the Standard Club shelter.
ayin@chicagotribune.com
