Mayor Brandon Johnson and Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle stood among Northwest Side elected officials Tuesday night hailing the opening of a shelter for newly arrived migrants in the Portage Park neighborhood as the city approaches the second anniversary of receiving buses of migrants from the southern border.
About 43,330 asylum seekers have arrived in Chicago since Texas Gov. Greg Abbott began sending them from the southern border in August 2022, according to a city census conducted daily. The city has at times struggled to house and keep up with the needs of the arriving people, but on Tuesday, officials had an unequivocal welcoming message.
“You are our neighbors now,” Johnson said to a crowd of volunteers, migrants and elected officials. “I know that your journey here has been long and difficult, but today we welcome you.”
Originally scheduled to open in April, the shelter faced delays and pushback from community members. On Tuesday, leaders officially opened the facility to about 300 people yet to arrive from the city landing zone.
Unlike the other 17 city and state-run shelters currently housing hundreds of asylum seekers, the nonprofit Zakat Foundation of America is assuming the costs — partnering with the city, county and Archdiocese of Chicago. Zakat president Halil Demir said about 50 people were staying in the former convent on the campus of St. Bartholomew Catholic Church while renovations on the shelter building itself wrapped up.
He enthusiastically welcomed migrants gathered in the sanctuary Tuesday night, urging them to join in on the city life. “Chicago is a hardworking city, Chicago is a great place to be,” he said. “Chicago needs you.”
St. Bartholomew pastor, Rev. Michael O’Connell said shelter plans had been developing since late 2023. Zakat Foundation will administer the shelter’s staffing, social services and other logistics and work with Chicago Public Schools to enroll children in school, according to a news release from the organization.
The shelter will only house migrants, officials said. City and state officials announced in April that the city would consolidate its shelters for newly arrived migrants and American-born homeless people into one system.
State Rep. Lindsey LaPointe, D-Chicago, applauded the opening of the new shelter in a statement before calling on local and state leaders to funnel further aid to U.S.-born homeless people. Anti-homelessness advocates have praised the idea of a unified shelter system as a way to curb competition for limited affordable housing resources among the migrant and unhoused populations.
At a reception for families and officials, LaPointe said she eventually hoped to “see a strong shelter and service system for anyone experiencing homelessness” but said the facility about to open was a step in the right direction.
The area has needed shelter services for some time, she said: “It’s a marker of the progress we have made and and need to continue to make.”
Deacon Jaime Rios said he’d been working with arriving migrants through the Our Lady of the Rosary Parish, which covers St. Bartholomew and another nearby church, since last year. Some of the earlier migrants to arrive have apartments and jobs now, he said.
Daniela Diaz and Franger Bermudes, with Rios translating, said they’d arrived in Chicago from Texas last month with their 6-year-old son.
“In Texas we were nervous,” said Diaz, 28, adding that they felt much safer in Chicago. “We are OK now, but we want to be better.”
Rios said he urged the families he’s worked with to keep their faith in the American dream.
“The dream is true,” he said. “But you have to be patient.”
Chicago Tribune’s Nell Salzman contributed reporting.
