Revitalizing West Humboldt Park Posters | Masters of City Design | Graduate Studio | Fall Semester

Community Profile History and Context Established in 1869, West Humboldt Park is situated within the greater Humboldt Park community area.

Humboldt Park’s Chicago Avenue holds historic significance for the community, as it has been identified as one of the northernmost boundaries of the Great Migration, in which Black Southerners migrated north between 1916-1970. West Humboldt park retains a strong ethnic identity for Black Culture, and also has roots in Puerto Rican Culture. The neighborhood was designed for a working class population and has retained this demographic.

The Place

The residential, family-oriented community boasts an eclectic mix of bungalows, two-, three- and flour-flat houses. Neglect from planning efforts in recent decades has contributed to crime and vacancies across the Chicago Avenue corridor. Coinciding with our studio, Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot commissioned the Invest South West Initiative in October of 2019 which has identified 12 corridors across 10 neighborhoods on the south and west sides of the city for future development. West Humboldt Park was selected for the present study given its proximity to UIC.

Demographics

Existing Fabric

0.5 mile study area

Population Density

Geographic Mobility

Residents below poverty line

Median Household Income

Median Age

Educational Attainment

Figure Ground

Vacant Parcels

Housing Units Humboldt Park

27.2% 18 20.9%

Chicago

22.5%

9.6%

18-44

44-64

65+

43.8%

7.7%

Humboldt Park

40.7%

22.9%

58.4%

32% White

1.3%

African American 33.3%

Chicago

12.4%

Hispanic or Latino

43.8%

Others

28.8%

6.5%

Housing stock map age Figure Ground

Median Household Income by Race

Employment Levels

200%

1960

1980

2000

Chicago Humboldt Park (Pulaski to Kedzie)

180%

Logan Square (Milwaukee Ave)

160%

300%

140%

250%

120%

200%

100%

100%

80%

150%

60%

60%

40%

100%

20%

50%

$140,000

$122,283

$120,000

1980

350%

2000

2019

$113,877

$100,000 $80,000

Poverty Levels

400%

$77,500

$77,989

$70,664

$64,943

$60,000

$50,496

$48,290

$40,000

$37,967

$33,205

$33,301

$20,000 $0

0% White

Black/African American

Humboldt Park

Some Other Race

Logan Square

Hispanic/Latino

employed

unemployed

Chicago Avenue

Chicago

0%

employed unemployed

above poverty below poverty

above poverty below poverty

Chicago Avenue

Milwaukee Avenue

Milwaukee Avenue

Inferences MISSION OF OUR LADY THE ANGELS

Medical Services

LIFE CENTER CHURCH DELIVERANCE

Institutional Organizations Civic & Social Services Food & Dining

KELLY HALL YMCA

Everyday Services

ALL NATION PENTECOSTAL HOUSE OF PRAYER

SALVATION ARMY EL SHADDAL CHURCH NEW BEGINNINGS

IL DEPT. OF HUMAN SERVICES

Beauty & Cosmetics Construction

GREATER SWEET HOME MISSIONARY

Youth Services

ROWE CLARK ACADEMY

MEMBERSHIP MISSIONARY BAPTIST CHURCH

Professional Services Grocery Stores

KELLS PARK COMMUNITY COUNCIL

Convenience Stores

CHRISTIAN LOVE MISSIONARY BAPTIST CHURCH

Fitness, Health & Wellness GREATER LITTLE ROCK THE LORD'S CHURCH*

ORR ACADEMY HIGH SCHOOL

SENIOR SUITES OF WEST HUMBOLDT PARK

POLARIS CHARTER ACADEMY

Strong Institutional Corridor

NEW TABERNACLE OF FAITH BAPTIST CHURCH*

Research & Development Arts Nature Parks & Services

MT. EBENEZER BAPTIST CHURCH SMART WOMEN/ SMART MONEY*

80’ Right Of Way | Auto-centric transportation

Entertainment

DALEY LIBRARY KIPP ONE ACADEMY

JASPERSTONE MISSIONARY BAPTIST CHURCH*

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

Number of existing businesses

50

55

60

65

70

Chicago Avenue

75

80

85

90

95 100

Milwaukee Avenue

100+

Analyzing Chicago Avenue Transect Analysis

Kedzie Avenue

Food Insecurity Analysis

ALDI Central Park Food Market

Chicago & Avers Foods

Chicago Avenue

Pulaski Avenue

Quik Mart

Existing Food Desert Existing Access to Food Existing Green Spaces 0.5 Mile Radius

Blockface Analysis

Vibrancy Analysis Block

Soundness & Topology North South

Vibrancy North South

Diversity of Uses North South

Pulaski to Harding Harding to Springfield Springfield to Avers Avers to Hamlin Hamlin to Ridgeway Ridgeway to Lawndale Lawndale to Monticello Monticello to Central Park Central Park to Drake Drake to St. Louis

3 1 3 3 1 2 1 2 3 1

3 2 1 3 3 3 3 3 3 2

2 1 3 2 1 3 1 2 3 1

2 2 1 2 3 3 3 2 2 2

1 2 3 3 2 3 2 2 1 2

1 3 1 3 2 2 1 1 2 3

St. Louis to Trumbull Trumbull to Homan Homan to Christiana Christiana to Spaulding Spaulding to Sawyer Sawyer to Kedzie

1 3 2 3 3 3

1 2 2 2 2 1

2 3 2 2 3 3

2 2 2 1 1 1

2 1 2 1 1 1

2 1 3 2 3 1

Soundness & Topology

TOTAL North

South

6 4 9 8 4 8 4 6 7 4 5 7 6 6 7 7

6 7 3 8 8 8 7 6 7 7 5 5 7 5 6 3

Evaluates the built environment considering the density, condition, and capacity of structures on the block.

Looks at the social and asethetic appeal of the block. factors to consider could be visual design, presence

RATING

SCORE

Sound & Robust

3

Fair & Modest

2

Poor & Destitute

1

Hustle & Bustle

3

Average

2

Ghost Town

1

based on personal 1 Point Per evaluation of Unique Use varied uses

Preliminary Concepts 1.

2.

3.

4.

How can we help the community thrive?

What interventions would this community benefit from?

How did we looked at probable sites?

What if we intervened: At Kells Park and the Kedzie Firehouse At the Intersection of Chicago Ave. and St. Louis

Between Lawndale and Ridgeway

Neighborhood Analysis

Assets and Gaps Assets • Robust, diverse housing stock • Strong Institutional Corridor: • Community Partnerships: West Humboldt Park Community Development Council/ SSA, Neighborhood Housing Service • Schools: Rowe and Clark Math and Science Academy, Orr Academy, Westinghouse College Prep, Laura Ward Elementary, Polaris Charter Academy; • Churches/Nonprofit Organizations: Salvation Army, Nia Family Center, Mission of Our Lady of Angels; • Community Spaces: Daley Library, Central Playground Park, Park No 432, Kelly Hall YMCA • Transit: 66 CTA Bus • Strong planning initiatives: ISW, LISC QLP, etc • Access to vacant land Gaps • Depopulation of Black residents • High Crime • High Unemployment • Lack of capital investment • Lack of ample greenspace • Homeless encampment just east of the study area • Fracturing of urban fabric created by vacant lots

Du/acre

3 % of vacant lots

2 pop/acre

Area

1

Institutional Commercial Existing Green Spaces Vacant Parcels

Neighbourhoods

Initial Sites Site-1

Site-2

Site-3

• Community feedback: park underutilized • Availability of city-owned parcels adjacent to site • Lack of green space • Need for recreation • Opportunity to bolster neighborhood identity

• • • • •

• Opportunity to reinvigorate surrounding blocks • Cluster of city-owned vacant parcels optimal for redevelopment • Opportunity for increased green space • Complement mixed-uses along the corridor

Third place entertainment.

Outdoor dining.

Pop up vendors.

Food Trucks.

Connect lots with street surface paint.

Guiding Principles Community

Culture

The UIC design team sought to reinforce existing community systems while introducing new amenities to the area through the creation of ‘third places’ without disrupting the existing community framework.

West Humboldt Park has strong roots in Black and Latinx culture. Keeping this in mind throughout the design process will protect existing culture while providing the services necessary to ensure it can thrive in the future.

Equity

It is critical that any intervention or future design proposal ensures equitable access and opportunities for success and does not adversely affect any individuals in the community.

Open Space

Access to green space improves quality of life. We plan to find ways to incorporate dedicated open spaces when considering new developments and activating existing spaces.

Accessibility

The neighborhood has diminished access to many essential facilities and services. The vision will increase accessibility to these amenities to everyone.

Sustainability

To ensure the long-term success of the community socially, economically, and environmentally it is imperative that green alternatives are explored and implemented.

The Vision | Streets Existing Conditions

Proposed Streets

Unsafe Roadway Conditions

80’ Right of Way Unsafe Driving & Pedestrian Conditons

Complete Streets

Lack of Streetscaping High Crash Corridor

Chicago Ave.

Experiment 1 Re-organizing the Streets

Parking Protected Street

Reduced

Improved

Given what is known to be true about the street from reports and analyses by various municipal, neighborhood, and outside organizations there are a few core issues that can be addressed in a reorganization of the existing road footprint, as it currently exists.

Firstly, because of frequent issues controlling vehicle speed and aggressive driving behaviors, a road diet could be undertaken to limit the number of travel lanes on either side of the street from two lanes to a single lane. To ensure a smooth flow of traffic, part of the reclaimed space would be utilized for a shared center turn lane.

Next, the lack of dedicated-space for multi-modal transportation can be addressed through the implementation of bike lanes along the corridor going both east and west. These could be accommodated through utilization of the extra real estate freed up by removing the two travel lanes. Due to the concerns about transportation safety for vulnerable users, these bike lanes would be parking-protected.

Experiment 2

Before

After

Before

After

Re-imagining the Streets

Similar to roadway scheme 1, dedicated space along each side of the street is accommodated through the introduction of five foot wide bike lanes.

Additionally, the number of continuous travel lanes is reduced from two in each direction to one in each direction with a shared center turn-lane.

Scheme two introduces more revolutionary ideas for the roadway is in the introduction of pedestrian plazas that reclaim a sizable portion of the road right-of-way for public use by residents. At these junctions, street parking and the center turn lane were removed and travel lanes for cars and cyclists were shifted together. Next, the sidewalk space on the side opposite of traffic flow was expanded from its existing 12 foot footprint to 38 feet. Finally, in the western plaza, two local roads were closed to create a continuous plaza along the corridor that could allow for safe continuous use by pedestrians, local businesses, and community organizations alike.

High Crash Intersection Rowe-Clark Academy

After Active Social Hub

Invest SW RFP Site

After

The Vision | Housing & Public Realm Affordable and equitable access to quality housing stock is one of the hallmarks of a great community. Homes are the places where people eat, sleep, work, play, and where many people spend a majority of their time. Houses, apartments, etc. act as personal safe spaces that keep families and individuals secure and grounded as they grow and progress through life. It is imperative that neighborhoods strive to produce, protect, and maintain an adequate, appropriate amount of housing to support both current and future generations.

Throughout the development process for creating a fresh vision for the future of West Humboldt Park, the questions of how to best utilize vacant land and what population the neighborhood should plan to accommodate were frequently discussed with various stakeholders and partners. To determine how density should be balanced with practicality and ambition, a number of experiments were conducted to analyze what impact various levels of development would have on the physical fabric of the neighborhood.

Exisiting

Experiment 1

Experiment 2

Experiment 3

10 Dwelling Units/Acre Population: 15,500

12 Dwelling Units/Acre Population: 18,500

14 Dwelling Units/Acre Population: 24,500

17 Dwelling Units/Acre Population: 28,100

The Portal

The Boldt The Portal One of the most common points of discussion in conversations with local organization leaders during the design process was a desire for Chicago Avenue’s intersection with Kedzie Avenue to act as a gateway to West Humboldt Park. In support of this goal, one recommendation put forth by the design team has been the creation of a grand entrance spanning over the length width of Chicago Avenue and adorned with community branding to convey a sense of place. However, rather than merely make an empty aesthetic gesture with no practical purpose aside from basic wayfinding, an attempt to create a more activated and usable space would be recommended.

In the design team’s representative illustration of what an intervention of this type could look like, the gateway landmark also serves as both a pedestrian bridge, a communal space, and a location for occasional commercial activity. The elevated walkway would be adorned with flowers and foliage to incorporate the natural elements present within Kells Park where the foundation of the site rests.

The Boldt Situated on a site adjacent to an already thriving active social hub, “The Boldt” will host a new community gathering space. The site is also in close proximity to Rowe-Clark Math & Science Academy and the large pedestrian plaza introduced by reimagining the streetscape of Chicago Avenue. Access to these amenities provides a prime opportunity to construct a space that supports local businesses, creates a third place where local residents can congregate and socialize, and acts as a pillar and beacon of hope in the community.

Before

Before

In the representative illustration of what an intervention of this type could look like, the design team’s portrayal depicts a radical and unique structure that incorporates the use of indoor and outdoor spaces across multiple levels to create a sense of osmosis with the outside area. The building is comprised of multiple pods that can play host to local start-up entrepreneurs, established retailers from across the city or the country, and flex spaces that can be utilized by members of the community for gatherings, youth services and tutoring, organizational meetings, and innumerable other activities.