CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) — Groundbreakings are rarely emotional affairs, but it was on Wednesday at the event for Encuentro Square, a multi-family development at the western edge of the celebrated 606 Trail. Ald. Jessie Fuentes (26th) said it will be 100% affordable.
“Eighty-nine affordable units in two buildings,” Fuentes said, “In a community that’s rapidly gentrifying, in which we have seen families be displaced due to the increase in rent, the doubling or, in some cases, the tripling of property taxes.”
There were already some pillars up, so Wednesday’s groundbreaking for Encuentro Square was just symbolic. Nonetheless, U.S. Rep. Delia Ramirez — who lives two blocks away — said the affordable development was well worth celebrating.
“This is what we’re celebrating today: Eighty-nine units of quality, affordable housing where we can say, ‘We are here to stay,’” Ramirez said.
The project is a partnership among the City of Chicago, the Chicago Housing Authority (CHA), Evergreen Real Estate and the Latin United Community Housing Association (LUCHA), and it's the result of more than a decade of effort.
Lissette Castañeda is the director of LUCHA, which spearheaded the project. Castañeda said Encuentro means “meeting” or “coming together.”
“It felt appropriate for a site where we dreamed of not just housing, but also of health services," she said. "The name speaks to not just the coming together of families and affordable housing, but of meeting people where they’re at.”
Encuentro Square is just the first phase of a multi-step plan to bring 250 low-cost units to the area.
Nearly 50% of the funding for the project — over $32 million — came from equity generated by Chicago’s Low-Income Housing Tax Credits.
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