Che “Rhymefest” Smith’s Green Hopes for the 20th Ward [[Chicago-Woodlawn)

[wolverine]

Che “Rhymefest” Smith’s Green Hopes for the 20th Ward
BY DENNIS RODKIN

In the last few hours before the blizzard hit last Tuesday, Che “Rhymefest” Smith, the Grammy-winning rapper who is now running for alderman in Chicago’s 20th Ward, drove me around his neighborhood. The ward has over 30,000 vacant lots [[most of them city-owned) and hundreds or perhaps thousands of foreclosed homes [[there is no accurate count available), many of them boarded up.

Smith argues that those derelict sites represent an opportunity to transform the community. “We can make this the greenest neighborhood in the city,” he said as we viewed the bleak environs around 67th Street and South Langley Avenue through the windshield of the big white van he was driving.

Working with homeowners, landlords, and private entrepreneurs, Smith wants to take what he calls a “whole system” approach to greening the ward. Under his plan, impoverished residents would gain job skills by learning to retrofit existing homes with insulation, modern windows, and other green features. Green housing, both new and renovated, would cut occupants’ utility bills, attract new residents, and serve as a model for the whole city. And vegetable gardens in the ward’s now-vacant lots would help remedy the area’s “food deserts” while creating jobs and revenue. “We have an opportunity to reclaim all this land and housing,” Smith said. “The community can stand together to make itself healthy again.”

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http://www.chicagomag.com/Radar/Deal...the-20th-Ward/

I thought this was very similar to what Detroit is working to do with greening of the city. There's quite a bit of vacancy in this area....some blocks have as much as 20% vacancy, yet this neighborhood sit between two successful neighborhood positioned for growth, South Shore, and Hyde Park. It will be interesting to see if they can attract new residents before neighboring wards do.