From the Chicago Maroon, The University of Chicago's student newspaper, November 19, 1999

by Max Grinnell <kgrinn1@uic.edu>

Max Grinnel is an alumnus of the University of Chicago (U of C) and is now a graduate student at UIC in their Urban Planning program. U of C is a distinguished private university in the Hyde Park neighborhood. It should not to be confused with UIC, a public university in the near west side. -- SB

Last week, the City Council gave final approval to a $525 million expansion plan at the University of Illinois at Chicago. The South Campus plan will create an academic "village" south of Roosevelt Street, complete with student residences, a new building for the school of business administration, retail shops and a large parking garage. UIC estimates that the South Campus project will generate more than $1 billion in economic activity, along with the creation of 200 permanent jobs when the project is finished. This elaborate project will be partially financed by the creation of a local TIF (Tax Increment Financing) district, which was approved by the City Council last May.

Based on press releases from UIC, this decision arose from many community meetings, and the active participation of many different groups representing a broad spectrum of viewpoints. Unfortunately, nothing could be farther than the truth. This "master" plan to develop the Maxwell Street area is nothing but the efforts of unscrupulous modern day Philistines who are more interested in increasing the prestige of the University of Illinois at Chicago through attractive streetscaping and second rate concessions to the spirit of the place that was once Maxwell Street.

Let us first consider the inspiring words of Chicago's highest elected official, Mayor Richard Daley. Responding to the public outcry against the proposed demolition of the remaining buildings in the Maxwell Street area, he had this to say: "What's inside [them]? Is there historical significance? Go over to Maxwell and Halsted... and look at them. Most of them are down. Everybody knows that." Once again, our public officials have proved themselves oblivious to the real issues (Why do we bother to vote when we have such choices?) The real issue which concerns Maxwell Street is simple: The spirit of the place is absent from this new "master" plan.

What is most valuable about Maxwell Street, and why do public officials ignore what is before their eyes? Historically, Maxwell Street was a place for people to gather, barter, play music, and meet other new arrivals to Chicago. While Maxwell Street's capacity to serve in this capacity has been severely curtailed in the past few years, there is still hope for this area. This new plan, put forth by the UIC and their team of suburban consultants, refuses, or better yet recoils, from any notion of truly public space. In place of a plan that is cognizant of the cultural and historical legacy of Maxwell Street, the public has been fed a potpourri of unappealing physical design elements (some of which are wholly inappropriate) and a plan for commercial activity that includes multinational forms of "local" expression, i.e. the Gap and Starbucks.

Does this plan include space for blues artisans to practice and to give master classes to aspiring musicians? Does this plan include specific sites set aside for local vendors? Does this plan include any mixed income housing? The answer to all of the aforementioned is a resounding "No." As we have seen the rise of planter boxes throughout the city of Chicago over the past few years, we shall now see the rise of a new type of planned development in the Near West Side. This is a place where history shall be forgotten, and a sense of "community" will be constructed by obliterating the previous urban texture, to begin tabula rasa.

Ultimately, what is most despicable about this whole business is that it is occurring under the auspices of a public institution, an institution intended to safeguard the diverse history and culture which constitute the city of Chicago. When March arrives, and the construction of the new South Campus begins, we will be witnesses to the destruction and abandonment of one of Chicago's most interesting repositories of public culture. How long will it be before we attempt to recreate the world of Maxwell Street in the interest of a spirited public life when we could nurtured it back to life in 1999 for a pittance?

web page provided by OPENAIR-MARKET NET

return to the top of the page

return to Preserve Maxwell Street