For immediate release (3/27/98)
Contact: Steve Balkin, Maxwell Street Historic Preservation Coalition, 773-549-2545
On Wednesday March 25, 1998, three members of the Maxwell Street Historic Preservation Coalition went to City Hall to meet with University of Illinois at Chicago's (UIC) James Foerester, the Assistant Vice Chancellor for Administration; <Ph 312-413-8722; fax# 312-413-7779; email u12566@uic.edu> to discuss the fate of the old Maxwell Street area. The meeting was called by Shannon DeWith of the City of Chicago Dept. of Planning to attempt a compromise agreement regarding a Maxwell Street Historic District.
In the previous UIC land use plan, it was intimated that all of old Maxwell Street and some of Halsted could be saved. Now UIC says NO to that. Foerester said that they had miscalculated the amount of land they would need for their dormitories. They now want to build dorms on the east side of Halsted as well as the west side; and to use all of Maxwell Street for dorms. They said that they want to build the dorms only four stories high. If they need retail space they will use the first floors of the newly constructed dorm buildings.
Dan Marmer, a Coalition member remarked, "they build as if they were in the middle of a cornfield. Maxwell Street is close to the Loop, one of the densest areas in the United States. They want all vestiges of the culture and history of this area wiped off the face of the earth. They disrespect our immigrant heritage and they disrespect Blues music, one of the few art forms that are truly American."
When the Coalition asked why they couldn't build high-rise dorms to save land for some old buildings, Foerester said they don't want to do that. When asked why they couldn't build dorms on the land marked "residential" in their plans, Foerester said they don't want to do that. When asked why they couldn't rehab some of the old buildings, he said they don't want to do that.
They want to tear everything down and start doing it soon. This is typical UIC hard ball community relations and it follows UIC's mode of operation, like how they treated the Pilsen residents concerned about gentrification, and how they began their campus, displacing an entire Italian neighborhood.
But it's not over until it's over.
In the Illinois State Senate, the Maxwell Street Historic Preservation Coalition shall try to stop sec. 30 of Illinois Senate Bill 1774 which appropriates money for UIC to demolish Maxwell Street. They also plan an information blitz with the University of Illinois Board of Trustees which meets in Urbana, Illinois on April 8 and 9. Blues fans all over the world are sending protest letters to UIC.
The Coalition is holding a Press Conference on Saturday, March 28, 1998 at 11:00AM at the Chicago Historical Society, North Avenue and Clark St.. This Press Conference will be at the start of the UIC Student Tour of the exhibit: Rooting, Uprooting of the West Side. Maxwell Street is prominently featured in that exhibit.
A luncheon will occur after the Tour in the Chicago Historical Society's Big Shoulders Restaurant. There will be speakers talking about Maxwell Street, including Jimmie Lee Robinson, playing songs from his new CD: Maxwell Street Teardown Blues.
Background information is available at the Coalition's website where one can read hundreds of support letters from all over the world.<http://www.openair.org/maxwell/preserve.html>.
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