CHICAGO, IL (FEB. 7, 2008) - For years one company, Sears Roebuck and Co., dominated North Lawndale. When Sears moved out, the neighborhood was devastated. North Lawndale suffered from chronic disinvestment, and with a poverty rate of 45%, unemployment rate of 26%, and over a thousand vacant lots, the community was considered lost by many outsiders.
Now, two decades later, North Lawndale is forging a new identity thanks to the Lawndale Christian Development Corporation (LCDC). This identity is not based on the dominating presence of one company, but rather on the determination of its residents to create a vibrant community.
At the heart of this revitalization is the Lawndale Christian Development Corporation, which is rebuilding the neighborhood block by block with more than $37 million of investment. LCDC has built and rehabbed more than 100 single-family homes and rental apartments and over the past few years has broadened its work to address other community needs, such as financial literacy and job creation.
The trend is plain to see. Renovated buildings and former vacant lots now bustle with life, as families choose to move into the neighborhood, building wealth by spending their dollars where they now live.
In 1987, LCDC got its start by providing affordable subsidized and market-rate rentals in restored buildings. By supporting new construction on vacant lots and by renovating existing housing stock, this organization has created opportunities for home ownership while beautifying and stabilizing the community. But LCDC doesn't stop at housing.
LCDC has developed child care facilities, opened a technology resource center and spurred economic development with renovated commercial space. As the New Communities Program lead agency, LCDC leads the push for a revitalized Ogden Avenue and improvements in public schools.
CHICAGO, IL (FEB. 7, 2008) - For years one company, Sears Roebuck and Co., dominated North Lawndale. When Sears moved out, the neighborhood was devastated. North Lawndale suffered from chronic disinvestment, and with a poverty rate of 45%, unemployment rate of 26%, and over a thousand vacant lots, the community was considered lost by many outsiders.
Now, two decades later, North Lawndale is forging a new identity thanks to the Lawndale Christian Development Corporation (LCDC). This identity is not based on the dominating presence of one company, but rather on the determination of its residents to create a vibrant community.
At the heart of this revitalization is the Lawndale Christian Development Corporation, which is rebuilding the neighborhood block by block with more than $37 million of investment. LCDC has built and rehabbed more than 100 single-family homes and rental apartments and over the past few years has broadened its work to address other community needs, such as financial literacy and job creation.
The trend is plain to see. Renovated buildings and former vacant lots now bustle with life, as families choose to move into the neighborhood, building wealth by spending their dollars where they now live.
In 1987, LCDC got its start by providing affordable subsidized and market-rate rentals in restored buildings. By supporting new construction on vacant lots and by renovating existing housing stock, this organization has created opportunities for home ownership while beautifying and stabilizing the community. But LCDC doesn't stop at housing.
LCDC has developed child care facilities, opened a technology resource center and spurred economic development with renovated commercial space. As the New Communities Program lead agency, LCDC leads the push for a revitalized Ogden Avenue and improvements in public schools.
CHICAGO, IL (FEB. 7, 2008) - For years one company, Sears Roebuck and Co., dominated North Lawndale. When Sears moved out, the neighborhood was devastated. North Lawndale suffered from chronic disinvestment, and with a poverty rate of 45%, unemployment rate of 26%, and over a thousand vacant lots, the community was considered lost by many outsiders.
Now, two decades later, North Lawndale is forging a new identity thanks to the Lawndale Christian Development Corporation (LCDC). This identity is not based on the dominating presence of one company, but rather on the determination of its residents to create a vibrant community.
At the heart of this revitalization is the Lawndale Christian Development Corporation, which is rebuilding the neighborhood block by block with more than $37 million of investment. LCDC has built and rehabbed more than 100 single-family homes and rental apartments and over the past few years has broadened its work to address other community needs, such as financial literacy and job creation.
The trend is plain to see. Renovated buildings and former vacant lots now bustle with life, as families choose to move into the neighborhood, building wealth by spending their dollars where they now live.
In 1987, LCDC got its start by providing affordable subsidized and market-rate rentals in restored buildings. By supporting new construction on vacant lots and by renovating existing housing stock, this organization has created opportunities for home ownership while beautifying and stabilizing the community. But LCDC doesn't stop at housing.
LCDC has developed child care facilities, opened a technology resource center and spurred economic development with renovated commercial space. As the New Communities Program lead agency, LCDC leads the push for a revitalized Ogden Avenue and improvements in public schools.
CHICAGO, IL (FEB. 7, 2008) - For years one company, Sears Roebuck and Co., dominated North Lawndale. When Sears moved out, the neighborhood was devastated. North Lawndale suffered from chronic disinvestment, and with a poverty rate of 45%, unemployment rate of 26%, and over a thousand vacant lots, the community was considered lost by many outsiders.
Now, two decades later, North Lawndale is forging a new identity thanks to the Lawndale Christian Development Corporation (LCDC). This identity is not based on the dominating presence of one company, but rather on the determination of its residents to create a vibrant community.
At the heart of this revitalization is the Lawndale Christian Development Corporation, which is rebuilding the neighborhood block by block with more than $37 million of investment. LCDC has built and rehabbed more than 100 single-family homes and rental apartments and over the past few years has broadened its work to address other community needs, such as financial literacy and job creation.
The trend is plain to see. Renovated buildings and former vacant lots now bustle with life, as families choose to move into the neighborhood, building wealth by spending their dollars where they now live.
In 1987, LCDC got its start by providing affordable subsidized and market-rate rentals in restored buildings. By supporting new construction on vacant lots and by renovating existing housing stock, this organization has created opportunities for home ownership while beautifying and stabilizing the community. But LCDC doesn't stop at housing.
LCDC has developed child care facilities, opened a technology resource center and spurred economic development with renovated commercial space. As the New Communities Program lead agency, LCDC leads the push for a revitalized Ogden Avenue and improvements in public schools.
For its dedication to creating affordable homeownership and economic empowerment, for its tenacity, creativity and innovation, Lawndale Christian Development Corporation received the The Chicago Community Trust Outstanding Community Strategy of the Year Award at the 14th Annual Chicagao Neighborhood Development Award Ceremony (CNDA) held on February 7, 2008. LCDC also received $20,000 for this honor.
"Lawndale Christian Development Corporation has been a leader in neighborhood development by bringing increased investment and programming to the residents of its neighborhood," said Andrew Mooney, Executive Director, LISC/Chicago. "Their vision of creating a more vibrant neighborhood is apparent in every part of North Lawndale."
Based on its documented successes, LCDC was chosen to serve as the lead agency for the New Communities Program. LCDC worked with more than 300 Lawndale residents and 30 organizations to develop a five year quality of life plan. That plan, "North Lawndale: Faith Rewarded," envisioned a community with low unemployment, high quality schools and training programs, adequate health and social services centers and cultural facilities that serve the entire neighborhood.
It's becoming a reality. Already, the neighborhood has a new public art corridor that provides young people with job skills and work experience, projects such as Ezra Homes, a development of 125 new single-family homes, and the Center for Working Families, which provides residents with financial tools and services. LCDC also brought Hoops in the Hood to Lawndale, launching "Summer Slam," a Friday night basketball league that brings neighbors together for basketball, barbecue, arts activities, health awareness screenings and public safety.
"Our neighborhood is on the upswing after decades of industrial job loss, disinvestment and population decline, and we are planning for its future as a community," said Kim Jackson, Executive Director of Lawndale Christian Development Corporation. "It has been exciting to be a part of the transformation taking place in our neighborhood."
Established in 1995, CNDA recognizes outstanding achievements in neighborhood real estate development and community building, especially the achievements of community development corporations, other community-based organizations and for-profit developers working to build healthier neighborhoods in the Chicago metropolitan area.
This year's ceremony, held at the Hyatt Regency Chicago, attracted more than 1400 people, including Mayor Daley, CNDA Event Chair Valerie Jarrett, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Habitat Company, and leaders of Chicago's non-profit, corporate and philanthropic sectors. The February 7th ceremony kicked off with a performance by The Second City at 3pm, followed by a formal presentation of the awards beginning at 4:30pm. This year's theme, "Outside-In: The Second City's take on Community Improv-ment," allowed for a humorous retrospective of the people, places, events and issues that have shaped community development in Chicago over the last four decades.
"The projects being honored today have already improved the quality of life in the neighborhoods where they have been built and also serve as community anchors with the potential to be a catalyst for future development," said Mayor Richard M. Daley. "They are perfect examples of how partners working together can help re-build and revitalize a neighborhood - store by store and block by block - so that the lives of all Chicagoans are improved."
The principal sponsors for this year's awards include: Allstate; Applegate & Thorne-Thomsen; Bank of America; Brinshore Development; Camiros, Ltd.; Charter One; Chase; Chicago Bears; Chicago Community Loan Fund; The Chicago Community Trust; Citibank; Cole Taylor Bank; Coniston Consulting; Enterprise Community Investment, Inc.; Exelon; Federal Home Loan Bank of Chicago; Fifth Third Bank; GE Real Estate; The Habitat Company; Harris; Holsten Real Estate; Illinois Housing Development Authority; LaSalle Bank; LISC /Chicago; Matanky Realty Group; MB Financial Bank; Miner, Barnhill & Galland; National City; National Equity Fund; Northern Trust; Park National Bank; Peoples Gas; RBC Capital Markets/Apollo Equity Partners; Related Midwest; Reznick Group; The Richard H. Driehaus Foundation; ShoreBank; State Farm Insurance; Urban Development Fund; Urban Land Institute; The Walsh Group; and Washington Mutual.