Brief Overview of What We’re Doing
In 2012 Delta Institute, PERRO, and the Little Village Environmental Justice Organization (LVEJO) collaborated with eight multi-sector stakeholder groups as part of the Fisk and Crawford Reuse Task Force. Appointed by Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, the task force was formed to collect community input on future uses of two large brownfield sites in Chicago: the former Fisk coal plant in Pilsen and the former Crawford coal plant in Little Village. Delta, among many partners, facilitated and collaborated to draft recommendations for the redevelopment of the closed Fisk and Crawford coal plant site in the Little Village neighborhood in Chicago.
Delta facilitated a multi-sector task force that forged a consensus on guiding principles for redevelopment of the then-recently decommissioned Fisk and Crawford coal-fired power plants. Engaging in formalized community outreach, the task force delivered valuable insight into community needs to the city and potential developers. Resulting from the dialogue of diverse interest groups, the Reuse Task Force brokered a consensus agreement, between various stakeholders, that outlined key elements of a successful remediation.
These efforts led to a multi-year, ongoing partnership between Delta Institute and the Little Village Environmental Justice Organization (LVEJO) to plan for a new community hub, called the Centro de Solidaridad Mi Villita, that will provide the local neighborhood with the means to create a robust local economy based on solidarity and self-determination. This project was a Finalist for the first Chicago Prize, the $10M award competition held in 2020 by the Pritzker Traubert Foundation, and although we did not win the competition, we remain committed to a sustainable future for Little Village. Since we were a Chicago Prize Finalist, our project is part of the Bold Solutions Network, an initiative of Lever for Change, a John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation affiliate.