Chicago 47^th Ward Alderman Eugene Schulter noted more than $10 million in improvements planned for the 47^th Ward to a meeting of community and business leaders today. “A lot of good things are happening because people care about our community,” Schulter, 62, told the crowd of about 50 at the Peppermill Restaurant, 1742 W Wilson Ave., Chicago, IL, in a speech announced as a “state of the ward.”

Chicago 47th Ward Alderman Eugene Schulter. Credit: Ryan Lowry, Ravenswood Community Counci

Schulter’s list of plans for the upcoming year includes spending $5 million on a Clark Street streetscaping plan, and an additional $4 million on extending the Irving Park Road streetscaping.

Chase Park is expected to receive more than $1 million for improvements and Lawrence Avenue streetscaping plans are moving forward with plans to invest in tree planting, sidewalk widening and traffic control features the alderman said were not normally seen in Chicago.

Much of the money for the improvements come from the controversial Tax Increment Financing (TIF) districts that cover these corridors, according to Schulter. The investments detailed by Schulter is several times larger than the investment by the Federal Government under the Recovery Act, which was detailed in a report by the CenterSquareLedger earlier.

TIF money, being provided by SomerCor504 Inc, is expected to play a part in public investment in the community. The SomerCor funds are drawn from TIF districts to encourage permanent improvements. The Garcia’s restaurant improvement is a high profile local private winner of SomerCor funds for its improvement of the store in the Lincoln Square mall.

Schulter also noted that the completion of the senior development at the former Martha Washington Hospital site was now receiving national recognition, with the developer, Lakota Group, being honored by the American Association of Retired Persons and the National Association of Homebuilders.

The expansion of the Old Town School of Folk Music, expected to add 27,100 square feet to the cultural complex centered in the old Hild Regional Library Building, received overwhelming community support recently, according to Schulter. He said that a vote by residents at a meeting was 40-3 in favor of zoning the expansion in a way favorable to the folk music center.

“The Old Town School is one of the largest employers in the ward,” Schulter told the audience.

A facility for the Black Ensemble Theater could become as important an engine for growth on the eastern side of the ward he said. A new venue for the theater company is in progress at the intersection of Clark Street and Sunnyside Avenue. Until the facility is opened, the theater will continue to operate out of a basement at 4520 N Beacon St.

Schulter told the audience that keeping the CTA healthy has always been an important part of his political career. A threat to close the CTA Brown Line, then called the Ravenswood Line, first brought him into politics he admitted. He said he was proud of his part in the recently completed renovation of the Brown Line.

“We’re blessed with what we have here,” Schulter said of the transport serving the community. “But we need to think about the future.”

It was up to the state legislature to figure out the CTA’s budget problems, he said. He noted he was meeting with legislators from the community about the issue of CTA cutbacks.

Tags: Brown Line, Clark Street Streetscaping, Eugene Schulter, Garcia's Restaurant, Irving Park Road streetscaping, Lawrence Avenue Streetscaping, Martha Washington development, Old Town School of Folk Music, SomeCor 504, The Black Ensemble Theater