Oh. My. God.

First we had to see this:




Then we had this:




And as of Friday, finally this:






Nice, eh? But based on past behavior, will they water the lawn so the turf takes to it's new home?

Now will the building be condos or rentals? Affordable? subsidized? market rate? If the building goes condo, will parking be factored into the equation? Who will market the property?

More importantly, who's the developer?

This story is moving forward (with a nice lawn might I add) but still developing.

King Charles and the Concealed Carry

Pride is a dangerous thing.

In a way, pride is just the ultimate setup for disappointment.

That’s the way it goes in life and that’s the way it’s going in the ‘hood.

Why? You ask?

Walking from the bus stop on Sunday night, I saw two things---one a more common place occurrence and the other is something I’ve never seen in Woodlawn: A young white woman walking a Cavalier King Charles.

That's a breed of dog you don't see too much around these parts.

As more people discover our gem in the rough known as Woodlawn, white neighbors are not that rare of an occurrence anymore.

A Cavalier King Charles on the other hand, is a reason to celebrate.

You see my friends, when you live in an emerging neighborhood; it’s the little things that make a difference.

I hate to say it, but image is everything.

Whether its shoes on a wire, the Jenkins Boys on the corner, trash on the parkway or a woman (regardless of race) walking her Cavalier King Charles.

In the dead of night, might I add.

These are the non-verbal clues that help people shape their perceptions of your neighborhood.

And for some people, perception is reality.

So there I was feeling the upward trajectory of the ‘hood when I got a text Monday night.

“I just heard about the muggings at your Metra Station on WGN. Please be careful.”

Apparently King Charles Cavilers don’t mean shit to a knife wielding lunatic.

Naturally, this was the talk of the train stop on Tuesday morning.

All of the ladies were putting together the bits and pieces of what we heard vs. fact vs. what was on the news.

More importantly, we all talked about how to stay safe.

I recounted the story of my aunt who lived in (and still lives in ) Gary, Indiana in the 1970’s.

As a nurse, she would have a rotating shift that sometimes put her waiting on public transportation after dark.

She had already anticipated that some jagoff was going to screw with her so she took my grandfather’s .38 along as a traveling companion.

Imagine that the nurse who’s caring for you during your convalesce is packing heat in her locker at the hospital.

Hot.

One night while waiting for her bus, someone tried to mug her.

She shot him---lit him up like a Christmas tree.

Then on another night in a separate incident, another idiot tried to mug her.

She shot him too.

After that, she didn’t have any more problems.

To this day, we don’t just pop over to her house. We phone first. We always let her know that we’re coming.

Knocking on her door or entering her house unannounced is not a wise thing.

But this little story serves as a good lesson.

I have a saying, “The sharks go where the fish are.”

Apparently the fish have moved to Woodlawn.

That station is super creepy and is the perfect place to snatch up a sister if you have sinister intentions.

You see my friends; this dumbass just hasn’t met the right woman yet.

Trust me, I’m not her.

I’m not walking around with my chest poked out with an “S” on my sweater.

But you all must understand that sisters are doin’ it for themselves.

You can’t wait on the police to come and rescue you; especially when some bumblefuck decides that because he’s a little short on cash that any random woman walking down the street is going to be his personal ATM.

Because when he runs into the woman who doesn’t give a fig about the illegality of handguns in the City of Chicago and he makes his play, let’s suffice it to say that he’ll see the lightning flashing.

And I, for one, will cheer.

Development?

Lately there's been a little too much room for cars on our street.

Normally it's nuts to buts attempting to park.

I don't have a car, but living down here for seven years I know that if you're not home and parked by 6:30, you'll be parking on the next block.

Something wasn't adding up.

Coincidentally, the trash on the parkway has dropped dramatically.

It wasn't until I walked east toward Stony Island and looked at the building next to the Astor Properties debacle did I figure it out:

It's empty.

I haven't seen anyone parking in front of or going in or out of the building in the past two weeks.

Because I normally take the Metra to work, I rarely pass by the other end of the block. But when I put my thinking cap on, it all made sense.

I bet you that building is going condo.

And as we all know, depending on who buys the units and/or who moves in that may or may not be a good thing for the 'hood.

If the Astor Properties building is any indication, we may have another weed choked yard in the near future.

I'll keep you posted.

The Block Is Hot

The fallout from the subprime crisis has been all over the news since last summer.

Faithful readers will remember how I wrote about my own personal drama in this forum with my own adjustable rate mortgage.

It would have been easier for me to get into a size ten pair of skinny jeans than to refi nance my mortgage last year.

I know that things are still bad.

I predict that the market won’t straighten out until late ’09 or early 2010.

Despite those grim predictions, I get a feeling that things are looking up for the old hoody hoo.

Realtor’s trying to get rid of excess inventory in this market shouldn’t come as a surprise.

But it seems like there’s a breath of fresh air in recent listings. And when I say breath of fresh air I mean new condo construction.

Not only are there newly built inventory on 65th place, Dorchester and Kimbark but methinks there may be a real estate turn around lurking amidst this downturn.

Obviously it’s not over until the units sells but as a nearly seven year resident of Woodlawn, the price points of the current condo inventory thrill me to pieces.

The new condos behind me are listing from the high 200’s.

For someone who bought her humble little cold water flat for considerably less, when the market does turn around ,those of us who saw Woodlawn’s potential and bought in early will reap the benefits.

And when I say reap I mean raking in the scads of cash when I finally choose to sell.

While I’m not a fan of our city’s Olympic efforts and I don’t think we’ll get the games---if we did, the real estate market for the south east side is going to blow off the map.

But for now it’s all just speculation.

I feel it coming though---change is afoot.

Know Your Role

A few weeks ago, I went to the Understanding Your Role in Gentrification forum held at the University of Chicago during “Displacement Week.”

Naturally I was curious about one’s role in gentrification since it’s a much discussed and vilified topic these days. Since I’m a condo owner and by definition a gentrifier in Woodlawn, I had to stick my head in and see what all of this was about.

Perhaps I was slightly disappointed because of the un-preparedness of the panel.

Perhaps I was slightly disappointed because of the sparse turnout.

But one thing struck me as the discussion progressed, I’d bet you a million dollars that you’d never see a group of educated successful Black people beat themselves up over gentrifying a neighborhood.

Some say gentrifying, I say improving.

The panel was in the process of developing a brochure about responsible gentrifying. There seemed to be a lot of hand wringing by some people about gentrification in general.

People in attendance and the panel realized that good intentions and your personal budget often collide. As a result of finances and due to some people’s personal living preferences they have to (or choose to) live in “emerging neighborhoods.”

That’s a nice way of saying minority neighborhoods

I think it’s awfully conscious of the people at the forum to be concerned about being responsible gentrifies.

But as far as I’m concerned, it’s called being a good neighbor.

And as we all know, you can’t teach consideration, manners or good taste.

Well maybe you can try.

What I think the young people in that room may not have considered that change is a constant in Chicago neighborhoods.

Humbolt Park wasn’t always Hispanic. Woodlawn wasn’t always Black. Some parts of Old Town and River North used to be the “red light district.”

Obviously block busting, redlining, overt racism and down right ignorance played a huge role in the changing of the guard in the residential areas.

As those of us in the Chicagoland area know, it’s not the neighborhood but who lives in it that drives how it’s perceived and the services it receives.

Hey that rhymed.

In a sort of neighborhood circle of life, older neglected neighborhoods are bound to be rediscovered by those seeking beautiful, architecturally interesting buildings.

Not to mention accessibility to public transportation and green spaces.

Older neighborhoods in the city are experiencing a renaissance. Naturally, gentrication will follow.

And while many opinions will continued to be expressed about the re-emergence of urban neighborhoods, a few things continue to ring true.

People who want affordable accessible homes aren’t the problem. They shouldn’t be treated as such.

If you don’t want the flavor of your neighborhood to change, purchase it. Short of eminent domain or a federal injunction, not much can be done to take it away from you.

It never hurts to have a little diversity in your ’hood. While I don’t think the Germans are on there way back to Humbolt Park, it wouldn’t hurt to have a tauqeria next door to a beer hall.

And to my fellow forum attendees that happen to be white a small aside:

You don’t need a manual on how to be a good neighbor. In fact, I think it’s somewhat ridiculous to feel guilty or apologize for simply being who you are.

With racial divisions being very much in the news these days, it’s great to see dialogues getting started.

But unnecessary contrition isn’t needed.

Unless there’s 40 acres and a mule involved, I think your potential new neighborhoods will survive your arrival.