FAIR. HOUSING OPPORTUNITIES- Chicago is experimenting in two renewal projects FERD ~RAME.R, President of Draper.and Kramer, Incorporated-the firm managing two Chicago Title I developments being leased on an open-occupancy basis (Lake ~eadows and Prairie Shores)-presented the following address at a November meet­ ing of NAHRG_'s Potomac Chapter. Jlv!r. Kramer's talk touched off a lively question­ and-answer period; some of the questions Mr. Kramer answered are reproduced on pages 32 and 34. For the past 30 or 40 years, we trated portion of this near south ical, to improve the areas in which urban dwellers have been pursu­ side lived many of the people who they were located. ing the most wasteful, ridiculous made Chicago great: the Pullmans, way of life that one can possibly the Armours, the Swifts, and the Momentous Beginning imagine. VV:e have done so for a Fields. (I might add that the Two momentous things hap­ variety of reasons, two of which Kramers lived on the fringe of this pened almost at the same time. are: a reluctance to accept the an­ area.) It was an ideal location: on One, Michael Reese Hospital de­ noyances of bad municipal house­ the shore of Lake Michigan, with­ cided to hire a full-time planning keeping and a fear of the unknown: in easy access to the Loop, and just staff and, two, in 1945 the Illinois that is, apprehension about living midway between the Loop and the Institute of Technology and Mi­ in the same neighborhood with a great University of Chicago. In this chael Reese jointly decided to form member of a minority group. We area, there grew and flourished two the South Side Planning Board, a have given up a convenient, eco­ important institutions: Michael citizens' organization to replan the nomical place to live, which also Reese Hospital and Armour Insti­ area from the New York Central has at hand the long list of cultural tute, which later became the Illi­ tracks just west of Illinois Tech to advantages to be found in a great nois Institute of Technology. As the lake, and from 12th Street to city-art, music, theatre, museums, the neighborhood grew older, its 47th Street, an area of about seven the stimulation of great universi­ fine homes became obsolete. square miles. These decisions were ties, and so on-for expensive sub­ Negroes, imported from the south all made before there was either urban living, with its relative by the packing companies, started state or federal redevelopment leg­ dearth of cultural advantages ... moving into the periphery of the islation, which, of course, would and with the fatigue of commuting neighborhood and soon there was be necessary to implement any daily added on. a general exodus of white people plan that these organizations might It has been only recently that ex­ from the area, generally to the draw up. perience seems to show that it is edges of the city. The downward The most important and signifi­ possible to replan and rebuild our change in this neighborhood began cant step that was taken was the cities so that most of the people­ about 1915. publishing of a brochure entitled An Opportunity fo r Private Invest­ that is people in the middle-income To Stay or Go? bracket-can again live in a con­ ment in Chicago, which was largely venient and economical location. The deterioration took place rap­ the creation of Reginald Isaacs, And I believe it is being proved idly, so that, in the I 940's, both then planning director ot Michael that, without coercion, such city Michael Reese and the Illinois In­ R eese Hospital and now head of living can be brought about for all stitute of Technology felt that their the department of city planning at people, regardless of their race, situations were critical. At that Harvard University. This booklet creed, or color. time, they felt they had to decide set forth a detailed plan for the whether or not to flee this neigh­ redevelopment area. It showed the For what it is worth, I will give borhood. The majority opinion of individual buildings that might be you a brief sketch of v:hat .!1as been the directors of one of these insti­ put on the land. It even had de­ happening in one centrally located tutions was that, since their insti­ tailed statements on costs of land, area in Chicago. I do so with some tutions had indeed been entirely utilities, and construction; on rent­ trepidation because the experiment engulfed by the slums and by the als; and on operating expenses­ is not complete. It hasn't been in Negro ghetto, they could not hope all designed to show that the real­ existence long enough to prove to survive in this area; therefore, ization of the plan was economi· without a doubt that it will be suc­ they would have to move. How­ cally feasible. The interesting and cessful. And it still does not en­ ever, when the costs of moving, most unbelievable part of this story compass the broad spectrum of the the costs of replacing all the pres­ is that there is a striking similarity population that is necessary for the ent buildings, plus the costs of the between this plan, drawn up in building of a whole new commu­ additional facilities that were so 1945, and the actual developments nity. badly needed were added up, both that have been constructed and are institutions discovered that a move now actually being used. Early Days would be so costly that it would A four-pronged attack on the re­ At the turn of the century, one be impossible of accomplishment. development of the area was begun of the finest places to live in the They decided the economical pro­ in 1945. One, a 30 million dollar entire city of Chicago was the near cedure would be to stay and use all rebuilding program, pushed with south side. In a relatively concen- their resources, financial and polit- great vigor by the Illinois Institute Reprinted from January 1961 Journal of Housing Ja!luary 1961 31 by the Chicago Commission on Human Relations of Technology; two, a 20 million puses unless the surrounding areas had a number of things in mind. dollar rebuilding program for a were to be improved, so that stu­ One, they wanted planned develop­ completely new campus for Michael dents and patients and employees ments that would provide the light, Reese Hospital; three, a 35 million alike would not only feel safe going air, and greenery that had never dollar, 100-acre Lake Meadows de­ through the area to these institu­ been made available in the city velopment, consisting of 2000 dwell· tions, but, what is just as essential, before; two, they wanted the rent­ ing units, a shopping center, and that there would be modern living als to be such that the prorects recreation facilities, now completed, accommodations close to their work could be made available to middle­ by the New York Life Insurance at rentals they could afford to pay. income people; three, they wanted Company; and, fourth, a 20 million The interdependence of these proj­ their fine modern apartment devel­ dollar, 1700-family dwelling unit ects, one upon the other, is illus­ opments, which would be replacing project known as Prairie Shores. trated by the fact that neither the a Negro slum, not to become a The satisfactory accomplishment of New York Life Insurance Company Negro ghetto; and, fourth, they each part of this program was es­ nor the investors in Prairie Shores wanted ancillary facilities to be sential if the entire program were would have started their projects provided to make this area an at­ to prove successful over the years. had not Illinois Tech and Michael tractive place to live: they wanted In other words, it would have been Reese embarked upon theirs. shopping, educational, and recre­ throwing money away for either Housing Goals ational facilities. Michael Reese or Illinois Tech to The developers of the two gi­ In the early stages, by far the pour more money into their cam- gantic housing projects in this area most difficult objective to attain was a fully integrated neighbor­ hood. This program, certainly dif­ ficult as it was, was made more FERD KRAMER TURNS "ANSWER MAN" difficult, I believe, by fortuitous What kind of promotion campaign did you have'! circumstances. The original plan provided for clearing the entire \Ve put on a real campaign to secure a more balanced occupancy, area to be developed by the New i.e., a greater proportion of white tenants at Lake Meadows. York Life Insurance Company. Un­ (a) Two able young men with master's degrees were hired; (b) fortunately, a small adjoining area we canvassed employers, institutions, public school teachers; that was to be developed by other (c) we distributed brochures; (d) we held special open houses people was cleared and made avail­ for special groups; (e) we advertised on the local FM radio sta­ able first. But, when the land was tion, which carnes cultural programs-poetry, music, drama, and offered to these people, they de­ the like: this last approach produced greater results than any cided not to go through with the other technique. deal. The city then asked the New York Life Insurance Company to What did you mean when you said you had "a quota system take over this area and to start in reverse'!" building at once. The New York There was no nonwhite quota system used at Lake Meadows Life Insurance Company complied or Prairie Shores.