CCLBA Process

Cook County Land Bank Authority "Model Process"

1. ~1997-2017: Cook County Taxes Not Collected.

Cook County allows $3,700,000.00 in property taxes to go uncollected for over 20 years.

2. 2017: Cook County Land Bank (CCLBA) Acquires Washington Park National Bank Building and Wipes Tax Debt

It had racked up $3.7 million in unpaid taxes over 20 years. "Rev. Leon Finney Jr., allowed the building to languish."

3. January 2018: Intervention to Prevent Demolition

CCLBA creates process to transfer its first multi use building. "Without intervention, the fate of the building would have been demolition," land bank executive director Rob Rose said.

Note: CCLBA has not maintained tarp over hole in roof or fully secured (scavengers have continually accessed building) doors/windows.

4. January 30-February 20 2018 Community Engagement

CCLBA hired Metropolitan Planning Council to engage community (not "community-led" as stated). This was seemingly productive and transparent, but only occurred at the beginning of the process. No community or external input/accountability during or after creation of selection committee. CCLBA commitment to holding a public meeting after the RFP is released not kept (see Page 3 of MPC report for broken promise).

"We are going to save this building," Rob Rose told attendees at Woodlawn community meeting.


Linda Barnes: "Please preserve this building. It could be redeveloped for so many uses"

Eric Rogers: Please preserve this landmark building and return it to mixed us, with retail, offices, and maybe residential. It's one of the last vestiges of 63rd Street's heyday, and the building's architectural charm is irreplaceable."

9-2018 Public Comments (not one comment advocated for demolition) 

5. April 2018: Structure Found to be Sound by CCLBA Engineering Firm

Page 3: "We believe that the existing framing system of the building is structurally sound, intact, and still in good condition. We believe that the building is salvageable and can be repaired to restore its full structural integrity."

6. August-October 2018: CCLBA RFP

CCLBA provides RFP process update at August 23 Apostolic/1Woodlawn meeting. RFP is released in September. Several groups respond to the RFP by the October 31, 2018 deadline. These were to be evaluated by a selection committee (5 members, including a "community representative" who is a 1Woodlawn/Apostolic leader). Submittal evaluations were due November 20, 2018, and evaluation summary to CCLBA board by December 13, 2018 in time for December CCLBA board meeting and vote.

Page 9 of RFPwww.CookCountyLandBank.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/RFP-Washington-Park-National-Bank-Building-CCLBA8.21-FINAL-DRAFT-1.pdf

October 2018: Project Announcement by Developer (before selection process completed)

DL3 Realty and Greenlining Realty partnership and Washington Park Bank Building project announced.

7. December 2018: Final Three Groups Selected

Three groups are selected to present to CCLBA subcommittee in early December. It is made up of five people, including a 1Woodlawn/Apostolic leader. Two of the groups (Eastlake as well as Woodlawn Works) propose to keep the building. The third proposes demolition.

8. December-March 2019: Decision Delayed

The decision extends beyond Dec 13, 2018 deadline to March 2019 due to the "closeness and strength of the final groups." CCLBA called the three finalists "excellent," and extended their consideration time-frame due to the "high quality options." 

9. March 2019: Changed Proposal

During a final "request for clarification," the only group to propose demolition made several major changes to their proposal (4 months after RFP response submission deadline). 

They include 1) a 40% alteration to the height of the proposed building (from 5 to 3 stories (despite "over 60%" of community preferring 4-5 stories per MPC report, page 7), likely due to cost, capital, grant, competitive, and TIFF/tax rebate challenges), 2) usage change (from combining YWCA downtown + YWCA SBDC offices under one roof over 4 stories to only YWCA SBDC office space on 1 story + a YWCA-leased coworking operation run by an "undisclosed national operator" on 1 story), and 3) the apparent addition of a University of Chicago initiative as a tenant (likely no letter of intent; Rob Rose stated that there was not a loi due to it being premature, but also stated that there was an loi; relevant University of Chicago sources stated that there they did not issue an loi due to a desire to not sway selection, and that they could work with any developer and/or locate their office across the street in the POAH development) 

Although the original RFP stated that proposals should not rely on TIFF, grants, or tax subsidies, apparently their demolition and 5-story new construction proposal did just that. 

10. March 15, 2019: Demolition Chosen over Adaptive Reuse (contrary to CCLBA promises and top priority of community)

Rob Rose shares that both finalists were strong, but that the demolition proposal was selected by the subcommittee. Five people - including an architect, Woodlawn residents, and Preservation Chicago Executive Director Ward Miller - speak unanimously urging the CCLBA Board of Directors to consider both community sentiment and adaptive reuse. 

CCLBA Chair Bridget Gainer leads the Board of Directors in a vote to approve the demolition proposal. A few (Commissioner David Reifman) abstained, and Mayor Jeffrey Sherwin (Northlake) opposed.

Image of CCLBA selection announcement.

11. March 15, 2019:
5-Story Renderings to illustrate a (new) 3-Story Plan

Rob Rose points to several 5-story renderings, but explains that the design had been recently altered [40%] to 3-stories. This was said to be done to reduce the dependency on tiff and tax breaks (items proposers were told to not depend on in the original RFP).

Additional substantial changes - 4 months after the RFP deadline - include the sudden addition of both coworking ("undisclosed national operator") and a University of Chicago (likely unsupported with a loi) office. This was likely done due to cost, capital, grant, competitive, and tax rebate challenges.

Rose pointed out that reducing the building to 3-stories and adding a setback would "increase sunlight" and thus safety on the sidewalk north of the building (despite it being under a 2-story train track), a key community "request." He also spoke of the importance of the 7 parking spaces created.

Note that "over 60%" of MPC respondents "agreed the building should be between four and five stories." (MPC report, page 7)

Note also that proposers are allowed to provide clarifying answers to questions, but not make significant changes to a submitted RFP response. 

Lastly, all members of the selection committee were bound to non-disclosure agreements. Several signs - including the last-minute change/inclusion of key aspects of one group's proposal into that of another - point to this having been broken.

Image of selection announcement.

12. CCLBA's First Large-Scale Mixed-Use Project Dismisses South Side Heritage, Culture, History & Identity

The Washington Park National Bank building is the CCLBA's first large-scale mixed-use development. It's "the Land Bank's chance to prove it can take on substantial developments..."


Unfortunately logic, economics, and community input do not always prevail. One of the most beautiful, historic buildings on the south side - and last vestiges of the 63rd Street heyday - may be lost forever. 

It's designation on the Preservation Chicago 2016 Endangered Building list, community requests, and public CCLBA/Rob Rose "We are going to save this building" promise may prove insufficient to save the building. 

Image from selection announcement showing location of demolition and new construction. The irony of vacant lot abundance was not lost on this tweeter.

13. Which Building/ Neighborhood is Next? Communities of Color as Victims of CCLBA's "Model Process?"

This CCLBA process is touted as a "model for fast, transparent, community-centric redevelopment." We witnessed the opposite. 

We saw the CCLBA acquire, not secure, wipe tax debt, create a community input veil (at beginning but not throughout process), and then grant a historic building to well-connected developers that will demolish it despite "excellent" adaptive reuse alternatives. 

If this "model process" is allowed to proceed, the fates of upcoming historic CCLBA acquisitions/RFPs/transfers, such as the Landmark Laramie State Bank (Preservation Chicago 2019 Endangered List) in Austin, Loretto Academy (Preservation Chicago 2019 Endangered List; Leon Finney property) in Woodlawn, and the Gaitan Substation (Preservation Chicago 2018 Endangered List) in Washington Park may be similarly grim.

The CCLBA operates mainly on the South and West sides. It is important to note that this CCLBA RFP "model process" impacts predominately minority and lower income communities.

Alderman Jeanette Taylor told the Chicago Sun-Times it was "unfair that communities on the South Side do not get to preserve historic buildings like they do on the North Side."

CCLBA Spin

CCLBA Director Rob Rose and its PR firm has demeaned the other finalists, and spread misleading, self-contradictory, and demonstrably false information. 

False CCLBA statements include:
  • "Woodlawn Works proposed $6M for adaptive reuse" (misleading/false; total construction cost of any project - much less adaptive reuse - is unknown. The Woodlawn Works construction estimate was higher than this, included millions of dollars in contingency, and was compiled using multiple, highly-competent sources. Woodlawn Works secured and provided proof of funds/financing for millions of dollars more than the amount budgeted for construction in the event of overage... far more than standard.
  • "Woodlawn Works was told that construction budget was "inadequate"" (FALSE: a CCLBA clarification meeting occurred, but solely to clarify a few items proposed; construction budget - much less inadequacy - was never discussed. Moreover, it makes no. sense that this proposal would make the group of "excellent" finalists if totally inadequate.
  • "University of Chicago did not sign an LOI" (told to a Sun Times reporter along with reasoning as to why); later contradicted to the same reporter (with reasons as to why not).
  • "All proposals were changed." (misleading; Woodlawn Works identified a construction consultant among clarifications in response to questioning. Demolition team added coworking, UChicago, reduced YWCA office space/floor allotment by 75% / 3-stories, reduced dependency on tax subsidy and grants, and altered building height by 40%)
  • See notated press release for detailed critique of CCLBA spin.

Lost Opportunity

Woodlawn Works is now out of the equation. We share our experience so that neighbors can learn what happened, continue to STRONGLY oppose the demolition of the 1924 historic building, and continue advocating for local/broadbased capacity development. Hopefully CCLBA and the anointed development team will change course. We also hope that CCLBA policy is altered in order to 1. honor community commitments, 2. take community sentiment seriously throughout the process (not just at the beginning), and 3. choose preservation whenever possible (as in this case).

CCLBA Mission

"The mission of the CCLBA is to reduce and return vacant land and abandoned buildings back into reliable and sustainable community assets." Land banks are also supposed to return properties to the tax rolls in accordance with community goals.
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