CHICAGO — The City of Chicago will start welcoming migrants into a new temporary shelter Tuesday.
Asylum seekers will start moving into the Broadway Armory Park, located at 5917 North Broadway. It will be used as a temporary shelter, but it will have an impact on programs offered there.
The city has been preparing for this move for the past couple of weeks. According to the alderperson for the 48th Ward, at least 300 migrants could be staying at the site.
People who live in the area are echoing a lot of what’s been heard in other neighborhoods regarding the temporary shelters. They are concerned with safety, the lack of transparency, and the impact it will have on the Park District programs — specifically children’s summer camps and senior programs.
The city has been trying to make adjustments to continue the programs in some form while the Armory is being used as a temporary shelter.
For the last week of summer camp, most of the children enrolled at the site will be going on daily field trips. Other athletic programs have been moved to different locations.
Around 12,000 migrants have been bussed to Chicago, mostly from Texas, without warning. The city has been trying to find places to temporarily house them.
The city currently has about 14 shelters up and running. One of the city’s goals is to get migrants out of police station lobbies.
The Broadway Armory is supposed to be a temporary shelter, but as of now the city has not set an end date.