Chicago House celebrated the opening of its new permanent supportive housing site for people living with HIV June 25 in Englewood.
The Englewood Family Homes will be available for 13 families. The site consists of three buildings, including one with four three-bedroom apartments, another that is a 6-flat connected to a 3-flat and a third building reserved for wraparound services provided by Chicago House.
“This new facility represents a significant milestone in Chicago House’s ongoing mission to fully support individuals and families living with HIV,” said Michael Herman, CEO of Chicago House.
The new site transforms a space that once housed Clara’s Place, a women’s housing facility founded by Clara Kirk, who died in 2020. Clara’s Place closed in 2017. It’s also located in the heart of Englewood, which sees some of the highest rates of new HIV infections in Chicago, officials said.
“Chicago House is proud to continue that tradition of welcoming families,” Herman said.
The Englewood Family Homes is among a series of efforts Chicago House is making to increase affordable housing options for people and families living with HIV. The organization is also targeting supportive housing sites in East Garfield Park, Herman said.
Chicago House, which was founded in 1985 during the height of the AIDS crisis, offers housing, health and employment services for people living with HIV. Residents of the Englewood Family Homes will be able to access these services in one of the site’s three buildings.
“Englewood Family Housing will not only offer crucial support such as mental health resources, but it will also expand beyond traditional housing models we have seen previously,” said Chicago Department of Housing Commissioner Lissette Castañeda. “This development will provide families with housing for as long as needed, equipping them with life skills and promoting self sufficiency.”
Funding for the project came from partnerships with the Chicago Department of Housing, the Illinois Housing Development Authority National Housing Trust Fund, The Illinois Housing Trust Fund and the J.B. and M.K. Pritzker Family Foundation, Herman said. The Chicago Housing Authority and AIDS Foundation of Chicago will offer ongoing support for Englewood Family Homes.
Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton said projects like Englewood Family Homes are crucial to Illinois’ goal of Getting to Zero by 2030.
The new Englewood site also addresses a history of disinvestment in the community, Stratton said.
“By offering this sanctuary of supportive housing and wraparound services, we are helping the whole of Englewood continue on a path to healing,” Stratton said.
Ald. Raymond Lopez (15th Ward), one of nine openly LGBTQ+ alderpeople on City Council, said the new site also addresses inequities in how LGBTQ+ resources are offered throughout the city.
“We must invest in LGBT services in all communities, not just on the North Side, and today is the realization of that goal,” Lopez said. “Today is the realization of that goal.”