Mayor Brandon Johnson’s administration has outlined a proposed five-year plan aimed at improving access to housing, healthcare and other services for LGBTQ+ Chicagoans.
The plan would guide city policy from 2027 through 2031 and focus on six priority areas that Antonio King, the mayor’s director of LGBTQ+ Affairs, outlined during an Oct. 13 virtual meeting.
“This plan’s job is to close the distance between what Illinois law provides and what Chicagoans experience day to day,” King said.
During the meeting, King said the administration was working to finalize the plan as Chicago enters its hearings for the 2027 budget. Johnson’s budget address to City Council is scheduled for Oct. 21.
The full plan has not yet been publicly released, and King told Windy City Times he could not provide a firm timeline for finalizing it.
The proposal’s six priority areas include:
- LGBTQ+ youth homelessness and mental health
- LGBTQ+ older adults’ safety, housing and financial security
- Transgender residents’ employment, safety and healthcare
- Substance use prevention, harm reduction and treatment
- LGBTQ+-affirming mental healthcare
- LGBTQ+ cultural competency and accountability across city government
King outlined several strategies for each priority area, but noted the final plan will be more comprehensive.
Among those strategies was a host-home program that would place LGBTQ+ young people experiencing housing instability with trained caregivers for three to six months. Other proposals included establishing an LGBTQ+ elder ombudsman, offering free legal planning clinics for older residents, and integrating methamphetamine treatment with HIV prevention and care services.
King also proposed expanding gender-affirming primary healthcare, strengthening sanctuary protections for people seeking gender-affirming care and offering student loan repayment assistance to mental health clinicians serving LGBTQ+ patients.
Some of these proposals could be implemented in the near future by leveraging existing city programs, King said. Others, such as a mandatory cultural competency training for all city employees, could require additional government action.
“It’s ambitious, but when I was asked to put a plan together, I went for the moon,” King said.
The public overview did not specifically address access to gender-affirming healthcare for transgender minors, which has become an issue as several major Chicago hospitals have suspended or restricted those services amid pressure from President Donald Trump’s administration
In a follow-up interview, King told Windy City Times the full plan includes additional strategies addressing the healthcare gap for trans youth, and that the city would need to work with state partners to determine how access to such care could be preserved
Some attendees of the Oct. 13 meeting also raised concerns about housing affordability and instability, including barriers to renting for people with past evictions or poor credit, and whether affordable units in new developments could be reserved for LGBTQ+ residents
Others also questioned how the city would secure the funding and other resources needed to implement the plan. An overall implementation budget was not presented.
Additional funding needs would be addressed as they arise, King told Windy City Times. City departments and community partners would also need to meet to determine how the proposals would be implemented.
Feedback from the Oct. 13 meeting will be considered as the administration works to finalize the plan, King said.
The plan was developed over six to eight months of meetings and interviews with LGBTQ+ community members and organizations, King said. Its six priority areas are expected to remain unchanged, but the specific goals and strategies could be revised based on feedback from the community, city departments and the mayor’s administration.
King said he hopes the plan will establish a foundation for LGBTQ+ policy that lasts beyond Johnson’s current term as mayor.
“My plan is that this plan outlives me,” King said.