PILSEN — Urging Pilsen neighbors to "do something about Rahm and his developer friends," the Pilsen Alliance will host a "Pilsen Not For Sale" housing assembly and resource fair Saturday.
Cook County commissioner and former mayoral candidate Jesus "Chuy" Garcia will be the keynote speaker at the housing fair from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday at Dvorak Park, 1119 W. Cullerton St. in Pilsen.
The event will also offer information on property tax exemptions, property tax appeals, foreclosure prevention, public housing, tenant rights and more, said Byron Sigcho, executive director of the group.
"Pilsen is in a defining moment, we can remain a working class neighborhood or let corrupt politicians and special interest groups destroy its great heritage and diversity," Sigcho said.
Pilsen Alliance also plans to pitch an Affordability Plan for Pilsen that would aim to find a balanced development model and address concerns over gentrification in the neighborhood. The Alliance plan would allow Pilsen to remain a working-class neighborhood and offers an alternative to Ald. Danny Solis' "plan to sell our community to big developers," Sigcho said.
Urban planning experts Janet Smith and John Betancur are also expected to speak at Saturday's event. The Metropolitan Tenant Organization, Lawyer’s Committee for Better Housing, Latin United Community Housing Association, Chicago Housing Authority and others are expected to be on hand with information for Pilsen residents.
At a rally in December, Sigcho, a former aldermanic candidate, vowed to fight "greedy developers," saying that longtime Pilsen residents won't let their beloved neighborhood "become another Wicker Park."
For more neighborhood news, listen to DNAinfo Radio here:
