Nearly 30 at Gompers Park homeless encampment enroll with housing providers

CHICAGO (WGN) — More than two dozen people who’d been living in a homeless encampment at Gompers Park on the city’s northwest side are proceeding with the process to find stable housing after a Wednesday outreach effort, a city spokesperson said.

The effort — the city calls it an ‘Accelerated Moving Event’ — aimed to persuade those living at the park on the 4200 block of West Foster Avenue to accept housing or shelter opportunities and provide them with support services.

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Twenty-five households and two couples, totaling 27 people, registered and participated in Wednesday’s effort and are moving forward with the process to select housing units, a spokesperson with Chicago’s Department of Family and Support Services said in an email to WGN.

“We’re thrilled that 100 percent of AME participants opted to enroll and move forward,” the spokesperson said. “We will continue to support them and the remaining Gompers Park residents on their path to housing.”

Living in the park, neighborhood residents and the local alderman say, has created an unsafe environment for everyone.

Ald. Samantha Nugent (39th Ward) said the city has committed to a sustained effort to help those living in the encampment but also to address safety concerns among residents who’ve complained about finding weapons, knives, used needles and other drug paraphernalia. There are also concerns about alcohol use and fires in the park, with two February fires within six days. The Chicago Fire Department has been called to the park 36 times since January 2024.

“We’re particularly excited about this opportunity,” Nugent told WGN on Wednesday.

The encampment in the 42-acre park in recent months has grown in size, residents say, to the point where Little League teams can’t use the nearby baseball and softball diamonds.

“We cannot play on that field in the current state with that encampment there,” said Ryan Johnson with the Gompers Park Athletic Association.

Wednesday’s massive outreach effort was not a closure of the encampment. Chief Homelessness Officer Sendy Soto said she’s sympathetic to the surrounding community’s concerns about the settlement and safety concerns but said crews can’t order the residents to leave.

“They can continue to do what they’re doing. We won’t be enforcing anything. This is completely optional,” Soto said.

The outreach effort was originally slated for late February but was delayed over a concern about federal funds, a fact Nugent referenced in an afternoon email to constituents.

“I know there is a lot of frustration about how long it took to get this AME,” she wrote. “I share your frustration.”

The city says it has moved about 3,000 people under the AME program since it started in 2020. Crews have been visiting Gompers Park since the fall to work with those staying at the encampment. Wednesday’s action was the 35th time the city has taken volunteers from encampments and helped them find housing.

In a written statement, the Restore Gompers Park Coalition said it was “hopeful these individuals will accept what is being offered to them so they can live in a warm and safe environment and receive assistance customized to their needs.”

Gompers is not the only encampment location. Tents are visible at parks and open spaces throughout the city.