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CHICAGO — Construction work continues on a large winterized tent camp that will soon shelter migrants in Brighton Park, despite a report showing that the site was contaminated.
Environmental advocates say it is the latest example of unfair treatment that people on the city’s Southwest Side are experiencing.
There is a pending lawsuit and an emergency hearing is scheduled to take place on Monday where a judge will decide if work at the site near 38th and California will be halted or continue.
“The fact that they have chosen to do this, you know, on a truck lot by the highway in the industrial corridor, on what we know find out to be toxic land kind of underscores a lack of attention to, you know, the safety of people involved,” Anthony Moser, the founder of Neighbors For Environmental, said.
Neighbors For Environmental is a nonprofit based on the Southwest Side of Chicago that was formed five years ago after an asphalt plant opened across from McKinley Park. Moser said they have been fighting to get the plant shut down due to the air pollution.
“These are issues that have been experienced, like on the South Side and Southwest Side, for a long time. Dealing with people living on toxic land and not knowing about,” Moser said.
Despite knowing contaminants were detected at the Brighton Park site, the city said that the most problematic toxins were disposed of off-site. City officials also say crews are adding a thick layer of crushed stone on the ground to offer protection.
While city officials have deemed the land safe, Moser doesn’t believe enough remediation has been done.
“We’re going to keep pushing for the cancellation of the contract and for people to be sheltered in ways that are safe,” Moser said.
For weeks, residents in the area have voiced opposition to the city’s decision to house nearly 2,000 asylum seekers on the lot of land. The recent news about the polluted soil has reaffirmed their stance.
“There’s going to be more people, more than like a hundred people here in this area, more people that are here in the community outside. I’m concerned about everyone,” Tomasa Pena, a resident in the area, said.
The state has committed millions of dollars to fund the building of the migrant tent camp, but the governor’s office says the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA) is still reviewing the environmental report, and if they don’t sign off on it, the site will not move forward.
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