Officials scale back housing plan near Obama Center

The city is considering a proposal intended to curb displacement in Woodlawn, but it’s not as stringent as the community benefits agreement proposed in response to the planned Obama Presidential Center.

The latest proposal, announced Thursday by the city’s Housing Department, would apply only to census tracts within three-fifths of a mile of the Obama Presidential Center, while the community benefits agreement would apply to all properties within a two-mile radius of the center, according to Block Club and the Daily Line. It also doesn’t include a “pilot zone” that would raise affordability requirements to 30 percent of units in new residential developments.

The Housing Department plans to draft an ordinance focusing on six “key components,” including “right of first refusal” for tenants whose landlords are seeking to sell their building.

It’s unclear whether the new proposal would replace or modify the existing community benefits agreement proposal, which is backed by 29 aldermen but stalled in committee.

Even though the $500 million Obama Presidential Center hasn’t yet broken ground, it’s already attracting out-of-state investors to nearby neighborhoods, including Woodlawn and South Shore, where a Wisconsin-based venture just picked up a portfolio of apartment buildings for $18.4 million.

The city is also buying seven properties near the Obama Presidential Center and establishing affordable housing in an effort to prevent the displacement of existing residents.

A 20-member task force is currently reviewing the city’s existing Affordable Requirements Ordinance. [Block Club/Daily Line] — Brianna Kelly