City council orders heat restored to parents holding sit-in for a school library.

[madfloridian]

Good for the city council. Shame on the school board for cutting off the gas to the field house in the first place.

Council orders heat restored to Pilsen field house filled with protesting parents

The City Council on Wednesday “ordered” the Chicago Public Schools to postpone demolition of the Whittier School field house and restore heat cut off to freeze out protesting Pilsen parents. Calling the structure “unsafe,” CPS wants to demolish the field house at 1900 W. 23rd Street to make way for “green space” for kids.”

Pilsen parents want the building converted into a library and parent center. Since Sept. 15, they have been conducting a “rotational sit-in” at the field house to press their demand.

On Monday, tensions between the two sides escalated to a new level. At the request of CPS, Peoples Gas cut off the gas in preparation for the building’s demolition.

The decision to leave the field house without heat or hot water as night temperatures fell into the 40’s crossed the line drawn by two powerful aldermen: Finance Committee Chairman Edward M. Burke (14th) and Zoning Committee Chairman Danny Solis (25th), whose ward includes Whittier.

Some background on the sit-in from day 6 back in September.

Parents stage sit-in to stop demolition of Pilsen field house


Edgar Juarez, 3, center, holds up a sign as parents, residents and other supporters stage a press conference outside Whittier Elementary School this morning. (Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune)

"Our kids are missing out," said parent George Merga. "They want to read books, they don't have a place they can come and sit down."

Earlier this month, the parents, with the help of a local organization, hired a engineering firm to assess the building. On Sep. 3, the firm, Ingenii LLC, released a report stating that "with the exception of the roof, the structure is in good condition and suitable for continued use."

But CPS administrators rebutted with their own engineering firm, Perry & Associates LLC, which found that the building was not safe and that Ingenii's conclusion was unfounded. "Their report, as well as our observations, indicate substantial structural and architectural defects," the Sept. 14 report says

The school board sets a figure well above 300,000 dollars to demolish the building, which really just seems extreme.