A new housing policy aimed at slowing gentrification and displacement in some of Chicago’s hottest real estate markets went into effect this week.
Advocates say some key provisions of the Northwest Side Housing Preservation Ordinance — including giving renters an opportunity to purchase a building they are living in, and imposing higher demolition fees for developers looking to tear down old two- and three-flats to build upscale homes — will help more working families stay in place. The measure covers various Northwest Side neighborhoods, including parts of Logan Square, Humboldt Park, Avondale, West Town and Hermosa.
Critics say the ordinance puts an unfair burden on building owners and small-scale landlords who are looking to sell their property. They also say it could discourage investment in neighborhoods that need it — among other concerns.
WBEZ’s Esther Yoon-Ji Kang sat down with University of Chicago Assistant Professor Robin Bartram, a sociologist focused on housing inequality, environmental justice and municipal regulations to discuss the new policy.
Esther Yoon-Ji Kang: One of the things this ordinance does is it gives tenants in Humboldt Park, West Town, Logan Square, Hermosa and Avondale an opportunity to buy their building before it goes to market. Tell us a bit about how that would work.
Robin Bartram: [The ordinance] gives tenants the first right and refusal to own their building, to take ownership of their building, so if the landlord or the owner is planning on selling the property, then tenants get the right to buy it. I think it’s a fantastic idea. I think we need to make sure we have the pieces in place to ensure it’s actually an option. It would take a lot of assistance from various community organizations in terms of financing to work out a lot of the details that would need to be worked out to ensure this was actually an available option, versus just just a nice idea. The city would really need to rely on the tenants organizations that exist in the city to sort of support the process, to make sure that tenants know what they’re getting into, and to make sure that tenants feel like they have an actual choice in the matter.
Kang: Some say this ordinance puts an unnecessary burden on building owners and small-scale landlords who are ready to sell their property. What do you say to that?
Bartram: I think that could well be a legitimate concern, but I think that a lot of research from the social sciences and beyond suggests that real estate entities often use the sort of trope of small-scale landlords, small mom and pops as a way to fight against regulations. I think sometimes there are sort of necessary hurdles to ensure people are not displaced.
Kang: Some critics worry this ordinance will discourage investment in neighborhoods that might need it. What do you think about that?
Bartram: I think that comes down to how we think about investment. Existing residents are being displaced by the kind of investment that is happening in these neighborhoods. So I would argue that we should not be concerned about a lack of this kind of investment if the result of this kind of investment is displacement and extreme unaffordability.
One other thing this ordinance shows is that we have elected officials, we have neighborhood organizations and residents that are really honed in to issues as they arise, and they are equipped to work out solutions to whatever kind of housing markets might throw at them. So if indeed there is a decline in development, and that is indeed an issue, we have people ready to respond to that, too.
Kang: Ultimately, do you believe the measure will slow down gentrification and displacement?
Bartram: I think there’s absolutely a chance this is going to be really effective. I think it’s very responsive to local concerns, as opposed to coming at the affordable housing issue from a sort of one-size-fits-all model. This really taps into very local issues.
I also appreciate the angle at which this ordinance comes at the affordable housing crisis. I think so much of the conversation tends to be about new construction and building our way out of the affordable housing crisis. This ordinance, by contrast, tries to preserve existing housing which is more likely to be affordable. [A] core goal of the ordinance is that higher fees are intended to prevent demolitions, thereby enabling the preservation of existing housing stock, thereby enabling the current residents to stay in place and preventing displacement.
I also think it’s worth mentioning that this is actually a very environmentally friendly way of thinking about the housing crisis. Demolition and new construction are really bad for the environment, so this ordinance also sort of helps to make a dent in that.
I would say that the current state of affairs in terms of development and redevelopment is not ideal, so we obviously need a different method.
This interview has been edited for clarity and length.
Esther Yoon-Ji Kang is a reporter on WBEZ’s Race, Class and Communities desk. Follow her on X @estheryjkang.