A tent camp at the heart of a debate over homelessness in Gompers Park on the Northwest Side will be removed by the city and the residents will be offered shelter, according to the alderperson who represents the area.
Ald. Samantha Nugent (39th) said in a letter to residents Thursday night that the city agreed to begin a process called an “accelerated moving event” that will help place people now living in tents at Gompers into shelters beginning the week of Feb. 24.
Those living in the tents will be given a choice to move into a shelter with city assistance or to leave the park.
Some nearby residents had pressured Nugent for months to move the tent camp and its residents from the 42-acre park at Foster Avenue and Pulaski Road, saying that the number of people staying there rose significantly last summer. At its peak, there were more than two dozen tents at Gompers in 2024.
Nugent said last year she had been told the city didn’t have the money to move the unhoused people camping at Gompers.
Neighbors questioned why other areas of the city had been targeted for the removal of similar tent camps.
She said there has been some progress moving people from Gompers. Last month, three individuals agreed to move to a shelter in Rogers Park, Nugent said in her letter.
Since September, city officials, including those trained to respond to opioid use, have been visiting the park, she said.
A group of neighbors calling itself Restore Gompers Park Coalition said in a statement that it was “pleased” and “motivated” by the news. The group alleged the tent city residents damaged parts of the park and some members have said they felt unsafe.
“We are hopeful Gompers Park will again become a safe and welcoming place for all to visit,” the group said in a statement.
At a meeting in late September, hundreds of residents showed up at a community meeting held next to the park to hear from city officials, including Sendy Soto, Mayor Brandon Johnson’s chief homelessness officer.
Many were upset to learn at the meeting that the tent camp would not be removed until 2025.