Cabrini Green
| Cabrini–Green Homes | |
|---|---|
1999 photograph looking northeast on Cabrini–Green housing project.
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| Location | Bordered by the apex of Clybourn Avenue (North), Larrabee Street (East), Chicago Avenue (South), Halsted Street (West) Chicago, Illinois,  United States
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| Coordinates | 41°54′16.13″N 87°38′43.48″W / 41.9044806°N 87.6454111°WCoordinates: 41°54′16.13″N 87°38′43.48″W / 41.9044806°N 87.6454111°W |
| Status | 586 Units (Row–houses; Renovated) |
| Constructed | 1942–62 |
| Demolished | 1995–2011 (High-rises/Mid-rises) |
| Governing Body |
Chicago Housing Authority (CHA) |
Cabrini–Green Homes (Frances Cabrini Row-houses and William Green Homes) was a Chicago Housing Authority (CHA) public housing project located on the Near North Side of Chicago, Illinois, United States. It was bordered by the apex of Clybourn Ave and Halsted Street on the north, North Larrabee Street on the west, Chicago Avenue on the south, Hudson Street on the east. Today, only a small set of row houses, built in the 1940s, remain (south of Oak Street, north of Chicago Avenue, west of Hudson Avenue, and east of Larrabee Street).
At its peak, Cabrini–Green was home to 15,000 people, living in mid- and high-rise apartment buildings totaling 3,607 units. Over the years, crime, gang violence and neglect created deplorable living conditions for the residents, and "Cabrini–Green" became synonymous with the problems associated with public housing in the United States. The last of the buildings in Cabrini–Green was demolished in March 2011. The Near North Side site formerly home to the William Green projects has been undergoing major redevelopment since the late 1990s, resulting in a combination of upscale high-rise buildings and row houses, with the stated goal of creating a mixed-income neighborhood, with some units still being reserved for public housing tenants. Controversy regarding the implementation of such plans has arisen, though slated redevelopment plans are now set to move forward following the September 2015 settlement of a longstanding civil lawsuit.
The construction reflected the "urban renewal" approach to United States city planning in the mid-20th century. The extension buildings were known as the "red" for their red brick exteriors, while the Green Homes, with reinforced concrete exteriors, were known as the "whites". Many of the high-rise buildings originally had exterior porches (called "open galleries"). According to the Chicago Housing Authority (CHA), the early residents of the Cabrini row houses were predominantly of Italian ancestry. By 1962, however, a majority of residents in the completed complex were black.
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