A field house that was used as a vibrant community center was razed early Saturday morning by a demolition crew working for the Chicago Public Schools, the Chicago Sun-Times reports.
Citing safety concerns, the school district sent a demolition crew to raze a field house near Whittier Elementary School, over objections from community protesters. By 10 AM, the demolition was complete, so it took less than about 12 hours to do the work.
An estimated dozen protesters were arrested at the scene of this K-8 school in Chicago’s Pilsen neighborhood. They had spent the night camping out to try to prevent the demolition of what they say is an important building that also serves as a community center.
Three years ago, community protesters staged a 43-day sit-in at the field house, winning what turns out to have been a short-lived assurance from then-CEO Ron Huberman that the district would not demolish the building. The community “turned it into a beautiful community center that was a safe and loving place for children. Now it’s just a pile of rubble,” the Sun-Times quoted Kristine Mayle of the Chicago Teachers Union as saying.
The school district will replace the structure, which they said was so dilapidated that the roof might cave in, with an artificial turf field, two basketball courts, and a modern playground. In 2010, in response to CPS promises, parents sought to turn the field house into a volunteer-run library and continue its use for dancing classes and English classes for students with limited English proficiency.
“We’re not defeated,” the paper quoted activist Carolina Gaete as saying. “We just have to work out our next move.”
