* Injustice Watch…

A monthslong feud between a Woodlawn landlord and his tenants over allegations of unlivable conditions reached a boiling point last week, when a skeptical judge threatened to jail tenants he found to be lying. […]

“This is a nightmare,” said one tenant, a 23-year-old whose first name is Esdras. His family moved to the $1,827-per-month apartment in September as part of a state-sponsored emergency rental program for asylum-seekers. […]

Chicago housing advocates interviewed by Injustice Watch say they know of other instances in which newly arrived asylum-seekers were housed in buildings the city has taken to housing court for building code violations.

A spokeswoman for the Illinois Department of Human Services, one of two agencies administering the program, did not respond to an Injustice Watch question about why the state would place a family in a building being sued by the city for poor conditions.

…Adding… From the Illinois Department of Human Services…

The rental assistance program has a call center which tenants/landlords can access to ask questions or bring up issues with the program. Tenants also have access to legal aid clinics and/or community agencies that can help tenants with any apartment issues. Please note that all units are viewed by tenants prior to moving in and services are connected prior to move-in. Any issues brought to our attention are investigated and properly addressed.

* Press release…

Today, the City of Chicago and the Department of Family and Support Services (DFSS) are announcing the conclusion of the Request for Proposals (RFP) process to find a new food service provider for city-run shelters for New Arrivals. DFSS is pleased to announce that two local agencies, Seventy-Seven Communities and 14 Parish, were selected.

Seventy-Seven Communities will serve as the food provider for shelters in the North Region of Chicago and 14 Parish will serve as the food provider for the New Arrivals shelters in the South Region. Both local agencies have participated in a rigorous and multi-step request for proposal review and evaluation process. They each were able to demonstrate their understanding of the target population and the ability to meet logistical needs of this mission as well as preparation and delivery capacities.

“We know that the New Arrivals Mission is very complex and being able to provide healthy, nutritious, and culturally relevant meals at a time when we know people need our help the most is an important part of this work,” said DFSS Commissioner Brandie Knazze.

Seventy-Seven Communities has been delivering quality meals around Chicagoland for decades and has experience creating specific menus for groups with complex needs, such as Chicago Public Schools (CPS) students. […]

The goals of this RFP were to increase food quality for all New Arrivals shelters and to decrease the cost of the Meals Program for the City. Both Seventy-Seven Communities and 14 Parish have demonstrated that they can provide high quality and culturally congruent meal service to all shelters for $15-$17 per person per day. This is a significant decrease from the $21-$23 the City has been spending on food per person per day prior to this contract. Additionally, both agencies have demonstrated that they have many partnerships with local and minority-owned restaurants, including local Venezuelan restaurants, who will be assisting in creating menus and preparing food that fit both the nutritious and cultural needs of shelter residents.

* ABC Chicago…

North Side residents plan to be at City Hall for Wednesday’s Council meeting, as they push for a migrant shelter to be returned to the community. […]

“It is hard for us to repurpose space, but it’s the time we’re living in now where we need to repurpose space,” [Deputy Mayor of Immigrant, Migrant, and Refugee Rights] Beatriz Ponce de Leon said back in July.

At that time, the city promised to reevaluate in six months, which will be on Feb. 1. […]

Edgewater residents are asking the Chicago Park District once again to make space for community programs and migrants inside the Broadway Armory.

“Nobody wants anybody out on the street,” [block club President Pat Sharkey] said. “But what we do want is a commitment for a date by which they will have unwound this facility and we can restart park programs.”

* Oak Park Journal…

Oak Park’s village board of trustees unanimously approved the submission of a grant application for more than $1.94 million to provide aid to asylum seekers in the village.

Of that, $11 million in Supporting Municipalities for Asylum Seekers Services funds is available to exclusively to municipalities outside of Chicago that such people, according to an Illinois Department of Human Services news release. The funds cannot be used, however, to transport the migrants to another municipality. […]

An approval of this grant funding would be expected within five days, said Kira Tchang, human resources director and assistant village manager. Village staff intends to submit the application Wednesday.

City of Chicago officials have said it would be best for migrants in Oak Park to remain where they are rather than being transported to Chicago’s “landing zone,” Tchang said.

“Last time we spoke with representatives from Chicago, they indicated that shelters were full,” she said.

* Shaw Local…

La Salle County’s Committee on Appointment and Legislation and Rules is expected to review the county’s migrant resolution 11 a.m. Thursday, Jan. 25.

The Insurance Trust Committee discussed the resolution Jan. 18 and the county’s insurance consultants said they saw no red flags with the resolution, which added language to assist migrants in a humanitarian manner.

The La Salle County Board began discussion Jan. 11 on coming up with a plan if a bus initially en route to Chicago were to abandon migrants within the county, as had occurred recently in suburbs around Chicago. At this time, there have not been any migrants dropped off by buses in La Salle County.

A resolution modeled after Grundy County was sent from the full County Board on Jan. 11 to the Committee on Appointment, Legislation and Rules, which met Jan. 16 and decided to send the item to the Insurance Trust Committee to make sure the county was not overlooking any liability.