Tenants at the Chaney Braggs Apartments in Chicago’s Woodlawn neighborhood have formally organized a tenant union to fight potential displacement they say is being driven by investment activity tied to the construction of the Obama Presidential Center.
The building, located near 65th Street and Stony Island Avenue, sits blocks from the presidential center campus currently under construction in Jackson Park on Chicago’s South Side.
Approximately 20 households at the Chaney Braggs Apartments belong to the tenant union, which residents say first formed roughly two years ago after the building’s previous landlord effectively abandoned the property, leaving tenants to manage maintenance and basic services on their own.
Cook County records show the building was previously owned by Woodlawn East Community and Neighbors, a nonprofit organization founded by the late housing activist Mattie Butler. The property entered foreclosure in October 2023, less than a year after Butler’s death.
A California-based investor is now seeking to purchase the building and has indicated the property could either be renovated or demolished, according to residents. The prospective buyer’s identity had not been publicly confirmed as of the time of reporting.
The investor has offered tenants $2,000 per household to vacate the premises. Residents say the offer is inadequate for families looking to relocate in a neighborhood experiencing accelerating development pressure.
Most tenants currently pay between $700 and $800 per month in rent, reported FOX 32 Chicago. Many say they have occupied the building for 30 to 40 years and worry they will be unable to secure comparable housing elsewhere in Woodlawn if they are displaced.
Resident Kyana Butler, 31, addressed reporters at a news conference held outside the building.
“Now that the Obama Center is coming, all of these new buyers want to come in, and they want to take over the land that has already been here and kick out the people that have been here,” Butler said.
“I want to stay right where I am at. I don’t want to be forced out. I don’t want to be told I have to leave,”she added.
Infiniti Collins with the Southside Together organization said, “Since the Obama center has been announced we have been talking about there is danger that the center will displace community members.”
Residents say they have reached out to both city and state officials seeking intervention but had not received a response as of the time of reporting. No sale of the property had been finalized.
The Illinois Housing Development Authority is the current mortgage holder for the property.
Block Club Chicago reported that Andrew Field, an assistant director with the authority, said in a statement that the authority “has been committed to working collaboratively with ownership and community preservation partners to explore all viable solutions that ensure the long-term affordability and sustainability of Chaney Braggs.”
The building lies within the Jackson Park Housing Pilot area, created by an ordinance passed last year with support from Southside Together.
The ordinance created a “Tenant Opportunity to Purchase” program for the pilot area, granting the Chaney Braggs tenant union a chance to buy the property before it lands on the open market.
Last September, a Cook County judge appointed a receiver over the building to address deteriorating conditions.The Chicago Department of Buildings confirmed the property is currently on the city’s scofflaw list, with ongoing inspections underway.
