Delay of Gompers Park homeless encampment removal prompts little league to move games from park
'It's just common sense to us. We had an unofficial vote last week or last month in January at this same establishment,' said Ryan Johnson, President of the GPAA. 'We all agreed unanimously that with the ongoing safety concerns, we can't comfortably bring children to the park.'
Johnson and members of the GPAA board met at a North Side restaurant Thursday evening, where the body voted unanimously to move their baseball and softball league from Gompers Park, citing concerns about drug use and drug paraphernalia found near playing fields, dog attacks and multiple fires in the area.
For at least the last 50 years, GPAA has called Gompers Park home, but now a league that has at least 600 boys and girls playing baseball and softball from ages five through 18 will be moved due to those safety concerns.
The City of Chicago previously announced a clear out of the encampment later this month, but that has now been delayed to early March and has been rebranded as an accelerated moving event.
'As long as the accelerated moving event happens on March 5th, or any point before the season starts,' Johnson said. 'And we're comfortable that the tents are gone and we have reassurance that no one will be moving back in the area, we can quickly get the kid's games rescheduled back to that park, which is what everyone wants.'
WGN Investigates: Chicago pushes back plans to clear out homeless encampment in Gompers Park
JJ Betts, one of the board members of the GPAA, said it's not a political issue, but one purely based around protecting the kids who participate in the league.
'It's all about safety and the safety of the players and the families that participate in our league,' Betts said. 'As of now it's not safe at the park and our families have expressed concern. We're losing registration numbers because of it.'
If the measure to move the league passes, GPAA said there are secured fields players will use once their baseball and softball season starts on April 21.
'Mayfair Park has a field that we use for younger kids that are primarily on little Gompers. And Eugene Field, which is about two minutes away,' Johnson said.
Ald. Samantha Nugent (39th Ward) and residents around Gompers Park have sent letters to Mayor Brandon Johnson's office asking his administration to expedite the moving event, citing the same safety concerns listed above.
The mayor's office has not returned WGN News' request for comment on this story.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
USA Today
5 hours ago
- USA Today
Wizards' Tre Johnson threw out the ceremonial first pitch for the Nationals
Washington Wizards rookie Tre Johnson threw out the ceremonial first pitch on Wednesday as the Washington Nationals continued a three-game series against the Athletics. Johnson was joined by fellow first-year teammates Will Riley (No. 21 pick) and Jamir Watkins (No. 43 pick) at Nationals Park for the occasion. He took the mound, delivered the pitch and posed for photos afterward with right fielder Daylen Lile and Screech, the team mascot. The Nationals were looking to even the series against the Athletics after suffering a 16-7 loss on Tuesday, falling to 44-68 on the season. They are in last place in the NL East. Johnson was the SEC Freshman of the Year last season at Texas, averaging 19.9 points, 3.1 rebounds and 2.7 assists in 33 games on 39.7% shooting from 3-point range. He was the 10th player in program history to be honored as Freshman of the Year. The sixth pick in the NBA draft debuted with the Wizards in the NBA Summer League, averaging 19.5 points, three rebounds, 1.5 assists and one steal on 45.5% shooting from 3-point range in two appearances. He finished with 21 points on July 13. Johnson is among a crowded draft class for the Wizards as the organization continues to build toward the future. The team was excited to add the trio and is eager to watch the players take the court.
Chicago Tribune
7 hours ago
- Chicago Tribune
Latest federal list of ‘sanctuary' jurisdictions includes Chicago, Cook County and Illinois
The Department of Justice placed Chicago, Cook County, and the state of Illinois on its latest 'sanctuary jurisdiction list,' with Attorney General Pam Bondi promising to 'continue bringing litigation' against places the department says stand in the way of federal immigration enforcement. Bondi said in a statement Tuesday that she would 'work closely with the Department of Homeland Security to eradicate these harmful policies around the country,' but did not threaten any specific actions beyond what the federal government is already doing. Illinois is among a dozen states, Cook is one of four counties, and Chicago is one of 18 cities on the list. It's the latest federal target on the area following months of local ICE raids, the feds' failed lawsuit challenging local sanctuary policies, and President Donald Trump's continuing criticism of Mayor Brandon Johnson and Gov. JB Pritzker. Both Johnson and Pritzker have also defended the policies in hourslong testimony before Congress earlier this year. The mayor's office and Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle's office both said they had not received any additional communication from the DOJ about the city's and county's placement on the list. 'Chicago's Welcoming City policies were first put in place more than 40 years ago by our city's first Black mayor, Harold Washington,' Johnson spokesperson Cassio Mendoza said in an emailed statement. 'We will continue to fight for the dignity of our immigrant, migrant, and refugee communities and stand up for the rights of all Chicagoans against any federal overreach. Our city is safer when police officers can focus on driving down crime and violence and holding offenders accountable, rather than civil immigration enforcement.' Andres Correa, a spokesman for Pritzker, said in an email the DOJ's latest actions were simply a pressure tactic. 'Illinois' bipartisan TRUST Act is, and always has been, fully compliant with federal law, a fact that was affirmed in federal court just last month,' Correa said in a statement. 'Our laws ensure that law enforcement focuses on fighting crime, not enforcing the Trump administration's unlawful policies or politically motivated tactics.' A federal judge in Chicago late last month blocked the Trump administration's challenge of local sanctuary policies, such as the Trust Act, the city's sanctuary ordinance and the county statute banning ICE agents from the Cook County Jail unless they had a criminal warrant unrelated to immigration. Local jurisdictions' choice to not participate in enforcing civil immigration law is protected by the 10th Amendment, U.S. District Judge Lindsay Jenkins wrote. Granting an end-run around that amendment 'would allow the federal government to commandeer States under the guise of intergovernmental immunity — the exact type of direct regulation of states barred by the Tenth Amendment.' The DOJ's list is the second one of its kind to be published. The first, released two months ago on DHS' website, contained hundreds of jurisdictions and was riddled with typos. It spurred pushback from officials who said it was not clear why they were included. The errors included jurisdictions that overwhelmingly voted for Trump and at least one that had declared itself a 'non-sanctuary city.' The issues were never fully explained, and, within days, the list was replaced with a 'Page Not Found' error message. The DOJ noted Louisville had been removed from the list soon after it agreed to honor DHS requests to hold inmates on immigration detainers for up to 48 hours. Given the potential loss of federal funding or increased ICE raids, the 'stakes are too high,' Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg said of the move to drop its 2017 policy against such detainers, according to the Louisville Courier Journal. Bondi celebrated the change and urged other jurisdictions to do the same. .
USA Today
9 hours ago
- USA Today
Projecting the Chargers' 53-man roster after the Keenan Allen reunion
The Chargers kicked off football season in impressive fashion with a 34-6 blowout in the Hall of Fame Game. Granted, several starters on both sides didn't play in the contest, but it was an encouraging sign from Jim Harbaugh's side nonetheless. After that context, it's time to update the 53-man roster projection with a few notable changes. Justin Herbert, Trey Lance, Taylor Heinicke Nothing changes here, and it likely won't. Lance's exceptional performance in the opener gives him a legitimate shot to win the No. 2 job. Omarion Hampton, Najee Harris, Kimani Vidal, Hassan Haskins Haskins was quite solid in the Hall of Fame Game, and we already know about his special teams abilities. For now, Haskins and Vidal remain the final two backs until further notice. Ladd McConkey, Keenan Allen, Quentin Johnston, Tre Harris, KeAndre Lambert-Smith, Derius Davis Jalen Reagor had himself quite the start to training camp, and Brenden Rice has made some flash plays as well. Unfortunately for them, Tuesday's signing of Allen significantly hurts their chances of making the roster. Will Dissly, Tyler Conklin, Oronde Gadsden II, Tucker Fisk Fisk's blocking chops earn him a spot. Rashawn Slater, Joe Alt, Zion Johnson, Bradley Bozeman, Mekhi Becton, Trey Pipkins, Jamaree Salyer, Andre James, Branson Taylor Harbaugh officially ended the Johnson experiment at center early in the week. If an injury were to happen to Bozeman this season, perhaps they would consider using Johnson at center then. Now, it seems like the starting five is set with Johnson at left guard and Bozeman at center. Khalil Mack, Tuli Tuipulotu, Bud Dupree, Caleb Murphy, Kyle Kennard Murphy has earned rave reviews from the coaching staff, and all the signs point to him sneaking his way onto the 53-man roster. He has been more impressive than Kennard, the fourth-round pick. Kennard's roster chances likely aren't in jeopardy, but he has underwhelmed in his pass-rushing abilities in camp thus far. Teair Tart, Da'Shawn Hand, Naquan Jones, Jamaree Caldwell, Otito Ogbonnia, Justin Eboigbe Another group with no changes. Except possibly the final spot, this group feels mostly set in stone. Daiyan Henley, Junior Colson, Denzel Perryman, Troy Dye Murphy's addition to the roster leads to this room only carrying four linebackers. Cam Hart, Tarheeb Still, Donte Jackson, Benjamin St-Juste, Nikko Reed The first three names on this list will be the starters and the regulars at this position in 2025, barring injury. St-Juste's experience makes him a likely lock to remain on the roster come Week 1. The fifth spot, however, has been snagged by Reed recently. The undrafted free agent out of Oregon was impressive in the Hall of Fame Game, something that carried over from his activity in training camp practices. Derwin James, Alohi Gilman, Elijah Molden, R.J. Mickens The eyes remain on the last spot, and Mickens had some special moments in that opening game. Cameron Dicker (K), Josh Harris (LS), J.K. Scott (P) No changes here.
