Latest news with #DFSS
Yahoo
17-04-2025
- Yahoo
Tents still in place at Gompers Park weeks after moving event began
CHICAGO (WGN) — Six weeks after the start of what the City of Chicago dubbed an 'Accelerated Moving Event' – tents at a Northwest Side park remain in place and others have even been set up. WGN Investigates visited Gompers Park on Wednesday and found more than two dozen tents still in place, even as the city began the work to clear the park. City agencies descended on Gompers on March 5th, offering services and housing – an approach the city's Chief Homelessness Officer Sendy Soto talked about during a one-on-one interview with WGN Investigates last year. WGN Investigates: Investigating public corruption, crime & fraud 'We are not in the business to arrest people who are unhoused, that is just not going to solve, one, the issue that people want to see solved,' Soto said during the interview. WGN Investigates has been following what happens at the park since September when cameras captured a glimpse into the lives of those who call the Northwest Side grounds home. While some have moved on to housing, many more remain at the park. Recently, through a Freedom of Information request, WGN Investigates obtained a 'coordinated outreach plan' from the city's Department of Family and Support Services (DFSS). Chicago pushes back plans to clear out homeless encampment in Gompers Park 'Shelter has been offered consistently but residents have declined due to shelter beds not being in the Northwest Community area,' the outreach plan said. The plan also detailed a timeline that points to June as the beginning of a lagoon restoration project and with it the coordinated clean-up and removal of tents. Currently, yellow signs are letting park residents know about what's to come, but even that hasn't been enough to persuade them to clear out. Chicago faces shortage of affordable housing 'They're not forced to leave in the sense that if were offering housing, that is really the option that we would want them to pursue. If that's not where they would like to go, then they can choose to go somewhere else, but that site eventually is going to be cleaned up and brought back to its original state,' Soto said when asked whether residents would be forced to leave. For now, at least half a dozen organizations are visiting the park each week trying to convince residents to move before the park is officially cleared out in June. In a stamanet shared with WGN Investigates on Wednesday, DFSS said that locations with a lot of public attention tend to have people moving in once an Accelerated Moving Event begins in order to try and secure housing. Fire renews calls for city to remove homeless encampments at Gompers Park 'Unfortunately for those who have relocated to the Gompers Park encampment following the park's March 5 Accelerated Moving Event, this will not speed up access to housing for these individuals, DFSS said in the statement. The moving event is now on its 43rd day, similar events have gone on for as many as 90 days before the area is completely cleared. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
20-02-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Forecast: Continued cold, chance of passing flurries
Conditions will continue to be cold in the nighttime and overnight hours and there may be some passing flurries. Look for Thursday to again start with bone-chilling wind chills, possibly as low as -10 to -15 degrees. The day will give us generous sunshine that will help each that chill slightly by the afternoon, with highs peaking in the lower- or middle-20s. A fairly steady northwest wind at 10 to 18 mph, with some gusts near 25 mph, will keep wind chills in the single digits during the afternoon. Lake effect snow looks like it'll impact northwest Indiana overnight tonight and into Thursday morning. A Winter Weather Advisory for LaPorte County, Ind., kicked in at 3 p.m. Wednesday and is set to expire at 6 p.m. Thursday. Areas on the eastern side of Lake Michigan could see between 2 and 7 inches of accumulating snow. Weather Maps Weather & Climate News Interactive Radar Weather Bug Cameras 7-Day Outlook Weather Center Newsletter The current area of bitterly cold air will finally break down in coming days. A large area of frigid arctic air currently in place will slowly migrate back into eastern Canada by this weekend. The jet stream will become more westerly, delivering milder, Pacific-origin air. The City of Chicago coordinates a network of more than 190 public facilities available for warming. This includes participating Chicago Public Library locations, Chicago Park District, Chicago Police Department and City Colleges of Chicago facilities during business or designated hours. Department of Family & Support Services: The Chicago Department of Family & Support Services activates warming areas at the city's six community service centers when temps are 32 degrees or below. The warming areas are open Monday-Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., with reduced locations on holidays. Under extreme cold conditions, as defined by the National Weather Service and communicated by OEMC, warming center hours of operation at 10 S. Kedzie may be extended. Seniors are welcome at any of DFSS's 21 senior centers. DFSS partners with OEMC to use robocalls to inform seniors of key information regarding how to stay safe during extreme weather. Visit for senior center locations and hours. Those seeking a warm place to go after hours can also call 3-1-1 to be connected with available services. Individuals requiring emergency overnight shelter should also call 3-1-1. DFSS Homeless Outreach and Prevention (HOP) teams and street outreach partners work proactively with unhoused individuals to connect with warming options, shelter and well-being checks. Residents are also encouraged to check on relatives, neighbors and friends during a winter weather emergency. All Community Service Centers (9 a.m.-5 p.m.) Englewood Community Service Center – 1140 West 79th Street. Garfield Community Service Center – 10 South Kedzie Avenue. Dr. Martin Luther King Community Service Center – 4314 South Cottage Grove. North Area Community Service Center – 845 West Wilson Avenue. South Chicago Community Service Center – 8650 South Commercial Avenue. Trina Davila Community Service Center – 4312 West North Avenue. Senior Centers (8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m.) – visit for locations. Chicago Public Library locations, visit for hours and locations. Information about Cook County warming centers outside the City of Chicago area is available on the county government website at Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
17-02-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Monday forecast: Cold Weather Advisory for Chicagoland, wind chills well below zero
Chicagoland is in the deep freezer to start the week, with a Cold Weather Advisory in effect until Tuesday morning. It's a dangerously cold start to Monday, with air temperatures hovering in the single digits to below zero and wind chill values ranging from minus-20 to minus-25. That's much colder than it was at the same time Sunday morning. Just after 5 a.m. Monday, the highest air temp reading in Chicagoland was just 5, while the low was minus-5. While it's clear out early Monday, it will quickly get mostly cloudy for the rest of the day, with light snow showers or flurries possible in southern areas. Air temps will fall below zero overnight, then Tuesday will dawn frigid again, with dangerously cold wind chills. Finally, by Tuesday afternoon, wind chills could get back to above zero, while air temps creep back up into the teens and then into the low to mid-20s for the latter part of the week. Here's a timeline of projected wind chills from Monday morning through Tuesday afternoon: Weather Maps Weather & Climate News Interactive Radar Weather Bug Cameras 7-Day Outlook Weather Center Newsletter There's a chance for snow showers on Wednesday, with temps in the mid-teens by the afternoon. Temps will finally warm into the 20s by Thursday and Friday, with partly sunny skies. The early weekend forecast shows temps in the mid-30s by Sunday, which will feel downright balmy compared to the start of this week. Monday is Presidents' Day, so Chicago Public Schools and other area schools are closed for the day, anyway. But as dangerously cold weather settles into Chicagoland to start the week, you can click HERE for the latest update on school closings and delays around the area. The City of Chicago coordinates a network of more than 190 public facilities available for warming. This includes participating Chicago Public Library locations, Chicago Park District, Chicago Police Department and City Colleges of Chicago facilities during business or designated hours. Department of Family & Support Services: The Chicago Department of Family & Support Services activates warming areas at the city's six community service centers when temps are 32 degrees or below. The warming areas are open Monday-Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., with reduced locations on holidays. Under extreme cold conditions, as defined by the National Weather Service and communicated by OEMC, warming center hours of operation at 10 S. Kedzie may be extended. Seniors are welcome at any of DFSS's 21 senior centers. DFSS partners with OEMC to use robocalls to inform seniors of key information regarding how to stay safe during extreme weather. Visit for senior center locations and hours. Those seeking a warm place to go after hours can also call 3-1-1 to be connected with available services. Individuals requiring emergency overnight shelter should also call 3-1-1. DFSS Homeless Outreach and Prevention (HOP) teams and street outreach partners work proactively with unhoused individuals to connect with warming options, shelter and well-being checks. Residents are also encouraged to check on relatives, neighbors and friends during a winter weather emergency. Warming Center Locations available Monday, Jan. 6 – Friday, Jan. 10: All Community Service Centers (9 a.m.-5 p.m.) Englewood Community Service Center – 1140 West 79th Street. Garfield Community Service Center – 10 South Kedzie Avenue. Dr. Martin Luther King Community Service Center – 4314 South Cottage Grove. North Area Community Service Center – 845 West Wilson Avenue. South Chicago Community Service Center – 8650 South Commercial Avenue. Trina Davila Community Service Center – 4312 West North Avenue. Senior Centers (8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m.) – visit for locations. Chicago Public Library locations, visit for hours and locations. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
