AustinTalks (http://austintalks.org/author/connor-carynski/page/2/)
Those in attendance at this month’s meeting of the Austin African American Business Network Association were encouraged to apply for a Retail Thrive Zone business development grant from the city of Chicago.
More than a dozen organizations working on Chicago’s West and South Sides met last week as part of the initiative “Operation Save Lives,” organized by state Rep. La Shawn Ford. “What we have today is a group of organizations and people that are saying that we can help our communities, and we are demanding that the state, the city, the county and the federal government support us,” Ford said.
Congressman Danny Davis, Cook County Commissioner Richard Boykin and 29th Ward Ald. Chris Taliaferro were among the more than dozen officer holders who urged their fellow politicians to do more to help struggling West and South Side neighborhoods.
Residents participated in last month’s event, as did more than 20 people who came to Chicago for workshops put on by the Poetry Foundation.
“If I would have had this when I was 9 or 10 years old, it would have changed everything,” Antonia Ruppert said at last week’s event.
Over the next year, the Austin College and Career Academy will get an entirely new lab, while Michele Clark Magnet High School will see improvements to its existing lab.
Cook County Commissioner Richard Boykin said he decided to host the meeting after a number of people throughout the 1st District said there is a need for a community court in Austin.
Members of the 15th District CAPS office, various Austin churches and community groups have been “loitering” on several corners in Austin every Wednesday in June and July since 2010 in an attempt to reduce crime.
In an effort to enrich the lives of Austin residents and spark economic growth, local groups are hosting a free art fair along the 300 block of North Mayfield Avenue on July 28. All are welcome.
State Sen. Kimberly Lightfoot, and Reps. La Shawn Ford and Camille Lilly discussed with AustinTalks the legislation they pushed during the session that ended in late May.