Our last meeting addressed many topics, including preparations by PEBA/SSA 79 to revitalize Lawrence Avenue Bump-outs, gardens, etc. We recognized sponsors and volunteers that managed the Bump-outs and gardens for decades and sought to clarify work coordination and participation going forward. We greatly appreciate our many generous sponsors and volunteers who have beautified the community and appreciate their continued efforts to work with PEBA/SSA 79. We also appreciate PEBA/SSA 79’s efforts, which will provide financial and manpower relief.

Colleen Sweeney, Director of PEBA and SSA 79, invited volunteers to contact her at PEBA to set up a group meeting to coordinate. See the PEBA website for contact information.

Some MCA gardens fall outside of the PEBA/ SSA 79 service area, so we still need to address volunteer management and maintenance of those gardens, and related funding. We will seek suggestions from Colleen regarding potential sources to fund outside of the PEBA/SSA service area, recognizing that PEBA/SSA 79 cannot apply their funds outside of their respective areas.

We continue efforts with Chicago Sculpture International to identify a sculpture to install at Mayfair Park and received a list of submissions for consideration. Voice your preferences by emailing us with your top three favorites, in first, second and third order.

We received letters of support from the 39th Ward and Eugene Field for re-location of the Thai Town sculpture. Jon Litwin and Mayfair Park Advisory Committee continue to pursue a grant to fund reconfiguration of Mayfair Park basketball courts and to improve baseball field drainage.

Keep your eyes open for a new mural designed by Erin Minckley, of Relativity Textiles, for installation at Relativity’s 4219 W Lawrence location, a Rany Management building. PEBA and Rany are co-sponsors. Installation is expected to be completed in June. Look also for National Poetry Month banner installations in vacant store front windows featuring works by NEIU, North Park University, Lawrence Hall, Chicago Poetry Center/ Volta Elementary students, and plan on attending the June 17 concert at 2:00 at Mayfair Branch Library. Vibraphonist Preyas Roy will be featured.

See related articles covering these matters and plan to attend our June 8 Zoom meeting.

2023 Meeting Schedule

Mayfair Civic Association meetings are generally held on the second Thursday of every month. No meetings are held in January, July, or August. These are the remaining dates for 2023. These are suggested meeting dates and topics, subject to any comments you may provide, but will be followed in the absence of alternative suggestions. Our Board generally meets quarterly as determined by Board members.

June 8 TBD	November 9 Annual Party Planning
September 14 Traffic & Parking	December 7 Holiday Party
October 12 Elections

Membership Meetings

Here are some details from the April and May meetings of the Mayfair Civic Association.

Thanks to the neighbors, as well as to the offices of Alderman Nugent for Ward 39, Representative Mike Kelly for District 15, and Congressman Quigley for Illinois 5th District, for attending.

Reminder: The MCA is looking for a new treasurer!

If you or someone you know has accounting skills and would like to get more involved and contribute directly to your neighborhood, Mayfair Civic Association is looking for a new treasurer. Those interested can contact MCA President Ron Duplack at rduplack@rieckcrotty.com. Thank you for your support!

Community gardens maintenance hand-off to PEBA SSA #79

The Mayfair Civic Association has been responsible for managing and maintaining a number of community and bump-out gardens throughout the neighborhood for the past 20 years. As mentioned in the previous issue of the newsletter, SSA #79 will begin to provide funding, management, and maintenance of these gardens within the SSA service zone; SSA #79 is serviced by the Pulaski/Elston Business Association (PEBA), and its boundaries are primarily along Lawrence and Pulaski. The hand-off of the routine and physically demanding maintenance responsibility is a much-appreciated and necessary change for the all-volunteer team that had been dedicated to doing it with care for the past 20 years. Despite no longer being responsible for many of the gardens, there were discussions during the April and May meetings about this volunteer group still having interest in the gardens, and how they could work with the SSA to continue having input and provide guidance.

Colleen Sweeney, Program Manager for SSA #79, was in attendance at the May meeting and said the SSA is now fully-funded and is able to begin working on projects, including landscaping and bump-out gardens on Lawrence. The SSA has contracted with a local landscaping company that started on maintenance in the beginning of April. All planting will begin after Mother’s Day. There will be weekly watering and maintenance of the gardens, and a cleanup service every Tuesday morning for sidewalks and other areas that will collect any garbage from planters.

Garden volunteers asked about the details of the hand-off. Concerns were expressed regarding the continuity of the management and maintenance, but Sweeney assured attendees that funding is planned well in advance, and that it’s in the budget already through 2024; if something changed, Sweeney said that it’d be due to the City and not because of PEBA or the SSA. The volunteers shared challenges that they’ve faced in the past with people leaving litter in the gardens, soil quality, as well as with getting the City to turn the sprinklers on in time for Mother’s Day plantings and configuring them to provide enough water in the summer. People wanted clarification on whether all of the gardens within the service area were to be maintained by the SSA, having noticed one garden in particular that appeared not to have been cleaned out with the others. Attendees also wanted to make sure that the plaques on each garden, indicating local business sponsors, are not removed.

Some gardens maintained by volunteers for the neighborhood fall outside of the service area for SSA #79, and there was discussion about whether management and maintenance of those gardens could also be funded somehow. It isn’t possible for SSA funds to be used outside of the service area, but there was a question about whether PEBA had funding that could be used for this purpose. Some of the gardens that people mentioned considering include those on the west side of Lawrence and Keating, the west side of Lawrence and Kilpatrick, the west side of Lawrence and Keeler, the south side of Leland and Elston, and another near the Montrose Blue Line station.

Sweeney agreed to follow up with PEBA on these questions. She would also stay in contact with the MCA and follow up on scheduling time to meet with the volunteers regarding details of the garden maintenance.

Sculpture at Mayfair Park

MCA President Ron Duplack has been working with Chicago Sculpture International to identify a sculpture to install at Mayfair Park, and the following is a new list of submissions for consideration. Email your first, second, and third favorite sculptures from the following list to Ron Duplack at rduplack@rieckcrotty.com.

Mural planned at Relativity Textiles

Refugee support in Ward 39

An attendee asked about what support is being offered in the Ward for refugees as Title 42 ends. A representative from the Alderman’s office said that North Park Village has been serving as a respite location since August 30th of last year, offering services like medical aid, but overnight stays are not available. There is information on the Alderman’s Facebook page about how to help (English, Spanish). There is also a New York Times article from May 10 about Chicago’s handling of the situation.

The following are some highlights from Alderman Nugent’s newsletters and other communications.

Tree trimming now on a grid system

On April 20th, the Bureau of Forestry began its Area Tree Trimming Program. Crews will be working in a 16-block radius at a time and will trim trees within each section. The proper maintenance of these trees will ensure Forestry should not have to return for 5 years or better. In both the 2022 and 2023 City Budgets, the Alderman advocated for more funding to hire additional tree trimmers, and it is her hope that moving to this grid-based system will provide the appropriate maintenance to our tree canopy. If you have a tree emergency or a low-hanging limb, please call the Alderman’s office and they will have Forestry address it as soon as possible. 

Participatory Budgeting Cycle 4

The 4th Cycle of Participatory Budgeting (PB) is in the proposal development phase. Any projects previously on the ballot that were not selected during the previous cycle will be included for consideration in this cycle as well. Voting will start on June 15, and go through the end of the month. There is a new Mayfair Park proposal to renovate the basketball court, and another proposal from last cycle to install a sculpture at Park 593 that is being evaluated again. If you want to make sure that your favorite projects are funded, get your neighbors to vote!

Visit and Subscribe!

Visit https://aldermannugent.com/ to subscribe to Alderman Nugent’s newsletter and learn about what she’s doing for the 39th Ward. My office is open Mondays from 9am to 7pm, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays from 9am to 5pm and Fridays from 9am to 3pm. While the office is open for walk-ins, appointments are encouraged. We ask that everyone, regardless of vaccination status, wear a mask and maintain social distancing. Please reach out should you have any questions, comments, or concerns at 773-736-5594 or via email at Ward39@CityOfChicago.Org.

In the Neighborhood

Mayfair Park

Community Yard Sale

Facebook event page: https://fb.me/e/2Aimol9dL

Clean & Green on April 22 was a success

The Earth Day clean & green event on April 22 at Mayfair Park was a success, thanks to the hard-working volunteers. Special thanks go out to Kemora Landscapes, who saved the operation by lending it a number of large wheelbarrows. See more photos on Facebook.

Mayfair PAC meetings are held on the first Monday of every month at 6:00pm at the field house.

Music at the library

Vibraphonist Preyas Roy will be performing at the Mayfair branch library (4400 W Lawrence) on June 17 from 2:00-3:00 PM. For more info, see the library’s event page.

CAPS Meeting for Beat 1722

CAPS meetings for Beat 1722 are back in-person, and there is no Zoom or hybrid option. Meetings are held on the 3rd Wednesday of each month. The next meeting is on June 21 at 6:30pm in the Community Room of the 17th District Police Department at 4650 N Pulaski. A full schedule of meetings for the year can be found here.

The primary purpose of the beat community meeting is to allow beat residents, other community stakeholders and police to discuss chronic problems on the beat and to engage in problem solving using the CAPS five-step problem-solving process. Beat community meetings provide an opportunity for police and community residents to exchange information about conditions in the neighborhood, to identify crime and disorder problems, and to develop strategies to combat those problems. The meeting also provides an opportunity for police and community to get to know one another.

For upcoming meeting info, or if you have questions or comments, please contact the CAPS office at 312-742-4588, or email caps.017district@chicagopolice.org. Learn about the Office of Community Policing at https://home.chicagopolice.org/community-policing-group/.

Around the Neighborhood

Neighborhood businesses