YOU TO ALL THREE OF YOU FOR JOINING US.

>>> TWO YEARS AGO A VACANT LOT TRANSFORM INTO A PLACE TO GATHER AND PLAY, NICK GOT TO KNOW MORE ABOUT IT, AND WHERE IT IS HEADED NEXT, JOINING US LIVE AND A BIT OF RAIN.

NICK?

>> Reporter: IS A LITTLE BIT, YOU WOULD HARDLY NOTICE, WE INTRODUCED YOU TO THE GARFIELD PARK COMMUNITY PLAZA BACK IN JANUARY, AS PART OF OUR CHICAGO TONIGHT IN YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD SERIES.

SINCE THEN A NEW EFFORT HAS GOTTEN UNDERWAY TO BRING EVEN MORE AMENITIES TO THE COMMITTEE SPACE, THAT HAS BECOME A HUB OF ACTIVITY FOR NEIGHBORS.

>>> FOR MANY CHICAGOANS, THE CLATTER OF ROLLERSKATE WHEELS IS THE FAMILIAR SOUND OF SUMMER, AND GARFIELD PARK IT HAS BEEN REPLACED BY ANOTHER FAMILIAR SOUND THIS TIME OF YEAR.

CONSTRUCTION UNDERWAY AT THE GARFIELD PARK COMMUNITY PLAZA TO CREATE MORE PLAY AREAS FOR KIDS, A STAGE IN A COVERED ROLLER RINK AND A SCULPTURE DESIGNED BY YOUNG PEOPLE FOR THE COMMUNITY.

>> IS GOING TO BE A DYNAMIC SPACE AT AN OASIS IN THE MIDST OF A BLOCK WHERE FOLKS CAN COME IN, FIND A LITTLE PIECE A LITTLE QUIET, OR A LOT OF FUN ACTIVITY AND ENJOYMENT.

>> THE SIMPLER VERSION OF THE PLAZA AND ROLLER RINK OPENED IN 2021, OFFERING FREE SKATES ANYPLACE TOGETHER ON THE SIDE OF A LONG VACANT LOT THAT IS BECOME AN ISSUE.

>> ON A BUSY STREET, HAS ALL KINDS OF ACTIVITY GOING ON AS WELL.

>> RECLAIMING VACANT LOTS LIKE THIS DON'T EVEN -- JUST CREATE A VACANT SPOT TOGETHER AND PLAY, IT MAKES COMMUNITIES SAFER AND HEALTHIER, ESPECIALLY WHEN IT COMES WITH INCREASED ATTENTION TO THE SITE, SOMETHING HE HAS SEEN WITH HIS OWN EYES.

>> TWO BLOCKS TO THE NORTH, TO BLOCK TO THE NORTH, TWO BLOCKS TO THE SOUTH, TWO BLOCKS TO THE EAST IT IS A DIFFERENT STORY BUT ON THE CORNER, THE ATTENTION AND CONSISTENT ACTIVITY, SHOULDN'T FAMILIES HERE, WORKING TO INCREASE ALONG THE CORRIDOR HAS BEEN A BIG HELP.

>> Reporter: CRAWFORD SAYS INVESTING IN THE PHYSICAL SPACE SHOWS RESIDENCE IT'S A SPACE THEY CAN GROW AND THRIVE.

BUT HE ALSO KNOWS THAT MORE INVESTMENT CAN MEAN GENTRIFICATION AND DISPLACEMENT OF LONGTIME RESIDENTS.

>> WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT AS WE SEEK JUSTICE, WITH THE DEVELOPMENT, THOSE WHO HAVE WEATHERED THE STORM FOR ALL THESE YEARS WILL ALSO BE HERE WHILE THE SUN SHINES.

>> WANT TO MAKE SURE THE SPACES DESIGNED AROUND THE IDEA OF BLACK CULTURE WELLNESS, ADDRESSING THE NEEDS OF THE COMMUNITY AND UPLIFTING THE VALUES IN THE PLAZA.

>> WE WORK TO BUILD A COMMUNITY THAT LOOKS LIKE WE ARE AS WELL.

>> RAY: AND EVEN THOUGH CONSTRUCTION IS HAPPENING DURING PEAK SUMMER ROLLERSKATING WEATHER, MAYBE NOT PEAK WEATHER TODAY ALTHOUGH, THE RENOVATED PLAZA