>> IN THE 1950'S AND 60'S BLACK FAMILIES WERE FORCED TO PAY OFTEN DOUBLE OR MORE TO BUY A HOME IN WHAT WAS KNOWN AS CONTRACT BUYING AS A RESULT INSTEAD OF BURNING EQUITY IN PASSING DOWN GENERATIONAL WEALTH, BLACK HOMEOWNERS OFTEN LOST THEIR HOMES.

NOW A LOCAL ARTIST IS HIGHLIGHTING THOSE INJUSTICES BY WORKING TO REVITALIZE VACANT LOTS IN ENGLEWOOD.

IT'S PART OF HER LATEST PROJECT UNBLOCKED ENGLEWOOD AND JOINING US NOW, OUR ARTIST AND PHOTOGRAPHER TAMIKA LEWIS JOHNSON AND CARLA BRUNI PRES PRESERVATION AND RESILIENCY SPECIALIST AT THE CHICAGO BUNGALOW ASSOCIATION.

THANKS TO YOU BOTH AND WELCOME.

THANK YOU FOR JOINING US TO TO MAKE A LET'S START WITH YOU, PLEASE.

WHERE DID THE IDEA FOR AN BLOCKED IN WOULD COME IDEA KIND OF EMERGE FROM A CHANCE MEETING WITH ONE OF THE.

>> A DESCENDANT OF THE ASPIRING BLACK HOMEOWNER COUPLE THAT WAS CONNECTED TO MY AN EQUITY FOR SALE PROJECT.

>> AND WHEN PUT UP THE LANDMARK IN FRONT OF A HOME, THAT'S WHEN I MET THEIR SIDE.

MISTER MELVIN LAWSUIT IS IN OLDER BLACK HOMEOWNER THAT IS STRUGGLING TO GET HOME REPAIRS AND HE INTRODUCED ME TO OTHER RESIDENTS ON THE BLOCK AND THEY ALL HAD THE SAME STORY.

AND THAT'S WHEN THE IDEA TOO USE OUR TO DO A TANGIBLE SOLUTION FOR THE ISSUES THEY WERE FACING CAME ABOUT.

>> A CAR LOAN BECAUSE I WANT TO GET INTO IT.

GET INTO THAT MORE.

OF COURSE, CARLA, WHAT IS THE CHICAGO BUNGALOW ASSOCIATIONS ROLE IN THIS PROJECT?

>> ALL RIGHT.

SO WE'VE PARTNERED WITH TAMIKA ON THIS PROJECT.

WE DO A LOT OF WORK AROUND WEATHERIZATION AND REPAIR AND SO BECAUSE WELL AWARE OF THAT AND WANTED TO COME TOGETHER WITH US SO WE CAN TAKE CARE OF SORT OF THE.

THE THINGS THAT NEED TO BE DONE BEFORE.

YOU CAN START THINKING ABOUT ANY SORT OF UNIFICATION OR WHATEVER, JUST GETTING THINGS BACK TO WHERE THEY SHOULD BE.

>> CARLA ME TO MAKE, OF COURSE, WE TALK ABOUT USING ART.

OF COURSE, YOU BEING AN ARTIST.

HOW TO HOW DO THESE 2 THINGS GO TOGETHER?

CARLA MENTIONED, YOU KNOW, MAKING FIXES IN REPAIRS BEFORE BEAUTIFYING.

WHAT WHAT DO YOU DO?

WELL, FIRST OF ALL, THERE'S A LOT OF ARTS FUNDING HAPPENING RIGHT NOW.

IT'S AMPLIFY HISTORIC ISSUES.

AND SO I REALLY WANTED TO COME BY THE FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES OF THE ARTS WITH ACTUALLY SOLVING THE ISSUES THAT ARE ITS FUNDERS ARE ENCOURAGING ARTISTS TO CREATE WORK AROUND.

SO BE ON SCULPTURES, MURALS GARDENS.

I WANTED TO TAKE THIS AS OPPORTUNITY TO ACTUALLY SOLVED AND USING THE HOMES AS A FORM OF SCULPTURE AS A FORM OF ART BEFORE YOU CAN BEAUTIFY A HOME AND HAVE A COLLECTION OF HOMES AND ARTISTIC ACTIVATION AND A BLOCK YOU HAVE TO DEAL WITH THE TANGIBLE INFRASTRUCTURE THAT NEEDS REPAIR.

AND SO THAT'S WHAT I REALLY WANTED TO DO WITH A BLACK HANDLE.

YOUR LAST PROJECT, WE TALKED ABOUT INEQUITY FOR SALE AND PINPOINTED HOMES AS YOU SAID THAT WERE SOLD UNDER LAND SALE.

CONTRACT.

HOW HAS THAT PROCESS OR HOW DID THAT LEAD TO THE LACK OF EQUITY FOR HOMEOWNERS IN ENGLEWOOD ALONE, FOR EXAMPLE.

SO WHAT SPECIFICALLY TO THE ASPIRING BLACK HOMEOWNERS IN THE 50'S AND IT DID NOT THEM EQUITY THAT THEY WOULD HAVE HAD BECAUSE THEY DIDN'T ON THEIR HOME.

THEY DIDN'T HAVE A MORTGAGE AND A LOT OF PEOPLE THINK THAT'S A HISTORIC ISSUE.

THAT DOESN'T IMPACT ANYBODY TODAY.

BUT THROUGH THE STORY OF MELVIN WAS ONE OF THE ACTUALLY RESIDENTS ON THE BLOCK TODAY.

HE REPRESENTS SO MANY OF US ENGLEWOOD BECAUSE OF THE DEVALUATION OF THE ENTIRE NEIGHBORHOOD THROUGH THIS HISTORIC 20 PRACTICE, YOU FOR TO GET HOME REPAIR LAWS BECAUSE YOUR HOME IS IT'S NOT WORTH ENOUGH TO GET ALONG OR, YOU DES DEVALUATION IN GENERAL PREVENT OPPORTUNITIES FOR HOMEOWNERS TO REPAIR.

AND SO THAT'S HOW IT IMPACTS BLACK HOMEOWNERS TODAY IN THIS PROJECT IS KIND OF LIKE A SYMBOL OF WAYS THAT WE CAN ADDRESS OUTSIDE OF SOME FORMAL COMMITMENT FROM THE CITY.

CARLA, WHAT REPAIRS AND WORK HAD BEEN DONE THROUGHOUT THE BLOC SO FAR?

YES, SO WE'VE BEEN QUITE A WE'VE FINISHED 14 BUILDINGS NOW ON THE >> AND I THINK ABOUT 12 TO GO NEXT YEAR.

BUT WE'VE DONE WE'VE PUT A LOT OF NEW ROUTES ON FIX DRYWALL CEILINGS.

BROKEN PIPES, ALL KINDS OF THINGS THAT WE FOUND IN MALLS.

AS A RESULT, ONCE THOSE ARE ALSO TAKING CARE OF, YOU CAN GO AHEAD AND WEATHERIZE A HOME TO.

SO THEY'RE ALSO INSULATED THERE.

MUCH WARMER NOW IN THE WINTER.

I'M TAKING CARE OF ANYTHING THAT CAN HELP PEOPLE KIND OF GET THROUGH THE SEASON'S BETTER AS WELL.

>> TO MAKING YOU JUST MENTIONED BUT, YOU KNOW, PART OF THE PROJECT IS BEING ABLE TO FIND SOLUTIONS.

AND YOU KIND OF TALKED ABOUT THAT THE CYCLE THAT SOME PEOPLE ARE AND WITH REGARDS TO NOT BEING ABLE TO GET A REPAIR ALONE BECAUSE THE NEIGHBORHOOD IS ALREADY SO INVESTED DISINVESTED AND IT'S ALREADY FALLEN SO FAR INTO DISREPAIR.

TELL ME MORE ABOUT THAT KIND OF THE TROUBLE THAT FOLKS HAVE.

WHAT THIS BLOCK IN PARTICULAR REPRESENTS THE STRUGGLES OF SO MANY, NOT ONLY INGLEWOOD BUT ANOTHER BLACK NEIGHBORHOODS THAT HAVE DEALT WITH THESE HISTORIC DISCRIMINATORY HOUSING PRACTICES.

>> IS THAT YOU 4 TO UP, KEEP YOUR HOME.

AND IF YOU CAN FIND A WAY TO FUND REPAIRS.

SOMETIMES IT DEPLETES YOUR ACTUAL SAVINGS.

AND SO IT REALLY CONTRIBUTES TO THIS ONGOING RACIAL WITH WEALTH GAP.

AND SO THIS PROJECT IS HOPING TO NOT ONLY AMPLIFY HOW SOLUTIONS NEEDS TO BE ADDRESSED A LITTLE BIT MORE CREATIVELY.

BUT REALLY HOW INVESTING IN ACTUAL BLACK HOMEOWNERS IS GOOD FOR THE ENTIRE CITY BECAUSE IN ORDER TO CREATE MORE BLACK HOMEOWNERS, YOU REALLY HAVE TO SUPPORT THE EXISTING BLACK HOMEOWNERS.

CARLA, WHAT ARE SOME OF THE CHALLENGES THAT YOU HEAR FROM HOMEOWNERS ABOUT BEING ABLE TO KEEP UP THEIR HOMES IT'S JUST REALLY COST AND AND ALSO JUST THE ENERGY BURDEN ON TOP OF THAT.

SO IF YOU HAVE, >> YOU KNOW, A LEAKY YOU KNOW, ANY TIME YOU'RE TRYING TO HEAT OR COOL YOUR HOME, IT'S GOING TO COST YOU A HECK OF A LOT MORE RIGHT?

SO IT'S JUST EVERYTHING SEEMS TO COMPOUND.

AND THEN THE LONGER THESE REPAIRS GO, YOU KNOW, WITHOUT BEING TAKEN CARE OF, EVERYTHING JUST GETS EXPONENTIALLY WORSE OVER TIME.

IT CAN JUST BE REALLY OVERWHELMING FOR PEOPLE.

SEEMS CYCLICAL.

YOU KNOW, SO WE'RE GOING TO KEEP HAPPENING.

>> KARL, WHAT HAVE YOU HEARD?

RESIDENTS SAY THAT THEY WOULD LIKE TO IN THEIR NEIGHBORHOODS.

>> TO MAKE IT POSSIBLE REALLY GET THIS FUN.

WELL, NOT ONLY ARE THEY INTERESTED IN HAVING THE STRUCTURAL REPAIRS THAT CHICAGO BOUND ASSOCIATION IS HELPING THEM RECEIVED.

BUT BEYOND THAT, THEY BEAUTIFICATION TO THE EXTERIOR >> OF THEIR HOMES.

THEY WANT THEIR PORCHES TO ACTUALLY MAINTAINED AND THEY WANT THE VACANT LOTS ON THE BLOCK TO CONSIST OF HEALING SPACES, PLACES FOR THEM TO SEE IT BECAUSE THE BLACK ACTUALLY HAS A LOT OF OLDER HOMEOWNERS.

AND, YOU KNOW, THEY WANT TO, HEY, OUT IN THEIR NEIGHBORHOOD.

THEY WANT TO BEAUTIFUL SPACE TO DO THAT.

AND THAT'S WHY WE'RE PARTNERING WITH THE EAGLE ARTS COLLECTIVE TO HELP REALLY BRIGHTEN UP THE BLOCK OUTSIDE OF THE ADDITIONAL HOME REPAIRS COSMETIC REPAIRS THAT THEY WANT TO THEIR HOUSE.

>> YOU'VE ALSO GOT RESEARCHERS STUDYING THIS.

WHAT ARE WHAT ARE WE HOPING THAT THEY'LL BE ABLE TO TELL US?

>> OH, YES, WE ARE WORKING WITH AN AMAZING RESEARCHER.

AMBER HENDLEY, AND SHE'S ACTUALLY THE LEAD RESEARCHER OF THE REPORT.

THE MINE EQUITY FOR SALE PROJECT WAS BORN OUT OF AND SHE'S HELPING US KIND OF QUANTIFY THE IMPACT.

THIS PROJECT WITH THE HOPES OF IT BEING AN EXAMPLE OF HOW CAN BE REPLICATED AND THE CREATIVE WAYS IN WHICH WE CAN FUND SOLUTIONS LIKE THIS.

SO SHE'S HELPING US GET THE NUMBERS AND ALL OF THAT TOGETHER SO WE CAN PRESENT IT AS SOMETHING THAT CAN BE REPLICATED AS A CROSS-SECTOR COLLABORATION WITH THE CITY ARTS ORGANIZATION, RESIDENTS AND AMAZING NONPROFITS LIKE CVA CRONE GOING TO MY NEXT QUESTION, DO YOU THINK WILL BE ABLE TO SEE SOMETHING LIKE THIS HAPPENING ON OTHER COMPLETE BLOCKS?

>> THAT'S YEAH.

WE'RE LEARNING A LOT WITH THIS >> AND YOU KNOW, WE'RE VERY TALKING TO HOMEOWNERS DAILY ABOUT EVERYTHING GOING ON.

HAVE A LOT OF COMMUNITY MEETINGS AS WELL.

I'M GETTING A LOT OF FEEDBACK AND SO, YEAH, WE REALLY I MEAN, WE FEEL LIKE OR THIS IS A BIT OF A PIONEERING PROJECT WAS UNIQUE PARTNERSHIPS.

AND MEAN, THAT'S DEFINITELY THE HOPE.

AND YOU NEED UNIQUE WAY OF APPROACHING OF APPROACHING THE PROBLEM BY BY GOING THROUGH ARTS FUNDING WILL HAVE TO LEAVE IT THERE.

BUT WE LOOK FORWARD TO HEARING FROM BOTH