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11th Ward Newsletter - August 9, 2026

Nicole Lee Ward 11 📞 773-254-6677 ✉️ [email protected]
Relevance: 5/10
street_safety_or_traffic_calming zoning_or_development_meeting_or_approval city_budget transit_funding

Summary

In Alderman Nicole T. Lee’s 11th Ward newsletter, she announces two upcoming hybrid zoning meetings for 3539/3541/3545 S. Union (Aug. 10) and 295 S. Bonaparte (Aug. 10). She also shares an update that a major traffic study for Halsted to Canal and Pershing to 26th Street should complete recommendations in fall, and notes ongoing street/paving and utility restoration work across the ward. Other highlights include National Night Out at Armour Square, a new mural under the Cermak viaduct, tours of the Chinese American Service League Community Hub and St. Mary’s Catacombs Coffee Shop, and multiple back-to-school and veterans’ assistance events (plus ongoing street closures during construction).

Email from Alderman Nicole T. Lee

3659 S. Halsted | Chicago, IL 60609 | 773.254.6677


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August 9, 2026



Dear neighbors,




Thank you to everyone who came out to the 9th Police District's National Night Out event at Armour Square! The 11th Ward was proud to host this year’s 9th District NNO and the community showed up strong, just as we would expect. National Night Out is a great time to come together as a community with law enforcement and have a safe and fun night out in the neighborhood. Thank you to our sponsors Bold Mongol, New Furama, McDonald’s, all the community organizations and groups who joined CPD to make the event such a success, as well as our local elected officials Commissioner John P. Daley and State Representative Theresa Mah for joining the event. There were even horse rides for the kids! 


Starting August 7 through August 16, there is a 5% Illinois tax holiday on back-to-school supplies, including essentials like notebooks, calculators, and most clothing, to help a small amount with ever increasing prices. For more information check out this website.


This week, I received an update on the major traffic study of Halsted to Canal and Pershing to 26th Street. You may have noticed some equipment counting cars and personnel in and around the area of 35th and Halsted – those were part of the study, which I was told we could expect to be completed with recommendations to share some time this fall. Be on the lookout for community meetings once we have the results.


You may notice we have a new mural under the viaduct on Cermak between Wentworth & Clark! The art was created by People Matter, a local nonprofit.  


I got to join Alderwoman Dowell on a tour of the Chinese American Service League Community Hub, it was nice to show her around the neighboring ward! Thanks to Ald. Dowell for learning more about the Chinatown community and the great work of the Chinese American Service League. 


I also got the official tour of the new St. Mary’s Catacombs coffee shop. Everyone should visit! It’s an incredible space in the ward. It's free and open to the public. The cafe is donation-based, with pastries from Dolce Arte—great coffee and tea and they even have nitro coffee on tap (IYKYK). Thank you Fr. Tom for showing me around and for making your vision a reality at St. Mary of Perpetual Help. 


Happy Anniversary to Fabulous Freddie's who celebrated the occasion with a great block party on Saturday.


Congratulations to all the participants in the St. Jerome’s soccer tournament at Armour Square Park over the weekend! 


Have a great week! 


Nicole

This Week in City Council

We saw another resignation this week from the City’s Budget Team with Budget Director Annette Guzman stepping down. Coming on the heels of the resignation news from last week, this is once again cause for concern. 

Upcoming in City Council

The next City Council meeting will be September 23.

Events in the Ward

Upcoming Zoning Meetings: 


3539, 3541, 3545 S. Union

August 10, 2026 at 5:15PM

Hybrid meeting: In person at the 11th Ward Office located at 3659 S. Halsted or virtual: 

Zoom link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89897927839?

pwd=pWkjQlswoyOunfiEAzVBn7PMXybqGT.1&jst=2

Meeting ID: 898 9792 7839

Password: 644281


2952 S. Bonaparte

August 10, 2026 at 6:15PM 

Hybrid meeting: In person at the 11th Ward Office or virtual: 

Zoom Link:

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88041605237?

pwd=pzbVh1EgQ1omy970bATWbl3wbjOkTD.1&jst=2

Meeting ID: 880 4160 5237

Passcode: 494309


Events:

August 10: Meze Table Market, 3437 S Morgan, Back-To-School Swap. Bring gently used clothing for PreK-8, teens, college students and adults -- take what you need. Donate school supplies including pencils, folders, glue sticks,graphing paper highlighters, post-its and backpacks. 11-7PM. Flyer below. 


August 12: Back To School Bash at Holden Elementary School and Bosley Park 12:00PM-3:00PM. Join me, Commissioner John P. Daley, State Representative Theresa Mah, and State Senator Celina Villanueva for a resource fair. We'll distribute backpacks and school supplies, and there will be food, activities for kids and other resources. Quantities are limited and will be distributed on a first come, first served basis.


August 14: Veterans’ Assistance Office Hours 12-3PM, 11th Ward Office, No appointment necessary. 


August 15: Velika Gospa - St. Jerome Croatian Catholic Church - 2823 S. Princeton Ave., all day

Public Safety

Friendly reminder if you see any suspicious behavior or criminal activity taking place in or around your property please be sure to first call 911 and then follow up with our office. Be very descriptive when calling 911 and make sure you give all available details. Our office has recently received calls regarding porch pirates stealing packages in the Ward. If you have any photos or videos of this taking place on your property please call 911 and follow up with our office. We can share the photos or videos with the 9th District CPD. 

Ongoing Construction &

Street Closures

Street Repaving in Chinatown

  • Princeton from 24th place to Cermak and Archer to Tan Court have been ground down/milled in preparation for new asphalt. This work is scheduled to be completed by August 11th.
  • Work has finally begun on 24th Place from Wentworth to Stewart to resurface the street. The south side of the street haws been milled and work will continue for two weeks.


Street Repaving 3700-3800 S Emerald Ave.


  • Emerald from 37th St. to 38th St. is expected to grind and mill from August 3th to September 1st 2026.

Ongoing Project - 33rd Street & Canal Sewer Project Update:


  • Landscaping work is scheduled to begin Thursday, July 16, 2026, and expecting to be completed in the next 1-2 week.
  • Streetlight Restoration Update: the streetlight mast arms has been repaired.

Ongoing Project - Sewer Main on Pershing Rd. from Halsted to Racine

Projected schedule: (Weather Permitting)

  • Going forward our updates will focus on the completion of restoration activities which are currently under way. 

Ongoing Project - 3500 - 3900 S Parnell Ave.:


Most recent updates - 8/10/2026


We are currently finishing restoration of roadway on the 3500 block, 37th St. intersection, the 3600 block from 37th to the alley, and 36th intersection along Parnell Ave. Concrete pours are taking place in the order listed above and should take about 2 weeks to complete. The remaining work at 35th and Parnell Ave.is expected to resume after the end of White Sox season around October 2026.


Roadway restoration is occurring in the following phases over the next 4 weeks:


  1. The north half of the 3600 block
  2. The south half of the 3600 block and 37th St intersection.
  3. The 3500 block and 36th St intersection

 

See below for updates on traffic control:

  1. 3500 Block of Parnell: Closed until early next week for concrete curing.
  2. 36th and Parnell: Closed until end of week of 8/10/26 for concrete placement and curing.
  3. Asphalt Paving: Estimated week of 8/10. (The subcontractor has not provided a schedule as of 8/7/2026 so this maybe delayed.) Street will be closed during asphalt placement.

The ComEd Project






Most Recent Updates - 7/17/2026


A ComEd notification was issued for work beginning May 25, identifying the full design area (31st street to 39th street between Lituanica to Normal Street) as potentially impacted. The project has been segmented into smaller work areas to enable more precise notifications. Scheduled work updates will be provided weekly. Below is the Pershing project work planned for the upcoming four-week period.


  • Week 4 (8/10/26 to 8/14/26)

We will be working between 33rd Pl & 33rd St and Lituanica Ave & Halsted St. We are replacing two existing overhead transformers and adding wildlife protection.

Peoples Gas South Station Remediation

Most Recent Updates - 7/31/2026


  • Peoples Gas contractors continue environmental cleanup activities at 2730 S. Eleanor Street.
  • The primary activities at the site for the first two weeks of July will continue to be excavating and hauling away soil, followed by backfilling excavations with clean stone. Trucks will visit the site most days to pick up soil or deliver stone. 
  • 24-hour air monitoring is taking place and will continue during all intrusive activity.
  • As a reminder, if you have questions about this project, please contact the Peoples Gas project number at 877-380-0522.

Photos of the Week 

New Mural in the 11th Ward

We have a new mural under viaduct on Cermak between Wentworth & Clark. This was created by People Matter, a local nonprofit

Fabulous Freddies Anniversary Block Party!

St. Mary of Perpetual Help Catacombs Cafe tour!

Announcements & Information 
Flyer from Alderman Nicole Lee (11th Ward, City of Chicago) titled “11th Ward 2026 White Sox Residential Zone Parking Updates,” featuring a background image of a night baseball game at Guaranteed Rate Field. The flyer is divided into two sections: Traffic Updates: “This season, 35th Street will be closed between Wentworth and Normal in both directions 90 minutes prior to the start of a game or event at the ball park and will reopen one hour after the close or when OEMC advises. The street will remain open for emergency vehicles, CTA Buses, IDOT and cyclists. Small map showing 35th Street closure area near the ballpark. “Parking Lots”: Event guests will be directed to access Lots A, B, C and G from Wentworth & 33rd Street. Lots F and L will be accessible from Pershing Road. Accessing residential streets: We recommend using 31st Street to access all North South Streets between Wentworth and Wallace. From the South, we recommend Pershing from Wallace to Halsted Reminders: If you live within the White Sox Park Residential Parking Zone and have a vehicle registered with the city of Chicago at that address, a packet with a decal and supply of season and single game guest passes was mailed to you in the last week. If you do not receive your packet in the mail, you may come to the 11th Ward Office beginning Monday, March 23rd to pick up decals and passes. Vehicles parked in White Sox Residential Zone Parking during events at the ball park must display a decal or valid guest pass. Decals are only valid on vehicles that also display a valid City of Chicago vehicle registration sticker. White Sox Park Residential Zone Parking is enforced two hours prior to the start of a game or event and one hour after. For areas where there is a city designated Residential Permit Parking and White Sox Residential Parking Zone - vehicles must display both permits or guest passes or be subject to citation. Pay close attention to signs on the street within one block of the perimeter of the ball park for additional restrictions. All signs will be updated to No Parking 4 hours prior and 2 hours after events.
Flyer titled “Residential access to local streets” explaining traffic and access changes for residents near a ballpark. Top section: Asks if the reader lives north of 33rd Street and south of 31st Street between Wentworth Avenue and Normal Avenue. A map highlights streets in this area with colored markings indicating closures and access routes. Text explains: o access Wells St., Princeton Ave., Shields Ave., Stewart Ave., Canal St. and Normal Ave., area residents are advised to come from the north and utilize 31st Street. Two hours prior to the start of an event, 33rd Street from Wentworth Ave. to Canal St. will be converted to a one-way, west bound street for parking access only – this means no residential access to Wells St., Princeton Ave., Shields Ave., Stewart Ave., or Canal St. Northbound from 33rd St. Access to Wells, Princeton, Shields and Stewart will be for residents only at 32nd Street. Once the game is over, 33rd Street from Canal St. to Wentworth Ave. will be converted to a one-way, East bound street to expedite traffic from parking lots. Bottom section: Asks if the reader lives south of the ballpark between 35th Street and Pershing Road, and between Normal Avenue and Wallace Street. A second map shows this area with marked routes and restrictions. Text explains: To access Wallace, Parnell, and normal to/ between 37th and 38th streets, area residents are advised to come from the north and utilize 35th Street at Wallace or from south and utilize Pershing rd. Access to 37th St. and 38th St. will be for residents only at Normal Ave.

Community Programs and Events

Jobs & Opportunities

Park District Programs

Services
Home Energy Savings Program - For Spanish
For Spanish
For Spanish
For Chinese 中文
For Polish

Link

Link

Link

Link

Link

Link

Link

Link
For Chinese

11th Ward

School and Parish Information

one hope united Affordable Child Care - Spanish and Chinese

Waste Management

11th Ward

2026 Constituent Education Resource Card

The 11th Ward office is happy to announce has a free ‘Constituent Education Resource Card’ available to residents wishing to visit select museums and zoos in the Chicagoland area. Constituents can reserve our Constituent Education Resource Card on a first come first serve basis (more instructions below), to visit any of the following museums in 2026:


  • Adler Planetarium
  • The Art Institute of Chicago
  • Brookfield Zoo
  • Chicago Botanic Garden
  • Chicago Children’s Museum
  • Chicago History Museum
  • Dusable Museum of African American History
  • The Field Museum
  • Illinois Holocaust Museum & Education Center
  • Lincoln Park Zoo
  • Museum of Contemporary Art
  • Museum of Science and Industry
  • National Museum of Mexican Art
  • National Museum of Puerto Rican Arts & Culture
  • Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum
  • John G. Shedd Aquarium


Only one group of up to four (4) can reserve the pass at a time. The pass must be picked up and brought back to the 11th Ward Office. Constituents need to call for an appointment to come to the office to pick up the pass before visiting the museums. We recommend calling two business days before your scheduled visit.


It is strongly recommended that families utilizing the card contact the museum they plan to visit to learn if pre-registration is required to visit. 

Chicago Public Libraries

9th District Police District Council & Beat Meeting Schedules

The office has extended hours on Monday nights until 7:00 p.m., is open on the first Saturday of each month from 9:00am - 12:00 pm, if it's a holiday weekend, the office will

be open the following Saturday and/or Monday.


Alderwoman Lee will be happy to see residents on Monday nights from 5:30 - 7:00 p.m. If you'd like to make an appointment, please call the ward office at 773.254.6677.
 

11th Ward Office| 3659 South Halsted Chicago, IL 60609 | 773-254-6677

 
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Alderman Nicole T. Lee | 3659 S Halsted Street | Chicago, IL 60609 US
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