The national SPARCC initiative awarded $1 million to L-Evated Chicago, a new collaborative that will work to create hubs of opportunity along Chicago’s existing transit system – specifically, the Green Line, Pink Line, and Blue Line. IFF is a member of this diverse collaborative working to align capital, policy, and programmatic resources with the particular interests and needs of communities within a half-mile radius of transit stations.
Chicago was selected as one of six cities to receive initial funding from SPARCC – the Strong, Prosperous, And Resilient Communities Challenge – as part of the national group’s three-year initiative to amplify locally-driven efforts to make communities more equitable.
“We have great projects and activities already underway in communities like East Garfield Park and North Lawndale,” said Robin Schabes, Vice President of Community Development Initiatives at IFF, which is currently focused on initiatives on Chicago’s West Side. “With the SPARCC initiative, we will be able to reach further into these and other communities to make sure investments build on and respect our existing community efforts and assets.”
L-Evated Chicago members are: Center for Neighborhood Technology, Chicago Community Trust, Chicago Department of Public Health, Enterprise Community Partners Chicago, IFF, Latin United Community Housing Association, Metropolitan Planning Council, University of Chicago’s Arts+Public Life, and Washington Park Development Group.