October 11, 2024

Casten Leads Congressional Delegation Members in Urging Mayor Johnson to Open Southwest Side Police Precinct

***FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE***

Chicago, IL — Today, U.S. Congressman Sean Casten sent a letter to Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson urging him to convert the former National Guard Armory at 5400 West 63rd Street to a police precinct.

“Earlier this year, the Illinois State Legislature passed, and Governor Pritzker signed, House Bill 478, a law to transfer the former National Guard Armory at 5400 West 63rd Street to the city for the purpose of adding an additional city police precinct near the Midway airport,” the members wrote in a letter to Mayor Johnson. “We urge you to use this space for its intended purpose and convert the armory into a police precinct.”

In addition to Rep. Casten, the letter was signed by Rep. Garcia and Rep. Schneider.

A copy of the letter can be found here, and the text of the letter can be found below.

Dear Mayor Johnson,

Earlier this year, the Illinois State Legislature passed, and Governor Pritzker signed, House Bill 478, a law to transfer the former National Guard Armory at 5400 West 63rd Street to the city for the purpose of adding an additional city police precinct near the Midway airport. We urge you to use this space for its intended purpose and convert the armory into a police precinct.

We continue to hear from our constituents about their concern for public safety and the need for a stronger police presence on the Southwest side. Residents of the neighborhood overwhelmingly support the development of this new precinct. This year, over 86% of voters in Wards 13 and 23 approved an advisory referendum demanding a new police station. This new precinct would relieve pressures on the existing Chicago Lawn precinct, which is the second largest in the city. The current police district for that area, District 8, has the lowest officer-to-resident ratio in the entire city, with one police district for over 250,000 residents. Despite this public support, your administration introduced a city ordinance designating this space as a storage facility.

We understand your concerns about potential Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) regulation violations if the City of Chicago converted the 63rd Street armory into a police precinct. We appreciate and share your focus on aviation safety. However, we believe there is a path forward.

Federal law requires entities to provide notice about any proposed construction, alteration, establishment, or expansion of a structure that could interfere with air commerce. The FAA addresses these requirements through regulations outlined in Part 77 of Title 14 of the Code of Federal Regulations, which includes an FAA aeronautical study to assess the impact on aviation of some structures that are subject to FAA notification requirements. The FAA then evaluates whether the facility might interfere with navigation or communications transmissions from the airport or other air navigation facilities. In discussions with the FAA, we are confident that the addition of a city police precinct would comply with their regulations.

In addition, since the airport does not own the land, the FAA does not have jurisdiction over its use as a police precinct. However, the FAA would require the city to keep the agency informed throughout the land development process and work collaboratively to develop a solution for the use of the land in the parking lot, which borders the Midway runways, as well as building height restrictions if new structures are built on the land. In particular, the city may need to discuss options with the FAA to separate parts of the land from abutting Air Operations Areas of Midway Airport.

In conclusion, we are confident that with active collaboration and communication with the FAA, the armory can be converted into a police precinct, as the law intended.

Therefore, we urge the City to start the process of converting 5400 West 63rd Street into a new police precinct for the Southwest side of Chicago. The community strongly supports this development, recognizing its significant benefit to public safety in the area.

We stand ready to assist and look forward to continuing to work together to bolster public safety.

Sincerely,

Rep. Casten, Rep. Garcia and Rep. Schneider