(Above) Photo of the temporarily-closed Inn of Chicago from the hotel’s website.

By Steven Dahlman

18-Nov-24 – The closing of Streeterville’s controversial migrant shelter is part of a citywide change intended to improve housing and support services for all homeless Chicagoans.

The shelter at the former Inn of Chicago at 162 East Ohio Street officially closed on November 15. A new central sheltering system, announced by Mayor Brandon Johnson on October 21, will add as many as 3,800 additional beds to the 3,000 beds currently provided by the Department of Family and Support Services.

“This transition reflects a sharper decline in migration trends and the current budget realities of our city,” said Johnson (right). “We are committed to ensuring that all Chicagoans requiring support receive it more equitably and effectively.”

2nd Ward Alderman Brian Hopkins and 42nd Ward Alderman Brendan Reilly welcomed the closing of the Ohio Street shelter. Both have been vocal proponents of ending the shelter’s operations due to a rise in crime and a decline in the quality of life in the surrounding area.

More than 1,500 migrants have lived at the shelter. Since the shelter opened in late 2022 under Mayor Lori Lightfoot, Reilly says his office has received numerous complaints about criminal activity in the neighborhood, trash accumulation, and loitering. Issues also included, according to Hopkins, theft from local retailers, drug activity, and vandalism.

Assurances from Mayor Johnson’s administration that the issues would be addressed were, said Reilly, “clearly empty promises.”

The “One System Initiative” will replace a current system for new arrivals that is ending on December 31. Johnson says the new system will be “a more cost-effective, equitable, and strategic approach that addresses homelessness for all who need support in the City of Chicago.”

Reilly calls One System “a questionable initiative.”

“To be very clear, that new initiative is meant to mask the...amount of money that has being spent on this crisis,” Reilly (left) told River North Residents Association on November 13.

“And it’s because the price tag is actually exorbitant and it’s certainly a big factor in why our city budget is in the bad shape that it’s in today. Not the only reason – there are many reasons – but certainly it’s one of those factors,” he said.

In his weekly newsletter to constituents on November 4, Hopkins says he expressed to Mayor Johnson his opposition to the Ohio Street shelter on three separate occasions.

“I am thankful the administration has heeded calls from thousands of residents and dozens of businesses calling for the closure of the site,” said Hopkins.