The latest investments to revitalize the Bronzeville neighborhood come as a new fieldhouse at Williams Park and significant upgrades to the Chicago Bee library branch, the mayor’s office announced Tuesday.
These developments come after the recent announcement of the residential housing initiative, Parade of Homes, which will convert vacant land into single-family homes.
The Williams Park Fieldhouse located at 2820 South State Street will be nearly 10,000-square-feet and feature a half-court gymnasium and club rooms fro art, education, performance, meetings and exercise.
Two floors of the Chicago Bee library branch will be rehabbed to improve services. YOUmedia, a digital media space aimed at exploring career opportunities, will be built for teens and their mentors. A section of the library will also feature an area dedicated to early learning. Traditional services such as book clubs, educational programming, computer classes and one-on-one digital literacy classes will be offered as well.
The library is located within a landmark building in the former space of the Chicago Bee, a weekly newspaper published in Bronzeville from 1925 to 1947. The library opened in the building in 1996.
Other recent investments in the area include the new Mariano’s grocery store, the 35th Street pedestrian bridge and the Ellis Park Arts and Recreation center. Bronzeville is among several neighborhoods including Englewood and Woodlawn undergoing a resurgence of public and private investments under the Mayor’s leadership.
