The room was brightly lit against the fading light of the afternoon as board members took their seats around the square conference table. Notes shuffled around, pens and pencils were whipped out, and everyone quieted down as 43rd Ward Alderman Michele Smith scanned the group before officially starting the first Neighbor Relations meeting.

On October 19 at approximately 5:30pm, ten Lincoln Park constituents filed into the administrative conference room at Parker where Smith waited to lead her meeting. Next to Smith sat Alyssa Gail Martin, the Community Outreach Director for the ward, and just across the table were Principal Dan Frank and Assistant Principal Ruth Jurgensen. The main topics: further developing Clark Street, feral neighborhood cats, and parking near Parker.

Smith is serving her second term as Alderman of the 43rd Ward, which contains the Lincoln Park, Gold Coast, and Old Town communities.

The group was formed to make a relationship between Parker and its neighbors, to discuss comments and concerns on the neighborhood.

The meeting began promptly with attendees introducing themselves with their name and address. Then Smith asked Frank and Jurgensen to share any updates on Parker, which is how previous meetings have usually started, Smith said.

“It’s a dynamic place to be,” Jurgensen said, about the school. “We’ve become a real beacon for changemakers… Ta-Nehisi Coates was here, not a seat available. We’re seeing more and more people coming here to hear from remarkable folks.”

Frank made a note about the newly renovated library, and the spaces that are now available for anyone in the building, saying, “As a public meeting space, it’s a very flexible environment. It’s another opportunity for the community to have a place for people to talk.”

Following this update, one constituent inquired about progress on Clark Street developments. “Clark Street’s not a bad place, but on paper, three liquor stores and five sports bars in a two block area?” a participant at the meeting said. “It sounds a lot worse than it is. Is something bad happening?”

Smith answered, “First of all, the Walgreens is going to be developed… ground level retail with upper floor luxury apartments. Something perfectly normal is being done, but they [the Zoning Department] say we can’t have a loading zone in an easement. It’s 35 apartments with parking.”

Another member responded, “There’s very little in the way of family-friendly places on Clark.”

“I don’t disagree with you,” Smith said, as she referenced the corner of Clark and Fullerton. “When we started in 2011, the entire Belden Center was vacant… the consistent thing about this corner is the landlord, who owns the Standard Market Grill and all the space beneath it. That owner has a plan to rebuild that plaza in a way that’s very positive.”

Due to laws regarding business near schools, specifically liquor stores, it can be difficult to find retailers to fill rental space near Parker. “The school is an obstacle,” Smith said. “It’s a barrier to quick rental.”

Another constituent said, “Because we have the school, we have some relief. We don’t have sports bars and liquor stores. As a resident, it’s a plus.”

A different member shared information on the “Cats At Work” program, established about a year ago. The program shelters feral cats and puts them on Belden Street to take care of the rats that roam the street and alleyways. So far, according to “Chicago Business” on April 5, 2016, 3,500 feral cats have been placed in Lincoln Park. However, there’s an issue of people walking by and interacting with the cats because they appear to be strays. One idea for a solution was collars with tags saying that the cats are working cats.

The meeting moved along, with Smith addressing a variety of issues, including garbage trucks, drain aggregates, and drivers on their cell phones who run stop signs.

Further into the meeting, a constituent asked about the start time of activities on Parker’s turf field in the mornings. This led to a more in-depth discussion about the block of Webster Avenue between Stockton Avenue and Lincoln Park West, specifically the buses that park there in the afternoons to pick up Parker athletes.

“I’ve asked officers out there to ticket them, but they say we have a courtesy arrangement,” Jurgensen said. “We tell the bus companies they can’t park there.”

“Your officers cannot write a ticket — they’re off duty,” a constituent said. “It’s an incredible hazard of stop signs being blocked from view.”

“There are two different needs going on at the same time,” Frank said. “Parents come pick their kids up, and the buses come pick up the athletes.”

Constituents voiced complaints about double parkers on the same block of Webster. Jurgensen was optimistic about a solution.

“We have an outstanding academic program,” she said. “I’ve asked the Design Thinking co-chairs to give me a group of kids to do a study to resolve this issue. Their thinking is better than our thinking.”

Following some apprehensiveness, Jurgensen continued. “They will come and see you, they will talk to parents,” she said. “We’re going to approach it totally differently.”

After a few final comments and announcements, the meeting wrapped up just shy of seven. The group will reconvene at the next meeting on January 11.