This story is published on thetriibe.com in partnership with Free Spirit Media’s experimental “learning newsroom” program, The Real Chi.
More than 6.6 million people applied for unemployment aid last week as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to rock the U.S. economy. With the recent extension of federal social distancing guidelines and the Illinois stay-at-home order extended to April 30, many residents are worried about making ends meet. Two groups at the center of this rising tension are landlords and renters.
On Wednesday (April 1), Mayor Lori Lightfoot announced that the Chicago Housing Authority (CHA) will defer rent for thousands of tenants living in public housing as long as the Illinois stay-at-home order remains in effect.
Additionally, over the past week or so, the city has launched several new measures to address housing concerns and to shield residents from potential economic fallout as the coronavirus crisis worsens. Those measures include:
COVID-19 Housing Assistance Grant, one-time, $1,000 grants available for rent and mortgage payments for Chicago residents impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic (the application deadline was April 1).
A moratorium on evictions, foreclosures and utility shutoffs.
Rental Assistance, a program for individuals and families who are in immediate risk of eviction.
Chicago Community COVID-19 Response Fund, a support fund for nonprofits and community organizations serving people significantly impacted by the coronavirus outbreak.
Chicago Small Business Resiliency Fund, a $100 million fund to provide small businesses with emergency cash flow during this immediate health crisis.
“We are working closely with the country and state to explore other possible solutions we can bring to residents who are in need,” Lightfoot said at a Wednesday (April 1) press conference.
Although these efforts will help thousands of Chicagoans in-need, where does this leave other residents with landlords who are expecting rent checks this week? At a recent press conference, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker said that he did not have the authority to freeze rent because of a state law moratorium on rent control.
So many Chicago renters are taking matters into their own hands by participating in a rent strike, making a collective decision to not pay rent throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. There’s a petition floating online calling on Lightfoot, Gov. Pritzker and Cook County Chief Judge Timothy C. Evans to put a freeze on rent and mortgage payments indefinitely. It’s received 16,000 signatures so far.
Groups such as Working Family Solidarity, an organization striving to help Black and Latinx families with job and housing opportunities, and Autonomous Tenants Union, which represents tenants in Albany Park, have endorsed the petition. Both organizations believe a rent freeze is in the best interest of Chicago residents, especially since there’s no telling how long the impact of the coronavirus will last, even after the pandemic is over.
The TRiiBE spoke with a landlord, community organizations and a renter about the situation here in Chicago. Here is what they had to say. (These interviews have been edited and condensed for clarity).
