It is no secret that Chicago faces an affordable housing crisis, with 200,000 families on Chicago Housing Authority waitlists and no quick solution in sight. As CEO of the Chinese American Service League — a nonprofit that uplifts underserved families and individuals in Chicago neighborhoods including Chinatown/Armour Square, McKinley Square, Bridgeport and beyond — I have been pleased to see our elected leaders, including Mayor Brandon Johnson, focus on housing solutions for in-need communities.
However, history has shown that Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) communities have undeniably been left out of these discussions. Building a stronger, more equitable Chicago requires every community’s voice, and I hope AAPI leaders can be part of the solution.
Housing costs are rising across the city and nationwide, and our community is especially vulnerable to that reality. The median household income in Armour Square is $37,405 — 43% lower than the median household income of Chicago at large, according to the Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning. In fact, CMAP data shows that many lower-income Armour Square households spend more than 30% of their income on housing costs, including almost one in five households making $20,000 or less and about one in six households making $20,000 to $49,999.
Thousands of AAPI families are being forced to move west of Chinatown/Armour Square as housing costs continue to increase, something we have observed through both population data and our internal client data. As of 2020, Asian Americans now make up the largest demographic in Bridgeport. McKinley Park’s Asian population share has almost quadrupled, from 7.6% to 28.4%, since 2000.
Even more devastating is the fact that 27% of Chinese American respondents to our Change InSight survey initiative reported being unhoused.
Years-long waitlists for Asian seniors
This housing squeeze will only intensify in the future. Asian Americans are Chicago’s fastest growing demographic, and Chicago’s Chinatown is also the only growing Chinatown in the United States, with the neighborhood’s Chinese population doubling since 1990.
AAPI seniors are especially vulnerable as rents continue to increase and families continue to be displaced. Nearly 30% of Asians 60 and older in the Bridgeport, McKinley Park, and Chinatown/Armour Square areas (ZIP codes 60608, 60609, 60616, 60632) live in poverty, according to U.S. Census data. That’s nearly double the citywide rate.
The Chinese American Service League has a years-long waitlist for our senior housing units, and some seniors have unfortunately passed away before being able to access a unit. Seniors — especially those who immigrated to Chicago — deserve to live with dignity in a culturally appropriate environment such as Chinatown if they choose, but the economic reality prevents too many of them from doing so.
While there have been individual affordable housing developments in AAPI communities in the past, the city has had numerous opportunities to bring our communities permanently to the table moving forward.
Take, for example, the city’s Inclusionary Housing Task Force. In 2020, the task force produced a 52-page report with numerous recommendations to improve access to affordable, high-quality housing across the city.
The report did not include any specific recommendations to benefit AAPI communities. It found the Affordable Requirements Ordinance “should increase production of units priced at [area median income] that are more accessible to lower-income Black and Latinx Chicagoans,” with no mention of Asian Americans or Pacific Islanders. Discouragingly, the word “Asian” is not found a single time in the report.
Collaborate to find solutions
The city supports 556 affordable rental housing developments, but few in AAPI population centers. Near our office, just one city-supported development is in Chinatown/Armour Square, only two are in Bridgeport and none are in McKinley Park. Elsewhere in the city, Uptown has 33 city-supported developments, West Ridge has six and Edgewater has seven.
Or consider the city’s Invest South/West initiative, which has generated $2.2 billion toward economic development projects, including affordable housing, in 10 disinvested neighborhoods on the South and West sides. This program is very necessary and an admirable step in the right direction — and one that should be replicated in other communities.
All these efforts are laudable, and I do not wish to discourage city officials from supporting these programs. But continuing to exclude vulnerable AAPI communities will damage the diverse fabric of the entire city.
The Chinese American Service League exists to create a more equitable future for all Chicagoans, regardless of race or background. That cannot happen if we as a city leave AAPI communities behind.
We are more than happy to work with city leaders to support our most in-need community members and we invite them to collaborate with us to work toward solutions.
Paul Luu is CEO of the Chinese American Service League.
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