The Chicago Reader’s Mick Dumke went to the CAPS meeting for beat 234 in Washington Park last Thursday night, and it sounds like the locals weren’t happy. From sinkholes in the streets to prostitutes in the park to an alley drug market disguised as an impromptu auto shop, Washington Park residents have a lot to complain about. Alderman Willie Cochran (20th), who didn’t attend the meeting, took a share of the blame for not being responsive.

Last month we wrote about the Opportunity Shop, a temporary art and community space in Hyde Park that was supposed to last only through the end of April. It proved so popular, and the donations proved so plentiful, that the Op Shop was extended through the beginning of June. This Saturday night is the Op Shop’s second-to-last party, and they’ve booked a handful of local bands to play: Lakesigns, the Names that Spell, Jesus Crisis, and Squat the Condos. The show starts at 8, with doors opening a half hour before that. A $2 suggested donation will get you in, or a $5 suggested donation will get you admission and “a Dixie cup to fill with whatever you want (there will be fillings),” according to Lakesigns multi-instrumentalist Eric Mayer. And mark your calendars a week from Saturday for the art space’s closing event, the Op Shop Ball.

In February we profiled ShoreBank, the paradigmatic financial institution with a social conscience. Founded in the ailing South Shore neighborhood in 1973, it has been credited with proving that responsible lending can raise a profit, serving the low-income neighborhoods that other banks ignored. Although the bank has attempted to keep up with the surging post-recession demand for its services, it has faced troubles of its own in the past months. After its assets took a significant hit, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) ordered it to raise enough capital to remain solvent. Despite seeking bailout money from the state of Illinois, private donors, and national foundations, ShoreBank’s future remained uncertain until this week. But now Crain’s Chicago Business, which has closely tracked the community development giant’s battle for survival, is reporting that General Electric has agreed to kick in $20 million, which combined with $120 million from other private sector lenders will allow the bank to access $75 million of bailout money from the Treasury Department. It now looks like ShoreBank is saved, and communities in need can breathe a sigh of relief.

Our former Editor-in-Chief Sam Feldman has written an excellent feature for this week’s Newcity on the aftermath of Chicago’s failed 2016 bid, some six months after losing to Rio de Janeiro. The remants of Chicago’s plans, plans it hoped would “stir the blood of men,” in the (alleged) words of Daniel Burnham, can especially be seen near the Michael Reese Hospital campus in Bronzeville, site of the proposed Olympic Village, and Washington Park, the site of the proposed 80,000 seat Olympic Stadium. Sam discovers what community developers, students, government officials, preservationists, and others have planned for these places now.

(Laura M. Browning/Chicagoist)

The good folks over at Chicagoist have started showcasing the many murals on the South Side. This week’s entry in their mural series is located at the Metra underpass at 56th Street and Stony Island. The mural, Childhood is Without Prejudice, features children of many races with their faces interlocked in Venn diagrams. William Walker, the artist, was one of the founders of the community art movement in the 1960s and painted many notable murals throughout Chicago, such as All of Mankind (1972) on the Strangers Home Missionary Church and the Wall of Respect (1967), now demolished.

The last mural showcased, Where We Come From… Where We’re Going (1992), also has an incredibly interesting story. Artist and UIC professor Olivia Gude, who has written a book about urban art in Chicago, stood outside the 56th and Lake Park Metra underpass and took down the stories of the passersby. She then painted their stories, omitting any names.

Childhood is Without Prejudice was restored last year, and the Chicago Public Art Group is behind many of the restorations that have taken place around the South Side. In addition to restoring historic public art, CPAG does quite a bit of work encouraging new artists, designing public art projects, and encouraging community development. They also have a handy map of all the public art around  the Chicago area.

(Dan Forbush)

According to an article in yesterday’s Tribune, the Shoreland’s developer has hired an architect for the former hotel and dormitory’s renovation. Antheus Capital has hired Jeanne Gang of Studio Gang Architects, designer of the award-winning Aqua residential tower downtown, to redesign the Shoreland’s interior for 350 rental units. Proposals include turning one of the ballrooms into a restaurant or event space and adding ammenities like a small bank and gym, but Antheus and Gang still have to convince the community to get on board. U of C students don’t come off too well in the article:

The Shoreland was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1986, an honor that meant little to undergrads. One student’s fond Shoreland memory, posted on a blog, was of hurling cans of Schlitz over the fire escape to the street below while taking in the downtown skyline.

At least they were having fun. (via Gapersblock)

(Ellis Calvin)

Coffee shops sometimes have great food, restaurants can have outstanding drinks, and bars even occasionally serve excellent coffee. The South Loop’s Little Branch Cafe is a rare combination of all of the above, as we reviewed in our 2009 Best of the South Side.

The comfortably elegant Little Branch Cafe has been expanding their menu since opening in 2007, most recently adding a heavenly-sounding dinner menu. With dishes like a Croque Madam [sic] Crepe, Warm Mediterranean Farro Salad (“toasted pine nuts, roasted red peppers, sun-dried tomatoes, goat cheese, eggplant puree, balsalmic vinaigrette”), and the Little Branch Burger (“fontina red onion gratin, truffle oil roasted mushrooms, garlic aioli served with sweet potato fries & habanero raspberry ketchup”) added to their selection of sandwiches, espresso drinks, and cocktails, I can’t wait to go back. Finding a place that skillfully handles this trinity of modern urban living (great coffee, great food, great booze) can be tough. Finding Little Branch Cafe can be tough too, so be sure to take a look at a map before setting out.

1251 S. Prairie Ave. Monday-Tuesday, 7am-4pm; Wednesday-Friday, 7am-10pm; Saturday, 8am-10pm; Sunday, 8am-8pm. (312)360-0202 littlebranchcafe.com

(courtesy of Liren Chen/Flickr)

An early morning fire spread through the kitchen of popular Chinatown restaurant Lao Sze Chuan. The blaze also damaged two neighboring restaurants in the Chinatown Square complex, but no one was injured. Although Lao Sze Chuan will likely be closed for a while, the indefatigable chef and “culinary superhero” Tony Hu has two other excellent restaurants nearby, Lao Beijing and Lao Shanghai. This fire follows a little over a year after another beloved Chinatown restaurant, Penang, succumbed to a kitchen fire. (via Gapers Block)

On a happier note, Chicagoist is reporting that the 47th Street Marketplace, destroyed by a fire in January, should be open again soon. Repairs are underway, and tenants such as Blu47 and the Jamaican Consulate are expected to be able to return in three to four months, according to building owner East Lake Management.

This Wednesday, Cafe Society will meet at Brown Sugar Bakery at 6pm to discuss “Greening the Southside” with WBEZ’s South Side correspondent Natalie Moore and Blacks in Green founder Naomi Davis. Davis is one of a number of black environmentalists who see potential in green jobs for revitalizing poor and minority communities. The discussion is free, although reservations are required, so drop by and find out more about how the South Side can get greener and golder. And don’t forget to congratulate Moore on her recent Studs Terkel Community Media Award.

Gapers Block recently published an article and video about Chicago’s street vendors, many of whom can be found on the sidewalks of Little Village selling elotes (corn with mayo, cheese, and chili powder), chicharrones (pork rinds), and other cheap, delicious snacks. It’s currently illegal to sell food that’s been prepared at a street cart in Chicago, and the Little Village-based Asociación de Vendedores Ambulantes (AVA) is lobbying the city to create a new license that would allow them to do so. You can read more about the issue in an In These Times article by CW writer Robin Peterson.

Bon Appetit magazine’s Restaurant Editor, Andrew Knowlton, includes Dat Donuts as one of the “Top 10 Best Places for Donuts” in the country.  Dat joins the ranks with Thomas Keller’s Bouchon Bakery in Yountville, CA—a far cry from the South Side of Chicago, but arguably better as the “purists’” first choice.

A former Chicago Weekly writer and Features Editor like Katie Buitrago! All of us at the Weekly want to congratulate Katie on her excellent feature in the most recent Chicago Reader, “What sort of woman reads Playboy?” It’s about Peggy Wilkins, a forty-something Hyde Park resident and University of Chicago Library server technician, who has worked her way to the top of Playboy Magazine fandom. She’s even had to rent an second apartment above the one she shares with her boyfriend to store her exhaustive collection of magazines and posters. So what drives Wilkins’s passion? Read the article to find out!

A lot’s happening in Bridgeport at the moment. Bridgeport art collective Lumpen has launched a new “community newsletter,” the Bridgeport International. Check out their first issue online or in stores around the neighborhood, and make sure to read their endorsements for today’s primary. This Friday Lumpen is holding a combination zine release party/benefit concert for the Whale, the Pilsen artists’ society building that went up in flames in December. Meanwhile, Chicago freelancer John Greenfield wrote a comprehensive tour of Bridgeport for the latest issue of bike magazine Momentum.

Do some good for Haitian disaster relief–and your sweet tooth–by checking out the charity bakesale held tomorrow from 2-6 pm at the Medici on 57th Bakery (1327 E 57th St.)  All proceeds are given directly to Doctors Without Borders and Oxfam, and goodies will be available from individual volunteers and pro bakeries from across the city, including Bleeding Heart Bakery, Jimmy Jamm Sweet Potato Pies, and Luscious Layers Bakery. More info, including the full list of participating bakeries and items (gluten-free goods should be available too), is here.

Courtesy of Golden Age

Golden Age, a Pilsen gallery and “concept shop” whose exhibitions we’ve covered before, is moving to the West Loop, according to an announcement posted on their website yesterday. In our October 2008 feature on galleries in West Pilsen, co-founder Marco Kane Braunschweiler spoke highly of the neighborhood around Golden Age. “Where there’s open storefronts [around here], those storefronts often turn into galleries,” he told us. “It seems likely that there’ll be a lot more art spaces.” Things are looking a bit different in Pilsen these days, with galleries moving out or closing right and left.

Golden Age’s last open day at its current location will be Sunday, January 24, and they expect to open at their new (undisclosed) location in the West Loop late next month.

South of Roosevelt “resides an art community that is often invisible to the mainstream,” writes Andre Guichard in the first post on his new blog, Fine Art South of Roosevelt Road. As an artist and the director of Gallery Guichard in Bronzeville, Guichard is a tireless promoter of art of the African diaspora, and the blog promises to continue this work by introducing readers to more than one hundred artists and collectors south of Roosevelt. It will also include updates about art events and exhibitions.

The Chicago Art Department offers a chance to get educated during this week’s Second Friday gallery crawl in Pilsen. Its new exhibition Video Art 101 will teach basic video art concepts, addressing such questions as: What is unique about the medium of video?  What are some of the basic techniques?  What are some of the tools and how are they used? Stop by 1837 S. Halsted St. between 6 and 10pm this Friday to learn the answers.

Sebastian Ellefson at Backstory Café

Having any legal problems? Landlord-tenant disputes, DUI questions, concerns about your small business? Drop by Backstory Café tomorrow afternoon between 1:30 and 3:30 and attorney Sebastian Ellefson will be happy to provide you with legal advice for no charge. Ellefson, who got his BA from the University of Chicago in 2003 and his JD from the University of Minnesota in 2008, practices law in Bridgeport during the week, but starting last month he’s appearing at Backstory on the first Saturday of every month to help out those in need of legal consultations. Ellefson says the free consultations are “a way to get your name out there and use your legal powers for good.”

WBEZ’s Gabriel Spitzer has a piece today on the solar plant under construction in West Pullman, which when completed will be the largest urban solar power plant in the country. When we covered the plant last May, Exelon and SunPower had just announced their plans to build it and seek federal funding. According to the WBEZ story, the two power companies received a $60 million loan guarantee from the federal government, and about one third of the solar panels have already been installed. No word yet on when the plant will go online.

Maoist polemicist Raymond Lotta issued a reply to Keith Jamieson’s recent essay, Everything You Know About Communism is Right, and had it passed out in front of the University’s Cobb Hall today.

The reply argues that the atrocities carried out in the last century by Communist revolutionary governments are part of the “learning curve” of the revolutionary project, and corrects the claim that Stalin killed millions of people to reflect the mere 700,000 or so death sentences carried out between 1937 and 1938. He asserts that regardless of the atrocities of communism, people have been lied to about it, and that the record needs to be corrected. His rebuttal also corrects some factual errors from his recent speech.

One of Lotta’s fellow Revolutionary Communist Party members and polemicists (who is curiously unnamed on the flier) will be on campus to informally “take on all comers” next Tuesday, Dec 1, 11am to 3pm in Hutchinson Commons at the University of Chicago.