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Less than a week away from the Democratic National Convention (DNC), set to take place from Aug. 19-22, Chicago residents near the United Center expressed frustrations and concerns with the event’s security perimeter, which covers roughly a two-mile radius.
During the final press conference on DNC security updates on Aug. 13., Office of Emergency Management and Communication (OEMC) executive director Jose Tirado said they have been canvassing the neighborhoods since April to answer questions about the DNC security protocols.
However, many West Side residents feel left in the dark and confused just days before Chicago takes the national stage. Some residents near the United Center still have questions, with multiple saying they planned to speak with their alderperson to get more clarity about parking in front of their homes. Others said they are feeling unprioritized and inconvenienced.
According to the United Center Road Restrictions Map, there is only one vehicle screening checkpoint — for the entire security perimeter — at the intersection of Monroe and Paulina. Adjacent to the security checkpoint is the Patrick Sullivan Senior Apartments at 633 W. Madison St.
“[The Madison entrance is] gonna be blocked off, you can’t come this way. I don’t know. I’m just gonna stay in the house,” Jannice Harris-Ball, 64, said of what she plans to do during the DNC. She has lived at the senior building for two years and said she has the luxury of staying home because she receives disability benefits.
Gloria Benson, who also lives in the senior apartment complex, currently works as a home healthcare aid and isn’t able to stay home from work. Benson said her current routine involves taking the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) Madison bus. She usually walks in front of the building to wait at the bus stop.
According to a sign taped on the Madison bus stop on Aug. 12, the no. 20 bus will be rerouted to turn on Western and go up Harrison where it will then go down Ashland to return to Madison. With the reroute, Benson will have to walk to catch the bus on the corner of Ashland, nearly 400 feet from her usual stop. She worries about the wait times with the convention taking place.
“Sometimes now you might wait 25 to 30 [minutes] if they got anything going on downtown. It could be late if they got something going on at the United Center,” Benson said.
Parking restrictions began on Aug. 12 with other security restrictions for the DNC starting Friday, Aug. 16. The limits include several street closures for pedestrians and vehicles near the United Center, where the evening convention activities will take place, and McCormick Place, where morning caucus meetings and such will take place.
As a community health worker at Rush University Medical Center, Cassaundra Jackson said the hospital is preparing its employees for the restrictions. The hospital will remain open and has protocols in place to help employees and patients navigate the red tape of the security perimeters.
Jackson said hospital workers, whose work allows them to, began working remotely on Aug. 13. and will do so until Aug. 26. The hospital is located at the intersection of Harrison and Ashland at 1722 W. Harrison.
“Rush has made the decision to keep us all safe, if you can work remotely, just stay out of that area,” Jackson said.
Officials with Rush expect employees and patients to be impacted by road closures and heavy traffic, asking people to prepare for “double the travel time.”
On its DNC information page, Rush is advising patients to reschedule any in-person visits until after the convention, to schedule virtual visits if possible, or to choose a different Rush location that isn’t impacted by street closures or traffic related to the DNC.
Tobin Klinger, a spokesperson with Rush, said one of their staff parking lots, which is inside the security perimeter, will be “used for DNC vehicles, and the other will close each day at 2 p.m.” Employees are encouraged to use other parking areas such as the Rubschlager Center Parking Garage at 1549 W. Congress Pkwy.
“There is no reason a patient or a staff member should be concerned about having to have their car searched by Secret Service to get to work or receive care,” Klinger said.
UI Health will also be open for business as usual and will not be rescheduling or canceling appointments, according to its website. The University of Illinois-Chicago will also increase its police presence during the event.
Tracy Mclin, who is an employee of both Rush Medical Center and the City of Chicago, said she’s been too busy to attend any community meetings regarding the DNC security measures.
Mclin, who lives off Adams Street near the former site of the Henry Horner Homes, said the only communication she has received is from her building management who told her that she wouldn’t be able to park in front of her home and to instead use Parking Lot D, which is one block east of her on Wood St.
“I feel like you’re being barricaded into your home,” Mclin said.
On the side streets near Mclin’s home, such as Honore and Seeley which are within the pedestrian-restricted DNC area, “no parking tow zone” signs can be seen tied around trees with enforceable dates of Aug. 14 through Aug. 25 from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Although the parking restrictions hadn’t yet begun on Aug. 12, when The TRiiBE visited the area, barricades on some streets prevented vehicles from parking in the area.
Residents who live near the United Center will be able to “access their home as normal,” according to city officials, but will have to show their photo ID to agents patrolling the security perimeter. Mclin said she had to get her 12-year-old son a photo ID to verify his residency.
Those in need of a photo ID can make an appointment to get a Chicago CityKey ID at no charge.
Mclin also said her building management requested a copy of her work schedule so they can be aware of what times she will be in and out of the perimeter.
“I think it’s bullshit. Yeah, I definitely think they should have had [the DNC] somewhere else,” Mclin said.
Lifelong West Side resident Westbrook, who was uncomfortable giving her first name, said she is concerned with the parking restrictions because she lives in a permitted parking area.
“I didn’t think they were going to restrict us from parking in front of our homes. I thought they were just going to restrict others from coming in and parking over here, if you don’t live over here,” Westbrook said. “But to restrict the residents? My husband is a disabled veteran.”
Westbrook said that it’s not uncommon for the restrictions to go up during a concert or other events happening at the United Center but that residents usually just ignore the signs and park in front of their homes as restrictions can go on for “blocks and blocks.”
As a retiree who doesn’t have to commute to work during the DNC, Westbrook said she has volunteered to give her neighbor rides to work during the four days the DNC is in town, as she usually commutes by Uber, which she expects to be a nightmare to navigate with the security restrictions.
“I know how to maneuver and get around [the perimeter]. More than likely, I’ll have to go back west and then go across 290 if I need to go downtown.” Westbrook said she’ll drive down Leavitt or Oakley streets instead of the usual routes of Madison, Adams or Jackson to get where she wants to go.
According to a Police District Councilor, who asked for anonymity, one CPD personnel explained to her that the CPD is not handling patrols inside the perimeter and that the U.S. Secret Service would handle all things inside the perimeter.
According to CPD spokesperson Don Terry, the Secret Service “is responsible and in charge” of what happens inside the perimeters, while the police department is in charge of everything else.
In April, the Chicago City Council passed an ordinance that allows the Secret Service and Chicago Police Superintendent Larry Snelling to enforce the security footprint.
During a public DNC information session on Aug. 13., CPD Director Glen Brooks was unable to answer questions regarding whether the ordinance perimeter had been finalized.
According to the ordinance, those within the security footprint would not be allowed to have certain items such as backpacks, scooters or laptops. One person in attendance asked if residents who live within the footprint would be arrested if found with any of the items. Brooks didn’t explicitly answer the question, instead, he repeated that it is not CPD’s goal to make arrests but it will be “an opportunity to inform people,” adding that an increased police presence would be present on public transportation.
Brooks also could not answer questions about how the restrictions would be enforced or the conversations that would be had with residents regarding contraband in the security perimeters.
In July, some organizers appealed to federal court claiming the ordinance “cedes unchecked power to the Chicago Police Superintendent to change or alter items prohibited inside the security zone.”
Residents and those having to commute near the United Center or McCormick Place have been encouraged to download the Office of Emergency Management and Communications app and to opt-in to texts by texting “DNC” to 22678 for all updates.
While Benson and Harris-Ball enjoy sitting outside of their home at the Patrick Sullivan Senior Apartments, they worry their peace and relaxation will be disturbed by the extra security in the area who, they say, will be watching their every move.
“It really do feel like an invasion of your privacy,” Benson said. “Y’all concern ain’t the people. Y’all concern is making sure they OK down that way [by the United Center],” she added, speaking to law enforcement.
A previous version of this story incorrectly stated that all of Rush University Medical Center’s parking lots were in the security zone.
