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Chicago Heights residents urge Cook County help after series of fires, cite broken hydrants and demolition needs
Summary
Residents displaced by October 2024 fires in Chicago Heights urged the Cook County Board to help with demolition and rebuilding, saying local hydrants failed and available insurance was insufficient; they asked whether HUD CDBG funds or county programs can fill gaps.
Several Chicago Heights residents told the Cook County Board of Commissioners that multiple house fires left families homeless and that local infrastructure and emergency response failures worsened the damage.
Doris Williams, a senior citizen who identified herself as a resident of 1513 Lowell Avenue, said the building at 315 West 25th Street lacked gas, hot water, housekeeping and caregiver services and that multiple nearby homes were burned. “On 10/22/24, the Chicago Heights Fire Department came with no water to put out a fire and allow 6 homes to be burned down to the ground,” Williams said, asking the county to review the situation and help displaced residents.
Alicia Campbell, who said she and family members were displaced on Oct. 22, 2024, said the hydrant at 15th and Lowell had been broken “for several years,” and that although a replacement was purchased in December 2022, the hydrant had not been functional when needed. She said the family is temporarily housed in a hotel and is underinsured: “We need help. We need our houses demoed,” Campbell said, asking for county assistance with demolition funding.
Both speakers cited HUD Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds as a possible source for demolition assistance. Williams noted she was told HUD could use CDBG funds for demolition, and asked whether the county or its partners could help rebuild. Neither speaker reported a specific promise of county funding during the meeting.
County commissioners acknowledged the public comments as the board proceeded to other agenda matters. The meeting record shows the public-comment period closed before the board took up a broad consent calendar of approvals and referrals; no formal directive to allocate demolition funds appeared in the transcript.
What happens next: Commissioners did not announce a county-funded demolition program during the session. Residents requested that county staff or relevant committees review their cases; the transcript records the pleas but does not include a formal vote or referral directly tied to these demolition requests.
