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First day of migrant evictions in Chicago leads to confusion; only 3 removed from shelters

Nell Salzman, Chicago Tribune on

Published in News & Features

CHICAGO — After months of postponing shelter evictions for migrants, Mayor Brandon Johnson doubled down last week on Sunday’s deadline to remove migrants who had surpassed the 60-day limit.

The result? Just three of the 11,000 shelter residents were evicted Sunday.

Outside of shelters, migrants and volunteers who had set up tables to help those being removed expressed confusion at the lack of evictions and were left with unanswered questions.

At a Friday briefing with reporters, city officials said 34 migrants were scheduled to leave Sunday. The adults were slated to be evicted from three different migrant shelters.

But officials said Monday four were exempted because of disability and pregnancy. The other 27 were awaiting benefits from the state for housing or other protections.

Johnson’s deputy chief of staff Cristina Pacione-Zayas told the Chicago Tribune that the small number of evictions was not a “sleight of hand” after the eviction announcements, but rather a response to an ever-evolving and “fluid” situation.

 

City officials say that coffers for sheltering migrants are running out, and closing shelters is a sure-proof way to save costs. But Johnson has delayed enforcing his shelter limit policy three times now, facing consternation from advocates who say thousands of migrants — many sent to Chicago on buses by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott — have few other housing options.

“What we can say today can easily change tomorrow if we get eight buses,” Pacione-Zayas said. “We prepared for 34 exits, and there were only three.”

On Friday, Johnson’s administration exempted about 4,500 migrants who were set to be evicted from the shelter system this spring.

Pacione-Zayas said though she knows that it is important to publicly share the reasons for exemptions, she wants to be careful with migrants’ personal information.

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