WORKLOCAL.ORG Community Jobs Initiative

Founded in 1982 as an affiliate of the New City YMCA, LEED Council became an independent not-for-profit community development corporation in 2001. As a delegate agency of the Chicago Department of Housing & Economic Development, LEED Council serves businesses in the North River Industrial Corridor from Milwaukee, Kinzie & Desplaines (southeast) to Belmont & the Kennedy Expressway (northwest).

LEED Council has worked with hundreds of companies in the North River Industrial Corridor on identifying solutions to problems that impact their operations, such as balanced land use and development, and better access to city services and programs.  LEED Council was instrumental in creating Planned Manufacturing Districts (PMDs) to maintain affordable industrial land to retain Chicago’s employment based. The Clybourn corridor was designated as Chicago’s first PMD in 1988. The Elston and Goose Island PMDs were created in 1991, followed by the Chicago-Halsted PMD in 1998.

LEED Council integrates economic and employment development by proactively negotiating hiring agreements with companies such as Federal Express, Jetro Carry & Cash, and Costco, relocating into the industrial corridor, and linking new job creation to local residents.  LEED Council assists over 300 job seekers each year in its industrial, green sector and computer skills training and job placement programs.

Since 1992, LEED Council has assisted more than 325 entrepreneurs to start or expand their small businesses by providing business planning classes, counseling, and referrals for micro-loans, and legal and accounting assistance.  LEED Council offers financial education for parent groups, public housing residents and trainees in its skills classes.

In 2003, LEED Council implemented sustainable development programs and has assisted 50 businesses to voluntarily reduce their pollution emissions through strategies such as purchasing energy-efficient equipment and lighting, using low-VOC paints and cleaners, and promoting public transit for employees. We are currently researching opportunities for renewable energy production in the industrial corridor and developing an expanded list of green sector jobs programs, including training classes for Weatherization Specialists, Home Energy Auditors, and Commercial and Residential Solar Photovoltaic (SPV) Installers.

Click for more information

The Logan Square Neighborhood Association’s (LSNA) mission is to convene a network of neighbors, schools, businesses, social service agencies, faith communities, and other organizations to collaborate for thriving communities in Logan Square, Avondale, and Lathrop Homes. LSNA is committed to empowering and maintaining these communities as diverse, safe, and affordable neighborhoods in which to live and work, learn and grow.

To ensure that the voices of all Logan Square residents are heard, every piece of LSNA’s work is done in deep consultation and partnership with leaders in the community, including clergy, principals, teachers, parents, and other institutional and neighborhood leaders. Forty-five community institutions including schools, churches, block clubs, and agencies are members of LSNA, engaging more than 2,000 people in organizing and supporting programs.  Additionally, LSNA is a leader in deep city- and state-wide coalitions in order to achieve its collective goals.

This holistic approach results in strategic, consistent efforts toward ongoing community improvements including: lowering high school drop-out rates and increasing youth leadership; fostering parent engagement in neighborhood schools and creating community school partnerships; lowering home foreclosures and increasing access to affordable housing; helping children and families gain access to affordable health services; developing initiatives to make Logan Square a safer place to live while reaching out to families to prevent abuse of alcohol and drugs; making major new investments in retail space, green economic developments, and parks & open spaces; and finally, offering immigrants the tools to advance economically and become citizens.

LSNA directly serves over 7,000 adults and children through these various programs, and its organizing work impacts tens of thousands more.  In fact, as neighborhoods from across the nation and around the globe look to LSNA for replicable models of community leadership and development, Logan Square stands as a true example of how one community can transform the world.

Click for more information

Formed through the merger of the Department of Community Development and the Department of Zoning and Land Use Planning on Jan. 1, 2011, the Department of Housing and Economic Development (HED) promotes economic development in Chicago by helping existing businesses grow and by attracting new industry to the city. The department also leads Chicago's affordable housing, housing preservation and community-based homebuyer assistance programs, as well as the city's zoning, land use planning, sustainability and historic preservation initiatives. The department works in cooperation with community and business groups, elected officials, delegate agencies and other community stakeholders.

Click for more information