Another Englewood Eyesore Razed -- Now, What?
(CBS) -- You might see a vacant lot. Cherie Travis sees an opportunity -- missed.
"No taxes coming in. Nobody living here, nobody taking care of it. It's going to be a garage dump," she tells CBS 2's Jim Williams.
But Chicago city government says all the vacant lots in Englewood are an improvement over was there before -- abandoned buildings that draw criminals. So, for decades, the city has torn down Englewood's abandoned buildings, one just a couple of weeks ago -- leaving yet another vacant lot.
Travis, a lawyer and former city employee, wants the city to take the money spent on demolition and instead rehab the buildings and put people to work in Englewood, where unemployment is very high. She is currently renovating a rental property.
"People are so desperate for jobs, they'll just walk to a stranger and say 'Hey, I'll cut the grass, I'll paint the porch - I'll do whatever,'" she says.
Englewood's Greg Williams has long been out of work.
"I've put down so many applications and no one's called me back yet and I haven't given up hope," he says.
City of Chicago spokesperson Mimi Simon said buildings are only torn down as a last resort, when they're used by criminals and they're unsound and unsafe. She says the properties are beyond repair.
