$20 million investment in South, West sides will target housing, economic development

The city’s south and west sides are set to receive a $20 million investment to encourage development in those long-distressed communities, Mayor Lori Lightfoot announced Monday.

The money, coming from Fifth Third Bank, is part of a two-year-old federal program that uses tax incentives to encourage private investment in low-income communities.

“It’s designed to help transform some of our nation’s most challenged communities,” Fifth Third - Chicago Chairman and CEO Mitchell Feiger said at a Monday news conference on the South Side at which Lightfoot and Gov. J.B. Pritzker also appeared. “I’m confident it will have that impact here.”

The money is intended for projects that can “transform affordable housing, revitalize the local retail economy and create jobs,” Feiger said.

The specific projects are expected to be announced in the coming months, officials said.

Lightfoot, who has made South Side and West Side investment a cornerstone of her administration, called it an “incredible announcement.”

“This is a big day for the entire city of Chicago, and particularly on our south and west sides ... areas that have been underinvested and underserved for generations, but are brimming with potential.”