Artist Kristen C. Williams works in her studio at Artists on the 9, an arts facility and gallery in an old building on 79th Street that was rehabbed by the Greater Chatham Initiative with funding from the Driehaus Foundation.
, that historic preservation can both save beautiful buildings and develop underserved communities, according to Anne Lazar, the foundation’s executive director.“This is an opportunity to continue Richard’s long legacy of support for historic preservation that’s done in a meaningful way,” she said. “We want to sustain and protect Chicago’s historic structures, but the other part of that equation is to spur economic development.
GCI opened Artists on the 9 in 2022 and brought in storyboard artist Kristen Williams and visual artist Anthony Olusina Schleicher as its first artists-in-residence. It also launched other development projects nearby on 79th Street, including Mahalia Jackson Court, a public plaza for the arts, all meant to transform the blocks between Cottage Grove Avenue and State Street into a cultural destination.
at 735 E. 79th St., then a realty office, in what appeared to be a random shooting, as she dropped off some documents.The Driehaus Foundationawarded $2.3 million to the nonprofit Preservation Chicago, $1.43 million to the Better Government Association and $1.5 million to Arts Work Fund.