Chicago State University presents Jazz on the Grass

 Long time no hear. Here's an event to put on your calendar, especially if you live near the campus of Chicago State University (9501 S. King Drive) . Jazz on the Grass on August 20, 2025. 

h/t Concerned Citizens of Chatham

The former Illinois Service Federal branch on 87th Street soon to reopen

 If you live in Chatham and do business with GN Bank - formerly known as Illinois Service Federal - is reopening their former branch on 87th Street & King Drive. According to Steve Daniels from Crain's:

Chairman Papa Kwesi Nduom, whose wealthy family rescued the bank in 2016 with millions in fresh capital when it was on the brink of failure, says the Chatham branch is open on a drive-thru basis for withdrawals and deposits. It will return to full service once licensing is completed, he says.

“This is being done to signal to the community that we are putting customer service high on our priority list,” he says in an email.

If you were following the FB page Concerned Citizens of Chatham the issue with this closure is what would replace the bank on this property. There were concerned about a marijuana dispensary possibly being located there. Well now a bank will be back on this property.

BTW, this article was from last year. GN Bank is a Ghanian-American company who rescued ISF in 2016 from failure. In this December 2021 article from ProPublica we find out GN Bank has a number of issues:

Five years later, the historic institution — renamed GN Bank — remains deeply troubled. Under the Nduoms, the bank has closed one of its two locations, cut staff, alienated many longtime customers and effectively stopped making new home loans, though that’s one of the central reasons for its existence. In 2020, the bank was again put under restrictions after regulators found “new violations of law, rule or regulation.”

Yet the Nduoms aren’t solely responsible for GN’s struggles. Regulators have failed to carry out a federal mandate to “preserve and promote” Black-owned banks, a ProPublica investigation has found.

Leading up to the Nduoms’ acquisition, the federal Office of the Comptroller of the Currency ordered the bank to reduce the risk in its loans, which led to less revenue. Then, the agency signed off on the new owners, even though they lacked banking experience in the United States and had investments abroad that posed known regulatory risks. Since then, the bank has been under close watch, yet the Nduoms have made a series of decisions that diminished the bank’s profile and quality of service.

CBS Chicago: Workers at south side motor vehicle facility says coronavirus is rampant

[VIDEO] This is out of the Charles Chew Driver Services facility at 99th and King Drive, employees spoke to Jermont Terry hiding their identities over fear of retaliation from the Illinois Secretary of State:

The employees hid their identities, yet spoke out after receiving a letter dated May 1. It warns them someone tested positive for COVID-19 and they were possibly exposed.

“It’s kind of concerning – to not just myself, but everyone else – because we have families to go home to,” the first employee said.

That notice was the second in fewer than three weeks that the Secretary of State sent to employees about a positive case and the chance of exposure. But workers told CBS 2 there is no recommendation or mandate ever to get tested.

And if they do get a COVID test, they say they have to burn up sick time while waiting on the results.

Here's hoping they resolve this as hopefully this state will begin the process of returning to some semblance of normal. 

Update to the former ISF branch on 87th & King Drive #Ward09

 

You might have seen this on Concerned Citizens of Chatham where a sign was posted on the building to the former Illinois Service Federal now GN Bank branch regarding a zoning change from business to residential. That means they must come to Ald. Anthony Beale for any proposals for this property.

CBS Chicago: 22-Year-Old Woman Shot While Sitting In Car In Rosemoor

 

[VIDEO] Sorry to have missed this it was from overnight Thursday into Friday a 22-year-old woman was found shot in her head near 102nd & King Drive reported on WBBM-TV. She survived but due to her injuries was't able to give a good description of the shooters.

BlockClubChi: Chatham Building That Housed Black-Owned Bank For Sale For $1.5 Million

 I shared news about this last week on this blog. Jamie Nesbit Golden writes about this.

A Chatham building that housed a Black-owned bank is for sale for $1.5 million. https://t.co/YuYZrYyTlL pic.twitter.com/iq4k623UdG

— Block Club Chicago (@BlockClubCHI) February 5, 2021

Bank branch at 87th & King Drive for sale

347-371 E 87th Street

This former Illinois Service Federal/GN Bank branch is for sale on 87th & King Drive. When driving by I've observed that there's hardly any business taking place there. I and perhaps others who live nearby wondered if this branch had been closed since ISF was purchased by GN Bank. And now we see some evidence of this with this listing shared by Concerned Citizens of Chatham.

This location is right on the borderline of both Wards 6 & 9.

WGN: MBMHMC near MLK Memorial Bridge this morning

 

[VIDEO] That 15 second clip shared earlier on another post didn't do justice to what My Block My Hood My City did at the Charles Chew Secretary of State facility on this MLK holiday. And I also wanted to share this FB post over at MBMHMC today regarding this volunteer PPE giveaway.

MLK: 'Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that.'

 

[VIDEO] I was driving along King Drive one evening and saw the lettering on the bridge. I knew of the designation of this bridge over the Bishop Ford fka Calumet Expressway as the MLK memorial bridge. It's something Roseland Heights Community Association is talking about. It's great to know Jahmal Cole's My Block, My Hood, My City was involved with along with the Rosemoor Community Association.

Meanwhile, this morning My Block, My Hood, My City was handing out PPE to senior citizens at the nearby Secretary of State facility at 99th & King drive on the MLK holiday as you see in this short video from WBBM-TV. [VIDEO]

IL driver services facilities are reopening today

 

[VIDEO] This was reported not long after the new year on WBBM-TV, however, it's worth sharing with you that secretary of state driver's services facilities will reopen today. Of course we're still in a pandemic so perhaps what you experienced during the summer last year before they closed down facilities again will still be ongoing.

Check out WBBM's Jim Williams for more details for example:

Extended to June 1st are expirations of driver's licenses and I.D. cards

Also it's advised that you visit cyberdriveillinois.com for renewals of license plates, driver's licenses, and I.D. cards.

BTW, Happy New Year's. I hope it was both safe and enjoyable.

Secretary of State Driver Services facilities closed until Jan. 4, 2021

 This was shown on the Capitol Fax blog on Friday, however, this is news you can use. Driver services facilities for the Secretary of State will be closed for the rest of the year due to the coronavirus pandemic. This includes the facility on 99th & King Dr or 9901 S. King Drive.

SoS announces Driver Services facilities will remain closed for in-person service until January 4 https://t.co/BEKNDzAgyn

— Rich Miller (@capitolfax) December 4, 2020

Here's hoping they try to take care of those long lines that seem to form when people go to a Secretary of State facility when they opened up during the course of the summer.

The Sixth Ward: From ISF to GN Bank - name change

I posted this yesterday to The Sixth Ward. The Illinois Service Federal branch on 87th & King Drive you could say is technically in Chicago's 9th Ward. And if you patronize this location soon it will have a new name!

From ISF to GN Bank - name change https://t.co/RRqfHuiPFg

— The Sixth Ward (@TheSixthWard) July 25, 2018

The Walgreen's on 95th & King Drive is closing

In about one month the Walgreen's location at 347 E. 95th Street will be closed permanently on June 27, 2016. It'll just be another vacant storefront just like the former Wendy's across the street on 95th.

The flyer you see below is seen on a table as you enter the store and signs are posted in that location alerting customers of the impending closing. This particular space had only been open for roughly a decade.

DNA Info: Put A Park, Not A Cell Tower, In Vacant Lot In Roseland, Residents Say

The pictures above were shot in April 2016 near 107th & King Drive of a vacant lot which as you see in the pic above is zoned for a cellphone tower. A group of Roseland activists want to see this turned into a park:

Members of the 9th Ward Greater Roseland Community Coalition said they fear the potential environmental and health threats the cell tower could bring to the empty lot at 107th Street between Vernon and Eberhart avenues.
...
The neighborhood coalition has been circulating petitions opposing the cellphone tower. Members said they want the land cleaned up and turned into a park and botanical garden.

Of course there's this:

The city did an environmental screen of the site in 2014 to identify any potential environmental concerns and said the site’s history of pollution doesn’t make it the best location for a garden.

"The site is listed as an abandoned service station, and available records identified several underground storage tank (UST) installations and removals dating back to 1953," a letter from Fleet Management to [9th ward Ald. Anthony] Beale reads. "In addition, at least three USTs were abandoned in place in 1984, and a demolition notice was issued in 1996. Although no releases have been reported for the Site, the majority of the USTs were removed or abandoned in the 1970s and early 1980s, prior to requirements to have spill protection, conduct confirmation sampling, or report releases."

The letter says that since there is no data available to confirm a release hasn't taken place, the tanks "present an environmental concern to the Site."

It was recommended that the site not be used as a community garden because there is “high potential for both current and historic USTs at the site.”

Bryant Payne, a spokesman for Beale, confirmed Friday that the land is contaminated and that before anything is built there, it would have to be cleaned up.

This is a nice lot that could see some use in the future. How successful will this group be in getting it cleaned up and hopefully a garden could be placed there instead of a cell tower?

Oh yeah a recent ig post about this lot below.

This lot was noted in a story at @dnainfochi a community group wants a garden here instead of a proposed cellphone tower. These pics were shot in April near 107th/King Drive #zoning #roseland #chicagogram #olloclip #9thward

A photo posted by The Sixth Ward (@thesixthward) on Jun 7, 2016 at 11:59am PDT