Currently, 7,000 migrants are being held in full shelters across Chicago, with another 2,000 temporarily held in police stations, O’Hare International Airport and Midway International Airport.
NBC Chicago learned Friday from city leaders that five more buses are now heading into the city carrying hundreds of migrants. It is scheduled to arrive this weekend.
“They’re on their way to Chicago, but I don’t know what to do when they get here. There’s nowhere to leave them,” Aldo said. Brian Hopkins.
Hopkins met with Mayor Brandon Johnson on Friday afternoon to learn more about plans for immigration shelters.
The mayor said he wanted to set up base camp-style tents in “various locations” around the city. Hopkins declined to say where the tents would be located or how they would be funded or secured, but NBC Chicago spoke with Hopkins after the meeting for more details.
“He said it back to us,” Hopkins said. “He wants us to help him find some suitable places, which seem slightly better than living in the lobby of the police station.” there is no.”
He said the steel-framed tent would require two acres of space and would be heated and winter-proof.
“You can’t spend your whole life in a temporary shelter,” he said. “You shouldn’t live in temporary housing for a year.”
Hopkins also said it was time for the federal government to step up.
“After adding these tent shelters, we estimate the total cost will exceed $300 million by the end of 2023,” he told NBC Chicago.
The city has already spent $116 million on this initiative. The federal government contributed $30 million through FEMA.
“Obviously, this is an application of federal responsibility. This is not the city’s job,” Hopkins said. “Immigrants have never held local governments accountable for funding and management, but as a city we are being asked to do so.”
He wants President Joe Biden to do more.
“He’s going to be here next year for a tournament,” Hopkins said. “If this crisis continues to escalate, it will be catastrophic and adversely affect his leadership.”
It’s unclear where the migrants will be heading when the buses arrive this weekend.