Aftermath of the NYE Congress Theater Attack

                                                 photo by Daniel O’Neil 

You have probably already heard the news about the violent attack on a 18 year old Highland Park woman on the night of New Year’s Eve, as it was one of the grimiest and most atrocious attacks to happen in this area in recent memory. Teens and young adults often come from all over Chicago and various suburban areas to go to shows at Congress Theater (2135 N Milwaukee Ave), as it is a major venue that hosts all ages shows. The recent attack has sparked a lot of discussion and debate among residents - many who have written letters to Alderman Moreno, and he has recently responded. 

I’m working with CDOT to increase lighting in the area on Rockwell where the incident occurred. If the wattage cannot be increased, I will find a way to pay for additional lighting.  

 I met with the local community group and CAPS facilitators for their input on how anything like this can be prevented in the future. I then met with the people from Congress Theater to address their security procedures and infrastructure.

 

Congress is in no way accountable for this attack, but there are a number of things the community and I believe they can do to strengthen their practices. Congress has already agreed to implement many of our recommendations.  

So there will be an increase of street lighting in the area surrounding the Congress Theater, and perhaps a few more measures as the next few weeks progress. Some folks say that suburban teens underestimate the dangers of coming to the city for shows and other events. However, suburban teens have been coming down to Logan Square for shows at least since the mid 90s when the Fireside Bowl was the destination for punk shows.