We’re pleased to recognize Garfield Park Community Council (GPCC) for their tremendous support in connecting renters with housing resources with the 2025 LCBH Community Partner Award on October 9th. You can secure your tickets to the celebration here.
GPCC serves the Garfield Park neighborhood through resident-led initiatives in four core program areas: housing, business development, wellness, and leadership. Since 2012, GPCC has developed and implemented more than 60 local projects with at least 50 partner organizations and facilitated more than $50 million in community investment.
“We’re so fortunate as a community organization to have such a strong legal community that we can lean on. We’re passionate about our work and we’re passionate about our neighborhood, so it’s great to work with places like LCBH who share that same commitment,” GPCC Executive Director Mike Tomas said.
Mike first connected with LCBH during the Mortgage Foreclosure Crisis in 2008, working with LCBH’s current Executive Director, Mark Swartz, to help tenants living in foreclosed buildings.
“During the Great Recession, 20% of West Garfield Park’s property ran into foreclosure. Tenants didn’t know who their landlords were because they would just take off. Everyone was banding together to try and figure it out,” Mike said.
Since then, LCBH and GPCC have worked closely together to connect Garfield Park residents with housing resources, with GPCC referring nearly 100 clients for housing-related issues to LCBH each year.
“Having LCBH is just a fantastic resource. I’ve always felt like they care and are actually working to address issues that fall through the cracks so that everyone has adequate housing,” Mike said.
In recent years, GPCC has helped facilitate and host multiple community-based Legal Clinics for renters living in substandard housing conditions. With GPCC’s support, dozens of West Side residents were connected with pro bono attorneys from Jones Day and Koch to assess their conditions issues and draft 14-day letters demanding repairs.
“It’s amazing to see a law organization like LCBH and their partners coming to speak with residents, not just in Garfield Park, but throughout the West Side. Whether it’s about an eviction case or just general advice, by connecting renters to LCBH they get a better outcome than when they try to tackle it on their own. Those connections have fostered this great relationship between our two organizations,” Mike said.
You can join us in celebrating our rich history with GPCC on October 9th at Buddy Guys Legends. Secure your tickets here.