{"id":919,"date":"2011-06-28T15:48:24","date_gmt":"2011-06-28T22:48:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cana16.com\/?p=919"},"modified":"2011-06-28T20:36:23","modified_gmt":"2011-06-29T03:36:23","slug":"the-nightly-partying-conflict-and-noise-at-the-corner-of-mason-and-madison-was-broken-by-the-sound-of-gunfire-at-219-am-on-june-25","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cana16.com\/?p=919","title":{"rendered":"The nightly partying, conflict and noise at the corner of Mason and Madison was Broken by the sound of gunfire at 2:19 AM on June 25"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Front window of home near Mason and Washington<\/p><\/div>\n

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The problems at the corner of Madison and Mason, less than two\u00a0blocks from the 15th District Police\u00a0Station\u00a0in Austin, \u00a0resulted in a running gun battle in the streets of our 16 blocks in the\u00a0early hours of June 25th.<\/p>\n

According to neighbors, the nightly fighting, drug and alcohol use and drug sales at this corner resulted in individuals chasing others up our block Mason, turning left on Washington and firing multiple shots, causing my wife and I to duck for cover on the floor. We later learned\u00a0our neighbors across the street also heard the shots and scrambled for cover before dialing 911.\u00a0I heard what I think was 7 or 8 shots from possibly two different caliber weapons. We learned the next day that two of our neighbors had multiple bullet holes in their cars and another neighbor suffered a bullet hole in the front picture window of their home.\u00a0 CANA has been asking for support\u00a0for nearly a year with cleaning up this corner.\u00a0 While arrests have been made, sweeps have occurred, the 15th District seems unable to\u00a0“fix” this\u00a0single corner in Austin, even after management promised to after being prompted by\u00a0our appearance at the Chicago Police Board meetings<\/a>.\u00a0 What that says to us is that even when residents are vocal, creative and receive promises from top management on cleaning up a single corner in the “good part of Austin” as the Police describe our neighborhood, that\u00a0the “bad part of Austin” has little hope.\u00a0 We’ve sought help with even simple solutions that can help give the Police additional tools like signage to stop the all night parking, drinking, drug use and drug sales that occur from parked cars. Even this solution\u00a0has been met with little support.<\/p>\n

The\u00a0partying gangs\u00a0purchase liquor at all hours of the day and night from “Winners Sports Bar” and walk to the corner of Madison and Mason and proceed to drink. They leave empty liquor bottles in the street along with the black bags they purchased it in from the bar. The patrons of this bar loiter out front day and night and spill over to the corner and alley. They have even been seen loitering out front even when the bar is supposed to be closed. We’ve attempted to address this issue in\u00a0a meeting <\/a>with the bar owner, the 15th District and the 29th Ward Alderman but the problem has clearly not been solved.<\/p>\n

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Winners Sports Bar<\/p><\/div>\n

We’ve also asked our Alderman for a meeting with police about a month ago after shots were fired at the\u00a0corner of Madison and Mason during another fight\u00a0and shortly after that a dead body was found in the alley behind Winner’s Sports Bar”.\u00a0 The Police ruled this a suicide but several neighbors heard 2 gunshots,\u00a0supposedly confirmed\u00a0by the Police … as you can imagine we’re not comfortable with this disposition.\u00a0<\/p>\n

So far we have had no response about the requested meeting.<\/p>\n

These gangs of people also purchase drugs routinely stored in the many broken fence slats of the microwave transmission tower at the corner. We’ve asked for this\u00a0to to be \u00a0fixed so that it cannot be a warehouse for drug dealers. Unfortunately they have not repaired it in a way that prevents continued use by drug dealers.<\/div>\n
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Microwave tower with missing fence slats used to store drugs<\/p><\/div>\n

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Microwave tower fence with missing slats used to hide drugs<\/p><\/div>\n

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Fueled by drugs and alcohol they party and fight and throw liquor bottles and drug packets up and down the block.<\/p>\n

They have even started using the areas around trees that we attempted to plant for the children at the day care center\u00a0as\u00a0garbage bins.<\/p>\n

The pounding music with vulgar lyrics from hyper powered speakers keep neighbors up many\u00a0nights.<\/p>\n

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All of this behavior happens at the\u00a0same corner as a day care center. The\u00a0 center’s owner has told us that she had to install darkening\u00a0film to her windows to protect the children from viewing the drunks that urinate in the window. This behavior is not just reserved for our children but occurs frequently in our neighbors front lawns.<\/p>\n

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"The Corner" and the day care center<\/p><\/div>\n

In this new era of Accountability and Transparency in Chicago, who should be held accountable for\u00a0this\u00a0ongoing failure?<\/p>\n