CHICAGO (WLS) — Chicago unveiled a new community center Tuesday that could give men a chance to rebuild their lives.
The massive building has housing, a gym, a library and legal help available.
ABC7 Chicago is now streaming 24/7. Click here to watch
It’s considered an alternative to incarceration, and is the brainchild of a late Cook County commissioner.
The $22.5 million investment on the West Side will not only serve as the Lawndale Christian Legal Center’s new office headquarters, where people can meet with attorneys and receive social services, but also a 20-unit apartment building for those involved in the criminal justice system.
The Dr. Dennis Deer Community Justice Center opened Tuesday.
A project 10 years in the making, 20 studio apartments located near 15th Street and Keeler Avenue will house young men under 26, who are sentenced to probation.
“We are hoping that Cook County judges and judges across the state of Illinois will see the value of a community-based alternative to incarceration for young people who are still in formative years,” LCLC President and CEO Cliff Nellis said.
The space also includes a kitchen and dining hall and therapy and peace rooms for restorative justice healing circles for mental health treatment.
Young men will live at the center for an average of two years and learn skills training in various career paths.
“The Deer Center is a place where young people will literally be able to lay their head on a bed and rest and think longer-term, think of a bigger vision for their life, and we’ll support them in unpacking some of the trauma they’ve experience and abuse and neglect they’ve experienced,” Nellis said.
A former client from a pilot program back in 2015 said this is what violence prevention looks like: connecting people with employment, housing, mental health, substance use and anger management services to create safer communities.
“Being physically and emotionally abused by my stepfather, me and my brothers often spent a lot of time outside just to get away from what was happening at home,” Fredrick Dennis said. “Programs like the Deer Center just don’t only change lives, it saves them. It gives people like me a second chance.”
One person has already moved into the new building. Two others are set to move in later this week.
Copyright © 2025 WLS-TV. All Rights Reserved.
