Logan Square, Humboldt Park, Avondale
March Aims To Protect Housing Affordability: ‘I Get To Raise My Children In Logan Square’
With rents increasing by 40-60 percent in some cases as landlords compete with the market and high property taxes, neighbors want to see more protections for renters.
by Ariel Parrella-Aureli3 hours ago
Protesters march through the streets during a protest for housing affordability in Logan Square on Oct. 27, 2026. Credit: Jim Vondruska for Block Club Chicago
LOGAN SQUARE — Holding a sign calling for more low-cost housing options, Angelina Barrera marched alongside dozens of Northwest Siders to decry rising rents and advocate for neighbors like herself who are at risk of displacement.
Barrera, who has lived in Logan Square for 26 years, is on a fixed income and fears she won’t be able to pay her $2,500 monthly rent much longer after her landlord raised the price and added more fees to her lease, she told Block Club during the Tuesday evening march.
“It’s really difficult what is happening and we need to speak up to unite together,” Barrera said. “I see mostly minorities and Latinos leaving the neighborhood, less students in schools and less people being able to afford their rents.”
She said she hopes to move into a basement apartment that will be half her current rent, but the move hasn’t been confirmed. Barrera spoke out against what she called a lack of government oversight and protections from landlords who can impose extra fees without explaining why.
Barrera’s story is shared by neighbors being priced out of a gentrifying Logan Square, an area seeing high rental demand. Landlords are meanwhile grappling with high property taxes while developers are building and rehabbing older apartments before marketing them toward more affluent people.
Protesters march through the streets during a protest for housing affordability in Logan Square on Oct. 27, 2026. Credit: Jim Vondruska for Block Club Chicago
Ald. Anthony Quezada (35th) gathers with protesters in a lot purposed for luxury apartments on the 3400 West block of Armitage Avenue during a protest for housing affordability in Logan Square on Oct. 27, 2026. Credit: Jim Vondruska for Block Club Chicago
About 70 costumed marchers participated in Tuesday’s Halloween-themed rally, organized by Palenque LSNA members. It started at a vacant lot at 3265 W. Armitage Ave., where a proposed apartment complex could list rents for $2,400-$2,800 for a two-bedroom apartment and $3,000-$3,500 for a three-bedroom apartment. A proposal for another vacant lot could bring similar apartments to 3208-3216 W. Armitage Ave., totaling 52 new apartments with market-rate prices and 17 rented at more affordable rates on one block.
Demonstrators continued up Armitage Avenue with pit stops at nearby affordable housing developments before ending at Encuentro Square, 3745 W. Cortland St., an all-affordable apartment complex that opened last year.
Organizers included Ald. Anthony Quezada (35th), affordable housing leaders and advocates from other area groups. They called for more city and state funding to protect local housing programs like the Here to Stay Community Land Trust, the Chicago Low-Income Housing Trust Fund, the city’s Northwest Side Preservation Ordinance and its pilot program, the tenant opportunity law that lets renters first have a chance to purchase their building should the owner list it for sale.
“Whether a decision is made here on Armitage or down in Springfield, affordability cannot be an afterthought,” said Mia Carbajal, director of special projects for the Here to Stay Community Land Trust, a group that helps young Northwest Side families become homeowners at a below-market rate. “And the people who live with these decisions deserve a voice in making them.”
Since launching the program in 2022, the trust has helped 23 families become homeowners and is building its first condos in Logan Square after a neighbor donated the land. Its portfolio now includes 47 units across the area, with 14 under development, Carbajal said.
Programs like these have received awards and state funding, but more is needed to keep up the work, Here To Stay leaders said.
Organizers stand and speak to protesters during a protest for housing affordability in Logan Square on Tuesday October 27, 2026 | Jim Vondruska for Block Club Chicago Credit: Jim Vondruska for Block Club Chi
Like Barrera, other Logan Square neighbors have reported a 40-60 percent rent increase in the past year, causing them to leave the neighborhood.
Ald. Jessie Fuentes (26th), a staunch supporter of affordable housing, is working with both developers of the proposed Armitage projects, which have stalled but not yet been rejected, she said. There were environmental concerns for one lot but her zoning team is in conversations with developers to see if they can increase affordability and enter into a community benefits agreement.
“When we have developments as large as the ones that have been proposed on Armitage, we have to be very thoughtful and make sure we’re paying attention to the details and that developers are willing to negotiate in good faith,” Fuentes said.
Protesters gather in a lot proposed for new apartments on the 3200 West block of Armitage Avenue during a protest for housing affordability in Logan Square on Oct. 27, 2026. Credit: Jim Vondruska for Block Club Chicago
The dialogue around both projects led her office to hit pause on receiving new zoning proposals in September while it works with University of Illinois Chicago’s Great Cities Institute to determine the kind of housing needed in her ward. The study, which is ongoing, will help influence projects along the Armitage corridor, the alderperson said.
The decision was criticized by The Northwest Side Neighborhood Alliance, a progressive grassroots neighborhood group that supports new housing projects to increase the city’s housing stock. Developers have said they want to bring more below-market units to the area and address the housing need while still making a profit, a difficult balance as construction costs are high.
‘I Get To Raise My Children In Logan Square’
As the housing debate continues at City Hall, some neighbors want to see rent go down and more affordable apartment complexes like Encuentro Square become available. Many say they want rent control, stronger tenant protections and a just cause eviction law. Such provisions have been discussed among competing renter-landlord ordinance proposals that have stalled after heated debates earlier this year.
Shirley Medina and her family moved into a three-bedroom Encuentro Square apartment last year when it opened. Medina grew up a few streets down, where her parents still live, but she moved out of Logan Square a few years ago because it was too expensive. When she learned Encuentro was accepting applications, she filled one out and got accepted within a few months.
“The process was actually really simple; I was so surprised at how fast it was, because for so many other [apartments, we] were waitlisted,” said Medina, who did not participate in Tuesday’s march.
Protesters stand outside the Encuentro Square housing complex during a protest for housing affordability in Logan Square on Oct. 27, 2026. Credit: Jim Vondruska for Block Club Chicago
Protesters march through the streets during a protest for housing affordability in Logan Square on Oct. 27, 2026. Credit: Jim Vondruska for Block Club Chicago
Being close to her family, her son’s school and having an apartment that fits her budget is important, she said. Medina, a remote clinic coordinator, is able to work from her apartment or one of the community rooms at Encuentro, another reason why she loves living there.
“I get to raise my children in Logan Square,” Medina said. “I want to raise them where I was raised. I want to show them this is city living.”
With federal cuts looming for housing programs and healthcare benefits that will affect mostly low-income residents, Medina is grateful to have a budget-friendly apartment that has amenities for kids and community events — and wants to see more.
“We need more affordable housing, not just here but across the country,” Medina said.