Dear Neighbor,

It was a huge honor to recently receive the “Friend of Rogers Park Award” from the Rogers Park Business Alliance in recognition for my commitment to serving Rogers Park. It was a full-circle moment for me as I reflected on my mother Ramona’s long-standing Rogers Park business, Salon Pastiché, which was located at 1226 W. Loyola for 25 years.

A few days later, my staff and I visited Archie’s Cafe and Roman Susan Art Gallery (right next to the former location of my mom’s salon). This is the flatiron and iconic building at 1224 to 1234 W. Loyola next to the Loyola Red Line Station. Loyola University purchased the entire building and plans to demolish it. I hold vivid memories of Kristin and Nathan Abhalter Smith – owners and directors of Roman Susan – and my mom devising a calming color scheme for her salon in this space in 2017. During our visit, I reflected on the years my mother contributed to the vibrancy of Rogers Park serving and befriending people from all walks of life, and building community with Roberta Schmatz, owner of Archie’s Cafe, along with Nathan Abhalter Smith and Kristin at Roman Susan art space. My heart is heavy as Archie’s closes its last week serving the Rogers Park community as they are displaced from the building.

I will continue to stand with the Rogers Park and Edgewater communities in strongly demanding that this historic building at 1224 - 1234 W. Loyola be preserved, and that the residents – many longtime Rogers Park residents – keep their housing and remain in the neighborhood. We must demand better and prevent needless land-grabs in communities like ours that deserve true investment, not displacement. This building and its history are a key part of Rogers Park’s history, and I will continue to fight for its historic preservation as a cultural and economic landmark.

Sincerely,

Senator Mike Simmons
7th Senate District

Dear Neighbor,

My team and I have been hard at work to bring you four different events in August that I want to make sure you all know about! Below is a quick list of each event, and full details are in the body of this e-blast.

Upcoming events are:

• Wednesday, August 7, 12:30-3:00 pm | Mobile Office Hours in partnership with the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) at the Edgewater Library Branch, 6000 N. Broadway
• Thursday, August 8, 6:00-7:00 pm | Resource and Outreach Event for Survivors of Domestic Violence at the Church of Atonement, 5749 N. Kenmore Ave.
• Monday, August 12, 6:00-7:00 pm | Virtual Town Hall via Zoom
• Friday, August 16, 5:00-6:30 pm | Back to School Bash at Senn High School, 5900 N. Glenwood Ave.

Lastly, The Redefine the Drive project is hosting a Public Open House on Thursday, August 8th from 3:00-7:00 pm at Truman College, and Commissioner Samantha Steele is hosting property tax appeal workshops on August 5 and 12, in Rogers Park and Evanston, respectively. Full details are below. There is a lot happening in the 7th District, I look forward to seeing you at some of these great events in the next few weeks!

Sincerely,

Senator Mike Simmons
7th Senate District

Dear Neighbor,

July has been a month of enjoying Summer with family, spending quality time meeting with constituents in the 7th District, and organizing upcoming events I will be hosting.

My first upcoming event is Mobile Office Hours on Wednesday, August 7th from 12:30-3:00 pm at the Edgewater Chicago Public Library Branch in partnership with the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR). My constituent services team and folks from IDFPR will be set-up at the library to assist with job licenses, Medicaid/SNAP, senior services, and any questions or concerns you may have. Delays in job licensing with IDFPR is a common case with my constituent service team, and I am pleased to welcome IDFPR to the district to allow constituents 1:1 time to get your licenses processed!

Additionally, I am hosting an outreach and resource event for Survivors of Domestic Violence in partnership with the Cook County State’s Attorney’s office on Thursday, August 8th from 6:00-7:00 pm at the Church of the Atonement (5749 N. Kenmore Ave). This event will offer a safe space for survivors to share and advocate for their needs and to receive help connecting directly with resources, state programs, and services available. Full details are below.

Finally, as many of you already know, we lost yet another innocent, beautiful life - Sonya Massey, a young Black woman - at the hands of a reckless and unjust act of violence by a Sangamon County Sheriff’s Deputy. You can read my full statement here. When I watched the video of Sonya’s tragic and heart rending last moments, I thought to myself how many Black people don’t feel safe calling on law enforcement when we don’t feel safe. I felt that personally in the moment and it was unsettling. It’s going to take all of us – people of all racial backgrounds and levels of wealth and privilege – demanding much better of our justice systems. We owe that to Sonya’s surviving family and scores of communities across our state who are reeling from this heinous violence that our state’s systems continue to visit on Black bodies with routine regularity. 

As we look to the rest of summer, I wish you healthy and safe days ahead. As always, please do not hesitate to reach out to my office if you need help accessing housing, food, health care, transportation, and any other state-level resource, or wish to advocate for policy and state legislation. 

Sincerely,

Mike Simmons

State Senator | 7th District

Dear Neighbor,

Six months ago, I stood in a restaurant in Edgewater on Broadway and alongside small businesses, community partners and press in attendance, announced that I’d secured $2.5 million specifically for mom and pop small businesses in our far northside district. I had grown weary of hearing from too many small business owners across our district who feel the squeeze of sudden rent increases and gentrification on their storefronts, lack of translation services for immigrant-owned shops, difficulty with payroll, and other systemic challenges. We created the 7th District Small Business Restoration Grant from scratch with these funds to fill in these major gaps.

I have an update to share about the 7th District Small Business Restoration Grant. The grant process has now been completed and 225 small businesses across our district have received their grants! From Rogers Park to Buena Park to Lincoln Square to Uptown to Budlong Woods to Andersonville to Ravenswood to Edgewater, brick and mortar small businesses from every corner of the 7th District and in every single commercial corridor have received grants. Full details on the grant program are below. I could not be more proud of the 7SBRG and the timely and positive boost and encouragement it has given our local mom and pop shops and storefronts.

Caption: Senator Mike Simmons, along with dozens of 7th District small business owners, chambers and community leaders gathered in Edgewater in December to announce the launch of the 7th District Small Business Restoration Grant.

Thank you to the five local chambers and our community organizations who worked with me and my team to pull off this unprecedented and innovative program, and to our indispensable partners who provided translation services in more than a dozen languages. I’m inspired by what we were able to accomplish here. I also want to thank my Chief of Staff, Heather Saenger, who worked tirelessly to help make this happen and has a heart for our small businesses and especially those that have been left out of previous assistance efforts. Last but not least, thank you to the staff at the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity for working with us to execute a vision that at first seemed daunting.

We did it!

Sincerely,

Mike Simmons
State Senator | 7th District