Elected officials and other stakeholders break ground on the Sankofa Wellness Center. (Photo by Igor Studenkov/for Chronicle Media)

Representatives of nonprofits and hospitals have broken ground on the first piece in one of the largest redevelopment project’s on Chicago’s West Side in decades. 

The Sankofa Wellness Village aims to bring back institutions that the Garfield Park neighborhood either lost or has in short supply.  

The project includes a community health center, a business incubator, an artist hub and a grocery store. Multiple studies have shown that lack of resources can negatively affect health, to the point that there’s an almost 20-year difference in life expectancy between West Garfield Park residents and their counterparts farther north and east.  

Sankofa Wellness Village is spearheaded by the Garfield Park Rite to Wellness collaborative, which is made up of healthcare providers, religious groups, community organizations and developers, most of whom are based in the East and West Garfield Park neighborhoods.  

On Sept. 16, the group broke ground on the community health center portion of the project, the Sankofa Wellness Center. Located at 4035 W. Madison St. it will feature health services, fitness areas and a coffee shop.  

The health center is expected to be completed by 2025, and other buildings are expected to follow in the future.  

While Sankofa Wellness Village is West Garfield Park-focused, many organizations behind Rite to Wellness work on both sides of Garfield Park. 

Ald. Jason Ervin, 28th Ward, addresses the crowd. (Photo by Igor Studenkov/for Chronicle Media)

West Garfield Park’s Madison/Pulaski commercial corridor used to be the biggest commercial corridor on the West Side. Longtime residents who spoke to Chronicle Media described it as the West Side’s Magnificent Mile. However, the corridor was hit hard by the riots that erupted in the wake of the assassination of civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. Many longtime retailers left, and the corridor has been struggling to attract new businesses since. In 2022, Aldi closed its location in West Garfield Park, leaving both neighborhoods with only one grocery store.  

At that point, plans for Sankofa Wellness Village were already underway, but the incident galvanized Rite to Wellness. Block Club Chicago quoted the collaborative’s then-director TJ Crawford as describing the closing as “another reminder that we need to be the solutions” and that “no one else is going to do it for us.”  

Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson attends the groundbreaking. (Photo by Igor Studenkov/for Chronicle Media)

At Sankofa Wellness Center, Erie Family Health Center, Rush University Medical Center and the YMCA of Metropolitan Chicago will provide primary care, dentistry and mental health services. MAAFA Redemption Project, a faith-based youth mentoring program, will operate out of the building as well. The 50,000-square-foot center will feature a fitness center, a gym, a daycare space, a café and rooms that local residents and community organizations can rent.  

While West Garfield Park has mental health providers and some daycare options, the neighborhood doesn’t have any gyms or fitness centers, let alone coffee shops.  

The one recurring theme throughout the Sept. 16 groundbreaking, which lasted almost two hours, was that the wellness center represented an important milestone and a harbinger of a healthier, more vibrant West Garfield Park.  

The future site of the Sankofa Wellness Center, the centerpiece of the Sankofa Wellness Village project. (Photo by Igor Studenkov/for Chronicle Media)

State Sen. Lakesia Collins, D-Chicago, who lives on the West Side and previously worked as a nurse, said that, as someone who had struggled with mental illness, she appreciated how valuable a facility like Sankofa Health Center was.  

“This is only the beginning of the great things coming back to the Garfield Park,” she added. 

Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson, who lives in the nearby Austin neighborhood, said that he “wanted to express my deep and profound gratitude” to all the stakeholders who got the project this far. 

“This center is a powerful symbol of what a community-led project can accomplish,” he said. “This investment along Madison corridor is long overdue.” 

Johnson said that he was especially looking forward to having a facility that provides youth services.  

“It is important that our young people know that we love them, and we see them,” he said. 

Ald. Jason Ervin, 28th Ward), whose ward includes the entire West Garfield Park, spoke fondly about growing up in the neighborhood and “cutting [his] teeth” in local politics.  

“I tell people all the time — West Garfield Park is an amazing community,” he said. “While we have always had the resources, now is our time. West Garfield Park is rising.” 

Metro Chicago YMCA President Dorri McWhorter said she had “100 percent confidence that Sankofa Wellness Village will transform the West Garfield Park Community and the City of Chicago. 

“This is this is the first new YMCA that we will open in decades, but believe me, it won’t be the last,” she added. 

Rush president Dr. Omar Lateef welcomed the health center as a concrete step to address health disparities between the West Side and more well-off parts of Chicago. 

“Everything that goes into this village will save lives,” he said. “At Rush, we’re proud to be a partner in this community.” 

Ayesha Jaco is the head of West Side United, a collaborative created by hospitals that service the West Side to address issues that affect health but fall outside the scope of medical treatment. She said that, while completion of the entire Wellness Village will be an important step forward, it would take more to address the fallout from disinvestment. 

“We need you in five years, we need you in 10 years, we need you in 20 years and beyond,” Jaco said. “Continue to wrap your arms around this amazing community.” 

Dayquane Rollins, a NAAFA participant since 2020, reflected that he knew as a teen that he didn’t want to end up on a path that led to trouble, but his mentors showed him how.  

“This groundbreaking [is] one of the hopes and prayers I got for my community,” he said. “I just want us to somehow be able to reach those kids, because kids are impressionable.” 

For more information about the project, visit https://sankofawellnessvillage.org/