Proposed law would protect South Shore from gentrification threat near Obama Center

South Shore and Woodlawn advocates gather outside City Hall in support of the South Shore Housing Preservation Ordinance, which aims to address the affordable housing crisis in the neighborhood and prevent the displacement of residents. (Elvia Malagón/Sun-Times)

A South Side alderperson has introduced a sweeping ordinance to help residents worried about being priced out of their neighborhoods because of the Obama Presidential Center’s development in Jackson Park.

Introduced by 5th Ward Ald. Desmon Yancy on Thursday and drafted by the Obama CBA Coalition, the measure seeks to address the South Shore neighborhood’s affordable housing crisis — an issue that has been festering for years.