Still Angry Over 2013 School Closures, Austin Residents Hear Two Proposals To Revive Shuttered Armstrong 

More than 60 people packed a meeting room at BUILD Chicago, 5100 W. Harrison St., on Nov. 10 to hear plans to redevelop the shuttered Louis Armstrong Elementary School, 5345 W. Congress Pkwy. in Austin, while venting frustration at Chicago Public Schools (CPS) officials for years of neglect.

The community heard two proposals—one to turn the former school into a cosmetology college and the other to transform it into a comprehensive sports and wellness center.

Khalilah Johnson and Kesha Forrest, both leaders with the nonprofit Breakaway Community Development Corp., presented an $11.4 million proposal to turn the school into the Austin Athletic Performance Center. The facility would feature karate and dance suites, meeting rooms, spaces for CrossFit training, physical therapy and chiropractic services, indoor golf simulators, basketball courts, an indoor baseball facility, and a multipurpose turf field, among other amenities.

“My daughter tore her ACL in her senior year and was devastated—her life was over,” Johnson said. “Having a place where she can rehab and train in the community is key. I had to drive her to Downers Grove to find those services. They should be in our own community.”

The Breakaway proposal has the backing of several local athletic organizations, including After The Game, a nonprofit focused on youth physical and mental wellness; the Windy City Dolphins Youth Football League; and T&C Fitness Club, a Black-owned gym at 5910 W. Chicago Ave., among others.

Johnson estimated construction costs at about $9.4 million, with equipment costs around $2 million. She said the redevelopment team, which includes a consultant, has already secured $3 million in capital funding and that the project could take about 18 months to complete once the site is secured.

Johnson said the state-of-the-art athletic facility would help address the need for professional-grade training and athletic development that’s missing on the West Side, particularly as the number of Black youth participating in sports declines.

Aaliyah Phillips, founder and owner of the Chaste Hair Institute at 3 S. Austin Blvd., wants to turn Armstrong into a cosmetology school offering an expanded range of state-licensed programs in hair-braiding, cosmetology, barbering, esthetics, and nail technology. Her proposal also includes retail space to sell culturally responsive hair products and lab space.

Phillips estimated renovation costs between $600,000 and $1.5 million, backed by Huntington Bank financing and private capital. Certified as a woman- and minority-owned business, she said she hopes to complete the first classrooms and salon floor within 18 to 24 months.

Phillips said expanding her school from a hair-braiding school to a full cosmetology program would help fill the need for more licensed hair professionals on the West Side.

“Unlicensed people practicing in a licensed profession cause a lot of issues,” she said, before showing photos of people who were physically harmed by unlicensed hairdressers.

Phillips said she has been trying to acquire the school building since April 2023. Ald. Chris Taliaferro (29th) said he offered his support to Phillips two years ago and will continue to back her bid.

Ultimately, the decision on who will acquire the school rests with the 21-member Chicago Board of Education. The winning bid will need 14 votes to be approved. Armstrong was offered for sale in 2017 as part of the district’s post-closure portfolio. In May 2025, CPS re-bid 20 properties, Armstrong among them.

“Both bids met minimum bid requirements and were responsible bids,” said Steve Stults, CPS’s director of real estate, in an email. “Due to our board rules permitting two bids to be referred to the board, it was determined that both bidders should be granted the opportunity to present their proposals to the community, so both bidders were invited to present on Nov. 10.”

Jason Powell, a CPS property manager, said Armstrong—which includes a modular building and a brick annex—would need a complete replacement of its mechanical, electrical, and plumbing systems.

“The electrical equipment is gone from both buildings, most of the plumbing and copper has been stolen, and people came inside and vandalized and broke the glass,” he said. “The plumbing, electrical, and HVAC systems will all need to be replaced. The roofs are not leaking too badly. I think there’s one roof leaking in the annex, but they may not need to be totally replaced. The modular building’s exterior is not in bad shape. The annex may need some basic reworking, but not a total overhaul.”

CPS officials added that any Armstrong redevelopment project would also come with $1 million in asbestos abatement costs.

Hearing about the state of the building prompted some audience members to question Phillips’ estimated project costs, wondering if they were too low given the amount of work needed. 

Phillips said her costs may seem relatively low because she doesn’t plan on substantially changing the school’s design and would largely be utilizing the campus as it exists. She added that she has rehabbed properties in the past. She said she plans to complete the renovation of the annex before working on the modular building later in the redevelopment process.

Most of the frustration in the room, however, was directed at CPS and the school board’s decision in 2013, under former Mayor Rahm Emanuel, to close 50 school buildings—most of them in Black and Brown communities. on the West and South Sides.

Crystal Gardner, an Austin activist, expressed the concerns of many audience members when she asked why CPS isn’t taking a more proactive role in reinvesting in the schools since the district decided to close them en masse.

“Since CPS is the owner of the buildings,” Gardner asked, “why aren’t you investing in repurchasing all of them?”

Stults responded that the district is “so cash-strapped that we need to put every dollar to kids’ education, but you’re absolutely right. We did put this out to bid in 2017. Under [former Mayor Lori Lightfoot], CPS was asked to put all school sales on hold, and nothing happened.”

At a community meeting in Austin on Nov. 5, Taliaferro said that the authority over school redevelopment projects has changed since he was elected in 2015.

“When I became alderman, we had the ultimate decision-making authority when it came to selling those buildings,” he said. “The aldermen had discretion to say no or yes to proposals. The problem with that was there were too many projects being given the thumbs down, but CPS had to keep providing security for the buildings. So, they took that authority back in 2017.” 

Stults said state law guides the district’s sale process. He said the proposals could go before the Board of Education for consideration at its February meeting, although there’s no definite date set yet. Residents can offer their input on the proposed sale of Armstrong by emailing realestate@cps.edu or calling (773) 553-2900.

Taliaferro said that regardless of the school board’s decision, he believes the West Side is big enough and has enough available property to accommodate both ideas.

“This is a win-win,” the alderman said. “There are no losers. There is property available.”