Third Ward Alderman Pat Dowell, MPEA CEO Juan Ochoa,
Black Metropolis Commission President Paula Robinson, Fourth Ward Alderman Toni Preckwinkle

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

December 12, 2008                                                                                           CONTACT:

Ellie Abrams

312-573-5576; Ellie_Abrams@jtpr.com

McCormick Place Joins Community Organizations

to Celebrate Bronzeville

Convention center lights new portal signage in partnership with

Black Metropolis National Heritage Area Commission

McCormick Place officials, contractors from the McCormick Place West expansion team and community-based organizations joined the Black Metropolis National Heritage Area Commission  today to unveil portal signage signifying McCormick Place’s partnership with the Bronzeville community, also known as the Black Metropolis. The dedication of this portal is part of an initiative to designate Bronzeville as a National Heritage Area.

“McCormick Place is proud to call Bronzeville home,” said Juan Ochoa, Chief Executive Officer of the Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority (MPEA), which owns and operates McCormick Place. “It is an honor for McCormick Place to play a role in the unveiling of this portal, which truly represents the unity of our campus with the surrounding neighborhood.”

The unveiling coincides with the introduction of House Bill 5505, which would officially designate Bronzeville as a National Heritage Area. The legislation, sponsored by Rep. Bobby Rush (D-IL) focuses on the Black Metropolis district’s distinctive history, which predates the Great Migration of 1916-1919, in which 500,000 African-Americans migrated to the North in search of work and other opportunities.

“The MPEA understands the rich history of the neighborhood surrounding McCormick Place,” said Theodore Tetzlaff, chairman of the board of the MPEA. “McCormick Place is honored to partner with the Black Metropolis organization to establish the Bronzeville neighborhood as a National Heritage Area.”

The area affectionately known as Bronzeville was home to numerous nationally prominent, African-American owned-and-operated businesses and cultural institutions, greatly influencing African-American life in Chicago and the nation.

The Black Metropolis has contributed some of the finest accomplishments by African Americans in Chicago, the State of Illinois and the Nation. These contributions and accomplishments, as noted in the legislation, include: business and entrepreneurial pursuits; culture and aesthetics; education; governance and politics; health care; labor; military life and patriotism; recreation and competitive sports; religion and church activism; social justice and civil rights; and streetscapes.

In fact, as part of the grand opening of the McCormick Place West Building, MPEA commissioned a sculpture by Preston Jackson, entitled Bronzeville, a Moment in Metal, which captures the mood of everyday life in the district in the early 20^th Century. Images representing key establishments and landmarks in the area are represented, revealing the palpable energy of the neighborhoods. Through the use of perspective, the artist represents psychosocial attitudes of the Bronzeville residents. This sculpture can be viewed on the first floor, in the northwest corridor of the West Building.

Contractors from the McCormick Place West expansion team who were involved with the project include Aldridge, ASI, Danny’s, Gate Precast, Maron-Divane, Meccor, Novum, Ornelas and PSI-IEI.

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