Chicago to close three shelters by end of October as migrant arrivals fall

The city of Chicago will close three migrant shelters by the end of next month, citing empty beds and a move toward consolidation as it reassesses the crisis that has affected the city for nearly a year.

Migrant shelters in Chicago's Pilsen, West Town, and Kenwood neighborhoods will close by the end of October. Chicago and the state of Illinois cited President Joe Biden ’s federal mandate to limit the number of asylum-seekers per day, which has decreased the amount of resources Chicago needs to support migrants.

"I think as our numbers continue to decrease, our financial obligation should decrease as a city, as it should be our responsibility," 15th Ward Alderman Raymond Lopez told ABC 7 Chicago .

A total of 3,030 beds will be eliminated by closing the three shelters, but people who are currently in them can move to a yet-to-be-announced shelter where they will “continue to receive the same services,” a spokesperson for the city said.

Around 5,000 beds are open across the city's 17 remaining shelters, which heavily decreases the needs of the three that are set to close.

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"It appears that the number of people crossing the border has been significantly diminished because of the policies of the Harris-Biden administration. And so, I feel like, you know, we've got to be prepared and have some capacity, but I don't think quite as much capacity as we needed before. So hopefully that reduces some expenditures by the city, county and state," Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D-IL) said Tuesday.

The move comes as the city announced this week a hiring freeze to address a looming nearly a billion-dollar budget shortfall next year.