April 15, 2020
VIA EMAIL
Mr. Roberto Perez
Chief Executive Officer
Hilco Redevelopment Partners
111 S. Wacker Dr., Suite 3000
Chicago, IL 60606
rperez@hilcoglobal.com
Dear Mr. Perez:
As you are aware, the implosion of the Crawford Power Generating Station smoke stack
(hereinafter “the Stack”) by Hilco Redevelopment Partners (hereinafter “Hilco”) and related
subcontractors caused a significant amount of particulate dust that not only escaped the site but covered
over six blocks of homes in a coat of construction dust. As you know, this incident is the source of much
anxiety and distress in the Little Village community, particularly amidst the on-going effort to fight the
COVID-19 outbreak.
The health and safety of Chicago residents is my top priority. As you know, this past weekend I
demanded that Hilco take swift action to clean up the impacted area around the Crawford site, including
addressing any deposited dust from the implosion of the Stack. My understanding is Hilco has agreed
to or already taken action on the following:
• Fully cooperate with City of Chicago inquiries for additional information regarding the
demolition of the site;
• Conduct private street sweeping from 31st to 33rd, Pulaski Rd. to Lawndale St. following the
implosion;
• Work in close coordination with Alderman Michael Rodriguez to drive through the residential
streets around the perimeter to assess the damage and begin to compile a list of mitigation needs;
• Reimburse the City of Chicago for additional street sweeping measures;
• Send out personnel door to door to discuss clean up needs with residents, and perform remedial
services, free of charge, including window and vehicle washing; and
• Distribute 10,000 masks to the community.
In addition to those efforts, we request the following:
• Expanded mitigations efforts to include 28th to 33rd, Pulaski to Lawndale, as well as 28th to 31st,
Pulaski to Keeler;
• Dust remediation efforts that reflect Chicago Department of Public Health guidance;
• Distribution of HEPA air furnace filters; and
• Ongoing street sweeping as requested by the City of Chicago.
Pursuant to the earlier request by the Chicago Department of Buildings, by April 16, 2020, we request
a comprehensive report from Hilco covering the circumstances leading up to, immediately before,
during and after the implosion of the Stack, with particular emphasis on what steps were taken by Hilco

 and/or any of subcontractors to contain dust to the Crawford site and why those efforts failed. Such
report must include, but not be limited to the following:
• Detailed description of the events that transpired on the morning of April 11, 2020 that resulted
in the failure of the dust mitigation for the implosion of the Stack previously provided to the
City;
• Remediation plan for demolition going forward, including all demolition methodologies;
• Remediation plan for dust mitigation both onsite and on private property throughout the
impacted community;
• List of any and all contractors and subcontractors involved with any aspect of the implosion of
the Stack including preparation for the implosion, the on-site work the day of the implosion and
the implosion itself. Please identify all such contractors and subcontractors by company name,
specific company representative, title, role and contact information; and
• A multi-faceted community engagement plan.
With the report, also please include the following attachments and any other relevant documents to
the implosion incident:
• All plans related to the implosion;
• All materials prepared regarding the implosion, i.e., amount of dynamite, engineering details on
how to determine which side of the stack that the dynamite had to be located on to ensure that
the stack fell to the east, etc.;
• All notices related to the implosion sent to stakeholders and community residents and
businesses, as well as a timeline of distribution;
• All dust mitigation plans related to the implosion of the Stack;
• A detailed outline of any dust mitigation apparatuses onsite immediately before and during the
implosion of the Stack , including quantity of such apparatuses, the type of apparatus and the
water storage capacity per apparatus and the actual water volume on each such apparatus; and
• Any and all information which reflects whether any such dust mitigation apparatuses were in
fact utilized at any point before, during or after the implosion of the Stack.
Also, the City expects that Hilco will perform air monitoring and air and soil sampling at the
Crawford site and impacted area as coordinated by the Chicago Department of Public Health.
As previously noted, the City of Chicago will be using its authority to take appropriate enforcement
action against Hilco Redevelopment Partners. Nothing herein shall be construed as a waiver of any
rights or claims that the City may have against the developer or any of its agents or contractors, arising
under federal, state, or municipal law.
We appreciate your swift attention to these matters.
Sincerely,

Mayor
cc:

John Kim, Director of IEPA
Kurt Thiede, Administrator, USEPA Region 5