Deer Center will serve all LCLC clients & provide housing to 20 young men on probation
Lawndale Christian Legal Center (LCLC) today opened a new West Side headquarters, and the building will provide studio apartments to 20 clients as they are guided through, and away from, the criminal justice system.
Named after a former LCLC Senior Vice President who served as a Cook County Commissioner at the time of his passing last year, the Dr. Dennis Deer Community Justice Center features:
- Twenty studio apartments;
- A workforce-development skills lab;
- A fitness center and outdoor basketball court;
- A commercial kitchen and dining hall;
- Therapy rooms for mental health treatment;
- A peace room for restorative justice healing circles;
- Office space for administrators, attorneys, street-outreach workers, case managers and circle keepers;
- A community room for other nonprofits and program partners; and
- A patio for barbecues and social events.
The 20 apartments are reserved for men – ranging in age from 18 to 25 – who are sentenced to probation in Cook County Circuit Court as an alternative to incarceration. They will live at the center for an average of two years, and the first tenant is expected to arrive this month.
LCLC raised $22.5 million to build the Deer Center, 1449 S. Keeler Ave. The building is LCLC’s new office headquarters where clients will meet with attorneys and receive linkage to social services. LCLC works with an average of 300 clients each year.
A neighborhood-based nonprofit since 2010, LCLC provides attorneys and social support to juveniles and young adults under the age of 26. Clients are connected to services for employment, housing, education, mental health, substance use, anger management, medical care and other social needs.
“The Deer Center is the solution that many children and young adults need to break the cycle of arrest and incarceration. When we provide community-based support, we create accountability and lifelong change,” LCLC President & CEO Cliff Nellis said. “This is violence prevention. This is public safety. This is just the right thing to do. We will continue to lead by listening, hear what people say they need, and address the root causes of harm in Chicago.”
The idea for the Deer Center was inspired by a pilot program in 2015 that provided five LCLC clients free apartments in the same residential building, personal vehicles and linkage to job training. Some participants were affiliated with rival street gangs, and they learned that living together reduced the street conflict. The Deer Center will also house men with differing gang and street affiliations.
“When we can show that the people who live at the Deer Center will disengage from street conflict and become far less likely to be arrested again, we will establish an additional alternative to incarceration that can be replicated anywhere,” Nellis said.
State Sen. Lakesia Collins, a supporter of the Deer Center since its inception, said:
“LCLC’s Deer Center is poised to transform lives and provide young adults with a genuine opportunity for rehabilitation, complemented by comprehensive wrap-around services. This investment will empower our young men to recognize their potential, equipped with the tools to invest in themselves, thereby unlocking doors to limitless opportunities – while addressing public safety concerns and reducing recidivism,” Sen. Collins said. “I am proud to be part of this remarkable investment and commend LCLC for their exemplary leadership and commitment to the North Lawndale community.”
LCLC will continue to operate its offices at the Freedom Center at 1530 S. Hamlin Ave., where some LCLC staff, open-gym basketball and other events will remain available for the community.
In 2018, LCLC spent $30,000 to purchase the Deer Center property on Keeler Avenue, which was previously Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic school. The buildout included both a gut rehab of the existing structure and new construction that added a new wing of office and program space.
Deer Center residents will receive intensive social supports while completing educational, soft-and-hard-skill trainings in various career pathways. After the residents demonstrate job-readiness, they will seek livable or prevailing wage employment. The focus then shifts to financial management, time management and job coaching. The goal is to transition Deer Center residents to independent living, financial independence and healthy lifestyles.
When ground broke on the center in 2022, Dr. Dennis Deer served as LCLC Vice President of Organizational Health and Management. An advocate for mental health treatment and wellness, he said this about the project at the time:
“Untangling from the criminal justice system is a difficult process for anyone, but it is more challenging for young adults who are homeless and unemployed. We know that public-safety solutions are in the community,” the late Dr. Dennis Deer said in 2022. “Today, we take another step to put our young men in a position to succeed with new thoughts, words, actions and habits.”
Dr. Deer’s wife, Barbara Deer, said:
“The Dr. Deer Community Justice Center is dear to me and my family. This building is helping youth and young adults to have an alternative path in life by connecting them with resources for legal guidance and overall growth toward a better future. Dennis believed in giving people a second chance, and this is reflected in what the Dr. Deer Community Justice Center is doing for youth and young adults,” Barbara Deer said.
After Dr. Deer’s passing at the age of 51, it was an easy decision to name the new office headquarters after him. LCLC is grateful to the Deer family for allowing the organization to carry on his legacy at the new building.
“We all still struggle with the loss of Dr. Deer,” Nellis said. “When he entered any room, he cast a light that could make anyone feel like a star. He dedicated his career to supporting the people of Chicago and his LCLC family. Now the Dr. Dennis Deer Community Justice Center is the beacon to call people home.”
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Lawndale Christian Legal Center is the only holistic community-based legal practice in Chicago dedicated to the criminal defense of juveniles and emerging adults. Every LCLC client receives services with a family-centered approach and a dedicated case manager who coordinates a wraparound support team of legal, social, psychological and job-training professionals. This on-the-ground program walks people through, and away from, the criminal justice system.
