The Parkway Gardens Homes, better known to rap fans as O’Block,
is one of the deadliest housing projects in the US and also one of the most famous,
thanks to the rise of drill music.
Back in April, the owner of the property decided to put it up for sale,
leading to rumors that famous rappers like Lil Durk and Chief Keef
who grew up in the community, may try to purchase it.
Here is a look at the sale of O’Block
and whether or not Durk and Keef have a chance at buying the infamous housing project.
The Parkway Gardens Homes were built between 1950 and 1955
on Martin Luther King Drive on the Southside of Chicago.
The massive property spans over 13 acres of land and features 694 affordable housing units.
Famous residents who spent time living in O’Block include Michelle Obama
and of course famous rappers like Chief Keef, Lil Durk, and King Von.
As gang activity on the Southside increased throughout the 2000s and 2010s,
Parkway Gardens became the center of one of the most violent areas in the city.
It is a stronghold for the Black Disciples, one of the largest gangs in Chicago.
It also became famous in the hip-hop community
with the rise of Chief Keef and the popularity of drill music.
The 6400 Block of MLK Drive
was nicknamed O’Block in 2011
after the killing of a BD member named Odee Perry.
Odee was allegedly killed in retaliation
for the murder of a 15-year old member of the Gangsta Disciples
named Shondale Gregory, better known as Tooka.
The killing of both Odee and Tooka set off a gang war between the BDs and the GDs
that has claimed countless lives and still rages to this day.
Check out our previous videos on Chicago Drill Lyrics That Actually Happened
for more info on this beef.
Ironically, the same year that Tooka and Odee were killed
was the same year that Related Midwest
a Chicago-based real estate development firm
purchased the Parkway Gardens Houses for $40 million.
There is no way that the firm knew what they were getting themselves into
when they bought the property.
Even though the Southside has always been rough,
the war between the BD’s in O’Block and the GD’s who go by the name Tookaville,
not only increased the violence in the neighborhood,
it also brought national attention to the area
through the popularity of the drill movement.
So, every time there was a murder, shootout or robbery,
it was not only broadcast on the news
it was documented in the music and by fans on the internet,
which can’t be good for the company’s bottom line.
Being a low-income housing project,
Related Midwest got money from the federal government in the form of tax breaks,
housing credits, and other incentives.
But they still have to pay out of pocket for any repairs and renovations.
With all kinds of criminal activity going on in the building,
the property constantly needed to be repaired and upgraded.
One of the biggest expenses was replacing the elevators that were always breaking,
not to mention all windows and walls that had to be repaired and painted
after every shooting or robbery.
The company put 9.9 million dollars into renovating the project in 2014,
but that wasn’t enough.
The investment became a major headache for Related Midwest,
and they were stuck in a cycle of either just breaking even or losing money every year.
They finally got tired of it and put the building up for sale in April 2021.
News of the Parkway Gardens Houses going up for sale
led to fan speculation
that some of the famous rappers who grew up in the community might try to purchase it.
Lil Durk added fuel to this rumor
by subtweeting a post from Kollege Kidd about the sale, by saying
“I’ll buy it don’t matter how much”
Even though Durk is a successful rapper,
it’s unlikely that he could realistically purchase the property or would even want to.
Durk may be doing well financially,
but there is no way that he has $40 or $50 million sitting around
to dump into a property with so many liabilities.
Even if he could get a loan, it would take some serious work
and cash investment beyond the purchase price
to get the building into a condition where he would make money,
which would mean putting $70 - $100 million into an investment,
with no guarantees of making any of a return.
If a company that specializes in real estate development couldn’t do it,
it’s unlikely that Durk would be able to pull it off,
while also touring and maintaining his rap career.
But, it’s understandable why the rapper would want to own the block he grew up on
and protect it from being torn down.
Even though it would be pretty legendary if the rapper could pull it off,
the numbers don’t make sense for Durk to do it all on his own,
especially since the tenants will be friends and family
who may feel like he owes them a break.
Then he’s put in a position of either losing money
or evicting his own people from their homes, which is a spot you don’t want to be in.
If Durk were really serious about purchasing the property,
what he should do is gather a team of other artists like Chief Keef
and anyone else with ties to O’Block and pool their money.
Then get the help of an experienced real estate developer.
Owning and maintaining a property
as massive and crime-ridden as O’Block is a serious job.
Flipping houses or buying single-family homes
is the kind of real estate investing that anyone can handle
if you have the cash and proper training.
But owning a property with almost 700 units requires an expert.
Especially if Durk plans to maintain it as a low-income housing project
and receive benefits from the government.
That requires an understanding of tax codes, government programs, local building laws,
and all kinds of other information that is tough to stay on top of,
even for those in the real estate business.
When the Department of Buildings inspected the property after being put up for sale,
it was discovered that there were over 50 building code violations
that included missing window screens, rodent problems, broken elevators, and more.
So, purchasing the property would mean addressing these issues
and putting a team in place to take care of maintenance in the future,
which also eats into profits.
So, Durk may want to think twice
before just writing a blank check to purchase O’Block by himself.
Even though it would be dope to see Durk and Chief Keef
team up with a local real estate developer
and turn O’Block into a safer and better-maintained building,
it doesn’t look like they’re going to get the chance.
Say Cheese TV reported that the building has already been sold.
Although the buyer’s identity hasn’t been revealed,
rumors are floating around that O’Block residents will be forced to leave
and the property will be demolished and gentrified.
With housing prices across the country going up,
the buyer will likely replace it with expensive condos
or a shopping center that will be more profitable than the building in its current state.
That’s probably the reason why Durk wanted to buy the property in the first place,
to be sure that all his friends and relatives won’t be kicked out of their homes
and displaced to other parts of the city.
But there is no telling whether Related Midwest would have sold it to Durk,
even if he had the money and professional help.
It’s a sad day for hip hop and the city of Chicago.
Tearing down the projects won’t stop the violence going on in the city,
it will only move it around
and it will be interesting to see how the change impacts the war in Chiraq.
Without the 13-acre fortress as a stronghold,
the BD’s may have a tough time maintaining their dominance in the area.
The dudes from O’Block who are still in the street will have to find a new base of operations.
But with so much of the city already claimed by other gangs, this may be tough to do.
They will have to move to areas already controlled by groups they are allied with
and start repping other blocks.
Nothing is set in stone until the contracts are signed and the money changes hands.
So if the deal falls through,
there is a slight chance that Durk or Keef could still get involved in the purchase.
But, at this point, it would take a miracle for O’Block to stay the way it is.
No one with the kind of money it takes to buy the property
is going to spend millions of dollars for an unprofitable gang fortress,
no matter how important it is to the hip-hop community.
At least the legendary building will live on through the music created in the drill era
and maybe Durk and some business partners can get together
and buy a different property that can serve as O’Block 2.0.
If you liked this video
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From Rappers In Gangs
to Drill Lyrics That Actually Happened,
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