16th Police District to hold outdoor roll call in 4800 block of Pensacola in Portage Park in response to recent gunfire that damaged homes; residents meet with Alderman Gardiner to discuss solutions

by BRIAN NADIG

The 16th Police District will hold an outdoor roll call at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 20, in the 4800 block of West Pensacola Avenue in Portage Park, in response to recent gunfire in the area.

Gunfire damaged three homes at about 6 p.m. Monday, Sept. 12, on the block, including instances in which a bullet was found on a closet floor and another in a door frame, according to police.

The bullets appeared to have been fired from the 4700 block of Pensacola and traveled across Cicero Avenue, as shell casings were found in the 4700 block.

No injuries were reported, and it is not clear what sparked the gunfire, police said. A car in the area also was reported damaged by the gunfire, police said.

Alderman James Gardiner (45th) met with about 40 residents on Sunday, Sept. 18, outside a home on Pensacola to discuss the incidents.

In one incident a homeowner reported holes in a bedroom window and in a closet, while another homeowner reported a bullet entering one window and exiting through another, police said. At the third home a bullet hit the frame of the front door, police said.

“As discussed at last night’s meeting, I will contact the owner of McDonald’s at Pensacola and Cicero to request on-site security. I will also contact CTA to request better maintenance of their property (the bus turnaround on Cicero),” Gardiner said in a letter to residents.

“To help our limited officers monitor our community, I am seeking to invest $27,000 to purchase another LPR (License Plate Reader) camera that would be installed at the corners of Montrose and Cicero,” Gardiner added.

In the past year Gardiner has had about five police observation cameras installed in the ward.