Cabrini Green's Dying Breath

"More than a decade ago, when the Chicago Housing Authority began dismantling much of its notoriously dysfunctional stock, the worst of Cabrini Green was the first to meet the wrecking ball because it was considered to be among the most frightful addresses in the country.

For some families, it still is. Under the supervision of a federal judge, the demolitions have slowed while the residents of several deteriorating buildings and the Housing Authority negotiate redevelopment plans and where the displaced population will go.

In one 19-acre part of the project officially known as the William Green Homes, there were once more than 1,000 apartments in eight 15-story towers. Today, 176 families and an unknown number of squatters live there in three remaining buildings. At its peak, the entire Cabrini project was home to about 15,000 people in hundreds of row houses and towers. Many of those structures are long gone, or are awaiting rehabilitation or demolition."