CHICAGO — Residents in a Chicago southwest neighborhood were able to voice their opinion about the use of the facility at a meeting scheduled organized by 18th Ward Alderman Derrick Curtis Thursday evening.

According to OEMC, nearly 10,000 migrants from Central and South America have arrived to Chicago since late august. At least 700 migrants are still waiting for their placement at a shelter or respite center.

The city doesn’t have the space to house them currently, so hundreds of migrants have been living at Chicago police stations.

In an effort to address this issue, a group of Latino alder people have suggested Daley College on the 7500 block of South Pulaski Avenue in Chicago’s Ford City neighborhood to be used as a temporary housing shelter site.

The group said there are four buildings not in use and won’t interfere with the college’s programming.

During Thursday’s presentation at Daley College, city officials gave an overview of the plans to use the space as a temporary housing shelter for nearly 415 asylum seekers.

The city college would only be used to house families with children under 18-years-old. The migrants would stay in three buildings: the gymnasium and two unused classrooms.

It’s a concept that has also been adopted at another college on the Northwest side.

Residents packed the room to ask questions, express support and opposition of the migrants moving to the 18th Ward. But many challenged the city on how they were going to handle the crisis if more continue to arrive.

WGN have reached out to Mayor Brandon Johnson’s office for comment about the use of the buildings, but have yet to receive a response.