Scores turn out for Cong. Rush's  Subcontractor Opportunity Fair for Metra-Rock Island 35th Street Commuter Rail Stop in Bronzeville

CHICAGO - Today, the Chicago District staff of U.S. Rep. Bobby L. Rush hosted a Subcontractor Opportunity Fair on the campus of the Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT) to increase minority participation on the construction of the Metra-Rock Island 35th Street Commuter Rail stop in the city's historic Bronzeville neighborhood. The event attracted approximately 100 African American and minority- or women-owned subcontractors to the project for which the Congressman has secured $11.7 million in federal funding.

Rep. Rush created the fair to increase minority participation on the project to be lead by the general contractor, John Burns Construction Company, and to ensure that African Americans were fully seated at the table of opportunity. "It is going to take some time for the positive effects of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) to be felt in the communities most impacted by the recession," Rep. Rush said. "It is important that minorities, and particularly African Americans, are seated at the table of opportunity when these shovel-ready projects begin.

"Our Bronzeville Metra project will improve transportation and provide access to job opportunities outside of the city," he continued.  "It is important that the residents of the 1st Congressional District are able to participate in this multi-faceted construction project. The new ARRA dollars ($7,500,500) will enable us to put more people back to work and help increase African American and minority participation in the building trades in the State of Illinois," said Congressman Rush who was unable to attend today's event as he returned to the U. S., yesterday, from a trade visit to Cuba with other House leaders.

Representing Congressman Rush, this morning, was his Chicago District Director, Barbara Holt, who was joined by 3rd Ward Alderman Pat Dowell, Larry Huggins , Metra board member, David Baker, vice President of External Affairs at IIT, Sandi Llano, Metra's DBE director, and D. Michael Higgins, vice president of the John Burns Construction Company.

"If it was not for Congressman Rush's efforts and his strong commitment to ensure that a shovel ready project of this size got support in his District, this project would not be here," said Larry Huggins, who also thanked the leadership of John Burns Construction Company for their willingness to be responsive to the economic needs of the people served by Rush in his 1st Congressional District.

Today's event came days after the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released its monthly jobs report for March which showed the share of African Americans with a job has dropped 3.7 percentage points over the course of the recession to 54.1 percent. The last time the employment to population ratio for African Americans was this low was April 1993.  The national rate for African American workers is now at 13.3 percent, up 5.4 percentage points from the start of the recession in December 2007.

The Congressman's office partnered with Black Contractors United, the premiere minority contracting advocacy organization in Illinois, and other community leaders to identify qualified vendors.  Subcontractors were screened for 18 opportunity areas including traffic control, brick paving, demolition, glazing, painting, dam and water proofing, sheet metal roofing and flashing and landscaping among others. Construction and groundbreaking will begin this month.

For more information on the project, contact the John Burns Construction Company at 708-326-3325.