Seven thousand migrants are currently in maxed-out shelters across Chicago, and 2,000 more are temporarily in police departments and O'Hare and Midway international airports.
NBC Chicago learned from city leaders Friday there are five more buses carrying hundreds of migrants on the way to the city now. They are expected to arrive this weekend.
"They're on their way to Chicago, but we don’t know what to do when they get here. We have no place to put them," said Ald. Brian Hopkins.
Hopkins met with Mayor Brandon Johnson Friday afternoon to learn more about his plans for migrant shelters.
The mayor said he wants to put base camp-style tents up at "various locations" throughout the city. He would not tell us where those tents would go or how they would be funded or secured, however NBC Chicago spoke with Hopkins after his meeting to learn more.
“He put that right back on us," Hopkins said. "He’s asking us for assistance on trying to locate some suitable sites. It seems to be a marginal improvement over living in the lobby of a police station. But ultimately it is not the solution."
He said the steel-framed tents would need two acres of space and would be heated and able to withstand winter.
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"You cant live your entire life in a temporary shelter," he said. "You shouldn’t even live a year in a temporary shelter.”
Hopkins also said it's time for the federal government to step up.
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"Now we’re projecting by the end of 2023 the total cost of this after we’ve added these tent shelters will exceed $300 million," he told NBC Chicago.
The city has already spent $116 million dollars on this effort. The federal government, through FEMA, has contributed $30 million.
"Clearly this is an application of the federal government’s responsibility. This is not a city’s job," Hopkins said. "Immigration has never been the responsibility of municipal governments to either fund or manage, and yet we as a city are being asked to do that."
He's calling on President Joe Biden to do more.
"He’s coming here next year for the convention," Hopkins said. "If this crisis continues to escalate the way it is, that will be a disaster and will reflect poorly on his leadership."
It's unclear where the incoming migrants will go when their buses arrive this weekend.
