It may take a few months, but a Gary man hopes that recent protests at a construction site in his city leads to more Gary residents and minority subcontractors being tapped to work on government-funded projects.
Ron Matlock said Monday he anticipates meeting board members from the Gary Sanitary District this week and the Board of Works and Public Safety in the future about the opportunities to get more residents on construction projects in the spring.
Matlock said he has stopped protests at a sewer rehabilitation project site in Gary's Glen Ryan section. Last week, Matlock and a handful of other residents gathered multiple days in an attempt to stop construction work to bring attention to the cause of the "Fair Share Jobs Project." Matlock is Calumet Township Advisory Board member and a Gary Democratic Precinct Committee member.
"We believe the ongoing negotiations with the contractors as well as the Sanitary District will be fruitful in terms of putting people, in terms of Gary residents, on jobs," Matlock said.
Last week, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Chicago District Project Manager Imad Samara verified with the sewer project's prime contractor that based on contract language, minority participation goals were being met on the project and that local subcontractors with Gary addresses are working on the project.
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