A Black midwife–led birth center is being built on the Chicago South Side at 83rd and South Shore Drive, marking the area’s first dedicated birth center and Illinois’s first nonprofit birth center.

Construction and landscaping will be funded by a $3.3 million city grant as part of a $7.4 million project, with officials including Mayor Brandon Johnson and planning commissioner Ciere Boatright at the ceremony.

Attendees emphasize that the center will center care, culture, and dignity, serving as a long-awaited resource for local families.

Leadership comes from Liz Dozier Senghor, CEO of Chicago Beyond, who says the birth center has long been needed and represents a critical community investment.

Total project cost of $7.4 million includes a $3.3 million city grant to support the facility."

Maternity options on the South Side are limited, with only four hospitals offering maternity services, underscoring the need for a local birth center.

Existing South Side capacity includes four hospitals with maternity services alongside the new birth center.

Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton highlighted higher pregnancy-related death risks among Black women in Illinois and the need for safer, healthier deliveries.

The center will provide comprehensive services, including prenatal care, birth services, postpartum care, lactation support, holistic reproductive health care, childbirth education, and wellness programming.

Culturally centered, Black midwife–led care will anchor the offerings, with a focus on prenatal, birth, postpartum, lactation support, and community wellness programming.

The nonprofit birth center is slated to open in early 2027, led by founder and lead steward Jeanine Valrie Logan.

Ceremony remarks from Ald. Peter Chico and Chicago Beyond founder Liz Dozier underscored community and philanthropic support.