A preview of my story this week in Inside—Booster:
The Rat Hole: Before and After
The Chicago Department of Transportation removed the section of sidewalk in Roscoe Village on Wednesday with the animal impression frozen in the concrete—Chicago’s famous “Rat Hole.”
Early last Wednesday, CDOT workers removed and replaced sections of sidewalk and curb in the 1900 block of West Roscoe containing the Rat Hole. The animal impression in concrete has drawn nationwide attention in recent months. By mid-afternoon, a new sidewalk was poured. By early evening, the concrete had set and the forms were removed putting an end to the Rat Hole which some accounts said had been in place for twenty years.
CDOT’s Ambrosio Medrano, Jr., on the scene at the time of the removal said that the section of the sidewalk with the impression of the rodent was preserved and is in the possession of CDOT. Medrano said that the Rat Hole sidewalk would be given to the City’s Rodent Control Office in the Department of Streets and Sanitation. CDOT officials later would not confirm plans for the Rat Hole.
The animal impression gained notoriety in early January 2024 when a local artist posted his rat sculpture with the “rat hole.” Since then, it has blown up social media and news reports. A wedding is reported to have taken place at the Rat Hole. For a while in February, lines formed in the 1900 block of Roscoe to examine and leave tribute at the Rat Hole. It was regularly filled with coins like a European fountain, only smaller, and with a Chicago flair.
At least one purported expert who studied the Rat Hole believes that the impression is actually that of a squirrel that fell out of an adjacent large tree into wet cement when the sidewalk was first poured some twenty years ago. The impression is consistent with the anatomy of a squirrel rather than that of a rat was his hypothesis.
“This is definitely something we have not encountered before,” said Paul Sajovec, Alderman Waguespack’s chief of staff. Alderman Waguespack’s office has had lots and lots of complaints since January and February when people started visiting the 1900 block of Roscoe to check out the Rat Hole. Sajovec said, “the City’s 311 call center had received and forwarded numerous call to Alderman Waguespack’s office.
Alderman Waguespack contacted CDOT in late January or early February to “raise the issue” since this is a City infrastructure issue. Alderman Waguespack also discussed the Rat Hole directly with CDOT Commissioner Tom Karney.
“Some people were very vocal about immediately removing the sidewalk,” Sajovec said. The Alderman did not side with people who demanded that it be removed.
“It was CDOT’s decision to replace the sidewalk,” Sajovec said. It is not known when CDOT decided to remove sidewalk.
After reports of the Rat Hole removal, Alderman Waguespack’s office received mixed feedback from community members.
“Some people are pleased; some people are very upset [with removal of the Rat Hole]. The reactions are all over the board,” Sajovec said.
This reporter’s tweet about the removal of the Rat Hole generated 462,000 view in two days on Twitter—also know as X.
CDOT had a slightly different take on removing the Rat Hole. “This sidewalk removal and replacement was in coordination with the Alderman's office and is funded through the 32nd Ward’s Aldermanic menu funds,” CDOT responded to Inside’s inquiry about how the removal came about.
“CDOT surveyed the sidewalk earlier this year and is replacing several other small sections of damaged sidewalk on Roscoe Street through CDOT's 311 hazardous sidewalk program,” wrote CDOT’s Erica Schroeder, the public information officer.
“[T]he square of concrete containing the "rat hole" is with CDOT's Division of In-House construction currently. Future plans are not confirmed, but I will certainly keep you posted once those are finalized.”
Stay tuned. We will have to see where the Rat Hole ends up.