RESOLUTION HONORING THE RED HOT RANCH
WHEREAS, Isabel and Al Deutch opened the Red Hot Ranch on Devon Avenue in the 50th Ward in 1952 - one of the earliest and most iconic hot dog stands in Chicago; and
WHEREAS, The Red Hot Ranch served the community for more than 25 years, feeding local mailmen, neighborhood residents and transplanted Chicagoans as far away as Los Angeles and New York. The Red Hot Ranch was a meeting place for all the local mailmen and teens in the area, most of whom ate there daily, often for free; and
WHEREAS, The Red Hot Ranch employed local high school kids, giving neighborhood children a safe space to work and to congregate under the careful guidance of Isabel Deutch - as long as they maintained at least a "C" average in school. The Ranch also sponsored little league and football teams, with Al Deutch often serving as coach; and
WHEREAS, Isabel and Al Deutch were both lifelong Chicago residents and lived in the 50th Ward for 28 years. Isabel graduated from Tuley High School, and Al went to Schurz High School and graduated from Purdue University. Al then went on to serve his country as an engineer for the Army Corps of Engineers; and
WHEREAS, The Red Hot Ranch was honored by Vienna Beef and inducted into the Hot Dog Hall of Fame (2018) in recognition of its iconic status. The Ranch may be gone, but its legacy will always remain a strong part of Chicago's hot dog culture; now, therefore,
BE IT RESOLVED, that we, the Mayor and members of the City Council of the City of Chicago, assembled this eighteenth day of September, 2019, do hereby commend Isabel and Al Deutch and the Red Hot Ranch for their/Cbntribution to the City of Chicago.
ALDERMAN - 50TH WARD