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  #2061  
Old Posted Nov 15, 2007, 6:23 AM
the urban politician the urban politician is offline
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NIMBY's being the usual jackasses that they are. Thank God the Alderman is in support of this project...

11/14/2007 10:00:00 PM
High-rise too dense
Neighbors call for family-oriented development

By HAYLEY GRAHAM
Editor


West Loop neighbors and organizations are fighting to delay the city's approval of an 11-story residential high-rise development at 1260 W. Madison.

The proposal, which is supported by 27th Ward Alderman Walter Burnett, is set to go before the Chicago Plan Commission on Nov. 16.

At a meeting of the West Loop Community Organization on Nov. 13, neighbors of the project said they had not received a required legal notice informing them that the development was on the Plan Commission's agenda.

Many asked Terri Haymaker, deputy commissioner for the city's Department of Planning and Development, to have the project removed from the agenda. Haymaker was not sure if the delay would be possible, and told the residents they could voice their opposition at the meeting if the project was kept on the agenda.

Pinkus Group is seeking a zoning change that would allow the development to exceed the height standard for the neighborhood for the proposed building, which is the site of the former Federal Express building. West Loop residents argue the height will add too much density in an area plagued with parking problems, and the small size of the units is not in line with the community's goal of becoming more family oriented.

Martha Goldstein, executive director of West Loop Community Organization, said the community would like to see more parks and community elements to attract families, adding that high-rises with small units will make it more difficult.

"We won't be able to build a [family-friendly] community that way," Goldstein said.

The 11-story mixed-used development would have 318 residential units and approximately 58,161 square feet of ground-floor retail space and 502 off-street parking spaces. The plan also includes a 4-story development at 1300 W. Madison that would include 33 residential units and approximately 8,657 square feet of ground-floor retail space. One parking space would be deeded with each unit.

At Tuesday's WLCO meeting held at the Merit School of Music, 38 S. Peoria, Burnett said he approved the development after three meetings with the developer and community members that resulted in modifications to the proposal.

"I try to be just and fair in all of my decision making," said Burnett, adding that while the size of the development concerns him, the developer took the community's comments into consideration, brought the height down to 115 feet and added units larger than 700 square feet. "The city sees this as an area that can take density."

(And how did the community respond to this? Read the exciting, douche-bag filled conclusion below!!)

http://www.chicagojournal.com/main.a...48&TM=3762.792
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  #2062  
Old Posted Nov 15, 2007, 6:37 AM
Nowhereman1280 Nowhereman1280 is offline
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""We don't want a repeat of the South Loop with high-rises everywhere," Neal said."

Oh yes, we wouldn't want our neighborhood to be like the hottest neighborhood in the city would we! Heaven forbid people would actually want to live here! Oh, and we also don't want to have our land values double and make a huge profit on the crappy lofts we moved into 3 years ago, because profits are evil and like to eat babies... Also, I once saw a tall building punch a nun...
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  #2063  
Old Posted Nov 15, 2007, 2:34 PM
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^^^Well I do think they have one good point, and that is that at this point in my life, I wouldn't buy anything with less than 3 bedrooms. And so it is a valid point that if you build out an entire neighborhood with 1-2 bedroom units, when a family has 2 kids, they have to leave the neighborhood for the burbs.
They didn't say the size of the building, they said the size of the units.

But then of course the NIMBYs favor height limits, which means that if a developer wanted to build a larger building with larger units, he probably couldn't....

Last edited by aaron38; Nov 15, 2007 at 6:40 PM.
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  #2064  
Old Posted Nov 15, 2007, 9:42 PM
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I don't remember if this was posted here...
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Champions of Sustainability
Cover Story - November 2007

New Green Initiatives Help Drive
Chicago’s Urban Renaissance

http://midwest.construction.com/feat...0711_cover.asp

by Don Talend

Over the past 10 years, nobody can ignore an environmentally driven infrastructure revitalization movement that has made Chicago a model of sustainable construction nationally and globally.

...
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  #2065  
Old Posted Nov 15, 2007, 10:04 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by aaron38 View Post
^^^Well I do think they have one good point, and that is that at this point in my life, I wouldn't buy anything with less than 3 bedrooms. And so it is a valid point that if you build out an entire neighborhood with 1-2 bedroom units, when a family has 2 kids, they have to leave the neighborhood for the burbs.
They didn't say the size of the building, they said the size of the units.

But then of course the NIMBYs favor height limits, which means that if a developer wanted to build a larger building with larger units, he probably couldn't....
Actually not necessarily.....but your comment raises perhaps a problem in our society...that every child must have his/her own room....is that really a need???

I mean my brother and I shared a bedroom while we grew up
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  #2066  
Old Posted Nov 15, 2007, 10:05 PM
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Originally Posted by trvlr70 View Post
Anyone have any details about this possible merger?

The good news is that the name and corporate headquarters will remain United and in Chicago.
sorry for my ignorance but who is DL.......not Delta?
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  #2067  
Old Posted Nov 15, 2007, 11:48 PM
SkokieSwift SkokieSwift is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by forumly_chgoman View Post
Actually not necessarily.....but your comment raises perhaps a problem in our society...that every child must have his/her own room....is that really a need???

I mean my brother and I shared a bedroom while we grew up
Beyond this issue (which I agree is a societal issue in terms of the massification of luxury), the key issue here is that these people have a false sense of entitlement to land they don't own. If it's more profitable (and in a lot of cases, only financially feasible) for a developer to build 1-2 bedroom units instead of 3-bedroom units, what right do the neighbors have to complain?
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  #2068  
Old Posted Nov 16, 2007, 12:31 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by forumly_chgoman View Post
Actually not necessarily.....but your comment raises perhaps a problem in our society...that every child must have his/her own room....is that really a need???

I mean my brother and I shared a bedroom while we grew up
Who said the two kids aren't sharing a bedroom? Often in a 3-bedroom unit, the parents get the first bedroom, the kids the second, and the third is used for storage, or a playroom, or some other such usage.

I think it's good to have a third common room in an apartment besides the kitchen and main room, if you plan to raise a family with more than 1 kid.
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  #2069  
Old Posted Nov 16, 2007, 3:08 AM
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^I'm a bit conflicted regarding the "we want this neighborhood for families" argument. I am primarily against it, because I think the beauty of the city is living in diversity, which includes families living amongst singles, childless couples, home owners, and home renters. But the reality is that many people want to raise their kids around other kids, at least after they get to be school age, and it's hard to blame them for that. I dont want to lose those families to the suburbs, because it is important to have them here in the city. In the end though, it is obviously ridiculous for the residents of a neighborhood to essentially discriminate against people not like them and seek to preserve "their" neighborhood for a certain type of living quarters and certain types of residents.
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  #2070  
Old Posted Nov 16, 2007, 3:22 AM
mcfinley mcfinley is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by trvlr70 View Post
Anyone have any details about this possible merger?

The good news is that the name and corporate headquarters will remain United and in Chicago.
It was just a rumor started by an investor with Delta--an open letter regarding a buyout he'd like to see. Delta and United Airlines haven't had any merger talks, and for Chicago's sake I hope a deal like this wouldn't go through, e.g. the name and headquarters remain in Chicago but operations move to Atlanta.
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  #2071  
Old Posted Nov 16, 2007, 3:31 AM
honte honte is offline
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^ I don't understand why in people's minds, there are only hip, close-in neighborhoods, and then the suburbs. There are plenty of places in Chicago that would accommodate families with a need for 3+ bedrooms, but most people simply won't even consider these areas. It's a shame. 5 minutes west of West Loop, there are great neighborhoods with homes people could be rehabbing for this purpose.

(To be fair, many of the people who live already in these areas are raising families and are doing just fine. It seems primarily like a yuppie mentality that you only can live in a new, suburban development downtown, or in the suburbs themselves.)
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  #2072  
Old Posted Nov 16, 2007, 4:55 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by honte View Post
^ I don't understand why in people's minds, there are only hip, close-in neighborhoods, and then the suburbs. There are plenty of places in Chicago that would accommodate families with a need for 3+ bedrooms, but most people simply won't even consider these areas. It's a shame. 5 minutes west of West Loop, there are great neighborhoods with homes people could be rehabbing for this purpose.

(To be fair, many of the people who live already in these areas are raising families and are doing just fine. It seems primarily like a yuppie mentality that you only can live in a new, suburban development downtown, or in the suburbs themselves.)
Well said, a pet peeve of many on this board I'm sure. What's wrong with raising a family in a Chicago bungalow?
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  #2073  
Old Posted Nov 16, 2007, 5:41 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by budman View Post
^I'm a bit conflicted regarding the "we want this neighborhood for families" argument. I am primarily against it, because I think the beauty of the city is living in diversity, which includes families living amongst singles, childless couples, home owners, and home renters. But the reality is that many people want to raise their kids around other kids, at least after they get to be school age, and it's hard to blame them for that. I dont want to lose those families to the suburbs, because it is important to have them here in the city. In the end though, it is obviously ridiculous for the residents of a neighborhood to essentially discriminate against people not like them and seek to preserve "their" neighborhood for a certain type of living quarters and certain types of residents.
Not only that, the area in question here is just blocks from UIC. So, it seems to me, a lot of students and young people without families would live in this area anyway... and the dicks at WLCO won't be changing that anytime ever. I am still baffled by how in every article they mention they want "mixed developments with town houses, lofts and open green space" With the desire for mixed developmens with low-rise townhouses, how else can enough usable open space even be left over without going vertical? They also mention lofts.. if there is anything the west loop probably doesn't need are lofts.. there must be shitloads of them already, and they are typically in old warehouses with really deep units so you can't even put in the "three bedrooms for families" they claim they want more of. The only open space I have ever seen at all in the West Loop are on a few select entire blocks that are underutilized with one small 1 story buildings with parking lots (Jackson and Morgan) that have a fenced in green space that really nobody uses.

It seems like more and more they will just make up any jackass argument as long as their precious 10 story height limit isn't surpassed.
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Last edited by Pandemonious; Nov 16, 2007 at 6:03 AM.
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  #2074  
Old Posted Nov 16, 2007, 5:53 AM
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Okay, the burbs comment got taken the wrong way. So strike burbs and substitute single family neighborhood. But is there really that much difference between a bungalow in Mayfair and a single family in Park Ridge? That's all I meant. It's not the loop.

But I stand by what I said. Lots of people want the flexibility of a third bedroom as a guest bedroom/office/media room. And I don't think it's wastefull. I would gladly trade all the uber luxury finishes that I don't need for an extra room that I do need.

But if the market isn't demanding them, the developers shouldn't be forced to build them.
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  #2075  
Old Posted Nov 16, 2007, 8:18 PM
the urban politician the urban politician is offline
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A great commentary. Go NIMBY'S!!!!! (did I really just say that?)

11/14/2007 10:00:00 PM
Ashland and Division: An environmental perspective
SCOTT A. RAPPE

For ten years the East Village Association has battled developers bent on overbuilding in areas where such density would strain city services, create traffic congestion and make the neighborhood less livable. We were not always successful, and the results are all around us. Now, for the first time, the East Village Association has actively called for a site to be developed beyond what its current zoning would allow. This is an unusual position for a community organization, yet, ironically we are still met with opposition by an insensitive and stubborn developer.

In this era of growing environmental awareness, dense urban communities like West Town are the most promising models for sustainable living. Just living in renovated buildings in the center of the city puts all of us at the cutting edge of sustainability, in a way that driving a hybrid vehicle to a solar powered house built out of recycled materials in suburbia never could. To paraphrase a common sentiment among architects: The most sustainable building is the one you don't build.

Continued occupancy of vintage buildings conserves construction materials and embodied energy. The density of these multi-family buildings preserves land and provides the critical mass of people necessary to create a sense of community. As in East Village , this density, concentrated in an area of ½ mile by ½ mile ( Chicago to Division, Ashland to Damen) provides enough patrons within walking distance to sustain many vibrant businesses. City lots are modest in size, small enough to be maintained with minimal effort, while large enough to provide light and air to the dwelling, a small garden and perhaps even a rain barrel and a compost bin.

East Village is a good example of a community that relies on public transit. Its perimeter is served by five major bus lines and the Blue line passes right by its northeast corner (where Walgreens is proposing its new building). It is amazing to see the pedestrian traffic to and from the subway station during morning and evening rush hour. These transit options are easily walkable and concentrate large numbers of people on the community's perimeter, creating a synergy between residents and businesses.

(read more at link):

http://www.chicagojournal.com/main.a...36&TM=54783.35
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  #2076  
Old Posted Nov 17, 2007, 1:34 AM
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Quote:
What's wrong with raising a family in a Chicago bungalow?
They're too small. You can get the same price (with better schools) larger house in the suburbs.
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  #2077  
Old Posted Nov 17, 2007, 8:01 AM
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They're too small. You can get the same price (with better schools) larger house in the suburbs.
hope you are joking if not i'd like to throw a molotov right at your head
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  #2078  
Old Posted Nov 17, 2007, 8:06 AM
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LaSalle.St.Station LaSalle.St.Station is offline
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PROPOSAL: College Junction at Old Chicago Post Office.

Dorms, Class Rooms, Meeting halls, Practice spaces, Artist lofts....



participating institutions.... UIC, Roosevelt, Columbia, Harold Washington college


main points


Roosevelt U moves to Post Office...... Michigan Avenue building becomes a hotel.
Harold Washington College Wabash campus developed as retail and hotel
Congress blvd programmed as an urban campus 'quad' Fed expansion redirected from State St. to Congress south of existing and replacing fed correction center parking lot, bp gas station and parking lot, and amalgamated bank building.
Tear Down... Chi Stock Exch over Congress, build New Grand Metra Station to the south to complete the Grand Congress Blvd area of DT.
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  #2079  
Old Posted Nov 17, 2007, 4:10 PM
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^Whats wrong with the amalgamated bank building. Lumping it in with parking lots and gas stations to be replaced?
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  #2080  
Old Posted Nov 17, 2007, 5:18 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by forumly_chgoman View Post
hope you are joking if not i'd like to throw a molotov right at your head

boris is right, ya know...
I've lived in a 4 bedroom house in chicago my whole life, but I took metra out to the suburbs every day for high school. I might be a little biased
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