CHICAGO | General Developments

[left of center]

^ Suppose it depends on what theory you subscribe to... does a neighborhood attract the commercial activity or does the commercial activity attract the neighborhood? Im sure its a little of both.

The potential problem with Kinzie corridor would be the MD/UP viaduct creating a mental and physical barrier with the neighborhood to the south.

[west-town-brad]

Originally Posted by marothisu

My personal opinion is that EGP is decently located and has good public transport access in areas, and had some real nice building stock some places. At the same time, there has not been a ton of action in the form of new construction in the last few years. There has been some renovations but not as many as Bronzeville, Woodlawn, South Shore, and even parts of North Lawndale and Austin. I'm working on a map for this right now (2017 to present), but it's hard to pick out the actual renovations so it'll be a few more weeks until it's ready for viewing..

I personally like the location of egp, but at the same time I feel like it's an even larger work in progress than Bronzeville. I also feel like the image of Bronzeville is better now than a decade ago which makes people more open to living there, whereas egp has an image that's not necessarily as positive. I think Bronzeville has had at least decent PR in the last handful of years that EGP could take lessons from.

New construction follows rehabs. In EGP, there are few homes to rehab (most were torn down) so you miss a key link in the gentrification chain. EGP will be a laggard for a very long time for this reason.

I could see TOD being built around the green line stations - but that will take too much of a risk for anything but public housing.

[moorhosj]

Originally Posted by the urban politician

Exactly. Really Avondale is where the gentrification wave ends in the northwesterly direction.

Friends of ours just a bought a place in Avondale (one kid, moving from Wicker Park). Their realtor said she had a property in the neighborhood recently that received 17 offers, a new record for her. It's a small neighborhood and will be filled up soon.

Irving Park and Hermosa have Metra stations, which may make them the next likely gentrification spots. However, you are starting to get very far from downtown in the northwest direction. It may be time we see much larger waves gentrifying the south and southwest neighborhoods (Little Village, Lawndale, Douglas, Bronzeville) along the Pink and Green lines.

[Vlajos]

^ Avondale is being filled with the young and the hip. I think all my younger siblings friends are buying there.

[OhioGuy]

Originally Posted by moorhosj

Friends of ours just a bought a place in Avondale (one kid, moving from Wicker Park). Their realtor said she had a property in the neighborhood recently that received 17 offers, a new record for her. It's a small neighborhood and will be filled up soon.

Irving Park and Hermosa have Metra stations, which may make them the next likely gentrification spots. However, you are starting to get very far from downtown in the northwest direction. It may be time we see much larger waves gentrifying the south and southwest neighborhoods (Little Village, Lawndale, Douglas, Bronzeville) along the Pink and Green lines.

What about heading north to Uptown? New buildings are either under construction or in the pipe-line, but it seems like the neighborhood still doesn’t quite catch on, at least not to the degree of places along the green & blue lines on the west and northwest sides. Is it mainly due to the hodgepodge of subsized housing/senior housing concentrated in Uptown?

[Kenmore]

Originally Posted by OhioGuy

What about heading north to Uptown? New buildings are either under construction or in the pipe-line, but it seems like the neighborhood still doesn’t quite catch on, at least not to the degree of places along the green & blue lines on the west and northwest sides. Is it mainly due to the hodgepodge of subsized housing/senior housing concentrated in Uptown?

suburban transplants driving the gentrification wave don't like living around poor black people

[Rizzo]

I attempted to put in an offer on a 3BR 2BA place in uptown a year ago and about 20 minutes later there was already 8 offers within 24 hours of the listing going live.

[moorhosj]

Originally Posted by Kenmore

suburban transplants driving the gentrification wave don't like living around poor black people

The people moving to Avondale aren't really transplants in the sense that they are moving from suburbs. I am 34 and many friends in my group (young families) who have lived in the city since graduating college and don't want to raise their families in suburbs. Lots have done the slow migration from Lincoln Park to Wicker Park to Logan Square as they've aged and now want to settle in quieter, family-friendly neighborhoods.

The second part of your comment is mostly true, but less-so for each successive generation.

[r18tdi]

Originally Posted by moorhosj

The people moving to Avondale aren't really transplants in the sense that they are moving from suburbs.

All the ones I've met at least grew up in the surrounding burbs. And tend to have unfortunate Chicago flag tattoos.

[ardecila]

Originally Posted by left of center

^ Suppose it depends on what theory you subscribe to... does a neighborhood attract the commercial activity or does the commercial activity attract the neighborhood? Im sure its a little of both.

The potential problem with Kinzie corridor would be the MD/UP viaduct creating a mental and physical barrier with the neighborhood to the south.

All the places I listed are south of the Metra viaduct already. That’s the great thing about producers like brewers, coffee roasters, bakers etc. They want the biggest space they can get, centrally located in the city for distribution, so they’re willing to go into forlorn places like Kinzie Corridor and they usually invite the public in to enjoy the products directly. That puts Kinzie Corridor on the mental map of fashionable Chicagoans.

I will go out on a limb and say that the “West Haven” area (Ashland to Rockwell) will grow significantly in the next 10 years. The section from Damen to Western is almost entirely intact, with only a handful of vacant lots. It has basic necessities with a very good grocery store (Pete’s) and other retail options. New Green Line stops at Damen and Western will accelerate this.

There is a lot of CHA and Section 8 housing in West Haven, but its so close to downtown that middle-income renters can no longer afford to ignore it. I think this will happen even regardless of what happens with the United Center lots.

[the urban politician]

Is there another American city that has such symbolic pride in its center city? Perhaps besides NYC? I think this is a great thing (Chicago flag tattoo, etc)

[gebs]

Originally Posted by ardecila

I think this will happen even regardless of what happens with the United Center lots.

Speaking of the United lots, how's this for some misleading colors on Google Maps?

[LouisVanDerWright]

Relevant:

https://www.facebook.com/LaVillitaCh...eply&ref=notif

[left of center]

Originally Posted by the urban politician

Is there another American city that has such symbolic pride in its center city? Perhaps besides NYC? I think this is a great thing (Chicago flag tattoo, etc)

That's one thing I love about Chicagoans; the intense pride we feel for the city. We used to have more of it though, before the national media (and the president) started sh*tting on us. I'm hoping this is just a trough, and our bravado starts picking up agai.

Funny the media didn't mention at all that Chicago's homicides dropped by 127 last year from the year prior, a 16% decrease. I guess good news doesn't sell ads, huh?

[mark0]

[QUOTE+

Funny the media didn't mention at all that Chicago's homicides dropped by 127 last year from the year prior, a 16% decrease. I guess good news doesn't sell ads, huh?[/QUOTE]


Funny thing is this whole media shitting all over Chicago started about the time Obama was closing in on the presidency, the olympics failure and Blago saga, I think it's political. There was also a time in the early 80s where anything Chicago or rust belt was shat upon by the media. I think there are reasons for pushing regional agendas in the media and it doesn't help that there's virtually no media outside of NY or LA anymore, and with the spread of the interwebs even they may hold little sway very soon.

[marothisu]

Originally Posted by left of center

That's one thing I love about Chicagoans; the intense pride we feel for the city. We used to have more of it though, before the national media (and the president) started sh*tting on us. I'm hoping this is just a trough, and our bravado starts picking up agai.

Funny the media didn't mention at all that Chicago's homicides dropped by 127 last year from the year prior, a 16% decrease. I guess good news doesn't sell ads, huh?

The national media has done a number - a lot of Chicagoans shit on the city too. And some of it's warranted, but some of it when I hear it is just like "you obviously haven't traveled around much, have you?"

Oh yeah, and the media hasn't mentioned that homicides are down 25-30% so far this year compared to last and at this rate, the city will end up with in the same range as the average from about 2005 to 2015. Not that the number is low, but the reduction from the ridiculous spike is a good sign. And as mark0 mentions above, it started around the time Obama came into the national picture. Homicides were even worse than they were recently - and even with 2013 or 2014 being the lowest total since the mid 1960s, they were still writing about it and making people believe, even lifelong Chicagoans, that present day was somehow worse than the 80s or 90s. Incredible. It's taken a toll on the city for sure.

[the urban politician]

Originally Posted by marothisu

The national media has done a number - a lot of Chicagoans shit on the city too. And some of it's warranted, but some of it when I hear it is just like "you obviously haven't traveled around much, have you?"

Oh yeah, and the media hasn't mentioned that homicides are down 25-30% so far this year compared to last and at this rate, the city will end up with in the same range as the average from about 2005 to 2015. Not that the number is low, but the reduction from the ridiculous spike is a good sign. And as mark0 mentions above, it started around the time Obama came into the national picture. Homicides were even worse than they were recently - and even with 2013 or 2014 being the lowest total since the mid 1960s, they were still writing about it and making people believe, even lifelong Chicagoans, that present day was somehow worse than the 80s or 90s. Incredible. It's taken a toll on the city for sure.

This is less about that, and more about how, nowadays due to cheap land and low standards, any group of buttwads can say "hey look at my collection of McMansions, malls, and subdivisions! We're a global city just like you!" Then they point to their immigration numbers and say "howdy, partner, we're a global city just like you! We got Mexicans, Thai food, and a couple a' Egyptian guys just like you do! Awwww, shucks...."

Any faceless shithole in America that was a desert yesterday is going to draw 100,000 people per year now. They are going to come up to Chicago and say "we're pretty much you now!" Even though we all know it's BS.

So that's our little existential threat. Not the media.

[marothisu]

In other news, zoning applications have been made public for the last few days. Nothing really major yet, but a few notable projects for various reasons. Hopefully some more come in still..

* 4757 N Ashland Ave (Ashland and Lawrence). 99.9% sure this has been mentioned on here, but anyway..currently a 1 story building that has a lot of parking and probably used to be a gas station (https://www.google.com/maps/place/47...!4d-87.6689974). Seeking to rezone to 4 stories (55 ft in height) with 39 units and ground floor commercial/retail with will have 35 indoor parking spaces on the 1st floor

* 1900 W Pershing Pl (btwn Winchester and Wolcott - near Damen. Close to McKinley Park): Currently vacant lot (https://www.google.com/maps/place/19...!4d-87.6733999) seeking to become 4 different 3-story townhome buildings with 4 townhomes each - 16 total townhomes. 2 garage spaces each. Developers have Chinese names so I guess possibly the narrative of this which has been talked about many times in areas along I-55 like McKinley Park is possibly relevant here.

* 4227 W 35th St. New field service center for Peoples Gas - 71,179 sq ft over 2 floors. Parking for 417 cars so probably a good number of jobs which is great to see around here. I think there's a good amount going on in this general area. This is across the street from a 100K sq ft training center that Peoples Gas built or is building.

* 4801-59 S Cicero. Currently a vacant lot (https://www.google.com/maps/place/48...9!4d-87.742711). Proposed to become a 4 story (45 ft), 62 unit senior housing building with 40 parking spaces. Somehow they want the billboard there to remain. Developer/operator is the Miller-Valentine Group from Cincinnati and it's to be called the Cicero Senior Lofts.

* 1812-14 W Division St (around Honore St). Currently a 2 story building that used to have Czar Bar (https://www.google.com/maps/place/18...!4d-87.6730231). Proposed to raze that building and construct a new 4 story building with ground floor commercial space and 12 units. 0 parking spaces and 12 bicycle spaces - TOD qualifying.

* 1114 W Fulton Market (near May St). Currently a vacant 4 story industrial building (https://www.google.com/maps/place/11...!4d-87.6551459). Seeking to rehab the entire building and put ground floor commercial and turn floors 2-4 into office space. Also construct a 5th floor penthouse for the office tenants to use. 61 total feet in height. Developer is Domus Group .

* La Palapa at 2000 W 34th St (34th and Damen - one of my favorite Mexican restaurants in Chicago. Go there if you've never been) looks like they want to expand, add a rooftop deck and even an apartment unit in the new expansion.

* 1537-41 W Pearson (near Ashland Ave). Proposed to be two buildings of 6 total units, 6 total parking spaces and each at 43 feet in height. I only mention it because it appears to be a vacant lot for over a decade (https://www.google.com/maps/place/15...2!4d-87.666317). Good to see things like this fill in even if it's pretty small and not totally visible.

* 314-18 S Halsted. Establishment of 4 new units in the existing building about The Parthenon restaurant in Greektown.

* 2469-71 N Clybourn. Currently vacant lot (https://www.google.com/maps/place/24...!4d-87.6711932). New 5 story building with 8 units, 8 parking spaces, and 2 ground floor commercial spaces. Clybourn is personally one of my least favorite streets in all of the north side of Chicago, but at least there's still some smaller mixed use things being built instead of totally residential.

[Randomguy34]

^ In addition, Ald. Ervin is upzoning 4500-4524 W Fulton St, 3212-3358 W Carroll St, and 319-353 Homan N Homan Ave from manufacturing to RT-4 (2-flat/multi-units). These streets already have plenty of 2-flats, but it's nice to see that they are now legal again.

[Investing In Chicago]

Originally Posted by LouisVanDerWright

Relevant:

https://www.facebook.com/LaVillitaCh...eply&ref=notif

That’s really cool, congrats on the great properties, it’s obvious you put a lot of work into those rehabs (I’m assuming that is you). Love the stained glass windows!