CHICAGO DEPARTMENT OF PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT
Planning NOW - Commercial Area and Neighborhood Revitalization Strategies

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The firm was a member of The Lakota Group team engaged under a multi-year contract to provide on-call planning services to the City of Chicago ’s Department of Planning and Development. Seven commercial district and neighborhood revitalization strategies were completed. Our role included preparation of market assessments, identification of development opportunities, involvement in the design and execution of public participation processes to establish consensus goals, and involvement with the team in preparation of the plan and strategies.

On the West Side, we identified additional commercial and residential development opportunities in the North Lawndale neighborhood between Roosevelt Road and the Eisenhower Expressway, from Kedzie Avenue to Pulaski Road . The Shaw Company, in conjunction with Sears, is developing housing on the former headquarters site. The team’s assignment was to address physical planning issues and identify potential additional development.  We conducted market assessments, working jointly with team members. Converting several former commercial areas to residential use and identifying an appropriate but limited area for future commercial uses were suggested. An overall infill strategy, leveraging off of the Shaw development and the Lawndale Plaza shopping center also was proposed. As part of this strategy, City-owned land would be packaged and marketed aggressively for housing.

On the North Side, we assessed the commercial development potential in the North Center Business District at Lincoln Avenue and Irving Park Road . This area has strong housing demand but a lagging commercial sector The market assessment considered depth of demand given improving demographics, as well as the prevalence of mainstream, big box retailing within the trade area. Strategies evaluated included focusing retail development in certain sub-areas, encouraging further residential development in-between, and identifying the types of retail to attract to the area, including a strategy of building on appliance, home fashion and antiques, partially accommodating uses being displaced from farther south. A new type of home furnishing store by Crate&Barrel (CB2), has opened at the site of a former grocery store along with Chicago ’s first Trader Joe’s.

On the South Side, we worked on the plan for the revitalization of the 71st Street Business District in the South Shore community from South Shore Drive to Stony Island Avenue . The 71^st Street Business District’s revitalization is lagging behind that of the adjacent residential communities. A Metra commuter rail line runs down the middle of it and several stations present interesting commercial development opportunities.

We evaluated the market potential in the surrounding areas, identified potential retail uses, and worked jointly with other members of the team to identify commercial development strategies. The development strategy included concentrating commercial uses near the major intersection of Jeffery and 71^st, encouraging institutional uses farther west, building on an existing community center, and pursuing residential development to the east closer to the lake. A major townhouse/mixed-use development is currently being pursued and several commercial sites are being looked at by developers and retailers.

On Armitage Avenue from California to St. Louis Avenues a similar effort was undertaken. Commercial nodes were identified, including transit-oriented sites, coupled with recommendations to de-commercialize other portions of the corridor.  In the Roseland Community a strategy was prepared for Michigan Avenue from 101^st to 115^th Streets. The strategy recommended convenience nodes in the northern area and concentrating retail development from 111^th through 115^th, focusing on rehabilitating and enhancing an existing shopping center that had recently been acquired by a neighborhood church. Infill housing was recommended to be developed in the corridor as demand strengthened and existing developments were absorbed.