April Meeting

Posted on , updated on by Steven Stern

Agenda

Tuesday April 13th @ 7:00PM sharp.

  • State Sen. Sara Feigenholtz
  • 3015-17 N. Lincoln – Redevelopment and zoning change
  • Northwestern Medicine — 1333 W. Belmont presentation
  • New Business: Venezuelan restaurant

Join Zoom Meeting

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85601534556?pwd=SUc5ekZTTTRmbXByeUVUZ1BqOGZrUT09
Meeting ID: 856 0153 4556
Passcode: 549127
Or dial in at   +1 312 626 6799

State Senator Sara Feigenholtz Ms. Feigenholtz was elected in November 2020, to take over the position held by long-time State Senator John Cullerton who retired. We are all familiar with Senator Feigenholtz as she was the State Rep. for the 12th District since 1994 which is the District next to ours.

3015-17 N. Lincoln Ave – Repurposing and Zoning Change
This building is fronted on Lincoln Ave. with the window ad for Char-Crust (by appointment only) and the awning over the stairwell entrance that says “Lake View Lofts.” The back of the building extends to Greenview Ave. The prospective buyer is Brian Zucker, the founder and president of Human Capital Research Corporation (HCRC). Mr. Zucker is looking to relocate the HCRC business operations from Evanston to Lincoln Ave. The building will stay intact. This will be a total gut-rehab with the three floors redesigned as office space. No rental or condominium units. However, Mr. Zucker will incorporate a “city apartment” for himself into the design.

The building is currently zoned B1-2, normal for that span of Lincoln Ave. Because the rehab will include replacing the current old freight elevator with a new code-compliant elevator and a roof deck, an elevator penthouse structure is required and an enclosed stairwell will be added to the 3rd floor, increasing the overall height and the allowable total square footage of the building. In order to accommodate these changes, a zoning change to B1-5 is required. HCRC expects 30 employees to work from this building with another 12-15 positions being added in the next two years. HCRC expects almost all of the employees to use public transportation or bikes to get to work. There will only be two indoor parking spots in the building off the alley behind Lincoln Ave. This will require a parking variation under the Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) guidelines.

SLN’s Neighborhood Development and Review Committee (NDRC) has lined-up some of the pros and cons of the project.
Pros: rehab of older building, avoidance of another knockdown with an unrentable commercial space and increased foot traffic for area businesses from the 30-45 employees.

Cons: increased parking or traffic congestion from the employees, loss of rental units and B1-5 zoning which would allow for some dense activities if the building was ever sold.

Regarding the zoning issue, the NDRC is working with the Alderman on the possibility of down-zoning the property after the rehab is complete or entering into a restrictive covenant regarding the types of operations allowed.

This will be SLN’s first ZOOM voting issue.

Northwestern Medicine Immediate Care – Lakeview 1333 W. Belmont
A representative of Northwestern Medicine will update the SLN members as to the medical services available at the 1333 W. Belmont offices.

New Business – Rica Arepa Venezuelan Restaurant @ 2913 N. Lincoln
The owners will give an overview of the menu and operations of this recently opened restaurant. This is the 2nd location (4253 W. Armitage) for these owners. Big deck in the back for outdoor dining.

At the March meeting:

As usual, it’s all in the newsletter. And you can listen to the audio of that meeting as well.