There's a rather juicy morsel of unsubstantiated rumor to report regarding the vacant site of the former AAA Distributing Co. at 1834-50 W Chicago Avenue. Word on Everyblock, by way of tipster, is that Trader Joe's has signed on as the retail component of a potential 70-unit residential development. The rumor's origin is a construction worker, questioned as he was working on a fence at the property. Landlord Ken Kosinski was known to be seeking a "middle anchor" that would hold down the spotty stretch of Chicago between the Goldblatt building and Dominicks. Could he have been aiming for a TJ's all along? Everyblock is all aflutter with the idea, as we're sure the general population of East Village/West Town/Ukie Village/Wicker Park will be should a TJ sign magically appear one morning. It's a fact that Trader Joe's has been hunting in the neighborhood— they eyed a parcel on the NW corner of Chicago & Western earlier this summer. And, while Ald. Proco (Joe) Moreno isn't a fan of businesses that require surface parking or curb cuts on the Chicago frontage, there's a usable back alley.
Meanwhile, the East Village Association is floating an alternative idea for a land swap with the 13th District Police Station at 937 N Wood Street, which would allow for an expansion of Commercial Park. Doesn't sound like this would jibe too well with Kosinski's profit motive, but development could still happen if the police locate a substation in the Goldblatt building and leave the Chicago parcel to commercial uses. A lot of permutations here. We'll have to wait for a rumor to congeal.
·New Clues Help Envision Designs for Chicago Bowl Site [Curbed Chicago]
·1850 W Chicago Ave. [EveryBlock Chicago]
·Police Land Swap Could Expand Commercial Park [EVA]
Loading comments...