Developer unveils survey results from Pilsen open houses

Developer Property Markets Group has released feedback from the series of public workshops it hosted last month in Pilsen for residents to get a first glimpse of a proposed redevelopment of a 7.85-acre site which is centrally located in the neighborhood. Principal Noah Gottlieb has provided Curbed with a series of charts depicting the responses from those surveyed at the workshops. Gottlieb tells us that over 150 attendees participated in the follow-up survey.

Dubbed ParkWorks, the latest proposal from the New York-based developer seeks to transform a largely vacant site which is bound by the upcoming Paseo Trail on the west, Newberry Avenue on the east, 16th Street on the north, and 18th Street on the south. The proposal includes about 10,000 square feet of commercial space for retail users and 465 total residential units.

“Based on the survey results, it’s clear that the community generally supports the project,” Gottlieb said in a prepared statement. “These conversations with local stakeholders are invaluable for the next phase of our design process. We’re confident that we’re moving in the right direction towards a special addition to Pilsen."

Property Markets Group

Property Markets Group offers three sets of data, displaying responses from workshop attendees who live in Pilsen community, those who live adjacent to the property, and those from other Chicago neighborhoods. The topics addressed focus on the amount of affordable housing proposed, the density of the proposed development, and whether or not the proposed development would ultimately improve the Pilsen community.

Property Markets Group

A controversial first attempt to redevelop the site while bypassing Pilsen's stringent 21% affordable unit mandate led to a breakdown between the developer and 25th Ward Alderman Danny Solis last year. In May 2016, Alderman Solis introduced an ordinance to downzone the property to block the redevelopment of the site. The ordinance was passed the following month, changing the zoning to manufacturing, effectively blocking Property Markets Group’s ability to build residential on the site.

However, Gottlieb and Property Markets Group reintroduced the proposal this year, attempting to address the concerns the community had with the initial plan. As proposed, the ParkWorks master plan would create more affordable housing than any other privately funded development in the history of Chicago, Gottlieb claims.

Property Markets Group/Cordogan, Clark & Associates

• Developer to host series of open houses for proposed Pilsen development [Curbed Chicago]
• Developer unveils reworked proposal for large Pilsen site [Curbed Chicago]
• Zoning Change by Alderman Aims to Scuttle Proposed Pilsen Apartment Complex [Curbed Chicago]