Bridgeport to get new groceries 

A new grocery store will replace the former Jewel-Osco at 31st and Halsted Streets, and a new Jewel-Osco will be coming to Bridgeport, resulting in two additional grocery stores for the community.

Eleventh Ward Alderman James Balcer, the City of Chicago Department of Planning and Development, and the Jewel-Osco Co., now owned by SuperValu Corp., have been negotiating to replace the Jewel-Osco that closed last year. They have chosen a new proprietor for the old Jewel-Osco site but will not announce the company’s identity until negotiations are completed; Balcer hopes to make the announcement this month.

Rumors that the old Jewel-Osco site would be used for condominiums or townhouses had raised concern within the community, but that possibility was eliminated when Balcer downzoned the lot in November. Its new R-1 designation made anything other than a commercial use cost prohibitive.

            “From the very beginning, all parties concerned were committed to the cause,” Balcer said. “In particular the Jewel-Osco Company was very congenial and open to suggestions.”

            Those involved also have chosen a site for a new Bridgeport Jewel-Osco on the south side of 39th St. between south Wallace St. and south Normal Ave. The new store’s size and style have yet to be determined, although it will be larger than its predecessor. Construction and opening dates also have not been announced.

            --April Galarza

 

Communication cutoff worries West Loop Residents

Already concerned over proposed development plans for the former Fed Ex site at 1260 and 1300 W. Madison St., West Loop residents grew even more anxious recently after developer The Pickus Companies abruptly stopped communicating with them. Residents previously had experienced frequent contact to address their concerns about construction plans, said Laurie Gentle of the West Loop Concerned Citizens group.

            Gentle said residents’ recent meeting with Alderman Walter Burnett (27th) has assured them their objections will be addressed appropriately through the alderman’s efforts, however. She added that Burnett is “standing behind his ward” and asking residents “to be flexible and have an open mind” about the proposed development. “He’s guiding residents through a difficult process.”

            “We’re still trying to get a compromise between some of the residents and the developer,” Burnett explained. “I think we’re close to a compromise as far as [the developer] having less units and bringing down the height a little bit. I think we can resolve the issue.”

            Pickus’s proposed plans call for an 11-story, 115-foot building with 318 residential units, 56,000 square feet of ground floor retail space, and 502 off-street parking spaces at 1260 W. Madison St. Height and density constitute residents’ main concerns, as most buildings in the area average three stories, with the tallest buildings measuring approximately 78 feet. The other half of the plan specifies a four-story mixed-use building at 1300 W. Madison St. with approximately 33 residential units and 8,500 square feet of ground floor retail space.

            Pickus also wants to concentrate affordable housing in the smaller building, while area residents want affordable housing proportionately and equitably split between both buildings. Said Gentle, “It is important not to have even the slightest appearance of discrimination in any form.”

            --Miriam Y. Cintron

 

Bridgeport to lose fire museum

After eight years at St. Gabriel School in Bridgeport, the Fire Museum of Greater Chicago has set plans to move into its own home at an abandoned firehouse at 5218 S. Western Ave. in the Gage Park neighborhood.

            The City will lease the fire station to the museum for $1 a year. Alderman Ed Burke (14th) helped secure the deal, as the new location sits in his ward.

            Constructed in 1916, the building has stood empty the past four years, and time and vandals have contributed to its current dilapidated condition. The museum must make extensive repairs before it can move in; it also needs to restore its vintage fire engines, which currently sit in storage.

            “We just started our fundraising efforts,” said museum spokesperson Frank McMenamin. Unsure exactly how much money is needed, McMenamin noted, “We’re having a roof problem right now.” The museum has brought in a professional fundraiser, who is working pro bono.

            At St. Gabriel’s, the museum has consisted of a library and some small displays and had been open two Saturdays a month and occasionally at other times for lectures. The new site, although similar in size to the St. Gabriel exhibit area, will allow the museum to display some of its old fire engines and other machinery and to extend its hours. For now, hours at St. Gabriel’s have been suspended until further notice.

            Besides funds, the museum needs professional contractors willing to volunteer their time and donations of building supplies. To make a donation or to volunteer, call McMenamin at (773) 276-1663.

            --Hayley Carlton

 

Taylor-Ashland redevelopment may not happen

A proposal to build a highrise condominium on the northeast corner of Taylor Street and Ashland Avenue has hit a snag that might be permanent.

“We could not get an agreement with anybody, so we have had to move on,” said Ted Mazola, president of New West Realty, which sought to build the project. “Right now, we are out of contact and are not doing anything with it.” New West had been working to obtain community support for its plans via meetings.

The sagging real estate market also discouraged the company from pursuing the project, he said, and “I really have no clue” whether it will be revived in the future, Mazola said.

New West’s plan specified an approximately 16 floor building with 185 condominiums and a two-story building containing offices and shops that would blend with existing structures along Taylor.

A two-story parking garage used by residents of the Campus Green apartment complex currently occupies the site.

            -- Susan S. Stevens

 

Trees were dangerous, Alderman said 

Three trees that workers felled at 18th St. and Michigan Ave. were “problems that needed to be removed,” 2nd Ward Alderman Robert Fioretti said.

            “The roots were endangering a building foundation, sewer system, or something,” Fioretti said. “They [Chicago Bureau of Forestry personnel] do not take these trees down willy nilly.” He added that workers will replace the trees.

            Although the forestry bureau cut down the trees, a bureau spokesperson said it had no records of any tree removals at that site.

            -- Susan S. Stevens