Lincoln Park’s Two Battlefields

What opponents I live in the neighborhood very close by and everyone I talk to is in favor of the redevelopment of the hospital. Since it's been closed it's been a nightmare. And when the hospital was open it was even worse.

I and my neighbors look fowrard to new neighbors, a real good food store, a corner that has offices instead of the homeless and a peaceful sleep at night - without ambulence sirens.

So while there may be opposition from a few retired aldermen and their small band of noise makers...those of us who live and work in the neaighborhood (and aren't retired and therefore can't take off work everyday to protest something) are excited about the future.

I'm sure Busterbrown has off-street parking. For those of us who live in homes that have no driveway or garage, the addition of 152 housing units, 10,000 sq. feet of office space, and a huge grocery store is a nightmare, especially with the current parking garage reduced from 300+ spots to 209. We already have to fight with Francis Parker, the Zoo, the bars on Lincoln, and the merchants on Clark for parking. If those goes through, look for even more older brownstones in the neighborhood to be subdivided into rentals for DePaul students.

Today, 2/24, the developers of the old Lincoln Park Hospital site sent out this message;

Having garnered both the approval of CDOT and another unanimous approval from the Plan Commission last week, we thought the issue of Webster Square would be going in front of the City Council Zoning Committee today.

Instead, however, Alderman Daley has asked that another community meeting be held on Monday night so that the neighborhood can learn of the changes approved by both the Commission and the City Departments. Alderman Daley has further committed that, after Monday’s meeting, she will bring the issue to the Zoning Committee later in March.

While we hesitate to ask again, given all the time and effort you’ve already put in, and the numerous changes in schedule you’ve graciously endured, we need your presence at this meeting on Monday, February 28, 2011 at 6:30PM at Lincoln Park High School at Armitage and Halsted.

Although Alderman Daley has said that comments are to be limited to the approved changes only, we know that the meeting will be attended by the same small group of vocal opponents who continue their opposition even after every concern has been addressed. We need to demonstrate to Ald. Daley that the majority of the community wants to see a vibrant, mixed-use redevelopment of the Lincoln Park Hospital site and that we want to see it happen now.

We know that this is short notice and that there are many other things of importance in your life. We deeply appreciate your continued support.

For our part, while we are disappointed and frustrated by this delay, we are glad to share the changes including the preservation of the vacant lots on Webster and utilization of the existing service drive, the reduction in height of the Grant buildings (to 47 feet), the set back of the two top floors of the condominium building, the internalization of all truck movements, removing the need for backing-in from the street, and the restriction on delivery hours to ensure safety and smooth traffic flows.

Thank you,

The Webster Square Team

It would seem the "small group of vocal opponents" (i.e. those who actually live near the site) outnumbers the supposed "majority of the community" both at the ballot box and at every single community meeting on this issue. The consistent opposition to this project is based on a zoning change that allows for a Big Box retailer in the middle of a historic landmark district. Period. Though voiced repeatedly, that concern has been consistently marginalized, ignored, repressed, dismissed, etc. If I wanted to live next to a Big Box retailer, I would have bought property on Clyborne.

This afternoon, Ald. Vi Daley emailed a message that after last night's community meeting on the Lincoln Park Hospital project, she has determined that the developers have made sufficient concessions to the neighbors. She says she will not delay the project with any further meetings, and will vote in its favor at City Council.

This hospital has been nearly dead for approximately 20 years. The only concessions the neighbors in the Mid-North neighborhood (where the hospital is) are the removal of the retail and no expansion of any building i.e. no 20,000 square foot grocery and no adding of 2 floors to the 10 story high rise. Just because a mechanical penthouse is taller than the building doesn't mean 2 more floors should be built around it. The dead hospital had almost no traffic, while a destination grocery which will assuredly attract others to drive to the area will increase traffic at an already dangerous intersection with 152 units and no school for all the children that will live there as LPHS and Lincoln Elementary are all full as it is. This will create traffic on Geneva Terrace and Cleveland Ave. as well as Webster Ave (which is only 38 feet wide). This project will turn the neighborhood and our streets in Mid-North to a parking lot and make our quiet side streets busy with those seeking the grocery, or the 100,000 sq. ft. of medical/professional that will ruin Geneva Terrace.