- Credibility:
NORTH CENTER — Cloud Kitchens will open a commercial kitchen in a North Center building despite objections from Ald. Matt Marin (47th) and neighbors.
Cloud Kitchens is a startup specializing in commercial kitchens for delivery-only restaurants. Former Uber CEO Travis Kalanick has a controlling stake in the company.
The company announced plans in July 2019 to open a location at 4131 N. Rockwell St. by adding a 9,000-square-foot commercial kitchen and expanding the building’s size. To do so, the startup needed city approval because of a lack of parking on site.
Credit: Alex V. Hernandez/Block Club ChicagoZoning Administrator Patrick Murphey from the city’s Department of Planning and Development rejected a request zoning change after Martin raised concerns. The alderman was worried about increased traffic in the mostly residential area due to the company’s heavy reliance on delivery drivers.
Cloud Kitchen has since revised its plans and won’t add onto the building. That means the plans can move forward without needing approval from the zoning board or alderman since they won’t need to add parking spaces.
While Martin said he’s disappointed Cloud Kitchen is opening at the Rockwell address despite concerns from neighbors, he is glad the business will be smaller than the original proposal, helping to limit traffic, he said.
Kalanick helped found Uber in 2009, but resigned amid a cloud of crises that rocked the ride-sharing company, including allegations of sexual harassment and discrimination. Forbes estimates his net worth at $4.8 billion.
Block Club reached out to Cloud Kitchen and Kalanick for details on the revised plans. Neither returned a request for comment.
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