AVONDALE — A large swath of Avondale could be redeveloped under a new city plan.
The city’s Department of Planning and Development has teamed up with Ald. Ariel Reboyras (30th) to redevelop Avondale’s Belmont Triangle, a 4-acre site bounded by Belmont Avenue, Milwaukee Avenue and Pulaski Road.
The parcels — 3240-84 N. Milwaukee Ave., 3207-47 N. Pulaski Road and 3934-62 W. Belmont Ave. — were once home to a collection of industrial buildings and businesses, but have sat vacant in recent years, leaving a hole in the neighborhood, city officials said in a news release.
“After decades of productive, business-oriented uses, the Belmont Triangle is today economically disconnected from the commercial corridors that have long been associated with Avondale’s vitality and culture,” Maurice Cox, commissioner of the Department of Planning and Development, said in a statement.
Reboyras didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment Thursday.
City planners and Reboyras are hosting a “community visioning” meeting 6 p.m. April 28 to gather neighbors’ input on how the site should be redeveloped, the first step in what will likely be a lengthy process.
The virtual meeting will review the existing conditions of the site and the proposed redevelopment timeline. You can RSVP here. Neighbors can also weigh in by filling out a survey, according to the release.
City planners are expected to put out a bid for developers, or a request for proposals, this summer using community feedback as guidance.
Buildings on the northern and southeastern corners of the site will not be redeveloped under the plan, according to the news release.
The Belmont Triangle only recently fell out of use as Avondale has gentrified.
Commercial buildings once occupied by Wally’s International Market and Angelica’s Restaurant at 3256 N. Milwaukee Ave. and 3244 N. Milwaukee Ave. were razed in the last few years, as were industrial buildings at 3217-21 N. Pulaski Road and a building at 3956 W. Belmont Ave., according to city spokesman Peter Strazzabosco.
Other parcels included in the plan that were once used for car sales and parking, among other similar uses, are now vacant, Strazzabosco said.
The entire block is zoned for commercial use with residential on the top floors.
Neighbors and community leaders, including members of Avondale Neighborhood Association, have pushed for a comprehensive plan for the area since the buildings came down.
“In order for this community to thrive, we need density and retail uses to anchor and encourage people to walk, shop, and visit our businesses,” Reboyras said in the release.
The Belmont Triangle project is part of Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s larger “community visioning” initiative, which aims to revive neighborhood sites across the city that have fallen out of use and fail to provide amenities to neighbors.
Support Local News!
Subscribe to Block Club Chicago, an independent, 501(c)(3), journalist-run newsroom. Every dime we make funds reporting from Chicago’s neighborhoods. Already subscribe? Click here to gift a subscription, or you can support Block Club with a tax-deductible donation.
Listen to the Block Club Chicago podcast:
