UPTOWN — A wave of building projects is transforming the makeup of Wilson Avenue in Uptown, with hundreds of apartments preparing to soon hit the market.
Four developments under construction on a four-block stretch of Wilson Avenue will bring 649 apartments to the neighborhood, with two of the projects slated to debut shortly.
That does not include the redevelopment of the Wilson Theater building to create the new home of rock club Double Door. The club sits between two apartment projects, making for three consecutive properties being overhauled on Wilson Avenue just east of Broadway.
Wilson Avenue joins Clark Street as Uptown corridors seeing a building boom, a continuation of a years-long development surge in Uptown that some say has hastened gentrification in the neighborhood.
One of the developments, on the site of a former parking lot at Weiss Hospital, was heavily protested and occupied by activists who have said it would harm the diversity and affordability of Uptown.
More on the four apartment projects:
Platform 4611
Nearing completion at the corner of Broadway and Wilson Avenue is a nine-story apartment building with 200 units and ground-floor retail. Named Platform 4611 for its address at 4611 N. Broadway, the project from prolific development firm John Buck Company replaced a longstanding single-story retail building that held City Sports and other stores.
The building includes a rooftop deck, a gym, 22 parking spaces and ground-floor retail that will include a Stan’s Donuts. Units will have from one to three bedrooms. Work started in early 2021, and leasing is underway with an expected completion this winter, John Buck Company announced on social media.
1050 W. Wilson Ave.
Two buildings down is Cedar Street’s newest Uptown project at 1050 W. Wilson Ave., a five-story structure with 62 units. Like many of Cedar Street’s projects, it will mostly be studios and one-bedrooms.
The project was proposed as a classic courtyard-style building with eight stories and 110 apartments.
The building is going up in the former parking lot for the Wilson Theater building, which last operated as a TCF Bank but will debut next year as the new home of Double Door. The apartments are expected to be completed by the end of the year, according to Cedar Street’s website.
835 W. Wilson Ave.
Work started in August to bring a six-story building with 73 affordable apartments for older people to a former vacant lot.
Evanston-based Brinshore Development’s project will include 10 studios, 49 one-bedrooms and 14 two-bedrooms, according to the firm. There will be a second-floor outdoor deck and garden, and the first floor will include community rooms and a gym. It is unclear when construction will be completed.
4600 N. Marine Drive
After a long, controversial approval process and an occupation of the development site by housing activists, work began in September on the 12-story, 314-unit building at Wilson Avenue and Marine Drive.
The building is replacing a parking lot on Weiss Hospital’s campus. The hospital sold the lot to national developer Lincoln Property Company, whose plans for the project drew fire from some neighbors, City Council members and activists. Among their objections was the inclusion of only eight affordable apartments.
The developer satisfied the remaining affordability requirement by donating $2 million to Sarah’s Circle for its affordable housing development for women planned for a lot on Sheridan Road.