ROGERS PARK — Three empty storefronts at the Morse "L" station are available to lease, officials say.
Curious business owners got a first look at the details of the spaces — two on Morse Avenue and another on Lunt Avenue — at a Wednesday night meeting with Ald. Joe Moore (49th), who said the stations had long suffered from leaky ceilings.
"These are storefronts that have been vacant for some time. In some cases for as long as I've been alderman, which has been a long time," said the 20-year alderman.
"We hope they don't leak."
Another location at the Jarvis station should be available to lease next week, officials said.
Filling up the empty locations is the final step in an $86 million project to rehabilitate six Red Line stations on the North Side, Chicago Transit Authority officials said at a meeting last month during a similar meeting for Edgewater station storefronts.
Ald. Harry Osterman (48th) and CTA officials warned at that meeting not to commit to more than a 10-year investment in the spaces because of "long-term projects" on the Red Line, referring to a proposed major overhaul of the entire North Side "L" system.
The listed spaces in Rogers Park varied between 1,980 and 1,267 square feet of retail space.
The CTA claims businesses would have the potential to serve 1.4 million riders annually at the storefronts.
Jones Lang LaSalle, the firm that manages CTA's retails locations, will accept applications and bids for the open spots. Then, the firm will recommend proposals to the CTA board of directors.
The exact locations of the storefronts are at 1401 W. Morse Ave., 1357 W. Morse Ave. and 1353-55 W. Lunt Ave.
