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Lakeview Mariano's Plan Would Prompt CTA, Parking Changes on Broadway

By Erica Demarest | July 15, 2014 8:07am | Updated on July 15, 2014 2:32pm
 The proposed Mariano's at 3030 N. Broadway would include two floors of parking and a fitness center.
Lakeview Mariano's
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LAKEVIEW — Mariano's developers said they hope to get changes to bus stops and street parking along Broadway as they push forward with plans for a Lakeview location.

The proposed five-story retail complex at 3030 N. Broadway would be anchored by a two-story Mariano's grocery store, according to developer Joe Antunovich.

There'll be an additional 7,800 square feet of retail space on the ground floor, separated from Mariano's by an alley leading to loading docks and a parking garage — “similar to what we have in our Ravenswood store," Antunovich said.

"You'll come in [on Broadway] and go along the ramp, which will take you up to park on the third floor above Mariano's," he said at a neighborhood meeting Monday night.

The building's third and fourth floors would be devoted to parking, with 123 spots per level. On the fifth floor would be an XSports Fitness gym and space for a Pilates or yoga studio.

Since initial plans were released in April, some residents have complained that the development would bring too much traffic to an already congested area.

Developers told those attending the Monday meeting that they're working with the CTA and Chicago Department of Transportation to handle the influx.

Current plans call for a traffic light at the entrance to the Mariano's parking garage, Antunovich said as he presented renderings at the meeting of the South East Lake View Neighbors.

Developers hope to remove six to eight parking spaces on Broadway between Barry and Wellington avenues. This would make room for a left-turn lane, they said, into the parking garage from the northbound side of Broadway.

Mariano's also has asked the CTA to move the bus stop at Wellington and Broadway, Antunovich said. When a car tries to turn left while a bus is stopped to its right, he argued, no other cars can pass, which blocks traffic.

"The bus stop at the corner really creates a lot of congestion," he said. "Whether or not that stop goes farther south [or is placed right in front of the Mariano's at 3030 N. Broadway], that's one part of the plan we're continuing to work on."

Still, some residents weren't impressed.

The development "is nice-looking, but I think it's wrong for this neighborhood," one man said. "It's just too massive for this space."

Ald. Tom Tunney (44th) countered that congestion is part of living in a city.

"I live on Diversey, so I'm well aware of the congestion," he said. "We live in an environment where we have a lot of congestion. Some of it — I hate to say it — is the excitement of living in a dense urban environment. We are as close to Manhattan as anywhere in Chicago is."

The city, he said "has moved away from autocentric projects. ... We have bike lanes where people didn't want bike lanes. You see a generational change."

Behind the Mariano's development would be a 6,500-square-foot park on Waterloo Court, Antunovich said. Columnar oaks, which should be 14 to 16 feet tall when planted, will shield the parking garage from view.

Additional oak trees would line the sidewalk, which would be extended to the curb to add several feet of garden space. Flowers, bulbs and seasonal plants would fill out the rest.

Developer said the garden would have a 5-foot-high fence. Mariano's would be responsible for private security and surveillance cameras. And the park probably would be open only during the day from late spring to early fall.

Under the current plan, residents on Waterloo would lose one parking space, which would be converted to a turnaround on the dead-end street.

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