LINCOLN PARK — Plans to replace the Inn at Lincoln Park with a Hampton Inn are inching closer to reality.
In an email to constituents, Ald. Michele Smith (43rd) said that after "multiple" public meetings and "months" of negotiation with her office, the formal approval process is underway, beginning with a public hearing at the Chicago Plan Commission at City Hall's council chambers, 121 N. LaSalle St., Room 200, on Dec. 17. The time of the hearing has yet to be determined.
The plans include replacing the Inn at Lincoln Park, 601 W. Diversey Pkwy., with a nine-story Hampton Inn — complete with 143 rooms and 75 parking spaces. It is a reduction from a 2004 proposal, which called for a 15-story hotel and residential building.
To alleviate traffic, which was one of the concerns raised at the community meetings, the developer, LVM Group, has agreed to incorporate an "extended parkway" into the plans at Smith's request, which means cars will exit onto northbound Lehmann Court — not southbound on Lehmann.
The developer is also planning to install signs prohibiting right turns onto southbound Lehmann Court on either side of the parking garage, Smith said.
The final plans include more new elements, like additional parking spaces for the community, a revised loading area, an updated facade and landscaping on the south wall of the building, according to Smith.
At a community meeting in October, neighbors said the modern design of the hotel lacked character. At that time, the developer did not disclose which retailers and restaurant would move into the ground-level.
For more neighborhood news, listen to DNAinfo Radio here:
