WICKER PARK — A car repair shop just north of Wicker Park's main hub has closed after the building's owner made repairs to the roof and walls without obtaining permits, among other violations, city documents show.
"The roof collapsed; we can't be in there. We've been closed for about a month, and a lot of Wicker Park customers are coming over to Lakeview," said Jason Oh, owner of Won's Auto Werks at 1661 N. Milwaukee Ave.
On Monday, Oh said he's received no information yet from his landlord on when the building could reopen after repairs are made, so his clients in need of work on their European import cars are going to his Lakeview outpost at 3903 N. Ashland Ave.
The one-story, 125-year-old nonfireproof garage is owned by Andrzej Jastrzebski and Wieslaw Gizynski, according to county records.
The owners were ticketed for making repairs without a permit, storing tires and oil drums on the premises and "missing" fire extinguishers, according to an August 2015 Dept. of Buildings inspection sparked by a "conservation complaint," records show.
The failed inspection has resulted in the building owner needing to "do some remodeling and reinforcements" before the auto shop can reopen, Oh said.
Jastrzebski and Gizynski were unable to be reached for comment. Currently, there are no building repair permits issued for the one-story building and the windows of Won's Auto Werks are papered over. The site is next to an under-construction, four-story, 36-unit apartment building at 1647 N. Milwaukee Ave., which replaced a demolished car wash.
Violation details from a failed Dept. of Buildings inspection at 1661-63 N. Milwaukee Ave. [City of Chicago]
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