CANARYVILLE — Neighborhood folks are protective of their parking.
That much was clear Tuesday night at Taylor-Lauridsen Park, where dozens of Canaryville residents showed up to hear an updated pitch from David L. Chase, the property buyer with BCG Enterprises who wants to build a four-structure development stacked with 56 apartments and 10,000 square feet of retail space in the neighborhood.
At the meeting hosted by Ald. Patrick D. Thompson (11th), Chase delivered his second pitch to the community since September, when he was met by the jeers of concerned neighbors worried the development would welcome Section 8 residents and siphon parking spots off the streets.
“If I’m not home by 5 p.m., I can’t get a spot,” said one man who lives on 42nd and Emerald, worried he won’t be able to find a spot if the development brings more people to Canaryville. “The truth is: There’s no parking out there.”
Earlier in the meeting, Chase presented a study conducted by parking consultants Gewalt, Hamilton and Associates that found only 22-28 percent of street parking in the neighborhood is occupied during the week.
“There is parking,” Chase said. “The question is are people who live on Emerald willing to park on Halsted and walk over to Emerald, because all of Halsted is open.”
Thompson said he would consider making more on-street parking available on Halsted to accommodate more cars.
To make his pitch easier to swallow this time around, Chase whittled down his presentation to focus on one building instead of four.
In his original offering, Chase described four buildings that would be constructed at four addresses along South Halsted Street: 4223, 4231, 4351 and 4361.
On Tuesday night, Chase zoomed in on the details of what he called Phase 1: A four-story building with retail on the bottom, 12 luxury apartments up top and two apartments facing a courtyard.
The unit would feature one-bedroom and two-bedroom floor plans with rents running between $1,600 and $1,800 apiece
The developer offered up an official goal for the project: “To provide quality, luxurious housing while engaging the community with pedestrian friendly retail.”
Chase reminded residents that none of the rentals would be subsidized.
Because of the City of Chicago’s Affordable Requirements Ordinance, developers have to list 10 percent of their rental spaces with affordable prices for tenants in lower income brackets.
That means some Chase's tenants will make no more than $32,000 a year, making them able to rent a one-bedroom at the development for $925. Neighbors shouldn't worry, Chase said, because all tenants go through a strict screening process.
The "pedestrian friendly retail” could include Panera Bread, Chipotle, Potbelly or Sonic.
Massage parlors, hair salons, adult book stores and daycare facilities would not be allowed on the property, Chase said.
If Chase gets a zoning approval from the city, he plans to break ground in July or August. Construction would then take nine months to complete, followed by a grand opening in April or May 2017.
Thompson said Chase's "Phase 1" plan will be a chance for the developer to prove himself to the neighborhood.
"It's one building at a time," Thompson said. "It's a 14-unit building with a retail space and as long as it meets everything that the developer's telling us it's going to meet, then he has a right to go to the next building."
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