PORTAGE PARK — Ald. John Arena (45th) asked the developer who wants to build a 16-unit apartment building near Montrose and Cicero avenues to address neighbors' concerns about access from the alley and the configuration of the parking lot, his office said.
The same concerns were raised in 2014 about a proposal to build 14-unit apartment complex on a long-vacant lot at 4812-18 W. Montrose Ave. That project fell apart in October 2014.
Arena has asked developer Dominic McGee to take a look at ways to adjust the entrance and exit to the alley and the configuration of the parking lot, said Owen Brugh, the alderman's chief of staff.
The project requires a zoning change, which needs the support of Arena and the approval of the Chicago Plan Commission.
The project was criticized by residents as being too dense at a community meeting about the development May 9. Several people said they were concerned it would snarl traffic in the alley behind the property, which many people use to bypass gridlocked Montrose and Cicero avenues.
A three-story apartment building is directly west of the 14,200-square-foot parcel, and a Citgo gas station is directly east. The Montrose stop on the CTA Blue Line is a short walk, as is the Mayfair station on Metra's Milwaukee District North Line. Both the Montrose and Cicero avenue buses stop nearby.
Arena often has touted his support for projects that give people a chance to live near mass transit hubs and business districts. But his policy is not to take a position on the development until after the community meeting.
Existing rules would allow eight apartments or condominiums to be built on the site, along with four storefronts, officials said.
The project includes 16 parking spots. If approved, two of the apartments would be set aside for low-income residents under the city's affordable housing ordinance.
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