CHICAGO | General Developments

[Steely Dan]

^ oh, I totally get what you're saying.

But selfishly for me, I just personally care way more about the utterly ridiculous amount of criminally underzoned RS--3 land in this city, than the more forgettable RS-1 & 2 realms mostly found out at the very fingertip fringes of the city.

I mean, my own Lincoln Square is like 75%+ RS-3. That is just beyond stupid for a neighborhood that was historically built WAY more densely, still with a functional population density of 20K ppsm, 4 stops on the brown line, a metra stop, and criss-crossed by 6 bus routes.

I see places like Beverly and Sauganash and their ilk more as hopeless lost causes that mainly serve as "suburbs within city limits for city workers who wholesale refuse to live a more urban lifestyle".

[dreamy-developer]

Wow. 919 W Fulton is going up sooo fast!! I was in the area about a month ago and it only had 2-3 stories done.

Thing is bound to top off really soon

[Randomguy34]

Remember that the 2022 TOD ordinance was close to having all residential land in a quarter-mile radius of CTA/Metra stations count as RT-4. Ald. Tunney, who chaired the zoning committee at the time, was the main roadblock, which meant it had to be removed from the ordinance. It is impressive though the proposal made it that far, that would have been unthinkable a decade ago.

His successor Ald. Lawson, who coincidentally is temporarily chairing the zoning committee, is the one pushing for the current ADU ordinance. Some of the progressive alders are also upzoning Western Ave in their ward. Ald. Napolitano's zoning committee approved two new midrises in Edison Park and told residents to suck it up or else City Hall will give them a problem (article). Lastly, Johnson's Cut the Tape initiative has said they want to allow 3-flats citywide. City Hall is slowly realizing that there needs to be much more development across the city, even if it makes some people upset. I say we're entering a paradigm shift where we will see much more development across the city, even in places like Beverly and Sauganash

[Steely Dan]

Originally Posted by Randomguy34

Lastly, Johnson's Cut the Tape initiative has said they want to allow 3-flats citywide. City Hall is slowly realizing that there needs to be much more development across the city, even if it makes some people upset. I say we're entering a paradigm shift where we will see much more development across the city, even in places like Beverly and Sauganash

I hope you're right.

But wanting to do it is infinitely easier than making it happen.

But I guess desire is the first step.

[intrepidDesign]

Originally Posted by Steely Dan

^ oh, I totally get what you're saying.

But selfishly for me, I just personally care way more about the utterly ridiculous amount of criminally underzoned RS--3 land in this city, than the more forgettable RS-1 & 2 realms mostly found out at the very fingertip fringes of the city.

I mean, my own Lincoln Square is like 75%+ RS-3. That is just beyond stupid for a neighborhood that was historically built WAY more densely, still with a functional population density of 20K ppsm, 4 stops on the brown line, a metra stop, and criss-crossed by 6 bus routes.

I see places like Beverly and Sauganash and their ilk more as hopeless lost causes that mainly serve as "suburbs within city limits for city workers who wholesale refuse to live a more urban lifestyle".

District 1860 up in Sauganash was a notable break from this. It's anecdotal, I know, and I do largely agree with what you're saying. I just don't see it as a hopelessly lost cause, just something we won't see in a meaningful way likely in our lifetimes.

[r18tdi]

Originally Posted by intrepidDesign

District 1860 up in Sauganash...

That's Lincolnwood my dude

[intrepidDesign]

Originally Posted by r18tdi

That's Lincolnwood my dude

Ah shoot, you're right, my bad.

[ardecila]

Originally Posted by Randomguy34

Remember that the 2022 TOD ordinance was close to having all residential land in a quarter-mile radius of CTA/Metra stations count as RT-4. Ald. Tunney, who chaired the zoning committee at the time, was the main roadblock, which meant it had to be removed from the ordinance. It is impressive though the proposal made it that far, that would have been unthinkable a decade ago.

His successor Ald. Lawson, who coincidentally is temporarily chairing the zoning committee, is the one pushing for the current ADU ordinance. Some of the progressive alders are also upzoning Western Ave in their ward. Ald. Napolitano's zoning committee approved two new midrises in Edison Park and told residents to suck it up or else City Hall will give them a problem (article). Lastly, Johnson's Cut the Tape initiative has said they want to allow 3-flats citywide. City Hall is slowly realizing that there needs to be much more development across the city, even if it makes some people upset. I say we're entering a paradigm shift where we will see much more development across the city, even in places like Beverly and Sauganash

Yeah I dunno, props to the 41st Ward zoning committee (which is purely advisory to the alderman) but we still don't know if Napolitano will support it. That's exactly the kind of common-sense development that should be occurring in these areas. It's not even out of character, Northwest Hwy is lined with 3 and 4 story apartment blocks from the 60s.

Also a big advantage to ADUs is the ability to add housing (even if it's only a trickle) on side streets, which are usually quiet, leafy, healthy places to live. Putting all new housing on major arterial roads just concentrates people near noise, vibration, localized air pollution and commercial businesses that may not be the best neighbors.

If the process of permitting/building an ADU can be streamlined and the costs reduced (maybe with prefab) then the added income could help more families afford to buy a home. Certainly I think more families will feel comfortable renting out a coach house vs having a rental unit directly above/below the family space.

[Chi-Sky21]

I really wonder Loyola's plans for Mertz Hall. They have now redone both parcels to either side. Hard to replace all that dorm space if they wanted to tear it down and rebuild. Unless they are building dorms the other side of the L tracks or something. Not sure what they are doing with that land over there either.

[Steely Dan]

Originally Posted by ardecila

Certainly I think more families will feel comfortable renting out a coach house vs having a rental unit directly above/below the family space.

New-build coachouses max out at 700 SF gross living space.

Might not be too many "families" looking to downsize that much.

Meanwhile, I've worked on plenty of 2 bed/2 bath basement build-out ADUs.

[ardecila]

Originally Posted by Steely Dan

New-build coachouses max out at 700 SF gross living space.

Might not be too many "families" looking to downsize that much.

Meanwhile, I've worked on plenty of 2 bed/2 bath basement build-out ADUs.

No, I'm saying the family would buy an SFH (bungalow etc) and live in the house, while building a coach house behind for the income. That might be a more comfortable arrangement than having an ADU in the basement.

That's my plan, anyway... my wife and I are planning to buy a house in a few years. I'm hoping to find one with a masonry garage that can handle a 2nd story ADU above (lightweight wood frame), that should cut down on the costs a little bit. I can design/permit it myself and do the interior buildout, so I really just need a contractor to do the rough framing, roofing and bring in plumbing/electrical stubs.