The Resurrection Project has proposed affordable housing for a vacant parcel on the Lower West Side and is seeking zoning approval for the project that needs to line up financing and subsidies before construction can begin.
While an architect has not been identified, the new building will include:
-100 residential units
- Will rise 7 floors
- Artist live/work units
- Community center on ground floor
- Parking for 32 cars located on a surface lot on the west side of property
- Parking for 100 bikes
Urbanize Chicago states that the building will be located at the southwestern corner of S. Ashland Avenue and West 21st Place at 2136 S. Ashland. This proposal will occupy a large vacant site across from Benito Juarez Community Academy.
The building is dubbed Casa Yucatan and will rise 86 feet. It will be clad in an arrangement of precast concrete panels and aluminum windows. The building will be setback to offer a small, landscaped entry plaza.
The developers are seeking to rezone the site from M1-1 to B2-3 with an overall Planned Development designation. The proposal will need approvals from Chicago Plan Commission, Committee on Zoning and City Council.
Chicago Sun Times reports that the nonprofit group submitted a zoning application to the City Council last week calling for a building with 100 units, but Guacolda Reyes, the group's chief real estate development officer, said that after a design tweak, the building is due for 98 units.
All the units would be available at rents that, under city ordinance, are affordable to those earning no more than 60% of the Chicago-area median income, known as AMI. For a family of four, 60% of the current annual AMI amounts to $62,520.
Gentrification and displacement are being felt throughout the community for renters and homeowners. The units would be a mix of one to three bedrooms, reflecting the demand for affordable housing the group has seen from families in its largely Latino service area.
Resurrection is active in Pilsen and Little Village, where it owns and manages 600 rental units along with 142 in Melrose Park.
The zoning application starts a hearing process that could lead to approval by the City Council in a few weeks. Reyes said that before construction can start, the group needs decisions on financial help from the state and the city.
Resurrection intends to apply for low-income housing tax credits through the Illinois Housing Development Authority and will compete with several others. A decision could come in May.
If help is available to keep the building affordable, construction could start in late 2024 or early 2025, with completion about two years later.
