The Chicago City Council has approved financial support for building a five story, mixed-use development for artist housing in Humboldt Park. The project which is located at 2709 W. Division Street in the Nancy Franco Maldonado Paseo Boricua Arts Building is estimated to cost $11.8 million according to Chicago Curbed.
The project is a joint venture between Brinshore Development and Puerto Rican Cultural Center and was designed by Urbanworks. It will include the following amenities:
- 24 rental units marketed toward artists and other residents earning up to 60% of area median income
- Art gallery on ground floor
- A small theater on ground floor
- Commercial space on ground floor
The city's Community Development Commission signed off on the tax increment financing back in November. City assistance for the development includes $4.2 million in Tax Increment Financing, a $4.2 million multi-family loan and $261,000 in low income housing tax credits that will generate $2.5 million in equity according to a statement from the office of Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot.
At the same time as this project was approved, City Council also voted to approve tax increment financing money and loans for the redevelopment of the Near South Side's former Harold L. Ickes Homes public housing project into a mixed-income megaproject known as Southbridge. The city also approved the $1 sale of the Marshall Square Branch Library building in Little Village to an immigrant advocacy organization.
Artist specific affordable housing is a growing national trend that is gaining traction in Chicago. Recent similar projects are springing up in Washington Park and in Pullman.
Per Chicago Curbed Property Lines, arts and culture are finally getting the recognition they deserve as a major contributing factor to a thriving, growing city. Beyond influencing industries such as advertising and tech, arts and culture, which include museums, galleries and cultural institutions, as well as a variety of industries including film and theater, are by themselves big business and a boon to cities that can support a critical mass of creative talent. Unfortunately, rising rents for both housing and studio space, threaten creative growth.
The arts and cultural sector has contributed $763.6 billion to the US economy in 2015 and employed 4.9 million Americans according to a Bureau of Economic Analysis and National Endowment for the Arts study. Independent artists, writers and performers have added $22 billion to the nation's economy in 2015.
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