Taco Bell Cantina Hits The Spot?!

We have no official confirmation. BUT -- 

Word on the street is that the renovations currently happening inside 4437 North Broadway mean that Uptown is getting a Taco Bell Cantina. Yo quiero Taco Bell!

What's the difference between the "cantina" concept and regular Taco Bell? According to Taco Bell's website:

"This isn't just any Taco Bell. Introducing our Taco Bell Cantina restaurants, equipped with a fancy new look, open kitchen, custom menu and specialty alcoholic beverages like beer, wine, sangria and liquor versions of our classic Freezes."

We can confirm that the building at 4437 North Broadway -- most recently the site of Decibel, The Spot, and Frankie J's -- was sold this past summer to the same investment group that will be opening a Taco Bell Cantina at 5245 North Clark. It owns dozens of other franchises, and several stand-alone restaurants as well. We've been waiting for confirmation of the plans, and with demo ongoing, it looks like this is a done deal.

We'll post more as we learn more.

Heartland Alliance Closes Its Affordable Housing Division, Will Sell Its Properties in Chicago & Wisconsin

1207 Leland, one of the affected properties

After years of providing affordable housing to residents in Chicago, Madison, and Milwaukee, a dire financial situation is forcing Heartland Housing (a division of Heartland Alliance) to close its doors and sell off its 14 properties.

The move to close the affordable housing division was made to ensure that Heartland Alliance's other divisions could remain financially stable and continue to function.

The handwriting was on the wall earlier this summer, when the properties were placed into receivership due to Heartland Housing's inability to properly maintain them and to pay its bills. The City of Chicago took Heartland Housing to court to force it to turn over control of its buildings to a receiver.

This week, Heartland Housing announced it had laid off 65 employees and was seeking to sell its properties, which contain 1178 units of affordable housing, including approximately 1000 units in Chicago. That number includes two properties in Uptown and two in the surrounding communities.

The affected buildings in and around Uptown are:

• 1207 West Leland, The Leland, 137 studio apartments, one-person households only. The building is on the National Register of Historic Places.
• 907 West Argyle, The San Miguel Apartments, 71 one- and two-bedroom apartments.
• 3600 North Halsted, The Town Hall Apartments (in Lake View), 79 studio and one-bedroom apartments, for residents aged 55 years and older. This is the adaptive reuse of the old Town Hall Police Station.
• 5700 North Sheridan, Hollywood House (in Edgewater), 197 studio and one-bedroom apartments, for residents aged 62 years and older.

The Sun-Times quotes Heartland Housing's Chief External Affairs Officer as saying:

"We are currently working with investors and the receivers to transfer the properties to other owners who can continue to operate them as affordable housing. We are cooperating with receivers, public agencies and the investors to try to assure that tax credits are not affected."

No scenario was given for what would happen if prospective buyers could not be found who would be willing and able to operate the buildings as affordable housing.

Stay tuned.

New Shelter Planned On Wilson Avenue

1140 West Wilson (courtesy Google Streetview)

File this one under "elections have consequences."

Ald. Angela Clay's office has announced plans for a new "non-congregate" shelter (i.e., an interim shelter that provides non-communal accommodations) right in the middle of Uptown's resurgent business district. 

The proposed space at 1140 West Wilson is slated to be operated by CCO (Cornerstone Community Outreach, aka The Jesus People). This is the same building that is home to Downstate Donuts  and  2Bears Tavern. 

The 46th Ward office has just released a community survey that can be filled out here, but we are sure this is already a done deal. 

A community meeting is planned for Monday, January 8 at Wilson Abbey, 935 West Wilson with the DOH (Department of Housing) and Cornerstone Community Outreach (which already operates three other shelters just steps from this proposed location). Online access to the meeting is also available.

The shelter (which is listed for sale for $7,590,000 as of this posting) will require a "special use permit." It is unclear whether the building is being bought as part of the transaction, but we have learned Cornerstone will also be applying for $4.5M in TIF to operate the shelter. 

Those of us who've been in the area a while remember the extremely business-unfriendly condition of Wilson Avenue until relatively recently. Coming out of COVID, adding another shelter along a busy retail corridor is the last thing that’s needed.

If this shelter opens (and we have no doubt that Alderman Clay will approve the zoning change and shelter no matter what kind of community feedback is given), it will be the fourth residential shelter in a one-block area (Clifton and Wilson). It will be a fifth shelter if you count CCO's apparently illegal overnight men’s shelter located in the middle of the 4600 block of Clifton. 

Given the recent news that Chicago's other neighborhoods will be required to take on more affordable housing and supportive services with the abolition of aldermanic privilege, it makes us wonder -- Why Uptown for another shelter? And why on Wilson in the middle of the business district?

Uptown has always had the majority of Chicago's shelters and leads the city in HUD subsidized housing. 

Uptown has six shelters that receive city funding compared to the rest of the city,
three of which are run by CCO on Clifton.

Uptown has always been a compassionate community and the founders of this blog moved here for the fact that people in Uptown come from all walks of life and different income levels. That's the reason many of us choose to live here. 

We are extremely sympathetic to the plight of people needing shelter, and our group have all quietly donated to and volunteered at organizations that help people. 

But when you add in the interim domestic violence emergency shelter run by Apna Ghar in a nearby location, Sarah’s Circle’s interim shelter two blocks away, and the Evangeline Booth Lodge another two blocks away from Sarah’s Circle, as well as the 1,000 migrants living in emergency housing at the former Immaculata School at Irving Park and Marine Drive, we wonder: Why this, why here, and why now?  

And, if this is a purchase, where is the money coming from? We find it awfully curious that Alderman Clay is allowing $10 million in surplus funds in the Clark-Montrose TIF to expire on December 31, 2023, only to see those funds go into the City's "general fund." Is that money going here? Something to keep an eye on going forward.

Ald. Clay says in her weekly newsletter that "Cornerstone is also seeking TIF funding from the Wilson Yards [sic] TIF to complete the project."

So again -- why Uptown? 

Homelessness is a city-wide issue that requires a city-wide response.

Adding another shelter here sends a message that other communities can depend on Uptown for picking up the slack for them. 

At some point, it's time to make sure the whole City pitches in. Why not Lake View, Roscoe Village, Andersonville, North Center, Edgewater or St. Ben's?  What do you say, Alderman Martin and Alderman Manaa-Hoppenworth? 

BPN Ugly Sweater Bar Crawl Saturday, December 9