Comcast Project Under Way

Affordable housing project on target for completion next fall.

Work has begun on turning the long-vacant Comcast building into 51 units of affordable housing. Crews have been tearing off the fake facade around the whole building and some interior work has been done, said Craig Failor, Oak Park's planner. The Interfaith Housing Development Corp. obtained a permit to start the rehab at 442 S. Grove Ave. on Sept. 14, said Steve Witt, Oak Park's director of property and building standards. The project is on target for completion next summer and full occupancy is expected next October, said Perry Vietti, Interfaith's chief operating officer. "We have not lost any time," Vietti said. "We're still on track." Low income tax credits will cover most of the project's $15 million price tag. This was a …

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Reporter's Notebook: The Most Interesting Stories of 2011

From Obama to crime to chickens and a bunch in between, here are some of the reasons why I like local reporting.

I put a lot of “pen to paper” as a Patch freelancer this year. It was hard to whittle down which stories I found interesting, fascinating and sobering. Some made me think or shake my head; others made me smile. Let’s get to it: Affordable Housing in the Comcast Building For months the plan commission and then the village board in Oak Park debated the merits of turning the long-vacant Comcast building on Madison Street into 51 units of housing for the working poor and the disabled. The project was approved. What made it interesting to me was the contrast — the value of diversity versus the Not In My Backyard concerns over parking, density and who will end up living in the building. The state turned down the developers the Interfaith Housing…

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Initial State Funding Denied for Madison Street Development

Illinois Housing Development Authority rejects application from Oak Park developers, but door remains open for more state funding on controversial affordable housing project.

Park District Shopping Trip a Success

Aldi property will house either gymnastics or buildings and grounds operations for Oak Park parks.

It has been a long time coming, but soon gymnasts in Oak Park soon will have a place where they can really stretch their legs. But whether gymnastics programs or buildings and grounds operations will move in to the long-vacant Aldi site, which just has been purchased by the Park District of Oak Park, will not be known until fall. The park board Thursday authorized plunking down $980,000 to buy the 27,000 square foot facility at 25 W. Lake St., just across Humphrey Avenue from Stevenson Park. The long-shuttered building is the first land purchased by the Park District for expansion since 2008 and is within the District budget parameters, park district officials said. And it will help the park district resolve a space problem dating back at …

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Oak Park Board Meeting Recap

Comcast gets okay, liquor ordinance changes, arts scholarship recipients presented.

Comcast Project Gets Final Okay:  With no additional debate, trustees by a 6-1 vote formally granted height, density and parking variances so affordable housing could be constructed in the long-vacant Comcast building.  Approval also came with 21 conditions that the Interfaith Housing Development Corp. and the Oak Park Housing Authority must meet before getting a building permit. The conditions were set by the plan commission, which made its formal recommendation in March. The project, long opposed by neighbors, will provide new housing options for low-income and disabled people;  Catholic Charities will supply a variety of services for residents. More than 10 meetings and hours of testimony and discussion took place from the time that …

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Oak Park Trustees Approve Comcast Project

Controversy over affordable housing project settled with 6-1 vote.

A long vacant building on one of Oak Park’s major thoroughfares will become a site for affordable housing. The village board on Monday voted 6-1 to back the height, density and parking variances the Interfaith Housing Development Corp. and the Oak Park Housing Authority requested to develop the property at 820-832 Madison St. In approving the findings of fact drawn up by the plan commission, trustees added no extra conditions to the 21 the developers would have to meet to get a building permit. The project, which has been under consideration for months, would allow low-income wage earners, seniors and people with disabilities who currently live and work in Oak Park to remain in the community and get a variety of supportive services through…

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UPDATE: Village Board Approves Oak Park Housing Project

Oak Park village board settles hotly contested affordable housing facility.

Update, 12:31 a.m. The Oak Park Village Board voted 6-1 to approve the redevelopment of the vacant Comcast building. Trustee John Hedges cast the lone "no" vote.  Please see our updated story.  After many months and much acrimony, the Oak Park Village Board will on Monday approve or shoot down a developer's plan to turn a long vacant Madison Street building into an affordable housing project.  The structure, just west of the intersection of Oak Park Avenue and Madison Street, has been vacant for about two years. Developers Interfaith Housing Development Corp. and the Oak Park Housing Authority wants to convert the building at 820-832 Madison St. into an L-shaped, environmentally friendly apartment building with 5,200 square feet of retail …

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Final Vote on Controversial Housing Project Nears

Trustees seek more material before deciding the Comcast project's fate.

The Oak Park Village Board has asked project developers for more information before deciding whether the long-vacant Comcast building will be converted into affordable housing. Trustees on Monday said they wanted answers from project developers and village officials to a wide variety of concerns before deciding which way to vote. Specifically, they're looking for more information on plans for the facility's ground-floor commercial space, more details about parking and environmental remediation. They also want more information about the building's prospective new tenant list and the need for criminal background checks on tenants.  Once those answers are delivered to the village board, trustees will approve or shoot down the village plan …

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Oak Park Trustees Visit Housing Sites

Village officials eschew Comcast project concerns, focus on "learning and listening."

If you’re getting ready to make a big decision, you take to the streets to listen and learn as much as you can – even on the weekend. That’s what Oak Park officials did Saturday, touring through two Chicago sites built by Interfaith Housing Development Corporation, the agency looking to convert the long-vacant Comcast building into a 51-unit affordable housing project. Oak Park trustees Glenn Brewer, John Hedges and Village President David Pope and newly seated trustee Robert Tucker were accompanied by two other village officials, and as it was a public meeting, the tour attracted four residents and two members of the media. The road tour visited Sanctuary Place, a 63-unit single-room-occupancy building at 642 N. Kedzie Ave., which serves …

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Comcast Project Gets OK

Project passes Oak Park Plan Commission, Village Board to begin discussions soon.

The fate of a controversial affordable housing project for the Comcast building is now in the hands of Oak Park trustees. After seven meetings and hours of information gathering and deliberating, the Plan Commission by a 6-1 vote recommended approval of the project, with its report laying out why trustees should grant a special use permit to let the 51-unit project proceed.  The tally was nearly the same as one taken on March 3 when commissioners directed their attorney to draft the report, with a positive recommendation and 19 conditions that the developer must meet. Gary Belenke, as he did two weeks ago, voted against recommending the project. Commissioners Mark Benson, who also voted against the project earlier this month, and Deborah …

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