Logan Square Kitchen Wins Appeal!

By Anthony Todd in Food on Nov 24, 2010 3:20PM

Last week, we urged you to support the zoning hearing of Logan Square Kitchen, a mixed-use community food space in Logan Square. They had been drowning in city red tape for months, due to a confusion about what sort of business they actually were - they fell in the gap between restaurant, product producer and event space, and were being required to adhere to complicated, contradictory and expensive regulations.

All of their efforts have paid off. The owner, Zina Murray, reported that 40 people showed up for the hearing to offer their support and they delivered more than 275 letters! Officially, they were told to wait several weeks for a decision, but yesterday, Murray reported on the Logan Square Kitchen twitter feed that the board had decided in their favor by a unanimous decision!

What does this mean, exactly? They will now have their zoning use designation changed to "restaurant," the designation upon which they based their investment plans and budget, instead of "banquet hall." They will not be required to have parking or provide a whole raft of other services, and instead can focus on doing what they do best. This incident is proof that, while the city administration can often be annoying and counter-productive, a small group of concerned citizens can make their voices heard. Logan Square Kitchen will live to fight another day.