Sweeping Changes Set For North Branch, As Framework OK'd By Plan Commission

By Stephen Gossett in News on May 18, 2017 9:14PM

The massive 700-plus-acre corridor know as the North Branch is poised for sweeping redevelopment after the Chicago Plan Commission unanimously voted to approve the months-in-the-making framework. The plan—which was finalized last week by the the City of Chicago and the Department of Planning and Development—swings open the door for residential development, lots of new business, ultra-ambitious transportation advancements (including The 606's extension) and open space and parkland.

The plan passed over familiar objections that the framework for North Branch—which sprawls from Kinzie Street all the way past Fullerton Avenue, and encompasses all of Goose Island—prioritizes business in a way that will hurt manufacturing, and also doesn't include enough park space, as a flood of new residents will one day arrive.

In a quickly fired-off press release, Mayor Rahm Emanuel big-upped what he said would be billions in investment. "In addition to building a new future for the north branch area, this framework will also generate revenue from this thriving area to support industrial businesses throughout Chicago."

At the same time, Ald. Tom Tunney (44th) said manufacturers would be incentivized to cash out, according to the Sun-Times. Ald. Michele Smith (43rd) again voiced her displeasure at what she called lack of green space, the Trib reports. She—along with Ald. Brian Hopkins (2nd) and Scott Waguespack (32nd)—were able to secure ten new acres of park space for the finalized plan, but had angled for more. Community members had voiced similar concerns before the plan was finalized.

Tunney was also skeptical about how the proposed transportation improvements would be funded, the Sun-Times noted. The City says that a new Industrial Corridor System Fee, applicable to developments in North Branch and other industrial corridors, would help finance plans.

Half of the to-be-repurposed corridor is slated for business development—some of which is already in the pipeline. The growing tech industry in the corridor will probably keep fleshing out. Leading what will likely continue to be a big-dollar push was Sterling Bay, who purchased the former Finkl Steel site for $140 million in 2016. The site could anchor a, expansion of The 606 and a massive, mixed-use re-development.

The framework will guide as incoming interests request whatever zoning changes are necessary for their projects. North Branch was the first in what will be a sweeping review of the city's 26 total industrial corridors—and potential further transformation, further development windfalls, and further growing pains.