LCA Board Provides Dinner for Asylum Seekers | |
On Thursday, the Lincoln Central Board of Directors donated a hot meal from Cedar Palace to the asylum seekers who are currently living at the 18th District Police Station. We provided a meal and sodas for 35 people!
As many of you are aware, Chicago has seen a growing number of asylum seekers over the last several months. Here in the Lincoln Park, many of these people are being housed at the 18th District Police Station. If you are looking for a way to help, a District 18 Meal Delivery website has been set up to help provide meals to the people at the police station.
Learn more and sign up to provide a meal here.
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Summer Block Party is Back! | |
Lincoln Central Association is excited to partner with Carnival Grocery and Mid-North Association for the Summer Block Party on Saturday, July 15 from noon – 3 p.m. on Dickens Ave. (between Carnival and Gemini).
This family friendly block party will offer fun, food and activities for families and adults. For kids, the event will feature face painting, a balloon artist, games from Lakeshore Sports and Fitness and music. Adults can enjoy some complimentary food and drinks from Carnival Foods and Gemini. This year, we are also excited to welcome Park West Cooperative Nursery School, BGD&C Homes, and State Representative Margaret Croke. The event is free and open to all.
LCA would like to thank Carnival Grocery for partnering with us for a second year in a row for this wonderful event!
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The Gnome House Moves to Lincoln Central Park | |
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Lincoln Central Association is excited to welcome a new addition to Lincoln Central Park, the Gnome House Free Little Library!
We want to especially express its gratitude to Jerry Schwarzman who like Paul Newman in Cool Hand Luke dug an impossibly deep hole combating roots and foundation pieces from the old President’s Hotel so The Gnome House Free Library would be secure in its new home. Tom Hall, the original designer, builder (with his Girl Scout Troop) and caregiver of the library, was especially generous in securing the Library for our park, and then building the new support frame while hiring professional movers to carefully move the Library from his garage (where he worked on the Library for weeks) to our site. A thanks to Tom and Deirdre Graziano for varnishing and painting the library so it could stand tall and proud in its new home.
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Ella Jenkins Park Birthday Party Set for August 6 | |
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Ella’s birthday is August 6th and planning for a celebration at the park is underway! The event will be open to all, and will include a performance by children’s singer Susan Salidor, cake and treats, a tree sapling give-a-way, and kids activities. If you are creative and want to contribute to the activities or know of a business that can support the event, let us know. The event is being planned by OTTA, LCA, The Church of Three Crosses and Ella Jenkins: We’ll Sing A Song Together (www.SingASongTogether.Com).
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The Importance of CPD Beat Meetings & How to Attend | |
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As mentioned in earlier LCA newsletters, President Obama’s Task Force on 21st Century Policing described an absolute need for police and community to work together in partnership on improving community safety. CPD’s commitment to this principle is demonstrated by scheduled, in-person, bi-monthly Beat Meeting opportunities for concerned community members to meet with CPD officers to discuss and problem-solve chronic public safety concerns.
Sadly, in my earlier Beat Meeting experience and as the recently appointed Beat 1812 (Fullerton to Armitage; Sheffield to Sedgewick) Facilitator and despite the fact that many in our community express public safety concerns, attendance at Beat Meetings has been very low - so I encourage you to get involved by sharing your public safety concerns, questions, observations and ideas with 18th District officers at a local beat meeting.
Beat Meeting basics:
We (Beat Facilitators and 18th District officers) hope to see you soon at a local Beat meeting! Please stay safe, get to know your neighbors, get involved - and take good care of each other!
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Update on Proposed Redevelopment of Royal George | |
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UPDATE: Immediate neighbors received a letter dated June 21 informing them that developer DK Halsted (Draper and Kramer) would file an application to rezone 1633 to 1649 N. Halsted from B3-2 (the zoning for all of Halsted St., which calls for retail on ground floor and two to three floors of apartments above) to B3- 5 (double the allowable footage and height) and then to a Residential-Business Planned Development.
From the city’s site: “The Planned Development (PD) zoning designation is required for certain projects to ensure adequate public review, encourage unified planning and development, promote economically beneficial development patterns that are compatible with the character of existing neighborhoods, allow design flexibility, and encourage the protection and conservation of the city's natural resources.”
The rezoning would allow the applicant to build a nine-story, 100-foot-tall mixed use building with up to 131 residential units, 4,527 square feet of ground floor commercial space, 35 parking spaces, 131 bike spaces. Overall FAR (floor-area-ratio) would be 5.0. For comparison, homes on either side of Halsted have a 1.5 FAR.
The property is a parking garage, the former Royal George Theatre, the former Balena restaurant building.
LCA and Ranch Triangle have opposed this plan since it was first presented to us several years ago. We are not opposed to renewal of the property, especially as it is walking distance to the CTA Red Line. We oppose the height and density of the proposal, as it is not in keeping with the zoning code that every other developer abides by. There is zero green space. There is zero “give back” to the community. Some feel there should be more parking, closer to 1:1. Its 100 percent glass facade is not in character with the brick structures that line Halsted. There are 19th century federally and city landmarked buildings at each end of the block, which are 4- and 3-story buildings. The proposed structure would loom over Burling Street homes.
Alderman Hopkins does not support the current proposal and requested that the item be deferred from the city’s zoning committee agenda. Says his office, “No deal has been reached and Alderman Hopkins is not allowing this to proceed with its current design.”
Spread the word. We welcome new construction within the confines of the zoning code. Note the attractive development at Halsted/Fullerton/Lincoln, which was built to code.
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Upcoming Lincoln Central Association Events | |
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Lincoln Central Association is excited to share our 2023 summer and fall events schedule! Please join us for these fun, local neighborhood events!
Summer Social – August 3 at Ogden Mall Park
We are happy to bring back our Lincoln Central Association Summer Socials! We have already hosted two wonderful events this summer and hope you can attend our last Summer Social on August 3 from 5:30 – 7:30 p.m. at Ogden Mall Park, located at Hudson Ave. and Menomonee).
Our LCA Summer Socials are held in our local parks. The event is a casual gathering of friends and neighbors to socialize and meet new people. Kids and dogs are welcome. We encourage you to bring the beverage of your choice, as well as snacks or a picnic. The events are free and open to all.
Evening in the Garden – September 17 at Fire Station Park
Evening in the Garden celebrates the close of summer, our garden volunteers and the garden harvest. This garden party is used to honor the heart put into many neighborhood achievements including retiring police officers and especially the volunteers who make our neighborhood parks such special gathering places. The event at Fire Station Park includes food, wine and beverages from neighborhood restaurants and businesses. The event is free and open to the public.
Howler at Bauler – October 28 at Bauler Park
Known as "The Haunt of the Neighborhood”, Howler at Bauler is held each year during Halloween weekend in Bauler Park. From the neighborhood firehouse bringing its truck, to the neighborhood fitness center staffing games, to our congressman, alderman and state representatives greeting the crowds, everyone puts their heart into making this a great neighborhood event. Howler at Bauler includes a bouncy house, costume parade, games, candy, a DJ to dance to and more to local neighborhood children and families.
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LCA is dedicated to inspiring people to join together for the social, cultural, and physical enrichment of our neighborhood, and our local businesses are a critical part of that! LCA is honored to work with local businesses to improve our neighborhood and promote their business.
Thank You to Our Sponsors:
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Toddlers and Turtles in Oz Park | |
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On Wednesday, July 5 from 5-7pm in Oz Park, Chicago Park District is hosting Todders, Tunes and Turtles! Toddlers Tunes & Turtles is a family favorite every summer at the Chicago Park District. This Nature Oasis program invites young participants and families to join us for hands-on nature exploration, live music, and even interactions with real animals! Facilitators will share information on how to find even more opportunities to connect with nature around the city, get involved, and help create a permanent nature play space in your local park. The event runs rain or shine and will not be re-scheduled due to weather.
- Event: 5:00-7:00pm
- Animal interactions: 5:00-6:30pm
- Music: 6:15-7:00pm
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Oz Park is Getting a New Playground and You Can Buy a Custom Picket | A new playground is coming to Oz Park this fall, and you can show your support by purchasing a custom picket! To learn more and order, visit Picket Order Form - Oz Park Advisory Council. | |
Bauler Park Summer Events | |
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July 11: Bauler Movie Night featuring Top Gun: Maverick starting at ~8pm. Open to all and we’re going to kick-off our Bauler Fundraising efforts.
July 22: 12-2PM Music at Bauler with Windy Indy Band.
August 20: 3-5PM Music at Bauler with Fifth Star Band.
September 20: Bauler Movie Night featuring The Super Mario Brothers Movie. Sundown is earlier ~6:30PM, so hopefully younger kids can join, too. Open to all.
October 11: 3rd Annual Glow Stick Dance Party
October 28: Howler at Bauler (Lincoln Central Association Event)
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Lincoln Common Basille Day Celebration | |
La Fête Nationale! Lincoln Common is celebrating all things French on Thursday, July 13th for their Bastille Day French Market from 5:30 – 7:30 in the Lincoln Common Plaza! Featuring live music from La Tosca Chicago, food and wine from local French vendors, face painters, caricature artists, and more! Check out all details here.
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Cedar Palace Serves Up Breakfast on Saturdays & Sundays | |
Long-time LCA supporter and sponsor, Cedar Palace, is now serving breakfast on Saturdays and Sundays from 9 - 11:30 a.m.! Stop by the restaurant at 655 W Armitage for Arabic coffee or Dark Matter coffee, and a selection of one of their incredible breakfast items! | |
Summer at Lakeshore Sport & Fitness | |
Lakeshore Sport and Fitness is a fabulous supporter of LCA events! Thanks to them, we have wonderful activities and games at our Summer Block Party and Howler at Bauler events!
This summer, head to Lakeshore to experience a rooftop where they have something for everyone! Learn more in this video: https://youtu.be/HDS2Hv7oe7M. And do not forget that their rooftop restaurant is open to the public so make your reservation today on tock: Harvest at Lakeshore Sport & Fitness - Chicago, IL | Tock (exploretock.com).
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2023 Armitage - Halsted Sidewalk Sale | |
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Get ready to shop ’til you drop at one of the most exciting events of the summer! The 2023 Armitage-Halsted Sidewalk Sale returns on Saturday, July 29 – Sunday, July 30 from 11:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. Enjoy open air shopping, one-of-a-kind merchandise, and amazing specials along Armitage, from Racine to Halsted, and on Halsted, from just south of Armitage to Webster. While you’re there, explore the amazing restaurants on Armitage and Halsted. Don’t miss out on an incredible brunch or a quick, delicious bite! Learn more here.
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More Lincoln Park Summer Events | |
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