Today’s New York Times provides a timely reminder that a vacant hospital site can linger undeveloped for a decade or more, blighting the surrounding area.
Since the Edgewater Medical Center closed nearly 10 years ago, the abandoned building and the surrounding 114,300-square-foot lot at 5700 North Ashland Avenue have deteriorated into a state of dangerous, not to mention unsightly, disrepair. Wind-blown litter dances over the grounds like tumbleweeds, and gang tags adorn the hospital’s walls.
There’s no guarantee that the site of the former Lincoln Park Hospital at the northeast corner of Lincoln and Webster won’t suffer a similar drawn-out fate, especially if that fate is determined by a small number of its immediate neighbors.
Everyone in Lincoln Park has a large stake in seeing the former hospital site returned, as quickly as possible, to a productive state.
Developers have put forward a proposal to convert the site to office space, luxury condominiums, and a Fresh Market grocery. That proposal will be considered at a community meeting hosted by 43rd Ward Alderman Vi Daley this Tuesday evening at 7:00 pm at the Lincoln Park High School Auditorium, 2001 N Orchard St.
If you have an interest in how and when this site is redeveloped, attend the meeting and voice your opinion.