Proclaiming that Brighton Park is on the move, a story in Friday’s Chicago Sun-Times cited plans for a new 84-unit Lexington Homes development at the old Chicago Tube & Iron plant at 2531 W 48th Street. Ald. Ed Burke (14th) told the Sun-Times that Lexington will also develop the adjacent land, bringing the total number of new homes in the development to 600. That’s a significant chunk of development for the area bounded by California on the west, Western on the east, the Orange Line tracks on the south (at about 4900 south) and 47th Street on the north. The development will include a mix of mid-rises, townhomes and three-flats. But this is just one development in one section of the neighborhood.
The number of new homes coming to Brighton Park is really closer to 900. If you add the projects billing themselves as part of McKinley Park that actually fall on the Brighton Park side of Western, like McKinley Gardens (69 units), McKinley Park Village (134 units), the Westernview Condos (36 units) and other scattered infill, you have nearly 900 new homes going into an area that’s roughly four blocks wide by two miles long.
Finally, it appears that the once-dormant Brighton Park is seeing development. What do yo’all think: is the revitalization due to the south and southwestern push of Bridgeport?
Are they going to demolish that structure pictured on the left? That’s too bad–there is some real beauty under there
Urban Politician, that’s an interesting question. Whatever that building is sits directly across the street from Dubin’s planned site of townhomes. If you look at the top of the building – it appears to have been painted quite recently. I’m unaware of any crack houses in Brighton Park, so I doubt that is why the windows are boarded up. From seeing it up close, I would say that someone is in the process of restoring it. Of course, I say that without any concrete evidence to support my claim. Also, directly next to it on the north are about six to 10 newer houses – I’d say in the last 15 years. So, my guess is that it dodged at least one meet with the wrecking ball.