Ald. Laurino sets Sept. 28 meeting on Sunstar redevelopment along Foster

by BRIAN NADIG

Alderman Margaret Laurino (39th) will hold a community meeting this week on a proposal to build a retail development on a 9.2-acre vacant parcel at 4635-67 W. Foster Ave., about a block east of the Edens Expressway.

The meeting will be held at 7 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 28, at the 17th (Albany Park) Police Station, 4650 N. Pulaski Road. The site’s developer, the Jaffe Companies, will make a presentation at the meeting.

Dental product manufacturer Sunstar Americas, which recently moved to Schaumburg, once occupied the site. The former plant on Foster was demolished last year.

The east end of the site is adjacent to the Weber Spur bike trail. The trail, which is being built along a former railroad right of way, will start near Cicero and Sunnyside avenues and extend northeast into Lincolnwood.

In February, the North Mayfair Improvement Association held a meeting to gather feedback on how the site should be redeveloped.

Some residents suggested that the development include green space next to the trail and that a bike shop and a bicycle rental service would be appropriate for the site. Others said that it should be designed in a manner that encourages shoppers to walk from store to store.

Several residents recommended that a traffic signal be installed on Foster for vehicles entering and leaving the site.