Could Amazon Fresh be coming to the NW Side?
by BRIAN NADIG
Could an Amazon Fresh grocery store be coming to the “Shops at Six Corners” center proposed for the former Peoples Gas site at 3955 N. Kilpatrick Ave.?
Project developer GW Properties has not announced the name of the approximately 40,000-square-foot anchor grocery tenant for the center, but Amazon was recently named as the anchor of a proposed GW development in suburban Glenview.
In meetings with community groups, GW reportedly has indicated that the grocery store would be new to Chicago. Currently there are several Amazon Fresh stores in the suburbs, but none in the city.
GW could not be reached for comment, but sources familiar with the project have said that Amazon appears to be a likely tenant if the project were to move forward.
Other tenants would include an apparel store and a possible restaurant with a drive-through facility. In addition, a landscaped public plaza at the southeast corner of Irving Park and Kilpatrick.
In recent weeks, however, the proposal has hit a major roadblock, with the city Department of Planning and Development issuing a “withhold its support (letter) until such time that significant plan revisions are made.”
In the Jan. 22 letter to the developer’s attorney Sara Barnes, the department calls for the elimination of the planned curb cut on Irving Park, stating that access to and from the site should be limited to Kilpatrick, which also is being used for a planned 10-story senior living complex at 4747 W. Irving Park Road.
Other recommendations include the addition of a residential component to the development and the construction of a multi-level parking stricture in order to minimize the amount of surface parking.
The Old Irving Park Association, Six Corners Association, Portage Park Neighborhood Association, Old Irving Pointe Homeowners Association, Old Irving Park Basecamp Homeowners Association and Six Corners Organizing for Progress and Engagement have issued letters in opposition to the proposal.
