A six-unit residential building was permitted for construction by the City of Chicago on August 7 for the property at 4852 North Sawyer Avenue in Albany Park. The permit came through with a reported cost of $1.25 million 155 days after its application start date of March 5. The construction type, whether frame or masonry, is not noted.
Site context of 4852 North Sawyer Avenue, via Google Maps
Plans call for a three-story structure without a basement level. There will be a rooftop deck with stair enclosures plus decks and a stairway connecting all three levels in the rear. A detached six-car garage on the alley of West Ainslie Street will be topped with its own roof deck and a pergola. Compass Architecture is named as the architect of record, and Spec Development LLC of Buffalo Grove will be the general contractor. With its one-to-one parking ratio and reported cost estimate, it is presumed the six units will be offered as for-sale condos.
4852 North Sawyer Avenue, via Google Street View
The site is currently home to Cherubim & Seraphim Movement Church, whose main address is 4850 North Sawyer. Since demolition permits became unsearchable in the Chicago Data Portal, it isn’t clear if either address has a pending permit to be torn down. Perhaps only the larger of the two buildings, the one on the corner of Sawyer and Ainslie, will be demolished, while the church’s main structure at 4850 will remain. Time will tell. We’ve reached out to the church and hope to hear back. A search for property records has revealed no sales info for the properties.
Local transit options, via Google Maps
The corner parcel lies adjacent to Hibbard Elementary School and the Albany Park Multicultural Academy on the north side of West Ainslie Street. A three-block walk southwest leads to the outbound terminus of the Brown Line elevated train. A walk of similar distance southeast leads to the Kedzie platform. Stops for north-south Route 93 and east-west Route 81 buses are within two-block walks at north Kedzie Avenue and West Lawrence Avenue, respectively.
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Excellent spot for condos. Lots of convenient dining options along that stretch of Lawrence. And pretty close to both the Kimball and Kedzie stations.
Very glad for this redevelopment, although the site is large enough that it could certainly host more than six units in an urban neighborhood such as Albany Park. The Brown Line is literally within earshot.
Some history: Decades ago, the complex was a synagogue. In more recent times, it has been home to a Black-African Pentecostal church. Walking past, one could often hear beautiful, powerful, traditional hymns being sung by the congregation. I’ve sometimes had a chance to speak with members of the congregation, who were always friendly. I’m glad to have had them as neighbors for many years. God bless and Godspeed to them.
I wonder if these are going to be large units. The site seems large for 6 smaller units. 3+ bedroom units could be a nice addition.
As soon as I saw the picture I said “yep that was built as a synagogue.” Turns out it was the previous site of B’nei Shalom, founded in 1928 in Albany Park. Looks like it was expanded in 1955 and a school was opened on the grounds. By 1980 the community had mostly left for the suburbs, so B’nei Shalom closed and its scrolls and artefacts were moved to Buffalo Grove where it still runs today.
Albany Park used to have a very large Jewish population, just like North Lawndale. These neighborhoods have lived a lot of lives.
I wonder if the developer being from Buffalo Groce means the synagogue had been renting the building to the church, & recently sold to a developer that had ties to the synagogue’s current location.
Good research
From the article “Perhaps only the larger of the two buildings, the one on the corner of Sawyer and Ainslie, will be demolished, while the church’s main structure at 4850 will remain.” indicating the 6 units are probably not taking up the entire site.