Eight residential units have been permitted for an empty lot at 4536 South Prairie Avenue in Bronzeville neighborhood of Grand Boulevard. The four-story masonry building will be complimented by a detached masonry four-car garage at the rear of the property, accessed from the alley off 46th Street. The permit was issued on April 16, just 37 days after its application was filed on March 10. It indicates a reported construction cost of $1.67 million.
Four-story, eight-unit building coming to this lot in Bronzeville. Via Google Street View
Site context of 4536 South Prairie, via Google Maps
KTP Properties LLC is named as the developer, and Metropole Holdings LLC is the general contractor. Both entities are registered to the same address in the South Loop. Axios Architects is the architect of record. Though Google images show the property has wrought-iron fencing and yard ornamentation, it is otherwise an unimproved grass lot, so a demolition permit won’t be necessary prior to beginning construction.
Nearby transit options, via Google Maps
4536 South Prairie Avenue is located within a two-block walk of the 47th Green Line elevated train platform. Bus Routes 3 and 47 are also within two blocks, with the 3 east at King Drive, and the 47 south at 47th Street. Route 29 buses are available three blocks to the west at State Street. The 47 bus can be used to connect with the 47th Red Line platform about three-quarters of a mile west at the Dan Ryan Expressway.
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It’s amazing (in a bewildering way) how far the population of Douglass has dropped. Almost 80k in 1950 to 18k in 2010. Recent estimates have that around 21k in 2022, but I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s closer to 23k at this point.
The rebound is coming. Not sure it’ll break the 50k mark anytime soon, but time is now for the Sox to do something with their ocean of pavement. The baby steps of these modest infills are doing the neighborhood wonders. It’s not something a glitzy tower could solve overnight.
Agreed. Starting small with this medium-density buildings is a great way to expand density and build back the area. Hopefully the Sox owners follow Reinsdorf’s footsteps and actually develop the area like you said
Shredman, you know who the owners of the White Sox are?
Drew, 4536 S Prairie is Grand Boulevard, not Dougals, but your overall point about the rejuvenation of the geater Bronzeville area still stands.
Thought it was a couple more blocks north, definitely in the heart of Grand Blvd. with this one. Historic highs of 115k in 1950 are astonishing to think that we’re only at 24k today, according to 2022 numbers. Positive to see almost all neighborhoods north of South Shore and east of 90/94 are adding numbers again as opposed to losing.
Still lots to be done… but hopefully marking a turning point in the grand scheme for Chicago’s South Side.
Bronzeville definitely has room for growth, but it’s still unfair to compare today’s reality with the neighborhood numbers we have from 1950 or 1960. That was the baby boom, people has 5 kids. Household sizes these days are a fraction of what they were back then, especially in the inner city. If we want 1950 numbers we’ll have to treat the area more like downtown and allow larger buildings like we do up by 31st St.
*had
This comparison is not a bash or critique, but rather an acknowledgment that we shouldn’t view growth as a negative for the community.
Prices are going to rise quickly for many Chicagoans. This will hurt most in the city if we do nothing. Family size is a contributor to the peaks of the last century, but it should not be an excuse for inaction.
New developments in today’s numbers will almost always be more expensive than the historic housing stock, unless they are subsidized or overbuilt to the point where they depress the demand for the existing supply. Austin is almost the only city in the US moving mountains to jump on this trend. Ditching lot size requirements, single stair reform, and upzoning single-family plots. So much that we aren’t. (Minneapolis, Seattle, and Cambridge are some close seconds)
It’s taken years to get that one tower in Old Town to its almost final approval. The upzone of Edgewater is facing ridiculous opposition. And the fact that an alderman can be the king of what gets built and what doesn’t defeats all the purposes of our democracy. An apartment building is not the same as a power plant or waste dump, but some ‘neighbors’ would have you fooled based on their language.
The g-word is a looming fear for sure. But we can have alternative outcomes if we try.