The future of the Ford City Mall took center stage Thursday morning in Chicago, prompting both discussion and demonstration.
Amidst redevelopment talks with the Chicago Plan Commission, protestors gathered to voice their concerns.
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Originally shuttered in June due to safety issues, the mall’s location at 76th Street and Cicero Avenue remains a focal point for change.
This site is earmarked for transformation into an industrial hub, complete with a public gathering space.
On Thursday, developers unveiled a bold $200 million proposal to city officials, aiming to breathe new life into the former Ford City Mall grounds.
Chicago-based Kurv Industrial wants to turn the property on the Southwest Side into an industrial complex that would include a public plaza, a new CTA bus stop and other enhancements.
Ford City Mall closed back in June over concerns of a defective fire suppression system and health and safety issues.
Alderman. Derrick Curtis says the proposal has been revised based on community feedback.
But it has received some pushback over concerns of industrial traffic and noise, if City Council were to rezone the mall from a shopping district to industrial.
Protesters rallied outside City Hall Thursday morning ahead of the plan commission meeting.
“This is a big problem in that area,” Esau Chavez of West Lawn Conservation Group said. “If you go down Cicero or Pulaski, from 87th to 63rd, you’re in gridlock. Bringing in more warehouses is not going to help the congestion in the community there.”
“Make sure that it remains a commercial activity and a hub for the South Side of Chicago,” Glenford Flowers Jr. of the Southside Flourish Movement. “It is 2.5 miles away from Midway Airport. There’s so much unbelievable amounts of imagination when it comes to economic ideas that could benefit not only the tourism industry in Chicago but the South Side, as well.”
If approved Thursday, the proposal would still need to be approved by the Zoning Committee before heading to the full City Council for a vote.
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