An "L" pulls into new Logan Square "station"

With the breeze making the temperature feel even colder than then the thermometer reading and snow flying sporadically, Thursday afternoon, an "L" car pulled into a new "station" in Logan Square.

First it was hoisted from a flatbed truck to the top of what will be an outdoor patio area at the L building under construction at 2211 N. Milwaukee Ave. Then it appeared to glide into its "stop." 

The Transit Oriented Development (TOD) called the L and marketed as Whatthel by the Property Markets Group (PMG) begins at Talman and heads northwest along Milwaukee. With a mix of Jr.- 1 bedrooms as well as 1, 2 and 3-bedroom units, the square footage per unit varies from approximately 532 to 1,285 square feet.

As described by Joe Weishaar of the project's Brininstool-Lynch Architects, the six-story building with 120 units will include outdoor amenities on the second floor. They are green space, patio and infinity pond with the L car sitting in the middle, accessed by walkways.

While a rendering of the outdoor area shows one side of the L car missing, the actual car does not. According to Weishaar, the owners decided that the car looked so cool with all four sides, they decided to keep it intact.

It is expected that occupancy will begin in a June-July time frame. This building has a commitment of 12 affordable residential units.

Affordable Units
At a meeting in 1st Ward Alderman Joe Moreno's location on W. North Ave., Apr. 2, Noah Gottlieb, Principal, PMG, and other members of his team spoke with prospective affordable unit renters.

They explained that to qualify, the total income of those living in a unit must be three times what they will pay in rent. In the case of these 12 units, they are $796 per month for a one-bedroom and $946 for a two-bedrooms. That means the income of those living in those units must have a gross income of $28,656 and $34,056 respectively.

In addition the income for the household can not exceed the 60% area median income (AMI) of the Chicago area. Specifically, the household size and income may not exceed the following:

The market rate of the units range as shown below:

As has been pointed out by many people in the housing rallies in and around Logan Square, the AMI used is considerably greater than income of people in the area. Thus "affordable housing" is not affordable for them.