• Mariano's is scheduled for opening in Mid-March of 2014.
• LA Fitness is scheduled to open by Mid-March of 2014 and already opened a sales office for memberships across the street on Lawrence.
• Sears Auto Center is scheduled to open on January 24, 2014.

Stay tuned for more updates. 

Chicago Snow Corps is a program that connects volunteers with residents in need of snow removal - such as seniors and residents with disabilities.

While winter can be hazardous for everyone here in the City of Chicago, it can be especially difficult for elderly and physically disabled residents, who may not have the ability or resources to remove snow from their sidewalks and walkways. Chicago Snow Corps aims to help minimize potential heavy-snow emergencies by pairing volunteers with blocks where elderly and disabled citizens have requested help.

 In 1997, Chef Joe Calabrese and his wife Mary Kay purchased a small 70 seat restaurant in Chicago's Edison Park Neighborhood.  They named it "Zia's" as a tribute to Joe's aunts who had showered him with love and good cooking all his life.  Over the years Zia's grew.  It now seats 140 in the dining room along with 40 seats in the bar area.  Zia's has become a neighborhood favorite for everything including delicious lunches, fabulous nights out, carry outs, family parties and business get-togethers.  Zia's has received 11 consecutive "Excellent" ratings from Zagat & is recommended in Michelin's 2012 & 2013 guides.  After many years of success in Edison Park, the Calabrese family has brought a new restaurant to the 47th Ward called Zia's Lago Vista at 3819 N. Ashland. 

Zia's Lago Vista is modeled after the rustic wine barns found in Italy as well as the beautiful tasting rooms found in Napa Valley.  They made sure to duplicate many of the warm features found in Zia's Edison Park dining room as well.  Zia's Lago Vista boasts a beautiful 23 seat horseshoe bar along with high top seating for 60.  During the warmer months, the outdoor patio accommodates 60 diners.  The dining room seats 140 and can be divided to accommodate various size parties.   The menu is sure to delight with Zia's classics such as the Rigatoni Bolognese, Filetto Formaggio and Polenta con Salciccia.

Zia's Lago Vista has great nightly specials and a wonderful atmosphere.  To learn more about this great addition to the neighborhood, visit their website. 

This year's Northcenter Chamber of Commerce PLM Corporate Citizenship Award, given to a local business that demonstrates exemplary community service, goes to Orange Shoe Fitness for their work with the Neumann Family Services teaching health and wellness classes to their clients. Click here for more information. 

As you may recall, in April 2013, CTA and CDOT announced a vision for a center running Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system on Ashland Avenue between Irving Park Road and 95th Street to provide a fast and reliable north/south transit connection for 16 miles through Chicago. The vision reflects the planning process and community engagement undertaken in 2012.

Over the summer, CTA and CDOT met and heard from various key stakeholders about this plan.  They are now holding two public open house meetings as an extension of this outreach to gather additional input from the public. CTA and CDOT are still developing the Ashland BRT design, and considering options and modifications, including the implementation of additional left turns, based on continued feedback from the public.

The public open house meetings will summarize studies of the project impacts, including traffic analyses, which have been performed as part of the formal Environmental Assessment for the project, in accordance with federal government requirements.  The Environmental Assessment is now complete and available on CTA's website and in hard copy at several community locations, listed below.  CTA and CDOT would like your comments on the Environmental Assessment, which can be made at the public open houses, by mail, or by e-mail (AshlandBRT@transitchicago.com).   The formal public comment period for the Environmental Assessment ends on December 20th, 2013.

CTA and CDOT will consider the results of the analyses, potential impacts and strategies for mitigation, and all public comments before moving forward with the next phase of the project.  In addition, there will be additional public input solicited as part of the next design phase, scheduled to occur in 2014.

Details of the public meetings and how to access the Environmental Assessment are included below.  Additional information about the project can be found at www.transitchicago.com/ashlandbrt.

The times and locations for the public meetings are:

Tuesday, December 10, 2013   6:00 - 8:00 P.M.

BENITO JUAREZ COMMUNITY ACADEMY

1450 W. Cermak Road

Chicago, IL 60608

Served by Pink Line (18th Street) and CTA Bus Routes #9, #21, #60

And the closer to our ward, approx. 2 miles south:

Wednesday, December 11, 2013  6:00 - 8:00 P.M.

PULASKI PARK FIELD HOUSE

1419 W. Blackhawk Street

Chicago, IL 60642

Served by Blue Line (Division) and CTA Bus Routes #9 and #56

The Environmental Assessment is available on CTA's website OR 

If you would like a hard copy, contact Bill Higgins in our office and he will give you the info on how to get one. 

Alderman Pawar has supported the study of the proposal to determine if it can be modified to minimize the impact to our community while providing the greatest transit benefit.  To date the CTA or CDOT has not required any formal opinion from the Alderman or City Council but we have relayed the comments, questions and concerns to them and will continue to do so. We do encourage all residents with any comments to submit them directly to AshlandBRT@transitchicago.com or at the meetings.

Coyotes are being sighted in the neighborhood.  They have been sighted at multiple locations including along the river, Grace and Lincoln, and Wrigley Field.  For more information on Coyotes, please see our website.  Please know that there has not been a documented attack by a coyote on a human in more than 30 years in Illinois.  If you see an aggressive coyote or one that returns regularly to the same location please report that to our office or 311.  

Toy Drive Benefiting Lakeview Pantry - more info here.    

Lincoln Square Friendship Center at 2733 W. Lawrence needs hearty soup & stew, canned fruit & vegetables, pasta, pasta sauce, canned meats, tuna, chicken, rice, beans, cereal & oatmeal, other breakfast items (pancake mix, muffin mix, etc.), peanut butter & jelly, coffee & tea, dessert mixes, snack items, baking Ingredients and toiletries.

Drop off food, clothing, and household goods on Thursdays 2:30-7pm. 

A group of Community Volunteers helping another group of Community Volunteers

Forward Chicago, a grass-roots, all-volunteer non-profit that builds community where people of all ages are active, engaged and influential, is taking the lead on a volunteer effort that could use your help.   

Those Forward Chicago members who are crafters meet monthly at Sulzer Library and are creating reusable cloth shopping bags for the clients of the Lincoln Square Friendship Center Food Pantry. There are many tasks in creating these bags that you and your children, could be involved with.  Cloth needs to be donated. We will pin and cut bags from simple patterns, then iron, and sew the bags together.

As you may know, Martin Luther King Day is a national day of volunteer service. We will work on this project on Wednesday, January 15 and on Monday, January 20, Martin Luther King Day, from 10:30am-1:00pm at the Lincoln Square Friendship Center 2733 W. Lawrence; the location of a weekly food pantry and monthly pet food pantry.  They have a large space that is available for the community's use; which we want to support. If you have cloth to donate bring it to our office or if you would like to volunteer for one or both days, please call or email dara@chicago47.org.

Home Instead Senior Careis the sponsor of an annual program titled "Be a Santa to a Senior". This initiative is designed to bring smiles and joy to seniors who might not have a pleasant holiday because of financial limitations or because they are socially isolated.   This year Home Instead Senior Care is partnering with Bridgeview Bank and Walgreens to "Be a Santa to a Senior!"   

Donate a gift! They've selected a common list of gift items to make it possible to reach out to a maximum number of seniors. Chose from the following: grocery or drug store gift cards, blankets, throws, fragrance or bath sets, candies, cookies, slipper socks or pet supplies. Return the unwrapped gift to the place where you obtained the ornament, or contact Home Instead Senior Care at 773 784 4024 and we will arrange to pick up the item.

Look for a Gift Tree at these convenient locations:

Bridgeview Bank   4753 N. Broadway and  

Walgreens Pharmacy 4720 N. Marine Drive                        

 Please return gifts no later than December 19

Sulzer needs your old games.  Thanks to our neighbors who have donated games for the Sulzer's Game Night!  If you have games that your family no longer uses, please bring them to the 47th Ward Office or to Sulzer Library. Their ever-popular "Game Night" could use a few more board games like Sorry, Chess, Life, Uno, Jenga, Rummy Cube, etc.   

Check out the infrastructure map on our webpage!

The Chicago Cubs have provided some additional funding for some infrastructure improvements in the 44th 46th and 47th Wards.   In the 47th ward we will be getting new residential street lighting on: W Byron (Clark to Ashland), N Janssen (Addison to Irving Park) and N Greenview (Addison to Irving Park).

Lawrence Avenue Streetscape

The Lawrence Avenue Streetscape is underway.  We have posted a draft of the streetscape design on our website if you would like to review the details.    

Brick paver installation is underway.  Some work on the Claremont Plaza and adjacent alley was delayed to confirm an engineering issue which has been resolved.

Chicago River Work (east side) Berteau to Montrose (from Riverbank Neighbors) 

The project will be funded and supervised by the MWRD, the public entity in charge of treating our wastewater and managing the North Branch and North Channel of the Chicago River.  Riverbank Neighbors has had stewardship along this section of river bank for many years. The goal of this project is to stabilize the eastern bank, especially the northern end, from Montrose to Berteau Street. They will do this by inserting seawalls, corrugated sections of heavy iron deep into the bank some feet off shore, and pinning them into deep strata of clay with long iron holdfasts.

The top of the seawalls, when installed, will rest at normal water level, leaving them inconspicuous in their important task. From the edge of the seawall limestone fill will be added to armor the bank against scouring from flood events.  This newly created contour will also be planted with appropriate native species of forbs, grasses, shrubs and trees to provide bank stability, habitat for wild things, and beauty (for us).

All work will be done from the river side, using barges, so as not to badly impact existing plantings.  Temporary construction fencing will seal off the work area from November 17th until springtime. Pathways will not be open and access to the river's edge will not be permitted. Riverbank Neighbors understands this safety precaution and appreciates the District's plan to perform the work during the wintertime, when the site is less visited by families and friends. In the end, the project will hopefully secure the eroding bank and provide large new areas for planting, new paths and river access, more beauty and happiness for neighbors and visitors. 

• Leland Ave Full Closure will be up until April, 2014.  
• Ravenswood from Lawrence to Leland Ave Full Closure will be up until April, 2014 on the west side of Ravenswood.
• Ravenswood (east side) between Ainslie and Winnemac some of the landscaping features will be installed before snowfall in preparation for planting in the spring.  Blockades may be in place on the street to make room for the work to be done however there is not a parking restriction when workers are not present.

For more information, visit the infrastructure section of our website or contact Bill Higgins at bill@chicago47.org or 773-549-2745.