Chicago’s Plan Commission on Thursday approved housing proposals in McKinley Park and Avondale that together would add more than 300 residential units, including condos, townhomes, and affordable units—plus a timeline that could bring construction to completio
For McKinley Park residents watching a vacant warehouse sit on a strip of land between neighborhoods, Thursday’s vote landed like a small turning point.
The Chicago Plan Commission approved development proposals for two West Side areas—McKinley Park and Avondale—bringing plans for more than 300 total residential units.
In McKinley Park, a real estate venture led by Chicago investor Kin Kuong Chong and real estate agent Sharon Wong would convert a vacant warehouse into apartments and a handful of townhomes. The development team is also behind Archer Center Condos, also in McKinley Park.
The site sits at 3301-15 S. Justine St., on a stretch of McKinley Park bordered by residential and commercial buildings. Directly south is a Pepsi warehouse, and to the west are single-family homes and two-flats.
Kennedy Mann Architecture provided a rendering of the McKinley Park development. and the project’s design has shifted in response to the neighborhood. The team changed its plan from two retail buildings and three multifamily buildings to one featuring more landscaping. townhomes. and shorter condo buildings.
Ben Kennedy. a partner at Kennedy Mann. said nine townhomes were added along Justine Street to act as a buffer between taller residential buildings on the eastern portion of the site and homes on the other side of the street. The tallest building in the project would be nine stories. “We realized there was a different direction that was much more fitting within the neighborhood,” Kennedy said.
The proposal still includes one single-story retail building with an unknown tenant. Two residential buildings would include a combined 199 condos, alongside the nine townhomes.
Affordability is built into the plan in a way that stands out: the team says the affordable units on-site will be for sale rather than for rent. The developers did not disclose the average area median income for the units. but 20% of them will be priced for lower-income buyers. Condos would range from one- to three-bedroom units, and each townhome would be about 2,400 square feet.
The McKinley Park Development Council backed the proposal, praising it as starter housing. In a letter included in the commission’s materials. the council contrasted the plan with what it described as recent overreach in the neighborhood—so-called “McMansions” built in latter years that. the letter said. have been out of reach for existing demographics and have decreased housing density. threatening displacement.
The letter also argued the project stands out because it proposes large-scale. reasonably priced housing without public subsidy. saying: “This welcome proposal for starter homes — including desperately needed family-sized housing — stands in stark contrast to the McMansions built in McKinley Park in latter years. which have been out of reach for our existing demographics and have decreased housing density. threatening displacement. ” and adding: “Furthermore. this is the first proposal we have seen in a long time proposing large scale. reasonably priced housing without public subsidy.”.
In Avondale, the commission also approved new townhomes and apartments.
A venture led by Macon Construction Group and Stocking Urban is proposing 40 three-story townhomes and a five-story building with 65 apartments on a vacant lot at 3231-65 N. California Ave. The development is estimated at roughly $65 million, and the project would begin with the apartment building. The second and third phases would deliver the townhomes and parking.
The townhomes would be three stories with three to four bedrooms each, according to the development team, and each home would include a private yard. The apartment building would offer one- to four-bedroom units, along with a roof deck for residents.
The plan includes 21 affordable units—many of them family-sized.
If approved by the City Council, the developers estimate completion at the beginning of 2027.
Chicago Plan Commission McKinley Park housing Avondale housing affordable housing for sale townhomes condos City Council 2027 timeline