Affordable apartments planned at 5853 N. Broadway

An all-affordable residential building has been proposed at 5853 N. Broadway. Set to replace a Streets and Sanitation depot, the new building will rise along Broadway just south of W. Thorndale Ave and Broadway Armory Park. Bickerdike Redevelopment Corporation is the developer behind the proposal.

With Landon Bone Baker Architects in charge of the architecture, the new building will rise 11 floors with 90 units inside. With all units earmarked for those making up to 60% AMI, the unit mix will include 35 one-beds, 40 two-beds, and 15 three-beds. The three-bedroom units will have two bathrooms, while the rest will have one bathroom. 

Located near the Thorndale Red Line station, the building will include just 19 car parking spaces, while providing 90 spaces for bikes. Tenant amenities will include a third-floor terrace, on-site management offices, and ground-floor meeting rooms. The roof will be topped with solar panels and a terrace. 

First announced via Block Club Chicago in late 2021, the building design has undergone some changes, cutting its height from 12 to 11 floors and trimming the units from 94 to 90. With city input, the design was changed to reduce the street frontage from four to three floors and to break up the facade with different types of cladding to reduce the scale. The overall tower is pushed back from the street and has also been redesigned with different facade portions. 

According to Bickerdike, they plan to fund the project with Low-Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTC), either from the City of Chicago or the Illinois Housing Development Authority, as well as through other sources including potential TIF or HOME funds. They plan to submit to the Chicago Department of Housing for funding by Summer 2023 and begin the zoning process in Fall 2023. If all goes according to plan, the development could break ground in Summer 2024.