Developer Longford Group is proposing a new five-story building containing ground-floor retail topped by 68 rental units for a site in Chicago's North Center community.

Slated for 3914 N. Lincoln Avenue, the 63-foot-tall structure stretches from Lincoln to Damen Avenue and would replace a vacant lot as well as the Crawford Plumbing Supply building at 3918 N. Lincoln and the Chicago Bicycle Company at 3930 N. Lincoln Avenue. 

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The design of the proposed building comes from Chicago-based SPACE Architects + Planners and is traditional in appearance, using a masonry and stone facade. The transit-oriented site is less than 1,000 feet from the Irving Park Brown Line station and will include 36 parking spaces accessed from a public alleyway. 

The ground floor features a residential lobby and 7,000 square feet of commercial space fronting Lincoln Avenue. The Damen Avenue facing side of the project has no active use and screens the building's parking garage. The development team created conceptual renderings showing how that portion of the building could be spruced up with murals. 

The Damen Avenue side of the project has little active use but could be used as a canvas for street art.SPACE Architects + Planners

The proposal at 3914 N. Lincoln will contain 60 two-bedroom and 8 three-bedroom apartments. The two-bedroom units will rent for $2,300 while the three-bedrooms will go for $2,700 per month, according to the office of Ald. Matt Martin (47th).

The city's current affordable housing regulations require seven units to be rented below market rate. The developer will exceed its requirements by including 13 or 14 affordable units, which is likely to score some points with officials during the approval process. 

The North Center project will require a zoning change from the city and will be submitted as a Planned Development (PD). The 47th Ward Zoning Advisory Council will meet to discuss the proposal in May and then advise the alderman on how to move forward with the request.

A ground-floor plan of the proposed development at 3914 N. Lincoln Avenue. SPACE Architects + Planners