Critical Infrastructure Cuts You Should Know About

1st Ward Newsletter | December 2, 2025

Dear neighbors,

It was fun seeing so many of you brave the cold for the Better Streets for Buses meeting yesterday evening. After many months of planning, CTA and CDOT have brought together bus infrastructure improvement concepts for several high-traffic routes, in particular the 49/Western and 74/Fullerton buses. These are the key bus routes of my life and I was excited to weigh in both personally and professionally. The opportunity for faster, safer, and more comfortable bus service–in many cases the Bus Rapid Transit reality many have dreamed of–is so close at hand. I'm excited to see the final plans brought forward in 2026!

I'm glad I wasn't trying to ride my bike there though, even with bar mitts. While our arterial streets are clear and our residential streets are improving, our protected bike lanes are an utter mess. The Milwaukee Avenue lanes were not even partially cleared until several days after the snow, and Kedzie's lanes weren't cleared at all. Nothing seems to have been salted at all. The 1st Ward is home to some hearty winter riders and they deserve access to safe infrastructure all year round. I'm engaging with CDOT in terms of how they plan to resolve this issue as we head into the actual winter. 

This leads to some of the infrastructure challenges we see in the city's capital improvement plan proposed in this year's budget. Much is made of the over $440 million in operational spending being bond funded and the late issuance of bonds authorized years ago, and those concerns need to be addressed in this budget. What is not being discussed is the substantial decrease in infrastructure spending being proposed, both as a whole and across many categories including Complete Streets infrastructure (cut by 70%) and traffic safety adjacent to schools and parks ($4 million annually for the whole city). If you care about the matters discussed in the first two paragraphs (or safe, accessible sidewalks or just street resurfacing) this should concern you. Please know that I'm pushing to make sure that our infrastructure spending aligns with the actual infrastructure needs of the city.

Sincerely,

In this week's newsletter, you'll find:

• 1st Ward Office
• Community News and Events
• Zoning

1st Ward Office

Help give 1st Ward families a wonderful holiday season! The 1st Ward office has partnered with several elementary schools in our communities to coordinate a holiday gift drive for families in need. The majority of these families have been negatively impacted by immigration activity, are facing food insecurities, or are experiencing other hardships this holiday season.

If you would like to participate in the toy drive, check out the wishlist items here! 

1. Once you choose which gift you'd like to order, please have the item shipped to your own address and join us on December 13th from 12pm-4pm for a wrapping party and mixer! If you're not able to join us on the 13th, feel free to bring the gift to the 1st Ward Office during normal operating hours before the mixer. Our hours are Monday – Friday, 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.
2. When purchasing an item, please write in the notes during check out which family you would like this to be for. Several families have the same or similar items in their wishlist, so it will help us make sure the gift is going to the correct person. You can see which family requested it by reading the notes on the item in the wishlist. 
3. Once a gift has been purchased, click the “Reserve Gift” button on Listful to let others know the item has been purchased and avoid potential duplicates.
4. If you prefer to purchase your gift in person, please email [email protected] to let us know the details of your purchased item, so that we may mark it as reserved on our end.

If you are unable to donate any gifts, your time is equally valuable! Please join fellow volunteers at a wrapping party and mixer at the 1st Ward Office (1958 N Milwaukee Ave) from 12:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. on Saturday, December 13th. Holiday-themed beverages will be provided :)

For more information on both events, please visit the sign-up form below!

Community News and Events

This year is the United States Postal Service's 250th anniversary! In Chicago, the first post office existed even before the establishment of the pioneering settlement as a town in 1833. The original Chicago post office was a log-constructed building built to provide service to traders and quickly became insufficient due to an increasing population as Chicago morphed from a pioneering settlement to a city.

Historically, the City's Post Office has been a vital center of employment for Chicagoans, including African Americans, women, veterans, and people with disabilities. In 1966, Henry Wadsworth McGee made history when he rose to the position of Postmaster of the Chicago Post Office, the first African American postmaster of a large metropolitan post office in the United States. Today, the Post Office is one of the most diverse organizations in the nation and handles almost half (44%) of the world's total mail volume!

As we approach the holiday season, please join us in gratitude to all our postal workers in the 1st Ward and citywide for providing this essential service to our residents! 

1. Sustainable Gifting Guide: There are plenty of ways to show love for family and friends while minimizing your waste and overall environmental footprint! This sustainable gifting guide will give you some great Chicago-specific ideas that can save you money and support local sustainable businesses over big box stores. 
2. Throwing a Sustainable Party: Want your group gatherings to be more eco-friendly? From the invitations to the food to the decor, this guide has some hot tips for minimizing environmental impact and waste, and can also save you money and storage space in the process. Even if you’re not throwing the party, there is also a section on being a sustainable guest.

Zoning

• 2018 North Richmond / 2909 West McLean: The 1st Ward Office is receiving numerous calls about the demolition of the existing church and school building, for redevelopment of 4 new single unit residences. There was no community meeting about this redevelopment because it is all occurring as-of-right, or within the current zoning. The current zoning allows for the construction of four 2-flats with coach houses as maximum density. The developer also refused a zoning change for any potential alternative project. The developer solely wishes to build 4 single unit residences in place of the former church and school, which is within the current zoning. 

• Filed at City Council: 2240 North Milwaukee: The ordinance to redevelop the existing vacant lot at 2240 North Milwaukee is filed at City Council. It is expected to pass at a subsequent City Council meeting. 

• Expected at City Council: 1805 North Campbell: The existing single unit residence at 1805 North Campbell was demolished, and it is expected that an ordinance will be filed for a four-story, 21 unit residential redevelopment at City Council. You can review the current and previous proposals, which received numerous West Bucktown neighborhood zoning meetings and two 1st Ward zoning meetings in October 2023 and June 2024; a new property owner went under contract in late 2024, and is matching the previously recommended proposal. 

• Change to Planned Development Expected: 2149 North Milwaukee: A contract purchaser reached out to propose rezoning the lot across the street from the Congress Theater. Ald. La Spata and 1st Ward staff recommended an updated proposal, as the currently entitled 72-unit development may be built under the existing Planned Development. The contract purchaser proposed to rezone the subject property out of the Planned Development, to reduce height and density while increasing parking. Upon further discussion, a change to Planned Development is expected, and a courtesy community meeting will be announced as soon as possible. 

• Zoning Change No Longer Needed: 1738 West Division A zoning attorney reached out on behalf of a proposed business where pet treats would be manufactured and sold on-site. After exhausting all potential use categories under the existing B3 zoning designation, the applicant submitted a zoning intake packet for a C1 zoning designation that allows this use; however, Alderman La Spata advocated for additional review of the proposal under B3 zoning due to other businesses in the ward with the same operating concept and zoning, and the City confirmed a zoning change is no longer needed. 

• 1624 West Chicago A speculative buyer reached out to learn more about rezoning the subject building to allow for a hospitality concept on the ground floor. The 1st Ward Office provided zoning information. This property is not yet under contract, so the 1st Ward awaits more information. (received November 2025)

• 1533 North Western A zoning attorney reached out on behalf of a property owner, to propose a zoning change to convert ground floor commercial to residential. The 1st Ward Office sent developer's intake packet and requested more information. (originally received April 2025; received again October 2025)

• 1654 West Chicago A business owner reached out regarding zoning change options to establish a package goods establishment in a commercial storefront. The 1st Ward Office requested more information. (received September 2025)