The Neighborhood Opportunity Fund Class of 2018 (Summer) grant recipients.
The Neighborhood Opportunity Fund Class of 2018 (Spring) grant recipients.
The Neighborhood Opportunity Fund Class of 2017 grant recipients.
Since the program’s inception in June 2017, Mayor Emanuel has had the privilege of awarding three cohorts of local businesses with Neighborhood Opportunity Fund grants.
| Project | Address | Summary |
|---|---|---|
| 345 Art Gallery | 345 N. Kedzie Ave. | Acquisition of two lots adjacent to the visual arts gallery and venue to allow for expansion |
| Ambassador Floral | 11045 S. Halsted St. | Complete renovation of the property, including expansion of the garden center |
| Brown Sugar Bakery | 4800 W. Chicago Ave. | Rehab of commercial space to house a new location of the bakery and catering business currently operating at two other locations |
| California Smoke House | 2800 W. Madison St. | Rehab of the building to develop a new restaurant to replace the closed Wallace's Catfish Corner |
| Carniceria la Hacienda | 5159 S. Kedzie Ave. | Update to the fourth location of the family grocery business, including improvements to the interior, façade, parking lot, and roof |
| Creators By Nature Arts Center | 149 W. 111th St. | Acquisition and Build-out of an art gallery and theater space with four artists lofts on the second floor |
| Damenzo's | 11226 S. Halsted St. | Rehab of the local pizza restaurant including roofing, parking lot, and fencing repairs, and an upgrade to the HVAC system |
| Gallery Guichard | 446 E. 47th St. | Expansion of the gallery with the addition of an outdoor sculpture garden that will house rotating exhibits |
| Garifuna Flava Caribbean Restaurant | 2516 W. 63rd St. | Improvements to the façade, rehab of the dining room and expansion of the kitchen to keep up with demand |
| Homan Grown | 3844 W 16th St. | Addition of new component of the MLK Blooms Initiative that wholesales and retails perennials to Chicago-based landscaping firms |
| Ivory Dental Specialists | 8344 S. Halsted St. | Property acquisition and Build-out of a second location of this dental practice and space for Afro Joe's café |
| Iyanze Bronze | 308 E. 51st St. | Build-out for a second location of the Nigerian restaurant in the Bronzeville Cookin' building |
| Karla's Kitchen of Chicago | 801 S. Pulaski Rd. | Property acquisition and rehab for the relocation and expansion of this soul food restaurant |
| Turkey Chop | 3804 W. 16th St. | Build-out of the ground floor of the MLK Legacy Apartment building to house the second location of Turkey Chop |
| Ma Dear's Down Home Kitchen | 2136 S. Pulaski Rd. | Expansion of the soul food restaurant to the adjacent space to Build-out the dining room |
| Majestic Florist | 8145 S. Cottage Grove Ave. | Complete renovation of the local floral shop |
| Mikkey's Retro Grill | 8126 S. Stony Island Ave. | Building rehab to open a second location of the restaurant |
| Original Soul Vegetarian | 203 E. 75th St. | Property acquisition and rehab to expand existing restaurant and streamline the space |
| Shawn Michelle's Churned Homemade | 56 E. 47th St. | Build-out for a new ice cream parlor and warm pie pantry |
| Sip & Savor | 78 E. 47th St. | New location of Sip and Savor coffee shop in the recently revitalized Rosenwald building |
| Sisters in Cinema | 2310 E. 75th St. | Property acquisition and rehab to house a nonprofit that pays homage to African American storytellers and educates and trains the next generation of storytellers |
| South Shore Brew | 7101 S. Yates Blvd. | Build-out of a coffee shop that will offer Southern fare, grab-and-go pastries, and coffee from Bridgeport Coffee featuring African beans |
| The Honeycomb | 2547 W. 71st St. | Renovations to reopen the sports bar that closed in 2012 due to a fire |
| The New Look Restaurant | 2546 E. 83rd St. | Renovations to the existing restaurant, including construction of a backyard dining patio with a garden, a new store front system, MEP updates and roofing |
| The Quarry Event Center | 2423 E. 75th St. | Development of a new café space to incubate micro food businesses in the shared commercial kitchen space |
| Uncle Remus Restaurant | 5611 W. Madison St. | Rehab of the restaurant including floor repairs, façade improvements, new roofing and new fencing |
| West Austin Development Center | 4920 W. Madison St. | Reconfigure part of the ground floor of a three-story childcare facility for a cultural presentation theater |
| Project | Address | Summary |
|---|---|---|
| 5 Loaves Eatery / Harold's Chicken | 407 E. 75th St. | Renovations to multi-tenant commercial property to improve the façade, tuck-pointing, and HVAC. |
| Altogether Lovely | 1841 W. 63rd St. | Repairs to interior and exterior of building to expand hair salon, hair supply store and education center. |
| Balloons, Flowers & Gift Baskets | 11033 S. Michigan Ave. | Complete rehab of the local balloon and flower retail shop, including windows, electric, carpentry, bathrooms and HVAC. |
| Chicago Army & Lou's | 416-24 E. 75th St. | Build-out for start-up restaurant paying homage to the historic Army & Lou's including the addition of a rooftop patio. |
| Cynthia's Gumbo | 10333 S. Halsted St. | Build-out of space for a catering and take-out southern-style restaurant. |
| Del-Kar Pharmacy | 3726 W. 16th St. | Renovations to longstanding neighborhood pharmacy and convenience store. |
| Emanuel's Chapel Funeral Home | 5112 S. Western Ave. | Improvements to the façade and redevelopment of the parking lot. |
| Essential Elements - Chicago | 1640 E. 87th St. | Renovations to an existing Women's boutique to include replacement of roof and flooring. |
| Etcetera | 2674 W. Madison St. | Complete rehab of a start-up American restaurant and sports bar. |
| Garcia's Svcs, Inc. | 5134 W. Grand Ave. | Renovations to exterior and interior of building for a notary and document translation services business. |
| Head Quarters Barber Academy | 5131 W. Madison St. | Build-out on the second floor to expand existing barber shop and barber academy. |
| Inner-City Muslim Action Network Healthy Marketplace | 1207-11 W. 63rd St. | Property acquisition and rehab to establish a model corner store and healthy marketplace for IMAN's network of 62 corner store operators. |
| La Cremeria Santa Maria | 3300 W. 26th St. | Expansion of the dairy retailer and wholesaler with a second location in Little Village. |
| Laine's Bake Shop | 6437 - 39 S. Cottage Grove Ave. | Renovations of two commercial units for the relocation of an artisanal baking company to increase production capacity and to add retail space and administrative offices. |
| Latinos Progresando | 2724 W. Cermak Rd. | Property acquisition and build-out of a currently vacant public library building into a hub for cultural activities and events, such as art, music and theater. The first floor will house offices for the organization's legal immigration services. |
| LBP Carver 47 Café | 1060 E. 47th St. | Expansion of the kitchen for Carver 47, increasing the café's capacity to serve the community and train its workforce. |
| LeKula Café | 645 - 53 W. 119th St. | Complete interior build-out and redevelopment of parking lot for start-up café and lounge. |
| M&R Prescription Center | 1959 E. 71st St. | Improvements to storefront, store sign, security system, flooring, finish, and display area to improve store visibility and security of a neighborhood medical supply store. |
| Nuevo Leon Restaurant | 3657 W. 26th St. | Rehab of long-standing Mexican restaurant and redevelopment of customer parking lot. |
| OLD NAVY | 11700 S. Marshfield Ave. | Build-out for Old Navy store in Marshfield Plaza. |
| Osito's Tap | 2553 S. Ridgeway Ave. | Build-out of start-up craft beer and spirits bar adjacent to family-owned Moreno's Liquors. |
| Pretty Dapper | 3810 W. 16th St. | Build-out of a day spa at the Martin Luther King Legacy Homes complex. |
| Strawberry Café | 1652 E. 79th St. | Establishment of a new start-up restaurant specializing in breakfast and catering to the community. |
| WINGS | 3513 W. 63rd St. | Build-out of a new re-sale retail clothing store for domestic violence social enterprise. |
| Project | Address | Summary |
|---|---|---|
| 51st Street Restaurant Row | 363 - 365 E. 51st St. | Redevelopment of vacant ground floor commercial units to provide move-in ready space to restauranteurs. |
| AP Deli | 10756-58 S. Michigan Ave. | Façade and storefront improvements to original location of AP Deli and buildout for a barbershop in an adjacent tenant space. |
| BJ's Market & Bakery | 1156 W. 79th St. | Renovations and updates to a longstanding neighborhood eatery that serves Southern-style cuisine. |
| Bronzeville Culinary Kitchens | 436 E. 47th St. | Buildout of new shared commercial kitchen and events facility to support new and existing food-based small businesses. |
| Calahan Funeral Home | 7046 S. Halsted St. | Expansion of an existing funeral home with a building addition and new parking. |
| Chubby's Char House | 5963 W. Madison St. | Buildout for a start-up restaurant that will hire and train ex-offenders. |
| Coleman's Bar-B-Que #2 | 5752-56 W. Chicago Ave. | Renovations and updates to established and family-owned barbecue restaurant. |
| Dog-E-Stylez Grooming Salon | 1944 W. 47th St. | Renovations to pet store and grooming salon and development of adjacent dog park. |
| Doughboy's | 352 E. 71st St. | Buildout for new tenant: Doughboy’s restaurant specializing in soul food and other specialty items. |
| Dust Em Clean Maintenance | 634 E. 61st St. | Redevelopment of multi-unit commercial building owned and occupied by an existing janitorial and site maintenance company along with new retail tenants. |
| Haute Brats | 6239 S. Ashland Ave. | Buildout for new tenant: "Haute Brats," a social enterprise that will serve takeout American classics and provide workforce development training in conjunction with local organizations. |
| Jeffery Java and Old Fashioned Donuts | 1951 E. 71st St. | Buildout of start-up coffee shop and café featuring Old Fashioned Donuts. |
| Kenwood Dental Group | 1335 E. 87th St. | Renovations and modernization of an existing dental practice. |
| La Copacabana Fruit Market | 2732 W. Cermak Rd. | Renovations and updates to full service grocery store and neighborhood market. |
| Larry's Barber College | 10456 S. Halsted St. | Purchase and rehab to longstanding barber shop and college. |
| Linda's Sport Shoes | 3236 W. 26th St. | Renovations and updates to a sporting goods store specializing in athletic footwear. |
| Little Village Chamber of Commerce (XQuina Cafe) | 3534 W. 26th St. | Rehab of vacant multi-unit building for a new community café on groundfloor with an office incubator and training space on the top floor operated by the Little Village Chamber of Commerce. |
| Majani | 7355 S. Exchange Ave. | Buildout of a commissary kitchen and offices for a growing vegan restaurant and catering company. |
| Mana Gourmet Foods | 942-44 E. 79th St. | Buildout for a start-up café and dessert shop that serves an innovative and locally made product. |
| Norman's Bistro | 1001 - 1005 E. 43rd St. | Façade enhancements to multi-unit commercial property including Norman’s Bistro, Room 43, and construction of The Haven. |
| Pullman National Monument Visitors Center | 11057 S. Cottage Grove Ave. | Buildout for the Visitors' Center. |
| Restaurant Y Taqueria La Justicia | 3901 W. 26th St. | Exterior and interior renovations to a long-standing family-owned Mexican restaurant. |
| Sky-Light Carpentry Services | 5420 W. Division St. | Buildout for a new shared office space serving small businesses in the finance, insurance and real estate industries. |
| SkyART | 3026 E. 91st St. | Buildout of a new studio space to expand services of growing arts center. The additional space will be used for a ceramic and sculpture studio. |
| South Side Community Art Center | 3831 S. Michigan Ave. | Comprehensive building restoration for City landmark that is home to an iconic arts and culture organization. |
| St. Edmund's Redevelopment Corporation | 201-07 E. 61st St. | New construction of an office building for an established Community Development Corporation that serves the Washington Park neighborhood. |
| Ted's Place | 5813 W. Madison St. | Renovations and updates to longstanding community tavern. |
| The Law Office of Theodore London | 1718 E. 87th St. | Expansion of existing law practice into an adjacent storefront to support growing business. |
| The Woodlawn | 1200 E. 79th St. | Buildout of a start-up café and restaurant pop up space and an adjacent office incubator space used for educational classes. |
| Tropical Optical Company | 3624 W. 26th St. | Exterior and interior renovations for a full service optical office. |
Interested in applying? The Neighborhood Opportunity Fund can provide you with financial assistance to help improve your commercial property.