Complaints continue to trickle in regarding the former IHOP restaurant at 6501 W. North Ave, which has been vacant since closing in 2016. Since that closure, residents have complained of rodents, debris, illegal garbage dumping, and more.
Records from the Village of Oak Park’s Permit Search indicate active ownership, but show no present records for building or demolition permits. Wednesday Journal has reached out to village officials for more information and will update this story accordingly
Residents have complained, both to the village and on social media channels such as Facebook, of stalled demolition processes. One complaint, from March of this year, claims loose materials were “blowing out of the building” after the building was partially demolished. Another, also from March, called the property “unbelievably hideous,” and pointed out its proximity to the nearby Wonder Works Children’s Museum.
In late July, the fence around the property came down temporarily, before being replaced with a new fence.
“It’s not just that it looks awful. There’s vermin there, there’s standing water, there’s a big pile of debris. I wouldn’t want to live right behind it,’ said Judith Alexander, chair of the North Avenue District. North Avenue District is a group of property owners and stakeholders aiming to promote “the revitalization of the North Avenue corridor between Austin and Harlem,” according to its Facebook page.
Alexander said properties like the abandoned IHOP “really make it hard to revitalize our district.”
Around eight years ago, a state-supported study called for a streetscaping project on North Avenue, which would revitalize the border between Oak Park and Chicago. As of this year, such a plan has not been implemented. Back in February, a petition calling for Chicago and Oak Park officials to move forward with a streetscaping plan received hundreds of signatures.
Alexander compared such a plan to the Roosevelt Road Corridor Plan, which was unanimously improved in April. She said such a revitalization program, along with stricter code enforcement, would improve conditions within the North Avenue District.