Lucy Gonzalez Parsons Apartments

Local labor organizer Lucy Gonzalez Parson believed that collective action was a powerful tool for community change, but she likely never imagined her life’s work would be honored nearly two centuries later after an activist victory in Logan Square. For years, an under-utilized city-owned parking lot next to the Logan Square Blue Line sat vacant, while rising rents forced many out of the neighborhood. Community organizers believed the perfect solution was to turn the lot into an Equitable Transit-Oriented Development providing much-needed affordable housing—and the appropriately named Lucy Gonzalez Parsons Apartments was born. To make the apartments a reality, developer Bickerdike Redevelopment Corporation joined with architects at LBBA to construct a unique building that seamlessly fits into the neighborhood while providing 100 affordable apartments and townhomes. LBBA did this by playing with scale. The structure starts at seven stories on the retail-facing side and tapers down to two stories to match the height of homes on Logan Square side streets. The lower parts of the building comprise its 3-bedroom townhomes—providing an option for larger families that is often missing from affordable apartments. The building’s pops of bright primary colors differentiate it from other affordable housing complexes. LBBA added orange and blue color blocks that frame exterior windows and continued the color scheme into interior shared spaces. The residents are currently working on a mural project that will add further flair and community identity to the structure. Another design feature of Lucy Gonzalez Parsons is that it has no back entrance. Both its Emmett St. and Kedzie Ave. serve as the front of the building and provide easy access to the Blue Line and other transit options for residents to connect to employment opportunities and experience all that Chicago has to offer.