Community Corner

Tunney to Support BYC Permit Under Certain Conditions

The Zoning Board of Appeals will make the decision on the Broadway Youth Center's request for a permit at Friday's meeting.

Paula Skaggs, Patch StaffVerified Patch Staff Badge

A decision on the Broadway Youth Center (BYC) will be made on Friday at the Chicago Zoning Board of Appeals meeting. 

The BYC has been operating inside the Wellington Avenue United Church of Christ since June, but learned recently that they'll need a special-use permit to stay open. Some residents are against the church being used as the Center, saying it has brought a wave of crime into the area. Others believe that the LGBTQ-friendly Lake View is the best place for a center of this type. 

A hearing will be held on Friday in the City Council Chambers (121 N. LaSalle St.), and the BYC is set to be discussed at 9 a.m. Residents are permitted to speak, but no final vote will take place until later that night in a closed-door meeting. 

Alderman Tom Tunney sent out an email on Thursday announcing that he would support the BYC's request for a special use permit at the meeting if all of the conditions were met: 

  • A 365-day restriction to the special use permit to serve as a one-year trial period. If the Center wanted to reapply for the permit, they would begin the process in Jan. of 2015. 
  • A Good Neighbor Agreement would be needed, and must include hours of operation, services, capacity, security measures and dispute resolution. 
  • The special use would be non-transferable, and could only be used by BYC. 
"I believe that these conditions give the community needed protections, while allowing the Broadway Youth Center to continue their important work in Lake View," Tunney wrote in an email. "However, without meeting all three of these conditions, I will not be able to support the Broadway Youth Center in this request."

The South East Lake View Neighbors (SELVN) rejected a proposal to support the Broadway Youth Center's (BYC) request for a special use permit at their January meeting on Monday. The vote failed by 20, with 41 members voting against the permit request, 21 voting for it and 3 abstaining. 

SELVN also announced at their meeting that the group failed to reach a Good Neighbor's Agreement with the BYC. A couple of drafts were exchanged between the groups, but discussions ended after the Center offered comments that the SELVN Board found too difficult to adhere to. 

Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

More from Lakeview