Driving investment along 6 unique corridors in Wicker Park-Bucktown

Interface Studio was asked by the Wicker Park Bucktown Special Service Area (SSA) to create a master plan for 13 miles of street frontage along 6 separate commercial corridors in the Wicker Park and Bucktown neighborhoods in Chicago.  The neighborhoods – long home to a mix of immigrants and a thriving underground culture fueled by local artists, musicians, writers, and other creators – are in the midst of rapid change.  The area’s independent spirit, artistic self-expression, and collection of local restaurants and shops, coupled with its proximity to downtown and excellent transit access, have piqued mainstream interests, drawing investors and developers, an influx of new residents and commercial competition from national retailers.  With soaring real estate prices and shifting demographics, the Wicker Park and Bucktown neighborhoods are becoming more transient, less diverse, and far more affluent.  

The decision to undertake a plan for WPB’s commercial corridors was part of an effort to address the community’s shifting identity by engaging the public and bringing together the active, but often uninvolved constituency of neighbors, business owners, artists, institutions, investors, and visitors to think about the effects of change and develop a collective vision for the future of these shared spaces.