AUBURN GRESHAM – A healthy living center that will bring restaurants, a bank, a pharmacy and more to Auburn Gresham is set to open in the fall after construction was delayed.
The Healthy Lifestyle Hub, 839 W. 79th St., will host a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Sept. 29, said Carlos Nelson, director of the Greater Auburn Gresham Development Corporation.
The center was previously scheduled to open on July 29, but “supply chain delays in preparation for the ribbon cutting held things up,” Nelson said.
The Auburn Gresham organization will also host a “grand opening” Nov. 11 for neighbors, Nelson said. Hollywood-style spotlights will illuminate neighbors as they arrive, food will be available, and residents will be able to tour the healthy center.
“We want everyone to go out and make it their home,” Nelson said. “It’s going to be the parties of all parties.”
Credit: ProvidedA rendering of the Center for Healthy Lifestyle
The Center for Healthy Lifestyles won the $10 million Pritzker Traubert Foundation Chicago Prize in 2020 and received $4 million from the city’s Invest South/West program.
The four-story center will include a Mikkey’s Retro Grill, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Illinois, a state-of-the-art kitchen sponsored by the Chicago Bears and a coffee shop. The Greater Auburn Gresham Development Corporation offices will be on the fourth floor.
A Bank of America and UI Healthy Clinic and Urgent Care Center will bring essential services back to the community after the recent departure of several businesses in recent years.
In the days leading up to the grand opening, “the excitement has been building,” Nelson said. People walk up to the boarded-up 18-by-18-foot windows and wonder what’s next for the long-abandoned building that’s being transformed, Nelson said.
The Healthy Hub will be one of many investments that will shed light on the direction Auburn Gresham is taking, Nelson said.
“There is a lot of investment coming into the community, and I want homeowners to reap the benefits through appraisal of their homes and beyond,” said Nelson. “I hope the development will attract the attention of young families and potential homeowners who see it as a promising opportunity in a neighborhood on the South Side.”
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Source: blockclubchicago.org