Starbucks To Come To Dunning View Full Caption

DUNNING — Starbucks will open a drive-through cafe at Irving Park Road and Cumberland Avenue, Ald. Nicholas Sposato (36th) said Tuesday.

"We're excited," Sposato said. "This property has been an eyesore for years."

A Starbucks representative declined to answer questions about the planned store, saying only that the coffee giant is always on the lookout for "great locations" and had no store-opening plans to announce.

There are only two other Starbucks on the Far Northwest Side — one in Old Irving Park and one in Edgebrook.

Heather Cherone says the Northwest Side is surprisingly lacking in Starbucks:

At Sposato's request, the City Council's Committee on Zoning approved plans last week to build a three-tenant strip mall on vacant land that had been choked with weeds for years. Starbucks will anchor the development, the alderman said.

"There is a ton of traffic right there," Sposato said. "I can't think of a better location."

Many people use Irving Park Road and Cumberland Avenue as alternate routes to the typically gridlocked Kennedy Expressway.

The Starbucks will only have two or three tables, to encourage coffee-lovers to get their java to go, Sposato said.

The two other tenants of the strip mall have not been announced, but Sposato said storefront offices would be the best for the development, which is slated to have 18 parking spaces.

Neighborhoods throughout the Far Northwest Side of Chicago have worked in recent years to attract Starbucks, with no success.

Ald. John Arena (45th) has made no secret of the fact that he has tried to interest Starbucks in several locations in Jefferson Park, Portage Park and Gladstone Park.

The decision by Starbucks to come to Dunning is a boon for Sposato, who announced several weeks ago he would run for the 38th Ward seat on the City Council, after the 36th Ward was redrawn to include a majority of Latino voters.

While the future home of Starbucks is now in the 36th Ward, it will be in the 38th Ward by the time the Feb. 24 election takes place. Ald. Tim Cullerton (38th) plans to retire when his term expires in May.

Sposato and three other candidates have announced plans to run to represent the 38th Ward, including nonprofit executive Heather Sattler, property manager Tom Caravette and city water investigator Carmen Hernandez.

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