Wicker Park's Most Familiar Storefronts Are Changing Hands This Fall. Here's Who's Moving In Where.

If you walk from the Damen Blue Line toward the six-corner intersection this week, most of the big storefronts along the way have new names or are about to get them. The corner space at 1542 N. Damen, where Urbanbelly served for a decade, was scheduled to reopen as Hattie B's on Wednesday. On Milwaukee, the Burton store, which was American Apparel before that, now sells Blundstone boots. The former Starbucks Reserve that overlooks the intersection has been empty for about a year and is waiting on Blank Street Coffee.

All three of those brands come from out of town, and so does Call Your Mother, which opened up Damen Avenue in May. This year's Chicago-grown restaurants mostly opened somewhere else: on Division Street and on Milwaukee south of Division. So the intersection where people meet friends now has a different mix of businesses than the streets a few blocks away.

The addresses around North, Damen and Milwaukee

Hattie B's was set to open its second Chicago location on Oct. 28 in the Urbanbelly corner space, with indoor and patio seating, according to Block Club Chicago. Urbanbelly opened in the neighborhood in 2016 and moved to Fulton Market earlier this year. The Nashville chain is already familiar on this block. Brian Morris, its executive chef, told Block Club that Wicker Park "was the first place in the city we brought Hattie B's to," with a 2019 pop-up at Dove's Luncheonette. To mark the opening, Paulie Gee's Wicker Park is selling a limited hot-chicken pizza for $5 a slice or $37 a pie through Saturday, Oct. 31, and part of the proceeds goes to No Kid Hungry.

Blundstone fits right in on its block of Milwaukee. Dr. Martens is next door, and John Fluevog and Thursday Boot Company are nearby, Block Club reported when the store was announced in September. That makes four boot specialists within a short walk. DNA Footwear, which runs the shop, says it carries the full Blundstone range for women, men and kids and asks shoppers to call (773) 360-1448 to check sizes before coming in.

Blank Street is taking what Block Club called one of the more prominent storefronts in Wicker Park. Starbucks remodeled it into a Reserve location in 2017, then, last September, named it among about 20 Chicago stores it had decided to close. The Brooklyn chain, founded in 2020 and known for its matcha and latte drinks, had not given an opening timeline as of early October.

The bagel shop that started the conversation

Before any of the fall arrivals, Call Your Mother opened at 1615 N. Damen on May 19, in the space Dimo's used to occupy. Two weeks later, Block Club Chicago reported that the deli had brought back one of the neighborhood's oldest debates, over independent businesses and national ones. That story quoted business owners on several sides.

• Bill Jacobs, owner of Piece and Brobagel, urged customers to support local businesses.
• Ashley Ortiz, co-owner of Antique Taco, worried that chains can wear away the neighborhood's charm, and said she was not calling for a blanket boycott.
• Amanda Kezios of Mojo Spa said local businesses support the neighborhood and give it its distinct character.
• Mindy Segal of Mindy's Bakery said workers benefit when customers shop at chains too, and that nobody should dictate where people spend their money.
• Andrew Dana, Call Your Mother's co-owner, said he and his wife still run the business after bringing on a family-office investment partner.

That was in June. By October, the busiest corners had a Tasmanian boot brand open, with a Nashville restaurant and a Brooklyn coffee chain on the way. Meanwhile, the year's Chicago-grown openings were spreading out along other streets.

Where the Chicago-grown openings landed

Most of this year's local and Chicago-based arrivals are a few blocks from the intersection. Several of them are businesses that already have fans elsewhere in the city, now opening a second location here.

1. Ann Sather, 1819 W. Division St. The Swedish breakfast spot soft-opened Friday, July 24. Owner Tom Tunney told Block Club he wants to repeat the success of the Belmont restaurant.
2. The Beef Stand, 1750 W. Division St. Buona opened this walk-up window next to Original Rainbow Cone on Sept. 2, serving beef sandwiches, a vegan beef sandwich and bowls.
3. Coach House, 1742 W. Division St. The restaurant became a revolving chef residency this year, starting with chef Junho Lee's Haru Haru on Feb. 19. Founder Zubair Mohajir told Block Club the format gives chefs a platform to build momentum.
4. QXY Dumplings, 2018 W. Division St. In March, the Chinatown dumpling house announced its Wicker Park location after a year of renovations. General manager Jesse Li said regulars had been asking for a second spot because the original is routinely packed.
5. Chicago Pickle Eatery, 1308 N. Milwaukee Ave. Owner Mohamad Atieh opened the deli in late April and told Block Club the neighborhood's vibe was a good fit. Next door, at 1310 N. Milwaukee, Atieh is also a partner in Green Ape, a vegan restaurant run by chef Briana Houston.

The one local opening close to the intersection is on North Avenue. In January, Marcos Rivera announced Libertad at 1835 W. North Ave., on the site where his family once ran Las Palmas. He told Block Club the name means "freedom to do my own thing."

The corners that haven't settled yet

Several spots could still go either way. Buona has called The Beef Stand a pop-up from the start. Joe Buonavolanto III, the company's executive vice president, said it could become permanent depending on how the neighborhood responds, and the Beef Stand's website still calls it a pop-up. Blank Street still has no date. In June, Block Club's coverage noted that the former Yeti storefront at the old Double Door site was still empty.

Two everyday businesses are on the way as well. The U.S. Postal Service appears to be preparing a retail location at 1520 N. Damen Ave., Block Club reported in June, though USPS did not share details. The old post office at 1240 N. Ashland became a Chick-fil-A, which opened in March. A few blocks south, Whole Foods is going into the landmarked former bank building at 1200 N. Ashland Ave. CVS left that building in early 2023, and renovation was underway as of April.

The intersection itself will also change, though not this year. Ald. Daniel La Spata hopes to add an all-pedestrian crossing at North/Damen/Milwaukee with a 20-second phase when every car stops. CDOT told Block Club it can't install that in 2026 because accessible pedestrian signals have to be designed and installed first.

Three dates on the corridor calendar

The new storefronts get their first busy stretches over the next few weeks.

• Saturday, Oct. 31, 3 to 6 p.m. WPB Trick-or-Treat runs along the Wicker Park Bucktown business corridors, and the Chamber has a digital map of participating shops. Saturday is also the last day for the Hattie B's pizza at Paulie Gee's.
• Friday, Nov. 6, 6 to 8 p.m. First Fridays is a free, self-guided art walk across Wicker Park and Bucktown.
• Tuesday, Nov. 10, 9:30 to 11 a.m. SSA #33, the special service area that funds programs along these commercial streets, is holding a neighborhood forum at The Goddess and Grocer Bucktown. The topic is its nearly $2 million annual budget and the neighborhood programs that budget pays for.

The Chamber's next big event after that is WPB Winter Wonderland & Tree Lighting on Saturday, Dec. 5, with the tree lighting in Wicker Park at 1425 N. Damen Ave.

If you own a building near these corridors, a two-flat off Division or a mixed-use property on Milwaukee, you have a stake in which storefronts fill and which stay empty. At This Is IT, we're happy to talk through what the changes on your block could mean for your rent roll or your long-term plans. Reach out whenever you're ready, with no pressure.