Mayor Rahm Emanuel today joined the Chicago Housing Authority, Ald. Proco “Joe” Moreno (1st) and leaders of Chicago’s LGBTQ community to break ground on the John Pennycuff Memorial Apartments. The new building will bring 88 units of affordable housing to the Logan Square community. 

“The Pennycuff Memorial Apartments is a fitting legacy to one of Chicago’s great LGBTQ advocates and human rights leaders,” Mayor Emanuel said. “Today’s groundbreaking represents both the latest step in our mission to create affordable housing for all Chicagoans, and in our values of being a welcoming home to people from all walks of life.” 

Developed by the non-profit Metropolitan Housing Development Corp. and designed by CSA Partners and located at 2031 N. Milwaukee Avenue in the heart of Logan Square, the seven-story building will include 41 affordable apartments and 47 CHA project-based units. 

Pennycuff Apartments will include amenities such as a community room, an outdoor picnic area and a furnished lobby. There will also be 2,500 square feet of commercial space on the first floor. 

The new apartment building is named for prominent longtime LGBTQ activist John Pennycuff, a member of the Chicago Gay and Lesbian Hall of Fame. Pennycuff, who died at age 47 in 2012, served for many years on the Chicago Commission on Human Relations Mayor's Advisory Council on LGBT Issues. Long active in the Logan Square community, he also worked for the Logan Square Chamber of Commerce.

City support will include up to $16 million in Multi-Family Housing Revenue Bonds for construction financing and Low-Income Housing Tax Credits that will generate $5.7 million in equity for the project. Additional funding will include $13 million in loans from the CHA.

“CHA is pleased to support this important project that will deliver quality affordable housing and provide Chicagoans with access to the amenities and culturally-rich community of Logan Square,” CHA CEO Eugene E. Jones, Jr. said. “This also demonstrates that CHA is delivering on its promise to provide more housing opportunities on the North Side of Chicago.”

“This project will bring affordable housing to the neighborhood while honoring a community leader who made a difference for all of Chicago,” Ald. Moreno said. “I look forward to seeing this building complete and standing tall in honor of John Pennycuff.”

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