The Habitat Company recently welcomed Ja’ Grill as the first restaurant tenant to open its doors at Ogden Commons, the real estate firm’s 10-acre $200 million development in Chicago’s North Lawndale neighborhood that is the city’s largest mixed-use opportunity zone project. Upon completion, Ogden Commons will bring 120,000 square feet of commercial and retail space and approximately 350 mixed-income housing units to North Lawndale.
The Ogden Commons location, at 1407 S. Washtenaw Ave., is the second Chicago site for Ja’ Grill, which is known for its authentic Jamaican cuisine and has a flagship restaurant in Hyde Park. The new location is open daily for lunch and dinner and will have patio seating available during the warmer months. Momentum Coffee, a minority-owned coffee shop and co-working space, is also scheduled to open its ground level retail space at Ogden Commons later this spring.
Housed in a three-story commercial building that was completed in 2021 as the first phase of Ogden Commons, Ja’ Grill joins other building tenants, such as Wintrust Bank and Sinai Health System, which is scheduled to open its full-service outpatient surgical and ambulatory center this summer.
Phase II of Ogden Commons, which will include 110 mixed-income apartments, is expected to break ground later this year with first occupancies slated for fall 2023. Built over multiple phases, the entire project will transform the mostly vacant property near Douglass Park into a vibrant destination to live, work and play. Ogden Commons is scheduled to be complete by 2026.
In addition to Habitat, and other development partners in Ogden Commons include Sinai Health System, Cinespace Chicago Film Studios and the Chicago Housing Authority, with James McHugh Construction Co. and Bowa Construction serving as general contractors for the development.
