Latest news with #DelSurBakery
Chicago Tribune
a day ago
- Business
- Chicago Tribune
Chicago storefront sign restriction efforts a ‘quality of life' issue for some, but others worry about overreach
Driving past a gas station two blocks from her Chatham office, Ald. Michelle Harris can't see inside as bright green vinyl signs cover the station's windows, promoting pop, chips and tobacco products. Similar obstructions abound on the storefront windows near her house. Light barely pierces through the tall orange stickers pushing items for sale inside a Family Dollar store, while massive photos of painted fingernails block the public's view into a beauty shop. The veteran South Side alderman sighs as she drives by the stores. The signage that has popped up all over her ward in recent years has begun to cause a twofold problem, she said. It's become a safety issue that prevents the public and police from seeing inside businesses, and it's marred neighborhoods with tackiness that's bordering on blight. 'We know you do nails!' an exasperated Harris said as she drove past the salon last week. 'You tell me that this would be something that you would be proud to have in any community?' So, in a move she describes as a 'quality of life' issue, Harris, 8th, is spearheading a citywide effort to rein in businesses' use of large signage on windows as part of an ordinance that would allow generally untapped, preexisting city rules restricting retail displays to be more easily enforced. The ordinance would also block businesses from using non-reflective window tints and LED lights bordering their windows. While the measure is being backed by many aldermen who represent the South and West sides, other aldermen, business owners and several heads of North Side chambers of commerce said they fear the move could go too far in clamping down on free enterprise and, in particular, hurt small businesses that should be allowed to act on their marketing and creative urges. Lincoln Square's popular Del Sur Bakery on Damen Avenue wrote in a post on Instagram that the measure would 'erase the creative displays that make our neighborhoods feel festive, unique, and alive.' 'From holiday decorations to imaginative ways shops express character and offerings, window displays have always been an extension of a business's identity,' the mid-July post stated. 'Taking that away feels not only unnecessary but disheartening.' What's more, the ordinance could have the opposite impact on safety by potentially preventing employees from drawing curtains after hours to close, clean and cash out, 'leaving our staff visible and vulnerable, even when we're closed,' the Filipino bakery wrote. 'That's not just inconvenient, it's a potential safety issue,' the post said. But advocates argue that some covered storefronts make it difficult for the public to know what kind of businesses they are walking into and tougher for police to respond when problems arise. They also note that highly covered windows help hide illicit activity that could be happening inside. The change, introduced and supported by Mayor Brandon Johnson, would make it easier for the city to fine stores and restaurants that cover more than one-quarter of their windows with signage, use tints or have the bright LED lights Harris likens to those that would be found on alien spaceships. Businesses would first be warned if they were in violation and then, after a 10-day 'cure' period, fines could be as high as $500 per day. Harris withheld the ordinance from a planned vote last month as dissent mounted during a City Council Zoning Committee meeting. But she told the Tribune she plans to push it forward in the coming months, even as aldermen head toward a politically daunting budget season this fall. The ordinance would shift enforcement of the city's display restrictions from the Department of Buildings to the Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection, a move proponents say would allow the city to finally confront rule breakers because BACP has greater capacity to enforce the rules. At last month's zoning meeting, BACP Commissioner Ivan Capifali tried to assuage over-enforcement concerns by promising that his team would be 'complaint-driven' and focus on severe violations. The city is 'not going to come after festive decorations,' he added. 'The purpose here is public safety,' Capifali said. 'We are looking for locations that are completely covered.' 'The goal is not to be punitive,' added Ciere Boatright, commissioner of the Department of Planning and Development. 'The goal is to ensure that we have aesthetically pleasing corridors that welcome the foot traffic that our neighborhoods are known for.' Capifali also promised an extensive outreach effort in the 90-day window that's proposed between the ordinance's passage and when it would be first enforced. He flagged carveouts allowing blocked windows at hotels, marijuana dispensaries, medical facilities and child care sites. Store owners also would be able to apply and pay for permits for signage beyond the 25% limit, according to Harris. The version of the ordinance Harris sought to pass in July won neutrality from the Illinois Retail Merchants Association. The organization had led a coalition of business groups to oppose an earlier version that included stricter rules and did not offer a 10-day period for businesses to correct violations without penalty. The retail group's lobbyist, Michael K. Harris Jr., praised the concessions, though he said he wanted tinting exceptions for more business types added. 'We recognize that this was not an attack on business, that this was a tool that they wanted to try to clean up their neighborhood,' he said. Still, several aldermen argued during the zoning meeting that they do not trust the city to gently enforce rules that many respected businesses might already technically violate. 'In past practice, we have seen many of our good businesses really hit with the fines,' said Ald. Scott Waguespack, 32nd. While acknowledging earlier outrage from critics who blasted the proposal as a money grab, Ald. Anthony Quezada, 35th, said the measure is 'misunderstood,' even while he said the threat of over-enforcement must be taken seriously. 'The last thing we want is for people who have not caused or not contributed to any public safety issues to somehow be inadvertently affected,' he said. In Quezada's Northwest Side ward, Logan Square's Fleur flower boutique last month also took to social media to rally Chicagoans against the measure. The ordinance has vague language that could spark hefty fines, and it just might ruin the sort of colorful window displays that the shop has become known for, the company wrote in an Instagram post. 'We understand the need for thoughtful design and safety. But we also believe there's room for that alongside the creativity, personality, and individuality that make small businesses so special,' the post said. But it's a different story on the South Side, said Ald. William Hall, 6th, who called the ordinance 'a matter of the reality we have.' He said blocked storefronts allow for drug deals and illegal gambling machines to be hidden from police and public view. 'They don't have the problems we have,' he said of some neighborhoods, many on the North Side. 'What we want is to be able to have neighborhoods where there's no hide-and-go-seek.' Ald. Ronnie Mosley, 21st, cited Eddie's Food Market in his Far South Side ward when asked why he supports the ordinance. The store's windows are covered by a sprawling, outdated 'Now Open' sign, menus and brown paper. Several other businesses at the intersection of 111th Avenue and Halsted Street look similar. Red and white advertisements entirely block the windows of the Citgo gas station across 111th. Inside Tony's Philly Steak across South Halsted, sunlight barely cracks into the dining room beyond the signage. Managers and owners of all three businesses did not return calls from the Tribune about the displays. In areas where many buildings are vacant, such as some South and West side neighborhoods, storefront ads can be a critical way for businesses to show customers they are open, said Beth Kregor, director of the University of Chicago Law School's Institute for Justice Clinic on Entrepreneurship. Kregor also said that enforcement could easily differ across the city, forcing businesses to change signs and potentially pushing clientele away if they can't offer privacy. 'I don't think it's the city's role to decide what looks pretty and what doesn't look pretty. I think businesses should be allowed to do whatever they think is best,' Kregor said. Small businesses are particularly vulnerable to getting hurt by the ordinance, said Garrett Karp, executive director of the Edgewater Chamber of Commerce. The ordinance — which would count all window obstructions, including furniture or refrigerators lining windows — could deepen duress by forcing stores to reconfigure, he predicted. 'People are disappointed because logistically, it's a problem. Marketing-wise, it's a problem,' Karp said. Karp said his group was not consulted before Johnson's team tried to pass the ordinance through the City Council. The Edgewater chamber sent a letter objecting, placing the group alongside 'pretty much all the North Side chambers' that are in 'complete opposition,' he added. Capifali cited discussions with various business coalitions during negotiations, including the Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce. Johnson's administration did not respond to repeated requests for interviews. As she works to pass the measure, Harris has already begun taking matters into her own hands in her ward. She and her staff have begun knocking on the doors of businesses where they see likely violations of the city's unenforced rules. A recent stroll took her to Big Daddy Express, a corner store in Avalon Park in Harris' ward. Owner Mahmoud Shaltaf walked up to the alderman as she stood outside his shop, which is freshly painted white with windows largely blocked by vibrant, multi-color advertisements for the sort of fare one could predictably expect inside, including energy drinks, crackers and milk. Harris took credit for closing a business at the same storefront before Shaltaf took over, when a 16-year-old was shot and killed in 2023 in a nearby alleyway. When Shaltaf began renovating the store, city inspectors shut him down during renovations for four months, he said, because the site's electrical box was too old. He opened earlier this year, and since then has already torn off part of the vinyl ads in two windows to appease Harris' concerns. One reason he said he likes the signs, beyond the advertising, is that the large signage hides a fissure in the store's bulletproof glass. 'The other reason is I do have the register behind the glass,' Shaltaf said. 'It's not good to let people see you count the money.' 'This would be a perfect opportunity to get it permitted,' Harris responded. 'Get the permit to protect the front of the store.' Asked about the LED light strips bordering his windows, Shaltaf said they help the store 'show up a little bit.' 'It's showing up, baby, you've got a brand new sign,' Harris told him. 'The problem is that the community is a more established, settled community, and the lights around the windows, they just hate them.' Shaltaf said he could take the lights down, and Harris offered to send someone to help walk him through the sign-permitting process so he could block the register area with signs. He said he planned to plant flowers beside the store, and she offered advice on how he could get a pile of freshly cut tree limbs removed for free. 'It's going to be looking good,' Shaltaf said. 'I want it to be looking good,' Harris responded. 'That's my thing. Looking good, looking clean.'
Axios
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Axios
5 tips on how to snag Del Sur Bakery pastries
Justin Lerias opened Del Sur Bakery in March to great acclaim and demand, but the long lines and his one-pastry-per-type rule (to address hoarding) have spurred online haters who've even accused Lerias of orchestrating the hype. Driving the news: Last week, I interviewed the 24-year-old chef at our Hideout show to learn more about his culinary inspirations and how he's handling sometimes two-hour waits at his Lincoln Square bake shop. The young baker says he doesn't think people should be waiting two hours for a pastry, but it doesn't excuse disrespectful behavior toward his staff. The latest: Del Sur is expanding to the space next door with tables and seating as soon as the city permits come through, Lerias tells Axios. The pastries: Lerias and his team create artisanal Filipino-Midwest treats that are intentionally unique to avoid stealing customers from nearby traditional bakeries. His faves include the sweet and salty longanisa sausage croissant ($10) drizzled with soy sauce caramel and the turon danish ($8) with sweet plantain and flan. Here are five tips from Lerias for a successful visit: 🌅 Visit Thursday or Friday mornings (starting at 8) when the wait is 20 minutes or less. 🚴🏽♀️ Walk, bike or take public transportation if possible. The bakery sits under the Damen Brown Line stop and the area is blanketed with permit parking. 🥐 Study the online menu to make ordering easier. 🌺 Enjoy your wait in line by taking in the flower arrangements (by Lerias) and the Filipino cookbooks laid out on the table. 👦🏻 Ask staff for recommendations: "They're so good at answering questions and building you a box based on your preferences," Lerias says. ⏱️ My visit: I arrived at 10am Thursday to find about 15 people in line and had my pastries 20 minutes later. The rice flour bibinka with guava and cream cheese, longanisa croissant and fresh corn hand pie knocked my socks off. I stupidly drove and parked in a 15-minute spot, but luckily, some nice ladies let me cut when I explained my time was up.
