A nonprofit backed by billionaire investor Justin Ishbia wants to convert the long-vacant Office Depot building at 2722 Green Bay Road into a roughly 55,000-square-foot indoor youth sports facility, but Evanston's Land Use Commission postponed action on the proposal Thursday, July 23, after neighbors raised concerns about light spillage and alley traffic.
The Ishbia Family Foundation plans a two-story complex with baseball batting cages, flag football fields, and soccer pitches spread across three levels, including a basement. The facility, designed by architecture firm Gensler, would host organized practices, training sessions, clinics, and camps for Evanston youth sports organizations. No tournaments are planned.
"It's much better for them to be playing sports than playing video games and other things that are indoors," Eric Lynn, a representative of the Ishbia Family Foundation, told commissioners at the July 23 hearing, according to the Evanston Roundtable. "We can give the opportunity for the community and the youth of Evanston to have an indoor sports facility like other communities have."
The Office Depot closed in fall 2024. A previous plan to convert the site into an Aldi grocery store fell through before the Ishbia Foundation filed its zoning application in March.
Neighbors want changes
Most residents who spoke at the hearing were generally supportive but flagged two issues: nighttime light from the building's translucent windows and the use of a public alley for vehicle drop-offs.
Prairie Avenue resident Sheri Maremont asked the foundation to install motorized window shades, according to the Roundtable. Neighbors "do not want a glowing lantern" outside their homes, she told commissioners, Evanston Now reported. Another resident, Mary Rosinski, argued that drop-off traffic should stay within the site rather than using the public alley.
Commissioner Darush Mabadi acknowledged the tension. He called the project "wonderful" and "an absolute plus for the community" but said he had "a real hard time overcoming the alley issue," according to the Roundtable.
The commission voted unanimously to continue the application to its Wednesday, August 12 meeting.
Building details and zoning
The proposed facility would stand 55 feet at its mean roof height, with a pitched roof peaking at 67 feet. Both the height and a floor-area ratio of 1.06 exceed the Central Street Corridor Overlay district's limits of 45 feet and 1.0, requiring a zoning code amendment.
The site's existing 52-space parking lot would remain, with vehicle access from Jenks Street for parking, an alley entrance for drop-offs, and exit only onto Green Bay Road. The alley drop-off plan drew the sharpest criticism from neighbors.
Ishbia, the founder of private equity firm Shore Capital Partners, holds a minority stake in the Chicago White Sox. His foundation has committed to not seeking a property tax exemption for the project, spokesperson Sarah Hamilton told the Roundtable in a June 30 report.
Seventh Ward Councilmember Parielle Davis, whose ward includes the site, wrote in an April newsletter that the facility would add indoor sports access "where no indoor sports facility exists on the north side currently," according to The Record North Shore.
Central Street townhomes approved
At the same July 23 meeting, the commission approved the Bent Park Homes development at 3233-3249 Central St., a 10-unit townhome project by Krosha Properties. The project had fallen one vote short of approval at the commission's July 8 meeting, according to the Evanston Roundtable. The plan was reduced from 11 units to 10.
The townhome project now advances to City Council with the commission's endorsement. The sports facility, if recommended by the commission in August, would follow the same path.
