The barricades on Lincoln Avenue between Diversey and Wrightwood were scheduled to come down on Friday, September 25. The Lincoln Park Chamber of Commerce passed along that date from NPL, the Department of Water Management's subcontractor. The same notice said parking would stay "mostly unavailable" while restoration and other construction continued. As of early October, we have not found a published confirmation of the exact day traffic returned. What's on record is the remaining work. The pipe is in the ground, and the next phases cover the parts of the street a pedestrian, a parker or a diner actually uses.
During the seven weeks the block was hardest to reach, it also gained new restaurants. One opened in the middle of the closed stretch. Two more opened at its southern edge.
A Pipe From 1889 and a Duct in the Wrong Place
The pipe being replaced went into the ground in 1889. That makes it 137 years old, and it had broken several times. The city puts the typical service life of a water main at 80 to 100 years. Block Club reported that the replacement was part of the city's 2026 capital improvement program. According to that report, work began in mid-May, and earlier phases wrapped up in July, ahead of schedule, because of other construction at Schubert Street. The 43rd Ward's September 4 newsletter gives an earlier start. It says the scheduled water main work began in 2025 and had been ongoing since.
The full closure of Lincoln Avenue was never the original plan. According to Ald. Timmy Knudsen's 43rd Ward alert, the new main was supposed to run under the parking lane. Crews then found an existing underground electric duct in that spot, and the main had to move closer to the center of the street. With the pipe there, traffic could not safely use Lincoln Avenue for the rest of construction. The closure was approved on August 8 and took effect two days later. The ward sent its newsletter about it on August 10, the day the closure began.
That short window explains the reaction that followed. Block Club Chicago reported that more than 30 businesses on the stretch learned about the closure when they arrived for work on a Monday. Kim Schilf, president and CEO of the Lincoln Park Chamber, told Block Club that "we understand that the work needed to be done, and we're not opposed to the construction." She said the frustration was that the businesses got no notice. The Chamber then set up weekly meetings with the project's resident engineer and managers. It also posted signs around the construction perimeter asking people to keep supporting the businesses.
Five Estimates in Seven Weeks
The expected reopening date changed with almost every update. Some estimates describe different milestones, so they don't line up neatly. Here they are by source:
| Published | Source | Expected reopening to traffic |
|---|---|---|
| Aug. 10 | 43rd Ward alert | Tentatively Oct. 6, weather and materials permitting |
| Aug. 27 | Lincoln Park Chamber | Through Oct. 6, weather and materials permitting |
| Aug. 28 | Block Club Chicago, citing the city | Around Oct. 10 with a concrete base; Lincoln Avenue portion done by mid-October |
| Sept. 4 | 43rd Ward newsletter | Early October |
| Sept. 25 | Lincoln Park Chamber, citing NPL | Closure removal expected that day |
One phrase in the August 28 entry matters for the rest of the fall. The city said Lincoln Avenue would reopen "with a concrete base," and sidewalk and parkway restoration would follow. A concrete base is a drivable surface but not the finished street. Whatever date traffic actually came back, the last layer was still to be done.
What "Open to Traffic" Leaves Undone
The ward's August 10 alert lays out the full project in order. Laying the 2,776 feet of 8-inch water main is the first step. These steps come after it:
- Service connections for properties along the new main.
- Lead service line replacement for properties within the limits of the new main.
- Full-width street resurfacing of Lincoln Avenue.
- Repair of damaged parkways and sidewalks.
None of the sources we reviewed give a firm date for the lead service line work, the final resurfacing or the return of parking. So the next phase is likely to look different from the last one. Cars should be able to drive the block, but curb space will stay limited until restoration is done. The September 25 Chamber notice says this directly: Lincoln reopens to traffic, and parking stays mostly unavailable.
The businesses most affected by the parking situation are the ones whose clients arrive by car. Pattie Sheehan owns Second Act Cancer Recovery Boutique at 2768 N. Lincoln Ave. She told Block Club that many of her patients arrive by vehicle. After construction started, half a dozen appointments were canceled. Kensington School of Lincoln Park, at 2745 N. Lincoln, had to change how it handled student drop-off and pickup.
The ward alert names two project contacts for residents and business owners with questions: NPL Superintendent Dan Godley and Resident Engineer Jacob Parrish. Their phone numbers and email addresses are listed in the 43rd Ward's August 10 alert.
A New Bar Opened in the Middle of the Closed Block
Gunny's Pub, at 2642 N. Lincoln Ave., sits inside the closed stretch. Owners Marty O'Connor and Mary Nedbalski spent a year renovating the 145-year-old building that used to house Racine Plumbing Bar & Grill. O'Connor told WBEZ that the large skylight at the back is what sold them on the space. The bar is named for O'Connor's late dog, a pheasant and duck hunting dog. That inspired the menu, an American bistro with a "Midwest hunter-gatherer flair" led by head chef Mike McKinnell.
Opening day was set for September 16, right in the middle of the closure. O'Connor responded with an Instagram video, quoted by Block Club:
"The city of Chicago decided to give us a massive twist. Lincoln Avenue is being shut down until October, but you know, I'm a martini half-full kind of guy … Just because the city shut down the road doesn't mean we can't open."
Nedbalski used Pacer.ai to track foot traffic on the street. She told WBEZ that visits were down by more than 5,000 to 6,000 a week and still falling. "So the only thing we can do is support the businesses around us and open anyway," she said. They did open. Gunny's website now says "Now Open." The Infatuation's roundup of new Chicago restaurants describes it as a neighborhood pub serving lunch and dinner.
Two More Openings at the South End of the Stretch
Just past Wrightwood, outside the closed section, the Bonhomme Group scheduled two openings for Friday, September 18, according to Newcity. The 43rd Ward's September 18 newsletter said Beatnik was "now open" at Lincoln and Sheffield.
- Beatnik, 2576 N. Lincoln Ave. This is founder and creative director Daniel Alonso's third Beatnik location, with a Mediterranean menu from chef Marcos Campos. The address has changed hands many times over the years: Hoagie Hut, then Etno Village Grill, Kings County Tap and Broken English Taco Pub. Broken English closed there on January 19, 2024, after seven years.
- Lolo Y Lola, 2580 N. Lincoln Ave. A Spanish pintxos bar created by the same pair, Alonso and Campos. It has 22 seats and takes walk-ins only. The Infatuation's new-openings guide lists it as open, right next door to Beatnik.
So in one September week, a block that had been short about 5,000 to 6,000 visits a week, by one owner's count, added three new places to eat and drink between 2576 and 2642 N. Lincoln.
October 24 Is the First Big Event Since the Closure
The next scheduled crowd on this pavement is the Lincoln Park Chamber's Spooktacular. On Saturday, October 24, from 1 to 4 p.m., participating businesses on Lincoln Avenue between Diversey and Webster will offer trick-or-treating. That route covers the entire closed stretch, plus Beatnik and Lolo Y Lola just south of it. Lincoln Common Plaza at 2335 N. Lincoln will have treats, a photo booth, caricatures and face painting. On Sunday, October 25, the event moves to Clark Street and Diversey. The Chamber advertises more than 40 participating businesses across the weekend. Its full participant list was still marked "coming soon" as of early October.
The Chamber does not describe Spooktacular as a reopening celebration. Even so, it will be the first organized event to bring families onto this block since August 10. The Chamber's September 25 notice said parking would stay mostly unavailable while restoration continued, and it gave no date for when parking would come back. Southbound drivers can still use the detour route the ward published at the start of the closure: east on Diversey, south on Sheffield, then west on Wrightwood back to Lincoln.
Infrastructure work like a new water main, lead service line replacement and a resurfaced street shows up in how a block is valued, not just in how it gets through a single season. If you own on or near Lincoln Avenue and want to know how this restoration fits into your timing, Jonathon Spradling and the Spradling | Roberts team follow these projects closely across Lincoln Park. Schedule a private consultation and we'll go through what the work on your block means for your plans.
