PILSEN — The Egret Badminton Club hopes to open a facility to Pilsen.
Egret founder Helen Zhen aims to open the club at 1936 W. 17th St. It would take up 14,500 square feet and have nine courts and 26 parking spaces, zoning attorney Ximena Castro said during a community meeting Wednesday night.
The facility would be located behind Orozco Community Academy. The planned site is zoned as a vacant manufacturing building, so the Zoning Board of Appeals will need to approve a special use permit to allow for the facility, Castro said.
This would be the third location for the club, which already has sites in Naperville and Schaumburg, Castro said.
Monthly memberships cost $28-$48. Walk-in prices are $6-$10, Castro said.
The club’s leaders are talking with Orozco Community Academy to see how the facility might be used by the school, Castro said.
Zhen opened the suburban locations more than 12 years ago. Many of her students come from Chicago to the suburbs, which prompted her to look into a Chicago location, Zhen said.
Zhen said she had been looking to open locations for years because of the demand, and the new site would provide an opportunity to introduce more young children and adults to the sport.
Diego Morales, a representative from Ald. Byron Sigcho-Lopez’s (25th) office, said the alderman will collect community feedback before making a formal recommendation.
Morales said ultimately the Zoning Board of Appeals will make the final determination on the permit.
If the permit is approved by the Zoning Board of Appeals, the facility could open in 2021.
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