Golf Simulator and E-Sports Cafe Proposed for Lawrence Avenue Building in Jefferson Park

By Socialhood News · Il/Chicago/Jefferson Park · November 30, 2025

A zoning change is being sought to allow an e-sports cafe and a golf simulator facility in separate storefronts inside the four-story commercial-residential building at the southwest corner of Lawrence and Laramie avenues in Jefferson Park. The planned development ordinance that governs the site's zoning currently does not permit interactive entertainment/sports, arcades and other types of recreational facilities. E-sports are an increasingly popular form of competitive video gaming.

Project officials have emphasized that gambling machines are not part of this proposal. The Chicago Plan Commission and the City Council Zoning Committee will each hold public hearings on the proposal. Most of the building's ground-floor storefronts are currently unoccupied. The building includes 39 apartments on the upper floors and a 41-space parking garage. If approved, these new recreational businesses would bring additional entertainment options to the neighborhood while filling vacant commercial spaces in a prime location of Jefferson Park.

Sources:
1. https://nadignewspapers.com/golf-simulator-e-sports-cafe-proposed-for-jefferson-park-on-chicagos-nw-side/