Former City Council watchdog shines new light on Double Door dealings

Former Legislative Inspector General Faisal Khan is once again stirring up trouble for a City Council that tied his hands and forced him out - this time by shining more light on new zoning rules imposed on the owner of a building that once housed the now-shuttered Double Door music venue in Wicker Park.

The City Council voted Wednesday to down-zone the property at 1572 N. Milwaukee - in a way not nearly as drastic as an earlier proposal - at the behest of local Ald. Proco Joe Moreno.

Moreno flexed the iron-fisted control aldermen have over zoning in their wards despite the strenuous objections of property owner Brian Strauss, who has accused Moreno of using threats and intimidation to benefit "his friends" at Double Door.

Now, Khan is out with a new investigation that goes beyond allegations made in Strauss' pending lawsuit against Moreno and the city. It details four separate offers to purchase Strauss' building at prices starting at $10 million in January 2016 and fell to $6.5 million by August of this year - offers that all fell through because of Moreno's proposals to down-zone the property.

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