Hyde Park to Gain Urgent Care Clinic in Former Leona’s Pizzeria Space
HYDE PARK, IL – Hyde Park residents will soon have a new option for immediate medical care as Midwest Express Clinic plans to open its 14th chicago location in the Kimbark Plaza shopping center early next year.The clinic will occupy the long-vacant space formerly home to Leona’s Pizzeria, which closed over two years ago.
The new urgent care facility will be the only standalone option of its kind in the neighborhood, filling a gap in services for residents who currently rely heavily on the University of Chicago Medical Center for emergency care. Urgent care centers treat illnesses and injuries that require prompt attention but are not life-threatening enough to warrant an emergency room visit.
“Parking is the most vital thing, there’s no other site that could accommodate this much parking in the area,” said property owner John Karim. He noted that the location drew interest from a variety of potential tenants, including high-end restaurants, an entertainment venue, and even a cannabis dispensary – the latter of which stalled due to zoning issues. Concerns about noise and operating hours ultimately hampered the entertainment venue proposal.
midwest Express Clinic approached Karim approximately six months ago,and their proposal was deemed the most suitable for the site.the Hyde Park location will be the company’s 52nd overall.”They are well-heeled and have been around for a while,” Karim said. “I think they could be a good, stable tenant.”
The opening aligns with a national trend of rapid growth in the urgent care industry. A 2023 study by Trilliant Health found the number of urgent care centers nationwide nearly doubled in the past decade, rising from 7,220 in 2014 to 14,382 in 2023.
UChicago Medicine currently operates three urgent care facilities – two downtown and one in Homewood – while northwestern Medicine recently opened an outpatient facility with urgent care services in Bronzeville.
Prior to finalizing the lease,Karim briefly allowed entrepreneur Steven Hobbs Sr. to utilize the space for pop-up events. The Midwest Express Clinic was initially slated to open in late December, but the current plan anticipates a January or February launch.
