CHICAGO | General Developments

[SamInTheLoop]

Originally Posted by the urban politician

River North condo conversion to launch sales

Looks like a nice project. And - did you know these will be the first "Soho-New York style lofts" in Chicago?! - per project's sales broker in article.....

[Ch.G, Ch.G]

Originally Posted by pilsenarch

the old souls go to watch...

Unsettling.

[gallo]

Originally Posted by harryc

Does anyone know what this area is intended to be?

[gallo]

Took the family to MDP on Saturday for the soft opening. Kids and adults alike were absolutely loving the place, especially the play garden. Nothing but smiles all around. It's going to be a big, big hit and a whole new place for both Chicagoans and tourists to come together...

[Chi-Sky21]

Dave and Busters moving into Block 37! There goes a good chunk of the space!

[wierdaaron]

Originally Posted by Chi-Sky21

Dave and Busters moving into Block 37! There goes a good chunk of the space.

Further discussion at the Block 47 thread.

But for a more general topic, RKF is who's handling leasing out the Block 37 space and they seem to be doing a pretty good job of it. They're also handling the new retail space at 360 North Michigan, and I hope they do just as good of a job there. That building could make or break "Mag Mile South". If shoppers cross the river for it, they'll keep going down Michigan to all the new space opening up and the context of Michigan Ave south of the river could completely change.

[Vlajos]

Originally Posted by Chi-Sky21

Dave and Busters moving into Block 37! There goes a good chunk of the space!

It's good that they are leasing space, but Dave and Busters?

[Jim in Chicago]

Originally Posted by Vlajos

It's good that they are leasing space, but Dave and Busters?

There's no limit to the number of tourists who will flock into Dave and Busters and then tell their friends about the amazing time they had in "the big city."

[wierdaaron]

One of the Loop's biggest problems in the last few decades is that after work people all leave and go home to the suburbs. Having entertainment options downtown is going to be great for everyone. Considering the amount of space available in B37, these big ticket tenants seem like the best option. A bunch of small stores would fail immediately because there's no established foot traffic inside the building. The only thing that will pull people inside is anchors.

The only negative association I have with D&B is that I associate it with suburban malls and huge parking lots.

[SamInTheLoop]

Originally Posted by Vlajos

It's good that they are leasing space, but Dave and Busters?

A little low brow perhaps, but it's definitely better than the previous plan in this same space for a gym.......now they just need to complete the deal for that bowling alley/loungey restaurant thing on the third floor, and this center is set to be an abolute hub of activity come 2016..........

[ardecila]

Originally Posted by pilsenarch

Having said that, I do have some concerns about the 'sitting' logs, and the log and wire railings tipping into the amusement park aesthetic realm...

Not a fan of the wire railings aesthetically, but I'm concerned that the buckles and fittings will rust very quickly as they are galvanized. The treated pine is an ugly yellow shade right now but should dry out and turn gray eventually.

[wierdaaron]

Crains video inside the Bush Music Temple project. Looks like it'll be turned into close to 100 "microapartments" rather than something high end.

• Video Link

[Ch.G, Ch.G]

^ lol at their idea of "microapartments"

[wierdaaron]

"in the 350 to 400 square foot range".

That's micro by Chicago standards, but in other cities would be standard for a studio. I wasn't expecting that either way. I thought they'd turn them into spacious luxury homes they could flip to condo when the market comes back for those. They must be going for Loyola students with the studios.

[Tom Servo]

I've lived in two very small studios. Both smaller than 250 sq feet. But even that small is rather comfortable and livable. I love this conversion project!

[denizen467]

Originally Posted by Mr Downtown

I've been trying to imagine what kind of city would please Tom Servo.

Perhaps Abu Dhabi, without all the charm.

I thought it was Rotterdam or something like that.

MDP is still an enigma at this stage .. setting aside the undignified design, on paper it seems like it will play out as, quite literally, a playground for the rich. Unless all the museum field trip buses start making regular stops there, one has to wonder how many users during weekdays will not be downtown highrise residents.

[wierdaaron]

I see school trips in Millennium Park all the time, and that's probably pretty boring for kids. I wouldn't be surprised if at MDP it was all school busses during weekdays.

[Rizzo]

MDP has only had a soft opening for Chicago residents. It hasn't been publicly widespread marketed as a tourist attraction. If you read the newspapers or saw it in person, you knew about the park. If you have kids or skate, you were more likely to check it out.

This weekend it was busy, but not overwhelmingly packed. Next year it may be different. This park could take off and become just as busy attraction as Navy Pier. It's seems like family oriented attractions are a great bet for the city, regardless of the cost...and perhaps appearance.

[Chi-Sky21]

All the more reason that Chicago really needs to figure out a better connection between this area and Navy Pier. Maybe if they ever redo the lake front of monroe harbor they can push it out a bit to create more parkland/paths , still will have troubles getting over the river though. But at least that would allow for a tunnel for people or cars from Buckingham to Queens landing.

[wrab]

Shinola's Chicago store opened today @ 1619 N Damen