CHICAGO | General Developments

[ithakas]

Originally Posted by SamInTheLoop

Interesting.....I wonder why this sales effort didn't go well......Crain's also reminds us of that Akara condo proposal in River North where they seemingly pulled the plug as well.....any common theme here in what went wrong? Something(s) very particular to these two projects/product/developer/marketing teams? Something broader? One would think it's not broad market-related, given the dearth of new condo product out there for so long and the pent-up demand and so forth - and the fact that most other of the examples we have to-date this cycle of small-to-medium-sized projects have apparently been selling very well thus far.....

I believe Related Realty, the brokerage arm of our forum's favorite development company, was hired on by both developers to sell these projects.

[marothisu]

nm

[Via Chicago]

Originally Posted by george

The appeal of West Town grows. $4,000/month for duplex penthouse & $1900/month for a small square-footage apt, but it's luxury.

there will always be people with more money than sense, and other parties all too happy to assist them in parting with it.

"but its luxury!" lol. yea nothing says luxury quite paying 50k in rent a year to live off the kennedy on ramp. hey, whatever makes you happy i guess.

[PKDickman]

Originally Posted by Via Chicago

there will always be people with more money than sense, and other parties all too happy to assist them in parting with it.

"but its luxury!" lol. yea nothing says luxury quite paying 50k in rent a year to live off the kennedy on ramp. hey, whatever makes you happy i guess.

When a developer projects his rents, you have to take it with a grain of salt.
It is largely determined by wishful thinking and a desire to impress investors.

We were your basic $1.75/ft neighborhood.

When Buono proposed the "Tower of Pizza Hut" he figured he might ask $2.

It got leased up at around $3. It set a new benchmark

But it was TOD mk1.0 and carried a lot of cachet on that basis.

It spawned a lot of similar development projects. But the only one that has come on line is still just the Pizza Hut, and it appears to have 11 of its 99 units available.

Whether the market will support the rents the developers want to get, remains to be seen.

[OrdoSeclorum]

Originally Posted by Via Chicago

there will always be people with more money than sense, and other parties all too happy to assist them in parting with it.

"but its luxury!" lol. yea nothing says luxury quite paying 50k in rent a year to live off the kennedy on ramp. hey, whatever makes you happy i guess.

There are great views of the Skyline from the Kennedy right there. I bet a well-executed penthouse and deck could be desirable.

[the urban politician]

^ Actually, the view of the skyline from the Kennedy on ramp in that particular area is quite stunning

[Via Chicago]

there are lots of buildings in the city that have great views of the skyline at a fraction of the cost. its a big skyline after all, can see it from most everywhere as long as youre a few stories up. those places also dont have diesel exhaust spewing into your windows 24/7.

[marothisu]

So people here on bitching about a building where 1 bedrooms run $1900/month? Waste of time.

[Chicago Shawn]

Originally Posted by the urban politician

^ Actually, the view of the skyline from the Kennedy on ramp in that particular area is quite stunning

I can attest to the views, I've been on top of the neighboring building. The person who lives there though turned out to be a anti-density, anti-renter, anti-transit type of douchebag who belongs in rural area, needless to say I don't associate with him anymore. I'm quite happy he is being boxed in by this development and the hotel (if it happens).

[ChiTownWonder]

Not sure if it has been said here but an Aon Center observatory is confirmed for the 69th or 70th floor I believe

[UrbanLibertine]

Demo permits issued yesterday for the Gonnella building on Chicago Avenue in River West

[marothisu]

Originally Posted by UrbanLibertine

Demo permits issued yesterday for the Gonnella building on Chicago Avenue in River West

Hell yeah. I think this project can be the catalyst that changes a little bit of the development in that area. It was sold a little over a month ago to Bond Cos after the former owners got the land re-zoned.

From 5 weeks ago:

Bond plans to pick up where Security left off. Robert Bond, the company's co-founder and president, said he expects to have the project's construction financing in place within 45 days and break ground in first-quarter 2016. The developer has retained Security's architect, Chicago-based FitzGerald Associates Architects, which designed two buildings of 14 and 15 stories on the property.

The developer plans to tweak the design and add some amenities to attract millennial renters, according to Bond, who said it's too early to discuss details.

"We will have a project that's uniquely designed to meet the market segment we want to reach,” he said.

Bond expects to complete the development in 2017. He declined to say how much it would cost to build.

http://www.chicagobusiness.com/realestat...ores-big-payday-without-building-a-thing

[marothisu]

A few more news things we missed from a few days ago:

http://www.chicagobusiness.com/realestat...-hotel-planned-on-old-towns-wells-street

Boutique hotel planned on Old Town's Wells Street

Two Chicago developers plan a boutique hotel on an Old Town street known for its bars and restaurants, looking to continue a trend of boutiques cropping up away from downtown.

Howard Weiner and Sol Barket want to build a hotel with 175 to 200 rooms on the Wells Street site where O'Brien's Restaurant & Bar now stands, Weiner said.

If the city approves the plan, the developers plan to buy the property at 1528 N. Wells St. from the O'Brien family, and the new structure will include a ground-floor space for O'Brien's to reopen, Weiner said.

The developers will formally unveil plans to neighborhood groups and Ald. Walter Burnett (27th) in early December, Weiner said. He declined to say how tall the proposed building would be but said it would likely exceed 80 feet, which would require the venture to create a planned development approved by the city.

The hotel would include a patisserie and O'Brien's on the ground floor, both of which would have outdoor seating. The second floor would have an upscale restaurant and meeting and event space, Weiner said. Plans also call for a rooftop bar, he said.

http://www.chicagobusiness.com/realestat...-gang-skyscraper-slated-for-panel-review

Japanese investors sink $4.1 million into Woodlawn apartments

A subsidiary of Villa Capital sold two Woodlawn apartment buildings with 45 units to Japanese real estate investors for more than $4.1 million, according to Cook County records. The deal closed Oct. 20, said Sean Connelly, managing director of commercial real estate at 33 Realty, the Chicago-based firm that represented Villa in the sale. The two buildings at 6135 and 6210 S. Dorchester Ave. comprise a mix of one- to four-bedroom apartments. Satoshi Koyama paid $2.2 million for the 24-unit 6210 S. Dorchester, according to Cook County records. Another Japanese investor, Masato Nakazato, paid $1.9 million for 21-unit 6135 S. Dorchester. The buyers plan to upgrade the buildings, Connelly said. “The sellers had done a significant amount of work in the buildings and they had rehabbed some units, but not to a higher end that you're starting to get at that location,” he said. “They could go in and push rents that way.” A Villa representative did not return requests for comment, and the buyers could not be reached.

[spyguy]

It also looks like there's fencing up and activity around 851 West Grand (36 apartments).

[BrinChi]

Originally Posted by King of Chicago

Don't forget, the new BRT line is being installed on Madison Ave, and will be done soon. People can take their train line to the loop (whichever line they normally would use...Red, Brown, Blue etc), to the station nearest to Madison, then take that BRT line west, and then walk a couple blocks to the office.

Also, to add to that, I am starting to see a lot of creative types starting to scope out the West Loop and living there.

So much development, I'm about a month behind on this thread

The loop BRT is not extending into the West Loop, right? As great as that would be, I think it will be the same ol' #20 bus. It would be amazing to extend Madison BRT west though at least to Damen (past United Center) and someday to Pulaski! Better yet, and I usually do not favor streetcars due to their expense/benefit ratio, but Madison street would be a great candidate -- a downtown to Pulaski streetcar on Madison would catalyze major redevelopment on the westside.

[BrinChi]

Originally Posted by ardecila

A) the proof is in the pudding, if West Loop developers are landing office tenants then what's your beef? If they're not landing tenants, then they're not landing financing and not building anything.

B) the West Loop is not Siberia, people can and do manage to transport themselves there by various means (bus, train, bike, walk, and yes, a decent amount of driving)

C) everything in the city is dynamic. If the West Loop builds a critical mass of employers and the transit system doesn't keep up, then things will give elsewhere. Gentrification may pick up in Pilsen, for example, as younger workers decide they'd rather have a one-seat ride to work. Maybe even East Garfield Park, who knows.

Already happening. This cycle just needs another 2-3 years to build momentum in EGP.

[BrinChi]

Originally Posted by marothisu

Part of Open House Chicago, I went to the New Regal Theater on 79th. Man, what a great theater. Really nice inside - it was purchased a year or so ago and the rumor was by Jay-Z but not the case. It was purchased by a 30 year old guy who grew up right there who's been rehabbing places in the general area (i.e. woodlawn, south shore) for a few years to revitalize certain areas. Apparently it's set to re-open sometime next year. Really glad after having visited it. This place should be shown off as much as any theater in town. Hope it can come back with a vengeance.

I went here too. Jaw-dropping beautiful! It was a shame the lighting was so dim, but apparently a few days before OHC there was essentially no lighting. Surrounding neighborhood was in really rough shape though, but there remains a lot of potential!

[ardecila]

Originally Posted by BrinChi

Already happening. This cycle just needs another 2-3 years to build momentum in EGP.

I am skeptical. East Garfield Park would probably be the first largely black neighborhood in Chicago history to gentrify*. The Census tracts west of Damen are all 70% black or higher.

The neighborhood has a lot of things working against it... It doesn't have a lot of commercial space; the old shopping district along Madison was largely wiped out, as were a lot of corner store buildings. That means it's not really walkable. It's somewhat isolated from other trendy areas too. There's an industrial corridor separating it from Ukrainian Village, the United Center parking crater separating it from West Loop, and the Eisenhower separating it from Tri-Taylor.

I hope I'm wrong... EGP has some of the most beautiful residential architecture in the city, much of it built by the long-lost West Side Jewish community.

* = South Loop did gentrify heavily and once was a majority Black area, but it was never really a "neighborhood" at all before gentrification took hold, as the residential population was so tiny.

[marothisu]

Well the thing that EGP has working for it is that the property and land is cheap as hell. Funny thing is that I was at Our Lady of Sorrows for the Open House Chicago a month ago. This lady who was helping and goes there lives in Oak Park and seems to think that the area in the next 10 or so years will gentrify LOL.

[King of Chicago]

Originally Posted by BrinChi

So much development, I'm about a month behind on this thread

The loop BRT is not extending into the West Loop, right? As great as that would be, I think it will be the same ol' #20 bus. It would be amazing to extend Madison BRT west though at least to Damen (past United Center) and someday to Pulaski! Better yet, and I usually do not favor streetcars due to their expense/benefit ratio, but Madison street would be a great candidate -- a downtown to Pulaski streetcar on Madison would catalyze major redevelopment on the westside.

You might be correct; it might not go that far yet. Sometimes I don't remember all the details of things, as there are so many projects going on right now!

Personally, what I would love to see, are BRT lanes running on EVERY major street in Chicago, running not only E/W but also N/S! Plus added in protected dedicated bicycle lanes, ultimately!