CHICAGO | Lincoln Yards

[ardecila]

^ No way. The site is inaccessible without massive investment in infrastructure. It was also so polluted that only a very intensive development could offset the cost of the cleanup, so a low-density project was never an option.

SB had no choice but to plan big, and ask the city to help them on the infrastructure piece. The only feasible alternative would be more industrial/warehouses.

[dreamy-developer]

Originally Posted by ardecila

^ No way. The site is inaccessible without massive investment in infrastructure. It was also so polluted that only a very intensive development could offset the cost of the cleanup, so a low-density project was never an option.

SB had no choice but to plan big, and ask the city to help them on the infrastructure piece. The only feasible alternative would be more industrial/warehouses.

Honestly, this is my biggest fear. I don't know if anyone can answer or knows what the entire area is zoned as, but I think in the long, long term -- with the right investment to the surrounding infrastructure and investment into the area i.e. (such as the two sites SB has pitched at 2033 N Kingsbury Avenue, and 1840 N Marcey St).

I think another version of LY could happen, or at most, happen in stages from various development over time -- like the slow but on going developments we've seen near North & Clybourn. I just hope that you don't see more warehouses and big-box building get pitched in the area in the time being. Would be such a waste of land for what the area could be.

[ardecila]

Honestly I think the sites that Sterling Bay is selling could be successful projects in their own right in the hands of other developers.

Cortland/Elston isn't so far from Bucktown, and it's a short walk to that little bar/restaurant area on Cortland. The transit options are not terrible, Metra to the Loop and the #X9 bus to the Medical District (Fulton Mkt workers can use either) plus the obvious Kennedy access for folks who work anywhere else.

The 606 will be extended to Elston in a few years as well, so there will be a high-quality pedestrian and bike route to other thriving neighborhoods.

[SpireGuy]

I'd love to see the DePaul basketball practice facility go here. Would be a good use of land, near the school, just west on Fullerton, and on the river. So much better that demolishing 40 units of historic housing next to the redline!

[Randomguy34]

2031-2033 N. Kingsbury St is on this month's Plan Commission agenda, surprised it made it. Posting here since it might as well be a part of Lincoln Yards: https://www.chicago.gov/city/en/dept...n_Hearing.html

[twister244]

Some interesting commentary here on the ongoing rift between the mayor and Scott Waguespack. I do wish we had more transit in the area to reduce the need for cars, but at the same time, you aren't going to get to the level of density that justifies new transit without building housing.....

https://www.chicagobusiness.com/poli...article1-image

[dewbs]

Originally Posted by twister244

Some interesting commentary here on the ongoing rift between the mayor and Scott Waguespack. I do wish we had more transit in the area to reduce the need for cars, but at the same time, you aren't going to get to the level of density that justifies new transit without building housing.....

https://www.chicagobusiness.com/poli...article1-image

Waguespack told Crain’s the building’s height and the proposed 275 parking spots, despite qualifying as a transit-oriented development meant to reduce a reliance on cars, will “overload the area and set the precedent for any other property in that area to get the same thing.”

In recent weeks, Waguespack said he’s received a full-court press from Boatright and her top deputies asking him to support the project.

"Nobody's opposed to a new development there,” he said. Instead, he and the local neighborhood groups favor mid-rise apartment buildings, so that “we're not building Lincoln Yards on this side of the river.”

"As soon as all the other property owners say, 'Hey, I can do (25 stories),' you're just going to have a wall along the river that is essentially not what anybody asked for,” he said.

...

The height of the north building was reduced 50 feet and the south building 20 feet from when the project was first presented to the department. Parking spaces were reduced from 360 to 275.

...

Lawson told Crain’s if the development reaches his committee there would likely be a showdown vote on whether to stall the ordinance in deference to Waguespack, who is not a member of the committee.

"If there's no community support, there's no aldermanic support, how does the committee look at that? I'm not sure,” he said.

p

[iguy]

Crain's published a letter from Sterling Bay this morning where SB asserts they expect to get financing by the end of this year.

https://www.chicagobusiness.com/lett...-yards-opinion

Of course they have to project confidence, but seems like this would be an awfully public and specific tall-tale if that's all it was?

[Randomguy34]

Lol, Bank OZK is seizing the northern 28 acres of Lincoln Yards

Sterling Bay surrendering part of Lincoln Yards to lender

Sterling Bay is surrendering a swath of land at its planned Lincoln Yards campus to its lender, a setback for the Chicago real estate firm's stalled $6 billion North Side development that stands to substantially weaken its grip on the megaproject.
....
Selling the site to another developer could dramatically change the scale and character of anything that gets built on the land, which is dominated by a 28-acre parcel that was previously home to a large A. Finkl & Sons steel plant. It's not immediately clear how such a sale would impact the redevelopment agreement Sterling Bay struck with the city of Chicago in 2019 to pursue the megaproject.

Gloor suggested in his letter today that Sterling Bay, which has a relationship with Bank OZK at a number of its Chicago projects, could still have a hand in the northern parcel's future.

https://www.chicagobusiness.com/comm...n-yards-lender

[BrickellBased]

Yes, having the land repossessed by your lender definitely qualifies as a setback.

"Sterling Bay is surrendering a swath of land at its planned Lincoln Yards campus to its lender, a setback for the Chicago real estate firm's stalled $6 billion North Side development "

Originally Posted by Randomguy34

Lol, Bank OZK is seizing the northern 28 acres of Lincoln Yards

Sterling Bay surrendering part of Lincoln Yards to lender

https://www.chicagobusiness.com/comm...n-yards-lender

[twister244]

I'm not surprised to see this..... Given how SB has been offloading properties in the West Loop, they probably have more incentive to just ditch this project.

My hope at this point is someone can come in and pivot towards a more residential-oriented project to fill in this hole on the river. I glossed through the article, but does it state what percentage of the total open lot was let go here? They say "northern portion", but not exactly sure what that means. Maybe I missed the important details.....

[Sprinklemoore]

Did this project already get tons of TIF money from our tax dollars? And now the land is being taken over? Someone please tell me I'm mistaken that seems like a huge grift by the city, developer, everyone involved.

[Briguy]

Originally Posted by Sprinklemoore

Did this project already get tons of TIF money from our tax dollars? And now the land is being taken over? Someone please tell me I'm mistaken that seems like a huge grift by the city, developer, everyone involved.

They may have spent some money on the soil remediation, but I don’t think they spent any other TIF money. TIF is just reimbursement for infrastructure, and they didn’t do any infrastructure…

Really hoping this doesn’t become another last mile shipping warehouse or big box retail…

[Sprinklemoore]

Originally Posted by Briguy

They may have spent some money on the soil remediation, but I don’t think they spent any other TIF money. TIF is just reimbursement for infrastructure, and they didn’t do any infrastructure…

Really hoping this doesn’t become another last mile shipping warehouse or big box retail…

Oh gotcha -- thanks for that. At least the soil remediation is a huge benefit for further development. Shame about the rest of the area. This area is sandwiched between 2 of the richest neighborhoods in Chicago and can't get a decent pedestrian street?

[twister244]

Speaking of infrastructure..... Is this going to impact the extension of the 606?..... One of my biggest gripes about this area is the complete lack of connectivity from the Bucktown/Logan area to Lincoln Park.... Basically you drive or take a bus in traffic. Having the 606 extend through the Kennedy was a step towards creating some of that connectivity. It would be a shame if that gets put on the back burner given this news.....

[ardecila]

Originally Posted by twister244

Speaking of infrastructure..... Is this going to impact the extension of the 606?..... One of my biggest gripes about this area is the complete lack of connectivity from the Bucktown/Logan area to Lincoln Park.... Basically you drive or take a bus in traffic. Having the 606 extend through the Kennedy was a step towards creating some of that connectivity. It would be a shame if that gets put on the back burner given this news.....

No, extending the 606 under the Kennedy and Metra tracks to Elston is a separate project that has nothing to do with Lincoln Yards. That project is delayed for a whole different set of reasons.

Any further extensions east of Elston, across the river into Lincoln Park, etc would rely on Sterling Bay but let's take this one step at a time.

[r18tdi]

Originally Posted by Briguy

They may have spent some money on the soil remediation, but I don’t think they spent any other TIF money. TIF is just reimbursement for infrastructure, and they didn’t do any infrastructure…

The remediation work is not-TIF eligible and was paid out-of-pocket by SB, according to this Urbanize story from 2021:

The clean-up work at Lincoln Yards cost roughly $9 million. Although Sterling Bay has a Tax Increment Financing deal with the city to be reimbursed for infrastructure improvements such as new roads and bridges, environmental work is not TIF eligible and must be paid for by the developer.

[dreamy-developer]

This this would be a more relevant thread then the Lincoln Yards one -

Not trying to be too skeptical here - but it makes me wonder from this news from SB what Related will do with The 78 plot of land if the Sox's stadium doesn't go through. I think the Chicago Fire's owner has a better chance of grabbing that opportunity as he has publicly stated that he will pay for a new stadium all out of pocket with zero public funding.

With the DPI Lab cancelled, and the Casino a failed bid, I just wonder how much Related were dedicated to actually doing that massive project without some kind of anchor.

In the worst pessimistic outcome, I could see if no stadium is ever approved of, that Related do the same and sit on this land and sell for profit. Unless by that time the economy is booming like in the 2010s.

[Cress3803]

SB seems a little washed out

[ardecila]

Originally Posted by dreamy-developer

This this would be a more relevant thread then the Lincoln Yards one -

Not trying to be too skeptical here - but it makes me wonder from this news from SB what Related will do with The 78 plot of land if the Sox's stadium doesn't go through. I think the Chicago Fire's owner has a better chance of grabbing that opportunity as he has publicly stated that he will pay for a new stadium all out of pocket with zero public funding.

With the DPI Lab cancelled, and the Casino a failed bid, I just wonder how much Related were dedicated to actually doing that massive project without some kind of anchor.

In the worst pessimistic outcome, I could see if no stadium is ever approved of, that Related do the same and sit on this land and sell for profit. Unless by that time the economy is booming like in the 2010s.

We have a 78 thread... assuming the mods will move these posts. Related doesn't actually own this land, Iraqi billionaire Nadhmi Auchi does (but he's 87!) Related is just doing the hard work of development under some kind of contract.

If Related can't get anything going, I'm not sure what happens. The key problem is that the site has no infrastructure - building it out to downtown densities would require a lot of costly infrastructure and nobody is willing or able to pay for that stuff. It's way too expensive by global standards, private developers can't afford it and taxpayers hate it and view it as a handout. Lincoln Yards had the exact same problem. We used to do that kind of infrastructure - Lakeshore East exists after all - but it doesn't work anymore.

So it's possible the next owner goes back to the same low-density suburban crap that previous developers proposed here. Dearborn Park Round 3. That's all you can really build without a lot of expensive roads, bridges, and rail/transit infrastructure.