Booming South Loop Neighborhood to Add New Retail Complex
[Image via Google Street View]
While the South Loop's Roosevelt Road has traditionally been a strong retail axis, the success of recent shopping centers along Canal, such as The Maxwell and Southgate malls, has clearly caught the attention of developers. As a strong South Loop market continues to add density and affluent residents, retail growth is keeping pace and spreading westward as new shopping opportunities are being explored on the many empty or underused parcels along Clinton and Jefferson. One such project is a new 120,000 square-foot boutique shopping centeron its way to the northeast corner of Jefferson and Taylor Street.
Dozens of New Condo Units Coming to Ashland Avenue
A large stretch of Ashland Avenue in Lincoln Park is about to get dozens of new condos. According to Crain's, a suburban developer is planning to build a 53-unit development on 18 lots that line both the east and west sides of the 2700 block of North Ashland Avenue. Instead of constructing one large, monolithic complex, the developer, Interforum Holdings, will build separate two- to six-flat structures on each lot. According to Crain's, prices are expected to range between $499,000 for two bedroom unit up to $839,000 for a considerably larger three bedroom. Expect to see construction crews on site soon as the developer plans to start moving dirt as early as next week.
Map: A Castle in Every State in the U.S.A.
The United States of America is not typically thought of as a land of castles, and with good reason—the uniting of the American states coincided, not coincidentally, with the beginning of the end of the era in which kings and queens ruled over everything, holing up in huge fortified houses so that the peasants and/or invading barbarians couldn't kill them.
But in a way, that's too bad, because the U.S.A. is a land of excess, and there's nothing more excessive than a castle. And there are somecastles in this country—maybe more than you'd expect—which range from (mostly) vanity projects, to mini golf courses, to even a few places that originally served some military purpose. In fact, we found a castle in every state in the U.S.A.
The Hensley Rentals to Open Soon in River North
[Photo by Jay Koziarz]
The Hensley, a new luxury rental mid-rise at 707 N. Wells, is finally leasing units at its River North locale after a long and complicated gestation period. Replacing a pair of single-story commercial buildings, 707 N. Wells started life as 12 stories and showed a modern, modular design when renderings were first revealed to the public in 2013. After community backlash, the Pappageorge Haymes Partners design became less radical and instead embraced the River North norm of beige painted precast concrete. The project also shrunk to 11-storiesand unit number dipped to 43 from an original count of 51. Akara Partners took over the project from developers Campus Acquisitions in mid 2014 and construction began late that year. The Hensley name was announced in 2015.
Posh Printer's Row Three Bedroom Loft Seeks $775K
[Photos: VHT Studios]
Here's a refinished South Loop loft that pleases on several levels. First of all, with three bedrooms and three bathrooms spread over 2,000 square feet, there's plenty of room to spread out and feel cozy. But most importantly, the photos reveal a renovation that's quite nice and mix of different styles and materials. The unit sports raw, concrete slab walls, but the ceilings boast both striking timber and dark steel support beams. The space is also ideal for entertaining as this unit comes with a free-standing wet bar area. Fans of subway tile the faux industrial look may want to take a close look at this unit. This one can be had for three quarters of a million bucks.
2016 Pritzker Prize Goes to Alejandro Aravena, Chilean Architect Behind Innovative Affordable Housing
Chilean architect Alejandro Aravena, center, has won the 2016 Pritzker Prize. His UC Innovation Center at the San JoaquÃn Campus, Universidad Católica de Chile Santiago (left) and Constitución Cultural Center (right) from 2014, also in Chile, represent recent built work by Aravena's firm, ELEMENTAL. Photos by Nina Vidic (left), via LaFarge Holcim Foundation (center), and by Felipe Diaz (right). All images are copyright and courtesy of ELEMENTAL unless otherwise noted.
48-year old Chilean architect Alejandro Aravena has been awarded the 2016 Pritzker Prize. He's the first laureate from Chile, the third from South America, and the fourth from Latin America. He's also a telegenic star of the international architecture scene, best-known for a housing complex built at a cost of $7,500 per unit and a proponent of "the rigorous use of common sense" to create sustainable, affordable and resilient cities.
Ricketts Family Now Controls Majority of Wrigley Field Rooftops
The Ricketts family, who bought the Chicago Cubs and Wrigley Field in 2009, have further strengthened their hold on the ballpark's adjacent rooftop properties with the purchase of the Beyond the Ivy rooftop buildings at 1010 - 1038 W. Waveland and the Sky Lounge Wrigley Rooftop at 1048 W. Waveland, according to Danny Ecker of Crain's Chicago. After contentious battles with rooftop owners over revenue-sharing and Wrigley's addition of view-obstructing video boards, the Ricketts family started snatching up rooftop properties in January of last year with the purchase of 3639 N. Sheffield Ave., 3643-3645 N. Sheffield Ave. and 1032-1034 W. Waveland Ave. They further bolstered their rooftop portfolio with the acquisition of 3637 N. Sheffield, 3617 N. Sheffield and 3619 N. Sheffield in May of 2015. Today's news brings a total of nine rooftop operations controlled by the Wrigley Field owners and means the Rickettses now posses the overwhelming majority of the rooftop businesses flanking the ballpark's outfield.
Landmark House on Wide Stretch of Lakefront Takes Its Sixth Price Cut
[Photos: VHT Studios]
A crescent-shaped mid-century home designed by brothers George and William Keck is starting off the new year with a price cut — and a big one at that. The Riparian Crescent Ranch that sits on 181 feet of Lake Michigan shorefront, has just lowered its asking price by half a million dollars, seeking $3.249 million. Built in 1962, the steel and glass house has now received six price cuts since it originally listed for $5.499 million in September of 2014. While the property is certainly valuable and appealing to developers, the owners have previously indicated that they are holding out for a preservation-minded buyer that will keep the house intact. Will this latest price reduction finally entice a buyer?
Taking a Look at Zurich's Brand New Schaumburg HQ
[Photos by Jay Koziarz]
Since officially breaking ground in mid 2014, progress on Zurich Insurance Group's enormous new North American headquarters in suburban Schaumburg has moved forward with the steady determination of a fine Swiss watch. The design, comprised of three very large offset Jenga-esque bars supported by internal cross-bracing, is a joint venture between Chicago-based architecture firms Goettsch Partners and CannonDesign. The henge-like structure tops out at 11 stories and will deliver a whopping 750,000 square feet of space for approximately 2,500 Zurich employees and contractors. While the site's giant multi-level concrete garage built to accommodate thousands of employee vehicles is an undeniably suburban feature, automobile-centric design is pretty much par for the course when it comes to corporate headquarters built outside the city's central business district. Zurich's new HQ is the Chicago area's largest single-tenant office project since Tellabs Inc. moved to its new 800,000 square-foot Naperville campus in 2001.
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A Few Things That All Chicagoans Should Know About Pullman
[Photo: Curbed Chicago/AJ LaTrace]
The Pullman neighborhood on the city's far South Side is one of those uniquely Chicago neighborhoods. It's the nation's first industrial planned community, it's an area that helped breathe life into the American labor movement, and an area that helped usher in the era of civil rights. The community's history is so rich — both in architecture and cultural aspects — that President Barack Obama officially declared the neighborhood's historic district as a U.S. National Monument. Of all of the architectural and cultural contributions that Chicago has delivered to the world, the Pullman District is what ultimately became the city's first national monument. There's even a push to transform Pullman's momentum into a full-blown national park campus. The neighborhood had a banner year in 2015, not only for its newfound national monument status, but also for seeing a continuation of its industrial legacy with the opening of Method's new LEED Platinum factory. In addition, Curbed readers voted Pullman as Chicago's neighborhood of the year for 2015. We recently reached out to Michael Shymanski, a longtime Pullman resident and president of the Historic Pullman Foundation, to learn more about the neighborhood.
Hedge Fund Manager Ken Griffin Unloads Penthouse for $16M
It has been revealed by the Chicago Tribune that Illinois' richest person, Ken Griffin, has sold his full-floor condo unit comprising the 46th floor of the Waldorf Astoria tower at 11 E. Walton Street for $16 million. With a net worth according to Forbes of $7 billion, Mr. Griffin, founder and CEO of Chicago-based hedge fund Citadel, reportedly paid the same amount for the unit in back in 2014. Much of information surrounding this deal is murky since the buyer of the property is a land trust of indeterminate ownership. Lacking a public listing and therefore without readily accessible photographs, the interiors of the recently-sold Waldorf unit and details such as square footage remain shrouded in mystery. Griffin continues to own a full-floor condo unit on the building's 37th floor which was also purchased in 2014 at a cost of $13.3 million.
Revised 38-Unit Pullman Artspace Lofts Revealed to Neighbors
[Photos by Jay Koziarz]
Monday night's icy roads failed to dissuade a near-capacity crowd of Pullmanites from attending the latest community meeting for Pullman Artspace Lofts, an affordable-rate mixed live/work space development aimed specifically towards artist tenants. The project, which has been in the works for years, began with neighborhood non-profit group Pullman Arts completing the initial feasibility study in 2012 before partnering with Artspace -- a Minneapolis-based non-profit with a portfolio of dozens of successful affordable artist live/work projects across the country -- and Chicago Neighborhood Initiative. Together, these groups brought on Chicago-based VOA Associates to handle the project's architecture. While much of the previously presented design for the Pullman Artspace Lofts remains unchanged, a slightly tweaked version from what was shown at an October meeting was presented to the community on Monday.
Rent in Boston, Atlanta, Denver: What $2,200/Month Can Get You Right Now
Welcome to Curbed Comparisons, a column that explores what one can rent for a set dollar amount in various cities across the U.S. Is one man's studio another man's townhouse? Let's find out! Today's price: $2,200/month.
↑ Boston, MA (1 bed, 1 bath)—With Fenway Park practically in its backyard (it's a 6-minute walk away), this sunny, centrally-located 712-square-foot apartment is easy to love. A cozy eat-in kitchen, bow window, high ceilings, polished hardwood floors, and renovated black and white tiled bath are some of the key features.
New Tower to Become One of Evanston's Tallest at 27 Stories
Downtown Evanston, which has truly transformed and blossomed since the last boom cycle of the early 2000s, has just witnessed the unveiling of its next major proposal. The project, as recently presented to city officials, will be a 27-story rental apartment building with 217 units and 176 parking spaces. The proposal comes from Chicago-based Vermilion Development, a company that is also involved with the Harper Court development in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood. The proposed tower will be situated on the north side of Davis Street, in the middle of the block between Chicago and Orrington Avenues and just to the east of Fountain Square. The site is currently a vacant lot and a large stand-alone vehicular drive-through for Chase Bank, located in the neighboring tower to the west. An existing two-story building on the northwest corner of Chicago and Davis is also included in the plan and would be preserved as part of the project. Known as the University Building, the existing structure would have its ground floor lobby connected to the new tower as well as a reconfiguration of the interior spaces, but would otherwise remain untouched.
Here's a Really Neat Loft in a Historic Printer's Row Building
Looking for a unique loft in a historic Printer's Row building? This industrial conversion in the Franklin Building on South Dearborn boasts a bedroom, an office space, two bathrooms, and can be had for $450,000. Designed by George C. Nimmons and built in 1912, the building was the home of the Franklin Printing Company and was operating as printing facility up until 1983. The building sports an ornamental terra cotta relief and a mural above the main entrance that depicts printers using a Gutenberg press. Inside, the unit features some notable upgrades, including high-end name brand kitchen appliances and a custom home office setup. If blue and purple are not your colors, repainting the space should be an easy task. However, the big catch here is the $1,129 in monthly assessments. Also, should you require parking, a space will cost you an extra $30,000.
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