3 Winners for 'Lasalle Street Reimagined'

Chicago has shown national leadership in urban planning, city officials said, with the selection of three proposals for more than 1,000 mixed-income apartments on LaSalle Street, including 318 affordable units.

"The LaSalle Street corridor is a vital economic engine for our entire city, and we must ensure it remains that way by transforming it from a homogenous office district into a thriving, mixed-use community,” Mayor Lori Lightfoot said of proposals for 111 W. Monroe St., 135 S. LaSalle St. and 208 S. LaSalle St. “By converting underutilized office space to residential units, we will make the Loop a safer, more dynamic and vibrant place to live and work.

“This means that people who clean offices will be able to live there,” Lightfoot added during the March 28 announcement. “We will be the envy of the nation.”

The three winning proposals from among nine submitted for the LaSalle Street Reimagined Initiative will bring over $560 million in investment to 1.6 million square feet in Chicago’s former financial district:

• The Monroe Residences & Hotel, 111 W. Monroe St. (1)

The Prime Group Inc. and Capri Interests LLC

The $180 million proposal would adaptively re-use 610,000 square feet of space to create 349 studio, one-, and two-bedroom units within the upper stories of a 1910 National Register high-rise. Lower floors would include a separate, 226-key hotel. Related improvements would include lobby renovations, a bar and restaurant, and basement parking. Its tax increment finance (TIF) request is $40 million.

• The Field Building, 135 S. LaSalle St. (2)

Riverside Investment & Development and AmTrust Properties

The $258 million proposal would adaptively re-use 750,000 square feet to create 430 studio, one-, and two-bedroom units within a 1934 National Register high-rise. Multi-level retail space of 80,000-square feet could include a neighborhood grocer. Its TIF request is $115 million.

• The LaSalle Residences, 208 S. LaSalle St. (3)

The Prime Group Inc.

The $130 million proposal would adaptively re-use 222,500 square feet of space to create 280 studio, one-, and two-bedroom units within a 1914 landmark high-rise. Related improvements would include 6,900 square feet of retail upgrades, a full-service restaurant, and tenant amenities. Its tentative TIF request is $33 million.

Each finalist meets the city’s objectives to revitalize an underperforming historic property, to provide 30 percent affordable units (an expansion over the 20% required of projects seeking public assistance or zoning changes) and to create building amenities that contribute to the downtown environment.

Affordable units are aimed at tenants earning an average 60% of the Area Median Income (AMI), or $50,040 for a two-person household.

TIF money makes affordable units possible, said Department of Planning and Development (DPD) Commissioner Maurice Cox. “Chicago dared to be different. If you work in an office, in a bar, you could live here, surrounded by a transit-rich neighborhood.”

DPD is now preparing for the next phase, in which small businesses can receive grants of up to $250,000 to revitalize LaSalle Street lobbies into work/play/live environments. Businesses from the South and West Sides will be encouraged to apply, which will expand the equity.

Department of Housing Commissioner Marisa Novara commended Lightfoot for the project’s use of tax dollars. Besides building affordable housing where there wasn’t any, LaSalle Street Reimagined helped the city address abandoned spaces creatively, Novara said. “People want government to be innovative and to take chances. That’s what we did.”

The 111 W. Monroe St. building has been vacated by BMO Harris Bank, which has moved to a new tower near Union Station. The 135 S. LaSalle building was former home to Bank of America, which has moved to a new building on Wacker Drive.

The affordable housing component will also end segregation downtown, said Novara, and also World Business Chicago CEO Michael Fassnacht.

“Steps like these are what help us transform Chicago into a more equitable city,” Novara said.

“Not just revitalize the city, but in ending segregation, ensure Chicago has more good days as the most diverse city, not the most segregated one,” Fassnacht said.

by Suzanne Hanney