The Marquette Companies’ Front Street Lofts development, currently under construction in Lemont, offers the first residential opportunity in the village’s Downtown Redevelopment Project.

Lemont is located than 30 miles southwest of Chicago along Interstate 55 and has a population of 15,000 residents. The community is home to several well-known attractions, including Cog Hill Golf Club, home of the PGA Tour's BMW Championship, and the Hindu Temple of Greater Chicago. Commuters are a 50-minute ride from downtown Chicago via the Lemont stop on Metra's Heritage Corridor line.

Three years ago, the village of Lemont and The Marquette Companies joined together to promote the Lemont Downtown Redevelopment Project. It's unusual for a developer and a small town to co-promote a development, but the city leaders felt that the vision for their downtown deserved this unique type of project.

When complete, the Lemont Downtown Redevelopment Project will comprise 10 city blocks along the historic I&M Canal and will offer 400 new residences, 750 structured parking spaces and 150,000 square feet of new commercial space.

Front Street Lofts consists of four buildings containing 82 loft condominiums. Delivery of 17 of the 29 sold units will begin this month.

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Kargil Development Senior Vice President Brian Giles cracks a wry smile when questioned about Prairie District Lofts, Kargil’s 116-unit loft conversion at 1727 S Indiana Ave in the South Loop.

“In this market, it’s all about price point,” says Giles. “We’re 50 percent sold and averaging about one sale a week, and it’s because our loft conversion has a price point that is at least 30 percent and in some cases 40 percent less than new construction. As a result, we haven’t been caught up in the slowdown that has affected so many others.”

Giles could not be more straightforward. What goes unsaid, however, is that the five-story building, erected in 1905 for Kodak and later converted into a rental apartment building, has been transformed into a gorgeous, $36-million loft condominium in one of Chicago’s hottest neighborhoods.

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Every so often, a project comes along that is truly in a category all its own. Such is the case with LOACQ’s Opera Lofts, a 93-unit loft conversion at 2545 S Dearborn St.

Built in stages from 1912 to 1924, the 370-foot multi-level building on the northern edge of Bronzeville served as a set design and storage facility for the Lyric Opera of Chicago.

The building is across from the brand-new South Loop Hotel and only blocks from McCormick Place, Mercy Hospital, U.S. Cellular Field and the highly anticipated 2016 Olympic Village.

When complete, it will house one- to three-bedroom units with one or two baths, as well as a number of penthouses. The units will range in size from 830 square feet to over 3,000 square feet and will be priced from the $260s. Deeded indoor parking will be available at $22,500.

Those numbers don’t tell the full story of Opera Lofts, however. Its soul is found instead in its eclectic design and variety of sizes, shapes and materials.

Opera Lofts is really a conglomerate of six buildings constructed over two decades, according to Mike Jerabek, a partner of Worn Jerabek Architects, the firm that designed the project.

Asked who originally created Opera Lofts’ edifices, Jerabek responds, simply: “a madman.”

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Motor Row Development Corp. president Paul Zucker has 25 years of residential development experience under his belt, but that doesn’t stop him from exuding rookie enthusiasm at the mention of Motor Row Lofts. His firm’s 52-unit loft transformation of three historic properties at 2301 – 2315 S. Michigan Ave. sits squarely in the midst of the South Loop’s burgeoning Motor Row Historic District.

“We were drawn to this wonderful collection of turn-of-the-century – or should I say ‘last century’ – auto showrooms, designed by the city’s most famous architects,” says Zucker, referring to Holabird and Roche, who (as successors to Daniel Burnham) authored a plethora of Chicago landmark structures, among them Soldier Field and City Hall.

Back then, the giants of the auto industry displayed their wares in lavish buildings located in the area. Cadillac enlisted the architectural duo to design three structures that today define the neighborhood with their distinctive terra cotta façade and enormous windows. The five-story white Cadillac Building and its slightly shorter neighbors, the Cowles and the Saxon, were built between 1911 and 1915.

In those days, architects weren’t constrained by context. They were all trying to make their own unique statement.” Zucker says. “Holabird and Roche certainly succeeded with these three little jewels that have the flavor of the traditional Chicago loft look, yet are dramatic in their detail.”

Eventually the auto showrooms vanished, and then, according to the developer, “nothing happened.”

That is, until now. MRDC has restored, renovated and transformed the buildings into 52 luxury one-to three-bedroom loft residences with 36 different floor plans. And because the project is in the Motor Row Historic District, all original buyers benefit from an eight-year tax assessment freeze followed by four years of modest adjustments under the Illinois Property Tax Assessment Freeze Program.

The tax benefits are a huge selling point,” says Tina Feldstein, of Koenig & Strey GMAC Real Estate. “Buyers can afford to purchase much more for their money because the real estate taxes are a much smaller part of their annual costs.”

The beauty of the buildings’ stone, terra cotta and glass facades has been completely restored, according to Zucker. The shared ground floor lobby in the Cadillac building is replete with a 60-foot carpeted floor and 18-foot windows.

Two high speed elevators lead to the soundproofed loft residences, located on floors two through five, ranging from one to three bedrooms, with and without dens, with one to 2.5 baths. Square footage varies from 1,057 to 2,050 square feet.

The last of a dying breed in Chicago, the residences are lofts in the true sense of the word, according to Zucker. “We’re not back in the Flashdance era,” says Zucker. “But the exposed brick and ductwork, the heavy timber beams, the 13- to 20-foot ceilings, and the 10 to 15-foot windows certainly take these residences out of the overused ‘soft loft’ category.”

In January, prices began in the $310s and topped out in the $650s, with parking starting at $25,000. Motor Row Lofts were already 40 percent sold in January, according to Feldstein, who says the first units will be delivered in the spring of 2008.

-Story by Dan Schuyler, photography by Michael Kardas

by Dana Dubriwny

In the South Loop housing market, where homebuyers wade through a swell of newly constructed high-rises, loft living offers a tangible reminder of the city’s industrial past. History is a selling point, and Prairie District Lofts, 1727 S Indiana Ave, allows buyers to invest in the past.

“We found that the appeal of something that has history, something with exposed brick and timber, has more of an urban experience,” says Brian Giles, senior vice president of Kargil Development. “More so than the new construction, which can be found anywhere. These types of buildings are 100 years old and older, and you don’t get that everywhere.”

Built in 1905 for the commercial photography company Kodak, the building received a concrete addition around 1931 and was converted into a 116-unit apartment complex in 1994. In September 2007, Brian Giles, along with brother and business partner Keith, purchased the building and launched a $35 million condo conversion effort. (more…)

by Dana Dubriwny

Although River North has earned a reputation in recent years as a haven for high-rise development, it’s still possible to find something of the neighborhood’s gritty, industrial past hidden among the gleaming towers.

In its latest venture, development firm and River North landowner Cataldo/Marovitz Group has uncovered one of these urban gems. Forty loft homes are planned for a historic warehouse at 660 N Kingsbury Ave between Huron and Erie streets.

Rechristened the Park Kingsbury Residences, the building formerly housed a florist and today stands as “one of the latter turn-of-the-century timber loft conversions, representing a product and niche that is in high demand in this neighborhood,” says Rizzo Realty Group’s Carolyn Lester, sales manager for Park Kingsbury.

There is no doubt that area residents have supported the transformation of this building since its conception. When the Park Kingsbury was introduced to the River North Residents Association in May of 2007, it was met with overwhelming approval – which Lester credits to a neighborhood mantra of continuous renewal.

“The neighborhood is looking to reinvest in the value-driven River North sector, and many of these individuals do not have the kind of space they are looking for,” Lester says.

It was not long ago that the River North neighborhood was landscaped with warehouses and manufacturing facilities. Armed with a history that was transformed only 30 years ago, residents pride themselves on preserving the architectural diversity of the neighborhood while maintaining the chic and sophisticated image that has become River North.

Aptly named, River North is flanked by the Chicago River on the south and west sides; Michigan Avenue and Oak Street delineate the eastern and northern boundaries, respectively. The neighborhood boasts several renowned restaurants, including Harry Caray’s, House of Blues, Ed Debevic’s, Hard Rock Café and Rainforest Café.

During Park Kingsbury’s soft opening in 2007, 43 percent of the building was claimed in presales. Terese Cataldo, principal with Des Plaines, Ill.-based Cataldo Interiors Group Ltd., says the development’s early interest can be attributed in part to the high-end finishes selected for the Park Kingsbury units.

“Loft purchasers were getting tired of the same old interior elements inside, so my goal was to present a unit where a purchaser didn’t have to get any upgrades,” says Cataldo, whose company spearheaded the interior design of the building. “We went above and beyond what owners would receive as an upgrade at other developments.”
Calling it “the newest look in the modern urban loft,” Cataldo admits her inspiration for the interior finishes came from the Euro-style sophistication of the Milan, Italy’s fashion capital, combined with the lifestyle of the typical Chicago resident.

“Chicagoans are a blended people, with blended occupations and activities, and their home needs to reflect that,” Cataldo says. “What they all have in common is that they want a lifestyle that allows them to transition [from] casual to formal entertainment, and their home should reflect that. The units are like a good little black dress; you can dress them up or down.”

Park Kingsbury Residences, designed by local architecture firm FitzGerald Associates Architects, is comprised of 23 different floor plans, from 927-square-foot one-bedrooms priced from the $409s to custom three-bedroom-plus-den models starting at more than $1.1 million. The first deliveries are expected at the start of 2009.

Prairie District Lofts aims for reasonable prices with rare South Loop lofts

Developers Keith and Brian Giles spent much of the mid- to late 1990s converting old warehouses and factories throughout the South Loop into loft condos that were at once chic and rugged. In the process, they helped to transform an industrial wasteland into the city's fastest growing neighborhood. They also managed to put themselves out of business, at least in this particular development niche. (more…)

After dominating downtown, lofts head to the neighborhoods

If you want insight into the biggest trend in Chicago's market for new lofts, just browse the names of active developments – Rogers Lofts, McKinley Park Lofts, The Lofts at Bridgeport Place. Until recently, loft developments were unheard of in the South Side neighborhood of Bridgeport, where The Lofts at Bridgeport Place is located, or, for that matter, in Rogers Park, on the Far North Side, home of Rogers Lofts, North Point Lofts, North Beach Lofts and Renaissance Lofts. (more…)

Substation lofts sparking interest from male buyers

Homebuyers react one of two ways when they tour Substation North Lofts, the conversion of a former ComEd substation at 1128 W. Ardmore Ave. in Edgewater.

They're either shocked or charged up about the prospect of living in buildings still decked out with the trappings of a power station, says Natalie Tarrence, of developer Sufa & Shemesh. When ComEd moved out, the electricity giant left much of the buildings' wiring intact, so Sufa & Shemesh decided to put the industrial flotsam and jetsam back to work. (more…)

At 565 Quincy, 7-story loft plus 11 glass floors equals one eclectic building

Topping a vintage seven-story brick warehouse with 11 stories of glass is a bold architectural statement, but Belgravia Group is confident that 565 Quincy, a hybrid of lofts and new-construction condos, will be as funky and forward-looking as the buyers the developer is targeting.

Architectural firm Pappageorge / Haymes is transforming an existing 1920s tan brick and concrete warehouse into an 18-story high-rise. The older building will have 54 one- and two-bedroom lofts, and the vertical glass and metal addition will contain 187 one- and two-bedroom condos.

Pappageorge / Haymes is no novice when it comes to pastiche projects, having layered six stories of new construction atop a 10-story cold storage warehouse in the South Loop to create Dearborn Tower, also a mix of lofts and new condos. There the architect unified the disparate parts of the building by using similar materials and colors and by echoing the older building's square windows in the new floors. (more…)