The condominium hotel was popularized in New York, but the concept seems to be getting a warm reception in Chicago. Less than three weeks after the Falor Companies announced that it was turning the 161-room Hyatt in Printers Row, at 500 S. Dearborn, into a condominium hotel, the project’s first phase sold out.
“To date, we have secured reservations on 63 units,” said Bill Fields, president of residential brokerage for Sudler Real Estate, exclusive sales agent for the development. “We believed from the outset that there would be heavy demand for a condominium hotel in Chicago at this price point.”
Prices at “the Morton,” a name that comes from the 1896 building’s origins as headquarters for the Morton Salt Company, average around $225,000.
At the Morton, buyers will own their units in fee simple and can choose from packages that allow them to occupy the units 35 nights, 14 nights or no nights each year. When owners are not using the units, the hotel rents them out, returning a portion of the revenue to owners.
Due to high demand, Falor has decided to sell the second and third phases through a lottery system. “We decided to implement the lottery system because of the great number of buyers who have come forward so quickly,” said Robert Falor, president and CEO of the Falor Companies.
The hotel will be operated by Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants, a San Francisco-based operator of boutique hotels that already runs the Monaco, Allegro and Burnham hotels in Chicago.
Guest rooms will include 42-inch plasma-screen TVs, marble-tiled baths and contemporary furnishings. The hotel will offer room service, a concierge, wireless and high-speed Internet access, a fitness room and meeting rooms.