We’re on a Catalpa condo kick (say that five times fast), so when we stumbled across this conversion at 1615 W Catalpa Ave, just west of Ashland Avenue, we thought we’d have a (virtual) look.
The building is one short block west of Andersonville‘s main Clark Street shopping strip, making it for practical purposes part of that neighborhood (although we acknowledge that some call the area Ravenswood, East Ravenswood or even West Andersonville). When we see fancy digs like these, we get flashbacks to Andersonville’s scruffier days – now nearly a decade gone.
But even a few years ago, at least some scruffiness was still in evidence. It seemed there was an invisible line somewhere around Rascher Avenue, towards the neighborhood’s northern border: rents were cheaper, lawns were less manicured, windows more likely to have busted screens.
That line sems to have vanished, or at least pushed farther north, as more and more apartment buildings in the neighborhood are converting to plush condos. The three three-bedroom two-bath units at 1615 W Catalpa are a case in point; they have wine refrigerators, Grohe faucets, stone baths and garage parking.
Greg Desmond of Rubloff Residential Properties has a first-floor unit listed for $459,000.
