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FULTON MARKET — A trio of Fulton Market proposals — a hotel, apartment tower, and an office building — received key approval, clearing yet another procedural hurdle in the city’s development process.
On Thursday, the Committee on Zoning approved a 25-story apartment building at 1400 W. Randolph St., a 20-story hotel at 800 W. Lake St. and a 16-story office building at 400 N. Aberdeen St.
Despite some community opposition, Ald. Walter Burnett Jr. (27th) threw his support behind the projects, stating the developers had met with neighbors and made adjustments to the projects.
20-story hotel at 800 W. Lake St.
North Park Ventures and MF Development plan to build a 20-story hotel at 800 W. Lake St. The developer is taking advantage of the city’s transit-oriented development rules by not including any parking on site, a detail that irked members of local community groups when they heard about the plan last year.
Credit: GREC Architects“Halsted is a mess,” West Loop resident Levar Hoard said during a meeting last year. “To put a 500-room hotel at Lake and Halsted is asinine. The demand for drop-offs will exacerbate a problem that is already ridiculous.”
Just under half of the hotel’s 476 planned guest rooms would be “micro rooms” that charge less than $200 per night, according to the latest draft of the plan. Because the $150 million proposal triggered the city’s density bonus program, North Park Ventures will pay $2.07 million into the Neighborhood Opportunity Fund.
The development team is currently in negotiations with the Hyatt and Hilton to operate the hotel, said Matthew Ferrino, principal at MF Development previously said.
25-story apartment building at 1400 W. Randolph St.
Credit: ProvidedMarquette development is planning a 25-story apartment building with a ground floor restaurant on the western edge of the neighborhood at 1400 W. Randolph St.
The project was initially pitched as a 21-story building last year.
Marquette’s plan includes 108 parking spaces and 225 bicycle parking stalls. Because the $100 million proposal triggered the city’s density bonus program, Marquette is required to pay $2.67 million into the Neighborhood Opportunity Fund.
The development group was previously approved by the Plan Commission to build a companion proposal, a 243-unit apartment building across from Union Park.
16-story office building at 400 N. Aberdeen St.
In a separate proposal Dallas-based developer Trammell Crow plans to construct a 16-story office building with ground-floor retail at 400 N. Aberdeen St was approved on Thursday.
The $220 million proposal includes 150 parking spaces, and the developer would score extra density by paying about $3.6 million into the city’s Neighborhood Opportunity Fund.
Credit: Mauricio Peña/ Block Club ChicagoAs part of its agreement with the city, Trammell Crow promised to pay $250,000 for “railroad crossing upgrades” on the adjacent Metra tracks and another $300,000 for a new traffic signal at Grand Avenue and May Street.
We anticipate this is going to be a tech building. We’re helping bring jobs to the city of Chicago,” Burnett said.
RELATED: New Halsted CTA Station Needed As Development Boom Continues In West Loop, Alderman Says
Last month, Burnett made a direct appeal to the Plan Commission for a new ‘El’ station at Lake and Halsted streets to alleviate traffic concerns among neighbors from the ongoing development in the neighborhood.
Burnett noted the three projects would bring $8 million in payments into the city’s Neighborhood Opportunity Fund, which fuels the city’s Invest South/West initiative.
“The West Loop brings the money to the city,” Burnett said. “So we need an ‘El’ stop, because we’re investing [in] South/West …. Sometimes people aren’t happy with development. We can make them happy with an ‘El’ stop at this spot.”
The projects will next be considered at City Council Wednesday for final approval.
