Block 37

There have been all sorts of failed developments at Block 37, but I doubt if many real estate moguls are truly superstitious about Indian graveyards or whatever.

Trying to Break the Jinx of Chicago’s Block 37 - New York Times
... “I think it’s going to be a terrific development when it’s done,” he said. “But you do wonder if this site is jinxed in some way.”

“This site” is Block 37, a square block on State Street opposite the large Macy’s downtown store that was the most prominent vacant lot in Chicago, if not the country. Over the last 20 years, the failure of the city, as well as of succeeding teams of developers, to build something on the site inspired both a book —

Here’s the Deal: The Making and Breaking of a Great American City

by Ross Miller — and a BBC-produced documentary film.

One project after another fell through as some of the most high-profile developers in the city tried and failed to line up tenants and financing for a series of mixed-use projects, all of which were announced with great fanfare and then never heard from again.

Indeed, it is estimated that about $300 million in public and private funds was spent on failed development projects for the site over the years.

I walked by Block 37 last weekend, and the building infrastructure is already 10-12 stories tall.

... two local developers — Golub & Company and Joseph Freed & Associates — actually have projects under way there.

Golub’s is a 16-story, 440,000-square-foot office tower that is 80 percent leased to two tenants, Morningstar — with 236,000 square feet — and WBBM-TV, the local CBS affiliate. The architect is Ralph Johnson of the locally based Perkins & Will.

Freed’s is a 400,000-square-foot retail mall that is also to include an elaborate new subway station for the Chicago Transit Authority. The designer is Grant Uhlir of Gensler. Freed also has the rights to develop a second phase of the project consisting of 800 residential or hotel units.

Both projects broke ground in late 2005 and are scheduled to be finished next year. The combined cost is about $750 million. The city has assisted the developments by selling the land for $12.2 million, which is about a third of its market price.

I hope this part gets finished soon:

The transportation center is one of the more intriguing aspects of the project. The mall is to be built around a five-story atrium, at the bottom of which will be the new subway station.

The aim is to connect the two subway lines that currently converge downtown — the Red Line along State Street and the Blue Line a block to the west along Dearborn Street — and also provide a central departure point for passengers heading for either of the city’s two airports.

The eventual goal is for passengers to be able to check their baggage downtown and then board an express train that would whisk them to either O’Hare International or Midway Airport in about 20 minutes. Currently, the trip can take up to an hour. That level of service, however, depends on the construction of an extensive — and as yet unfinanced — program of track improvements.

Photos later.

Tags: architecture, /Chicago, /real_estate