January 28, 2008 - It seems that Solstice on the Park is taking a page from Hollywood movie marketing; create buzz about the project before it becomes live. Literally, they took out a full page ad in the Chicago Tribune a couple of weekends ago announcing the low end of the price tag for the condos. $500,000 and up is what you’ll pay for 1,200 to 3,500 square feet and two to three bedrooms. There are no one bedroom condos, and right now they’re just fielding offers of interest, not actually pre-selling. The real push is expected to begin in March with construction following this summer.

If you missed the back story, the 26 story, 145 unit high-rise gets its name from the angle of the glass windows on the building’s south side. Jeanne Gang, who won fans with her design of Aqua, tilted the windows to 71 degrees. That is the angle of the sun in Chicago at the summer solstice and will create less glare and heating in summer and more light in winter. An additional benefit is that is creates less of an optical illusion for birds and should reduce flight impacts. The building will seek LEED certification.

The voids in the east and west walls, which increase in number as the floors rise, were placed strategically in low load bearing areas. ArchitectureChicago Plus pointed out this little fact.

Antheus Capital, based in New Jersey, has been investing heavily in Hyde Park real estate. They also own the nearby Windmere House. Antheus has agreed to keep rents at Windmere affordable. Residents can earn up to 60 percent of the median area income and still get the lock on rent rates at these Chicago Apartments.

Technorati Tags: Solstice on the Park, Chicago Condos, Chicago Real Estate

January 26, 2008 - The troubles began for WMC Development IV and Ashton Lofts months ago when construction lagged behind schedule, pushing back delivery dates and prompting some buyers to default on their contracts. Then in October of last year the development’s lender, LaSalle Bank, began foreclosure proceedings to collect the $5.3 million loan that was past due. Now, according to an article in Chicago Real Estate Daily, WMC has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on the 1610 West Fullerton Avenue development.

Construction on Ashton Lofts is complete, and stats from December showed that 19 of the 39 units had either been sold or were under contract. For those who purchased a condo at Ashton Lofts in Lincoln Park and actually did close, the bankruptcy will have no effect. A spokesperson for WMC said the number of buyers who had backed out of contracts had been high enough that the developer wouldn’t be able to repay the loan to LaSalle. The original maturity date of the loan was June 1, 2007. WMC managed to renegotiate for a September deadline but wasn’t able to meet that either. Add in the weight of a market slump and a struggling development can easily crumble.

Foresight Analytics states that defaults on construction loans in Chicago were up to 3.3% in the third quarter compared to 1.8% in the same quarter of 2006. Predictions are for more foreclosures as developers find it more difficult to sell new Pre Construction Condos in Chicago.

Technorati Tags: Ashton Lofts, Chicago Condos, Chicago Real Estate

January 25, 2008 - A proposed development next to Wrigley Field doesn’t have many fans among neighbors and patrons of the ballpark. Crain’s reported that a presentation was made last Wednesday night by Jack George, a lawyer specializing in zoning, and John Lahey, an architect with Solomon Cordwell Buenz and Associates. The project would be a mixed-use one consisting of two towers reaching nine stories. The entire complex would include 150 rental apartments, a Hyatt Place Hotel with 137 rooms, health club and nearly 100,000 square feet of retail space. The developer of this proposal is Steve Schultz of Preferred Properties, along with Anthony Rossi. Rossi has considerable previous experience developing apartment projects.

Opposition has been stiff so far. The area is already congested due to crowds and traffic during home games. The development’s height is another sticking point. At the planned 105 feet, it would more than exceed the current restriction of 55 feet for that zone. Finally, property values and current rental rates for the area came into question. If built, the new apartments would rent at around $1,800 per month. Residents expressed concern about their rents going up and whether or not they would be able to afford to live there in the future.

Tom Tunney is the alderman for that ward and assured residents that the project wouldn’t proceed until all concerns had been addressed and satisfied. We’ll have to stay tuned to this one and see if it gets on the score board or grounds out. Other proposed developments such as X/O and Evanston’s high-rise have faced opposition and managed to gain approval. There has been an increasing demand for Chicago Apartments, and more developers are probably going to try to cash in on the trend.

Technorati Tags: Wrigley Field, Chicago Condos, Chicago Real Estate