Christopher Carley, the Chicago developer who proved unable to build the nation’s tallest building in the city, The Chicago Spire is seeking to try his luck with another downtown site.
After hiring “star-chitect” Santiago Calatrava to design the 2,000-foot-tall, spire-shaped tower once billed as the “Fordham Spire,” Carley could not secure financing for the project. It has since been taken over by Shelbourne Development Ltd. of Dublin.
A dispute with Shelbourne’s executive chairman, Garrett Kelleher, cost Mr. Carley any direct role in the development.
Carley, chief executive of Fordham Co., along with his partner Michael Reschke, ousted chairman of Prime Group Realty Trust, arranged in January to purchase a roughly two-acre parcel at Illinois Street and Columbus Drive from HBE Corp. of St. Louis for $60 million. They plan to close on the property, now a parking lot, in June.
The new site, with convenient access to North Michigan Avenue and the lake as well as the Chicago River, could support as much as 2 million square feet of buildings.
In addition to luxury condos, the duo is considering adding a swank hotel like the Hotel de Crillon, which Carley had planned to bring to his twisting tower, now renamed the Chicago Spire.
If Carley and Reschke get approval for their plans, the nearly three-year construction effort would likely start in mid- to late 2008. The structure could be ready for occupancy in 2011, and by then, in Carley’s opinion, “despite concerns about overbuilding, by the time my project is complete there wouldn’t be a lot of unsold product left.”
Although the near-term condition of the downtown property markets looks fairly grim, Carley stays optimistic by keeping a long-term perspective.
In 1987, as a partner for the real estate firm Trammell Crow, Carley said he tried to buy a 40-acre parcel that included his new site for $50 million. But the owner decided not to take him up on the offer.
“Now, just two acres has sold for $60 million,” Carley said.
The price appreciation is entirely warranted, he said. In addition to a small number of new offices, a flood of housing is changing the character of Chicago’s downtown.
“The transformation of downtown into a residential location is just beginning,” he said. “The giant Baby Boomer generation is coming downtown in a trickle now, but that will turn into a flood.
“Just wait five years. The number of housing units in development will triple or quadruple.”
Mr. Carley’s predictions have not always been as accurate as he might have hoped. Carley has been dogged by questions about the profitability of his recent condo projects, 65 E. Goethe St., the Fordham at 25 E. Superior St. and the Pinnacle at 21 E. Huron St.
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