MCZ Development vows to block sale of Streeterville condo building

A developer that owns a number of units in a Streeterville condominium vowed to block the building association’s plans to sell the 150-condo building.

The board of 540 North Lake Shore Drive wants to sell not only the seven-story building but also the attached 73-car parking garage that would be an attractive redevelopment opportunity, according to Crain’s.

“It’s potentially well suited for a hotel or condominium building,” CBRE’s Marty Stern told Crain’s. There is no published asking price, Stern said.

But a lawyer for MCZ Development, which owns a number of units in the building, said it will oppose the sale.

“They might as well throw in the Brooklyn Bridge and the Sears Tower” into the offering, attorney Bill Choslovsky told Crain’s. “They can’t deliver those and they can’t deliver this building.”

MCZ last month sued the board, claiming it illegally changed the association’s rules to try to thwart the developer from buying more units in the building.

Key to the spat will be how much of the building MCZ actually owns. Illinois law requires 75 percent of ownership to approve of a bulk sale of a condo building.

Choslovsky said his client owns more than 25 percent. Crain’s could only find Cook County records showing 24 condos owned by MCZ, though another attorney for the firm previously said the number was 31, with several more under contract.

But the 75 percent threshold is based on the total value of the condominium, not on the total number of units, making it more unclear if MCZ owns the 25 percent of the building to block the sale.

Representatives of the association did not respond to requests for comment from Crain’s. [Crain’s] — John O’Brien