Chicago Cheat Sheet: Ravenswood mansion sells after asking price halved…& more

After languishing on the market, Ravenswood mansion sells

A Ravenswood mansion built in the 1890s by the founder of Abbott Labs sold after three years on the market and for just half its original asking price. Sellers Kathryn and Rob Craig put the 7,000-square-foot home at 4605 North Hermitage Avenue on the market in 2016 for $3.5 million and sold it last week for $1.8 million. The home sits on nearly five standard Chicago lots and features five bedrooms and a rentable coach house. Jennier Ames of Engel & Volkers had the listing. [Crain’s]

Old Town School changes course, won’t sell original location

The Old Town School of Folk Music will not sell its building its original location in Lakeview after all. The decision by the school’s board follows months of protests and negotiations in the wake of the school’s October announcement it planned to sell the building at 909 West Armitage Avenue. The school, now based in Lincoln Square, will focus on increasing enrollment now that it’s keeping both locations. [Block Club]

Rascal Flatts getting out of bar business

Country band Rascal Flatts no longer plans to open a restaurant and bar at The Arboretum of South Barrington shopping center. It is also distancing itself from the developer behind the chain of eateries named after the group. The band said it has cut ties with developer RF Restaurants. Construction began in February 2018 on what was supposed to be a 12,000-square-foot Rascal Flatts Bar and Grill in the mall at Higgins Road and Illinois 59, but the venue never opened. Other locations in the chain across the country either closed or never opened. [Daily Herald]

Developer can’t recover $2.3M from failed Teamsters HQ

A developer who built a headquarters for an area Teamsters local can’t recoup $2.3 million from the project after the union pulled out of the contract. The Illinois Supreme Court last week ruled 1550 MP Road LLC isn’t entitled to a lower court’s award because one of the union’s officers executed the deal for the building without the consent of the membership. The developer had sued Teamsters Local 700, saying it breached a lease and purchase agreement for a property the company built for the union. But Supreme Court Justice Anne Burke wrote that membership should have been given the chance to vote on the deal before it was signed. [Cook County Record]