Waldorf Astoria acquired in foreclosure, Ken Griffin adds $99M Florida home to incredible portfolio: Daily digest

Each day, The Real Deal rounds up Chicago’s biggest real estate news. We update this page in real time, starting at 10 a.m. Please send any tips or deals to tips@therealdeal.com.

Walton Street Capital has acquired the Gold Coast’s Waldorf Astoria in foreclosure. Geller and Wanxiang America Real Estate Group defaulted on a loan rumored to top $90 million. Walton Street has hired Atlanta-based Hodges Ward Elliott to sell the famed 290-unit Gold Coast building at 11 E. Walton St. [Crain’s]

The Committee on Housing and Real Estate will vote on Wednesday whether to up deconversion requirements to 85 percent owner approval. Currently, three-fourths of owners must approve for a developer to turn condos into apartments. The legislation could have major implications for Chicago’s deconversion trend. [Curbed]

Ken Griffin, Illinois’s richest man and founder of Citadel, has purchased a Palm Beach, Fl. beachfront house for $99.1 million. The property adds to a portfolio of luxury properties at No. 9 Walton, the Waldorf Astoria, and the $238 million 220 Central Park South penthouse that broke records early this year. [Crain’s]

West Chicago landlord Glenn C. Mueller will face Ponzi scheme allegations from the SEC. He raised $42 million from over 300 investors in unregistered securities. His company, Northridge Holdings, operated 935 apartments and claimed to use investor money to flip properties. [Crain’s]

199 East Lake Shore Drive, 1325 North Astor Street

The Near North Side claimed all of Chicago’s priciest listings from last week, totalling 33.2 million. One listing at 1442 North Astor Street presents an unconventional pitch as a multi-million-dollar fixer-upper. [TRD]

Waukegan received five casino development proposals for the Fountain Square shopping center at Lakehurst Road and Northpoint Boulevard. The city will submit recommendations to the Illinois Gaming Board in late October. The winning developer will pay $15 million upfront for the license. [Sun-Times]

More than 100 Woodlawn residents rallied Thursday to push for an Obama Center community benefits agreement. The ordinance would freeze property taxes and require 30 percent affordable housing in new developments. [Block Club]

Mercy Housing Lakefront has won the Richard H. Driehaus Foundation Preservation Award from Landmarks Illinois for its rehabilitation of The Lofts on Arthington. The 181-unit affordable housing complex at 3301 W. Arthington St. was converted from the historic West Side Sears, Roebuck and Co. catalog printing building, which required extensive renovation after 40 years of vacancy. [Block Club]

The Resurrection Project, a Pilsen nonprofit developer, will propose a 37-unit, five-story affordable housing building in October after community objections to a 45-unit, six-story building proposal in July. The $20 million project will require demolition of a vacant single-story building at 19th Street and Racine Avenue, which the Resurrection Project bought for $1 million in 2018. [Sun-Times]

Oak Brook’s Krusinski Construction completed a 113,000-square foot industrial building for School Health, a Rolling Meadows-based medical supply company. The old building at 5600 Apollo Drive was demolished to make way for an office and distribution center. The space has a wood-veneered library, two fireplaces, a two-story town hall, and an entertainment patio with a firepit. [ReJournals]

The We Company’s valuation might drop even further. Last week, the WeWork parent company was reportedly mulling halving its valuation, and the latest consideration of less than $20 billion would be a steep drop from the $47 billion valuation the firm claimed after raising more money this year. Possible public investors are skeptical about the company’s governance, ability to turn a profit and business model. The company’s underwriters plan to meet this week with investors to determine what changes they might need to spur enough demand for a public offering. Some investors want the company to shelve the IPO plan altogether. [WSJ]

The working-from-home trend is leading to a boom in second cities. Employees who either work from home, freelance or travel constantly are starting to move away from larger cities like San Francisco and Los Angeles to cheaper areas like Boise and Denver. New York City Residents are moving to Austin, Charlotte, Orlando and Raleigh. The migration is common late in the economic cycle, but as worries of a downturn arise the ultimate effects on the cities remain unclear. [WSJ]