CA Ventures employee working at Sterling Bay’s Prudential Plaza tests positive for coronavirus

The worker at the massive two-building Prudential Plaza in the Loop who tested positive for coronavirus is an employee of CA Ventures,  one of the city’s busiest developers, The Real Deal has learned.

Landlord Sterling Bay said it alerted tenants in the 2.4 million-square-foot complex at 130 East Randolph Street immediately after learning of the diagnosis Tuesday.

The CA Ventures employee hasn’t returned to the company’s headquarters in Prudential Plaza since March 3, CA Ventures told TRD. The person has been under quarantine since yesterday’s diagnosis, the spokesperson said. No one who works within close proximity of that person have developed symptoms, but they will still remain under self-quarantine for the next 14 days, the spokesperson added.

“Our immediate concern is with the affected individual and their family, and our number one priority is ensuring the safety of our staff and community,” CA Ventures said in a statement. “We are taking every precautionary measure possible to protect the health and well-being of our corporate employees, as well as our site-level associates and residents across CA’s portfolio.”

As a result of the worker’s diagnosis, CA Ventures immediately closed its office inside Prudential Plaza and instructed employees to work remotely. It also suspended all non-essential staff travel and meetings.

Prudential Plaza was expected to remain open Wednesday, as Sterling Bay worked to “aggressively” clean all of the building’s high-touch areas, including CA Venture’s office, but the company encouraged tenants to consider enforcing work-from-home policies.

“We take this situation extremely seriously,” said a spokesperson for Sterling Bay. “As soon as we learned of the diagnosis, we immediately notified building tenants and advised anyone who feels ill to stay home and contact a health professional if they experience symptoms of COVID-19. We have been and will continue to aggressively clean One Two Pru in accordance with CDC and WHO protocol. ”

CA Ventures, founded in 2004, has a $13 billion global real estate portfolio, with assets spanning senior housing, student apartments, office and multifamily properties.

Locally, assets include a 20-story office building near Old St. Patrick’s Church at 625 West Adams, as well as the 33-story Arkadia Tower in Greektown. CA Ventures’ $141 million State Street development was halted in December after security concerns raised by judges in the nearby Dirksen U.S. Courthouse. Last month, the company said it would develop a $12 billion investment strategy for the company’s student housing and residential divisions.

Meanwhile, Sterling Bay bought the complex at 130 E. Randolph for $680 million in April 2018. Its other tenants include Wilson Sporting Goods and the Chicago Tribune.

So far, 25 confirmed cases of coronavirus have been reported across Illinois, Gov. J.B. Pritzker announced Wednesday.

Contagion concerns relating to the virus — which the World Health Organization just officially declared a pandemic — has led to the cancelation of four conventions at McCormick Place.