Two convents look to redevelop, sell sprawling campuses

Two Chicago-area congregations are looking to offload their campuses as their populations dwindle.

The Cenacle Sisters are hoping to demolish and sell their retreat and conference center at 513 W. Fullerton Parkway in Lincoln Park, Block Club reported. And the Benedictine Sisters want to sell part of their campus at 7430 N. Ridge Boulevard in West Ridge.

Both have seen a dwindling and aging population of nuns, so the real estate maneuvers would raise funds to help the groups’ members.

The Cenacle Sisters last week received approval to demolish its campus, which was built in 1967 and ranges from one to seven stories in height. They are planning to sell to a developer who would build single-family homes and two flats. The proceeds from the sale would help care for the sisters’ aging nuns.

Meanwhile, the Benedictine Sisters want to “right size” their 15-acre campus by selling a portion of it to a developer who would build a senior living facility for the nuns and the community. The group will need to secure a zoning amendment for the project, which would sit on 3 acres with a four-story structure, 100 apartments and 134 parking spaces. A developer would have the ultimate say over the final project.

A high school on the site closed in 2013, but a charter school remains on a lease at the site through 2024.

[Block Club 1, 2] — Danielle Balbi