Sterling Bay secured financing for its first multifamily project in Chicago’s Fulton Market, clearing the way for construction to start.
Sterling Bay and Denver real estate private equity firm Ascentris scored an $81.8 million construction loan from Chicago-based CIBC Bank USA for a 30-story, 282-unit apartment and more than 2,600 square feet of retail space at 160 North Morgan. The project is expected to be completed in 2024.
“With its strong pipeline of incoming corporate headquarters, innovative retailers and promising tech ventures, the area now needs more multifamily options that can accomodate a young, modern workforce,” Andy Gloor, CEO of Sterling Bay said in a statement.
Long off-limits for residential builders, the Chicago City Council lifted the ban in April 2021 to spur development during the pandemic.
The measure opened the door for residential developments including a 33-story, 204-unit apartment dower at 210 North Morgan Street developed by Newcastle, 665-unit residential building on 1143 and 1150 West Lake streets proposed by LG Development and a 1.1 million square feet of residential and office buildings around the block of 1200 West Fulton Street.
To comply with the city’s ordinance to provide 20 percent of affordable housing, Sterling Bay and Ascentris will provide 28 units on-site with and 28 units at SL Solar Lofts, a 44-unit residential project led by minority-owned real estate development firm 548 Capital at 2548 South Federal Street on Chicago’s South Side.
The building, designed by local firm bKL Architecture, will have outdoor amenity decks, a fitness center, and a rooftop pool. The property is between CTA’s Morgan L station and the restaurant district on Randolph Row.
Sterling Bay’s first multifamily project follows the firm’s development of major office and hotel buildings in the West Loop, including Google’s midwest headquarters at 1K Fulton, the 159-key Ace Hotel at 311 North Morgan Street, and the 575,000-square-foot McDonald’s global headquarters at 110 North Carpenter Street.
Considered a pioneer of the former meatpacking district, Sterling Bay bought a 10-story warehouse building in 2012 for $12 million and converted it to an office property that sold for $304 million to American Realty Advisors for about $304 million.
The firm’s dozen or so projects total more than 4.4 million square feet, according to its website. At a price tag of more than $105 million, Sterling Bay also plans to buy a vacant 2.7-acre site running along the west side of Peoria Street and Metra tracks, the largest remaining development site in the Fulton Market district.