Onni doubles down on development plans near Bally’s casino site

Canadian firm aims to build 2,400 units across multiple towers, just south of its Halsted Pointe plans for Goose Island

Onni Group founder Innocenzo De Cotiis and 700 W. Chicago Ave
Onni Group founder Innocenzo De Cotiis and 700 W. Chicago Ave (Onni Group, Google Maps)

Onni Group is going all-in on a residential development near the site of Chicago’s first casino, as it hopes to cash in on the imminent growth in the area.

The Canadian firm, founded by the late Innocenzo De Cotiis, is seeking approval to build a massive multifamily complex with 2,450 units spanning multiple high-rises at 700 West Chicago Avenue, across the river from Onni’s 2,600-unit Halsted Pointe project that’s in the works, CoStar reported.

The proposal comes about a year after Onni paid $45 million for the 7-acre property, which houses a former Chicago Tribune warehouse. The area, historically known for low-rise industrial operations, is poised for a major transformation.

Shapack Partners is planning 2,200 apartments and a 141-room hotel nearby on Grand Avenue. In total, more than 12,000 apartments could be on the way in an area that’s already congested.

The surge in new development along the river coincides with the highly-anticipated Bally’s casino coming to the area, and marks a bit of a northward shift from Fulton Market, the city’s development hotspot for the last several years.

Sign Up for the undefined Newsletter

The $1.7 billion casino project will replace the 30-acre Chicago Tribune Publishing Center. The casino complex is slated for 3,400 slots and 170 game tables, a 500-room hotel, 3,000-seat theater, an exhibition hall and restaurants.

Albeit, Onni’s Halsted Pointe development was planned well before former mayor Lori Lightfoot approved the city’s first casino license. The 2.7 million-square-foot project is expected to break ground toward the end of the year.

The 700 West Chicago project is set to be developed in three phases, starting with a 56- and 44-story towers combining for 1,230 units. The final stage will feature 51- and 57-story towers totalling 1,220 units atop a podium. There will also be 1,950 parking spaces.

— Quinn Donoghue

Read more

Onni Group’s Duncan Wlodarczak and a rendering of Halsted Pointe (Getty, Onni Group, LinkedIn/Duncan Wlodarczak)
Development
Chicago
Onni Group closing on Goose Island megadevelopment kickoff
Onni Group's Innocenzo De Cotiis and rendering of pedestrian walkway plaza (City of Chicago, Getty, Onni Group)
Development
Chicago
Onni Group proposes 29-story Fulton Market office tower
Monroe Residential Partners’ Michael Obloy and Andrew Friestedt with 851 West Grand Avenue (Monroe Residential Partners, Interra Realty, Getty)
Commercial
Chicago
Monroe Residential gets $11M for new apartments near casino site
Recommended For You