Hoxton Plots Second Chicago Hotel Near Millennium Park

Another Hoxton hotel is coming to Chicago.

London-based Ennismore, parent company of the Hoxton brand, reached an agreement to open a second Chicago location as part of a planned 47-story tower at 193 North Columbus Drive, CoStar reported.

The project, led by Magellan Development Group and South Korean partner Hanwha Engineering & Construction, would rise on a vacant parcel in the Lakeshore East neighborhood.

The location is expected to include about 240 rooms. More than 500 apartments are also planned for the development.

The project, known as Parcel O, has been in planning for years and still requires a construction loan to move forward, a major hurdle amid ongoing challenges in the capital markets.

The 182-key Hoxton hotel opened in the Fulton Market District in 2019. That location, developed by Shapack Partners, became known as a nightlife hub with two restaurants, a cocktail bar, coworking space and rooftop patio.

Lakeshore East, by contrast, caters to tourists and luxury condo dwellers, with views of Lake Michigan and proximity to Millennium Park, Navy Pier and the Magnificent Mile.

It would join two hotels embedded in skyscrapers already in the area: the 334-key Radisson Blu at the Aqua Tower and the 192-key St. Regis in Chicago’s third-tallest building.

It also isn’t the only hotel recently sizing up Chicago submarkets. Global Ambassador, a five-star hospitality brand launched by restaurateur Sam Fox, is in talks to anchor a 40-story mixed-use development at 170 North Green Street by CRG and Shapack Partners.

That project, approved for 150 hotel rooms, 275 apartments and 350,000 square feet of office, reflects developers’ push to draw premium lodging brands as office leasing softens and competition tightens for anchor tenants in the city’s hottest real estate corridors.

If the project comes to fruition, Hoxton’s expansion would signal a bet on Lakeshore East’s staying power as a magnet for tourism and residential growth. It also reinforces Ennismore’s continued push in the U.S. and abroad: the company operates 184 hotels worldwide, with 140 more in the pipeline across 15 brands including Delano, Mondrian and Mama Shelter.

— Judah Duke