Highland Park Blocks Plan for Michael Jordan’s Former Estate

Michael Jordan’s former Highland Park mansion won’t be carved up into million-dollar slices after all.

Highland Park officials this week amended the city’s zoning ordinance to ban timeshares in single-family homes, effectively killing a plan from self-storage investor John Cooper, who bought the 7.4-acre estate at 2700 Point Lane in December for $9.5 million.

Cooper had plans to sell $1 million shares in property — renamed Champions Point — giving buyers a deeded interest and a weeklong stay each year, Crain’s reported. The zoning change, approved this week, plugged any potential loophole that may have allowed that model.

“It may be that the issue was brought to our attention because of one particular property,” Steven Elrod, Highland Park’s corporation counsel, told the council before the vote, while stressing the measure applies citywide.

Cooper said he was exploring alternatives, including long-term or short-term leases. Those are now in motion: the 37,700-square-foot home, still adorned with Jordan’s No. 23 on the gate, is listed for $89,000 a month or $78,137 for a five-night stay on Airbnb.

The nine-bedroom, 19 bathroom home has a full-size indoor basketball court, two salt-water aquariums and a cigar lounge with humidor and custom leather poker tables.

Fractional ownership — which Cooper had pitched as a unique chance to “own a piece of history” — is distinct from the vacation timeshare model, but that distinction didn’t matter to Highland Park. The council’s amendment allows timeshares only in commercial districts. The city does allow short-term rentals, meaning Cooper can still monetize the estate through leasing.

Jordan built the house in the early 1990s while dominating the NBA, and he lived there until after his 2006 divorce from Juanita Jordan. He listed the mansion in 2012 for $29 million, but it languished on the market for more than a decade before selling at a steep discount last year. — Eric Weilbacher