Developers Propose 303-unit Apartment Building in Chicago

A long-vacant medical office building at one of the North Side’s busiest corners could be replaced by a 24-story apartment building, adding 303 units and more than 10,000 square feet of retail to the Lakeview-Lincoln Park border.

Chicago Development Partners and Continuum Capital are proposing the mixed-use project at 2800 North Sheridan Road, at the northwest corner of West Diversey Parkway and North Sheridan Road. The development would replace the six-story medical building and adjacent surface parking lot with a 281-foot-tall building designed by Antunovich Associates, Urbanize Chicago reported.

If approved, the project would slot into a growing row of high-rises overlooking Diversey Harbor and Lincoln Park, according to the publication. Continuum acquired the property late last year for $17.25 million.

The plan calls for 303 apartments, with 60 units — 20 percent — set aside as affordable to meet the city’s requirements. The mix includes 54 studios, 36 convertibles, 109 one-bedrooms, 45 one-bedroom plus dens, 47 two-bedrooms and 12 three-bedrooms. Typical floors from levels three through 20 would hold 15 units each, while the upper floors would shift to larger layouts with nine units per floor.

The building is planned to rise from a two-story podium clad in dark masonry with storefront glazing along Diversey and wrapping onto Sheridan. A two-story parking garage on the northern portion of the site would provide 150 car spaces and 414 bike parking spots, according to the outlet. Additionally, the ground floor would house 10,559 square feet of retail, with the residential lobby facing Sheridan. Loading and mechanical space would fill out the remainder.

Amenity space is peppered throughout the complex’s plans. The second floor would include 8,700 square feet of indoor amenities and a south-facing terrace aimed at park and lake views. The 24th floor would be dedicated to a 5,200-square-foot amenity suite as well as a roof deck with a pool.

In an email to constituents, Alderman Bennett Lawson, whose 44th Ward includes the apartment site, said his office is weighing whether the design delivers a “stunning gateway to Lakeview” while extending the Diversey commercial corridor to Sheridan.

In an interview with CoStar, Evan Meador, co-founder and managing member at Continuum Capital, told the publication that the project would bring needed housing supply to the lakefront, and also echoed Lawson’s “gateway to Lakeview” sentiments about the project.

To move forward, the developers are seeking an amendment the planned development for the site, though its zoning designation of B3-5 already supports Continuum’s plans. The proposal must clear the Chicago Plan Commission, the Committee on Zoning and the City Council.

— Eric Weilbacher

Editor’s note: This story was updated to note the property’s current zoning designation allows Continuum’s planned project, after Alderman Lawson’s website removed an incorrect description of its zoning that appeared earlier.