Three developers are planning as many as 2,100 apartments and an office tower at the north end of the Fulton Market District, adding to the growing list of high-rise projects proposed for the fast-growing neighborhood.
The projects would include:
- An apartment tower that Miami-based Crescent Heights plans at 420 N. May St. It will rise 52 stories, or 600 feet, which would make it the tallest building in the Fulton Market District.
- About three blocks to the east, New York-based Vista Property Group will develop three towers on North Morgan Street that would include about 1,600 apartments.
- Three blocks farther east, Canadian developer Onni Group is proposing a 27-story building at Kinzie and Green Streets that would include 676,000 square feet of office space.
According to Crain's Chicago Business, on December 14, all three firms will present their plans to the Chicago Committee on Design. They are joining a herd of developers that have stampeded into Fulton Market in the past several years, putting up office buildings, hotels and more recently, lots of apartments.
Fulton Market used to be an industrial enclave dominated by food processors, industrial companies and restaurants. They are now home to companies like McDonalds and Google, trendy retailers and thousands of residents. The northern end of Fulton Market has become an especially popular spot with apartment developers since 2020, when the city lifted a prohibition on residential development north of Lake Street.
With rising interest rates and growing odds of a recession, developers no longer have the wind at their backs. It is a lot harder today to secure construction financing than it was at the beginning of the year, so many projects in the planning stage now exist only on paper.
There are many projects under construction or proposed in the West Loop today. Developers are on track to complete about 3,500 apartments between now and the end of 2024, with more than 10,000 proposed units.
The apartment building at 420 N. May St. by Crescent Heights will include:
- 587 apartments
- A 71,200 square foot parcel
- Designed by Hartshorne Plunkard Architecture
- Building would rise from a broad base with multiple setbacks as its height increases to 600 feet/52 stories
Crescent Heights may be best known in Chicago for Nema Chicago, a 76-story 800 unit apartment tower it built at the south end of Grant Park. They also plan to build a 47-story, 413 unit rental building at 640 W. Washington Blvd., just east of the Kennedy Expressway.
Vista is planning three buildings which will include:
- 400 foot tower with 478 apartments at 400 N. Morgan
- 360 foot building with 529 apartments at 370 N. Morgan
- 450 foot high-rise at 401 N. Morgan
- Will include either office space or 458 apartments
Vista recently completed a15-story office building on the 600 block of West Randolph and has proposed a similar office project just down the street. Vista is also developing a 168-unit apartment building in River North.
Connect CRE states that Onni has hired Chicago-based architecture firm Solomon Cordwell Buenz to design its office building at 357 N. Green St. The building will be located just west of where the Kennedy Expressway passes through Hubbard's Cave and will include:
- 27 story building
- 676 square feet of office space
An executive at Onni did not respond to a request for comment. The Vancouver-based developer has been busy with office and residential projects in Chicago, with plans for a major mixed-use development with 2,700 apartments at the southern end of Goose Island.
The three developers are seeking zoning changes for their buildings and, therefore, will also need the approval of the Chicago Plan Commission and City Council.
