http://www.chicagotribune.com/classi...realestate-hed
Retail, residential to mix in S. Shore
Neighborhood ready for `spark'
By Jeanette Almada
Special to the Tribune
Published January 21, 2007
A mixed-use development with 34 condominiums is planned for a vacant city-owned parcel on the northeast corner of 71st Street and Paxton Avenue in the South Shore neighborhood.
The development entity, Doc Toast LLC, has agreed to pay the city the appraised market-rate value for the land--$275,000 for the 25,193-square-foot tract at 2204-24 E. 71st St.
The LLC is a partnership between Chicago-area rehabber Herschel Tolson; attorney and investor William Lowry; and Oak Park-based architect and builder John Schiess of Metropolis Architects and Builders.
Schiess has designed and built custom-houses in neighborhoods including North Kenwood, Pilsen and Humboldt Park. And Metropolis has designed several projects that are underway or completed in Oak Park, such as Opera Club Condominiums, Madison Square Townhomes and Maple Square Townhomes.
"On this corner of the South Shore neighborhood, we think we will be a catalyst for change. It is an area that is idling, just waiting for a spark. I see a big transformation on [71st Street] in the next three to five years," Schiess said.
"There are great storefronts with great character, 1920s and '30s architecture that need rehab more than new construction. There are plenty of vacant lots but the streetscape is just great, and those lots can be used for parking to support new retail. There is enough new housing in the periphery ... we looked at that and said `boy, the people who live in this housing will really need services,'" Schiess said.
The Chicago Community Development Commission approved the land sale in December. City Council approval is expected in February, Schiess said.
The developer will build 26 two-bed, 2 1/2- bath units with 970 to 1,100 square feet; two 912-square-foot 1-bed, 1 1/2-bath condos and six 1,100- to 1,166-square-foot three-bed, 2 1/2-bath units. They will be priced from $250,000 to $275,000.
The building will have 8,600 square feet of ground-floor retail space, Schiess said. A restaurateur has submitted a letter to the developer expressing interesting in opening a sit-down pancake house there.
"We are looking for a tenant that can offer services, a food pantry type of place that will meet needs of condo owners or a bookstore," Schiess said.
The developer will sell the units through an independent realty agent, from an on-site sales center that will open in early spring. Construction is expected to begin in early summer, Schiess said.