CHICAGO | General Developments

[twister244]

Gotta say - I keep being impressed by the stream of nice infill developments like this ^^^^ Seeing new 2/3 flats going up in on residential roads is great too, but seeing these developments does a ton to help the street experience along the major arteries.

[left of center]

Agreed, its great seeing all the empty lots/low intensity use properties get replaced with much denser buildings. "Canyonizing" the arterials with 4-6 story buildings really helps improve the urban feel of the city as well.

This building in particular is a great replacement for the single story commercial Giordano's. Still retains the 1st floor commercial space, adds a good amount of residential and replaces the crappy current exterior with nice brickwork.

[ardecila]

Originally Posted by ajradfotwo

Not sure if anyone has any knowledge about this but while driving down Lasalle this morning, I was shocked to see that the old Caspian Rug property on Lasalle and Huron has been filled with what appeared to be a sleek-looking sales center.

I saw a render of what looked like a narrow 10-15 story tower on a corner lot. (maybe that very corner?) If anyone is in the area, it might be worth stopping by to see what's up.

Originally Posted by Jstange059

Maybe it’s for 227 W Chicago? That’s the nearest development I can think of that sort of matches your description.

Seems unlikely. Typically a sales center is for a condo development, and those generally don't break ground until they hit a certain % of pre-sales. 227 W Chicago is already U/C, and I'm guessing it will be rental units since it's a noisy site by the L tracks and it won't have much off-street parking.

700 N Lasalle (Caspian Rug) is zoned DX-5 and it's a small lot, so they're not doing 10-15 stories on that site by-right. That means they need a zoning change, so we would have heard about it.

So I don't know what this could be for. Maybe JDL? I think they're trying to get 909 N Franklin going, and that's supposed to be condos.

[RastaLulz]

Originally Posted by ajradfotwo

Not sure if anyone has any knowledge about this but while driving down Lasalle this morning, I was shocked to see that the old Caspian Rug property on Lasalle and Huron has been filled with what appeared to be a sleek-looking sales center.

I saw a render of what looked like a narrow 10-15 story tower on a corner lot. (maybe that very corner?) If anyone is in the area, it might be worth stopping by to see what's up.

Here's the rendering:


It appears to be for that corner, as it's labeled "Huron One Forty". https://maps.app.goo.gl/M36Qd9uCKMHj7iCg6

This appears to be the company behind it:
https://www.shb.studio/

[Jstange059]

Originally Posted by RastaLulz

It appears to be for that corner, as it's labeled "Huron One Forty". https://maps.app.goo.gl/M36Qd9uCKMHj7iCg6

This appears to be the company behind it:
https://www.shb.studio/

Well, this is quite exciting news. Never seen this project before, definitely excited to get this new density. 140 W Huron is indeed the address of the old rug shop so it presumably must be on that site. The surrounding buildings on the render however do not seem to match the actual buildings that surround the site, but that may be more of a reflection on the architecture firm who created the render

[west-town-brad]

Originally Posted by nomarandlee

Understated but refined. Like it.

How do we feel about the brick-colored utility block?

[ardecila]

Originally Posted by Jstange059

The surrounding buildings on the render however do not seem to match the actual buildings that surround the site, but that may be more of a reflection on the architecture firm who created the render

It’s AI slop. Not giving me confidence about this developer’s ability to execute, but I wish them the best…

[cloudbod]

Originally Posted by ardecila

It’s AI slop.

Ah dammit, you're right. I was blinded by my excitement for this type of building (similar to 56 W Huron or 550 W Wellington, a mid-rise with the proportions of a tower-- a typology that's rare here but common in Tokyo/NYC).

But yeah it's slop. The floors are sagging and some of the balconies aren't even enclosed. Hopefully their clientele is insulted by this and the devs are forced to pay for a proper render, instead of just stealing one via the plagiarism machine.

[Razorback]

Originally Posted by ardecila

It’s AI slop. Not giving me confidence about this developer’s ability to execute, but I wish them the best…

Maybe we should inquire more from the person who posted the photo. It appears to have been captured in a meeting. The developer is actually legit and is currently developing two condo buildings in Lincoln Park called Fullerton Pointe. If nothing has been released, maybe the project is in planning stages.

ajradfotwo, any additional details to share? Where did you capture this photo?

[Briguy]

Originally Posted by Razorback

Maybe we should inquire more from the person who posted the photo. It appears to have been captured in a meeting. The developer is actually legit and is currently developing two condo buildings in Lincoln Park called Fullerton Pointe. If nothing has been released, maybe the project is in planning stages.

ajradfotwo, any additional details to share? Where did you capture this photo?

I believe this is taken through the window of the showroom in river north where the rug shop was. I just drive by yesterday - didn’t get a good look at the the image, but it’s there. There’s sample finishes - wood, stone etc so it is a legit showroom. Odd the rendering is so bad, maybe they’re selling the floorplans first and then will fully design the envelope later in a similar vein as the ai image…

[ajradfotwo]

Here are some pics I took when I first saw this a few days ago. Sorry for the caddywampus pic. Looks like serious floor plans that would fit this site. Those definitely don't look like AI. The render is strange though, I agree. Seems odd that they would spend so much on a showroom, not advertise it at all, and use an AI render that doesn't really even show balconies in the same place as the plans.

20260114_185228 (1) by ajdrewster, on Flickr
20260114_185144 (1) by ajdrewster, on Flickr

[BruceP]

Originally Posted by ajradfotwo

Here are some pics I took when I first saw this a few days ago. Sorry for the caddywampus pic. Looks like serious floor plans that would fit this site. Those definitely don't look like AI. The render is strange though, I agree. Seems odd that they would spend so much on a showroom, not advertise it at all, and use an AI render that doesn't really even show balconies in the same place as the plans.

20260114_185228 (1) by ajdrewster, on Flickr
20260114_185144 (1) by ajdrewster, on Flickr

Whatever that is, it ain't a picture of LaSalle and Huron or anywhere up or down LaSalle. I'd walk over to the former Caspian Rugs, but it's too damn cold out there.

[ardecila]

Hmm looking at the floorplan, maybe the zoning numbers do work to build this thing by-right. 5.0 FAR, 8 full-floor units on floor 2-9, a duplexed penthouse on floors 10/11. Glad to see a developer realizing the huge potential of this site and not just leaving it as a one-story taxpayer building.

The cost to build will be extremely high, but they're clearly targeting the top 1% of condo buyers with a small boutique building. On a corner site with excellent access to light and air.

Despite the use of AI rendering, I think it's a handsome building - but that giant "HURON ONE FORTY" sign is tacky as hell. It's like that awful "Caden James" building off the Kennedy.

[r18tdi]

Originally Posted by ardecila

The cost to build will be extremely high, but they're clearly targeting the top 1% of condo buyers with a small boutique building. On a corner site with excellent access to light and air.

In recent memory there's been a handful of boutique River North condo projects that have gotten off the ground, such as Three Sixty West, 56 W. Huron and Superior House. And some others that really struggled, like Bentham (which went through multiple name changes and had to go rental) and 61 W. Erie (which also gave up on condos and shifted to a Sonder hotel).

I wish them good luck. Anything is better than a vacant single-story rug store.

[AlexanderRek]

I walked by the other day and it looked like they were just getting set up. Sign on the side of building says construction financing by First Eagle Bank. Also, owner/architect started a re fund in 2025 per LinkedIn. Cheers.

[Lakeviewguy]

This entire part of River North remains totally underdeveloped. In my short walk around this area last week, I saw the shut down Hard Rock and Rainforest Cafe; the Walgreens with surface lot; the BP station; and, of course, the biggest eye sore of all, the McDonalds at Clark/LaSalle/Ohio/Ontario. Years ago, I suggested a park be built on the McDonalds lot, and I still stand by that. It would supercharge development in the whole area.

[munchymunch]

Originally Posted by AlexanderRek

I walked by the other day and it looked like they were just getting set up. Sign on the side of building says construction financing by First Eagle Bank. Also, owner/architect started a re fund in 2025 per LinkedIn. Cheers.

Spoke to someone that knows the architect today about this and apparently there’s another one planned in River North from the same team. Similar size, sure where though…

[Steely Dan]

This thread has too many posts.

Time to start a new one.

Continue here: https://skyscraperpage.com/forum/showthread.php?t=263673