Johnson greenlights four ‘LaSalle Reimagined’ sites to build downtown residences

Mayor Brandon Johnson will move ahead with predecessor Lori Lightfoot’s program to fix up four aging Loop buildings, offering $151.2 million in public money to help convert them into residences as the city seeks a way to repurpose empty downtown offices.

Together, the projects would cost roughly $520 million and create 1,000 more living units. Of those, 319 would be rented at affordable rates, if they are approved by various city panels.

Two of the development teams are also in the process of seeking federal loans. If approved, the four projects could break ground as soon as early next year and open by 2027. They would include a mix of studio, one- and two-bedroom units and would chip away at the estimated 5 million square feet of vacant space and dearth of affordable housing downtown. Just 32 units in the loop are currently affordable.

With the exception of one new project, Johnson’s announcement Wednesday was nearly identical to the ones unveiled by Lightfoot’s administration in the spring, although somewhat pared down. The announcement, however, did provide assurances to anxious developers and downtown aldermen that city assistance will likely come through.

The proposals must still be reviewed by the city’s Community Development Commission, Landmarks Commission and the City Council.

Johnson also used his Wednesday rollout at 208 S. LaSalle St. to preview other upcoming development-friendly initiatives, including a “downtown economic growth advisory committee” he said will launch this spring.

In addition, the administration will pursue state legislation to create business improvement districts in the city, Johnson said. Those hyperlocal taxing districts, similar to the city’s existing special service areas, would raise a small tax on certain property owners in the area that could pay for security, beautification efforts and administrative costs.

Kenya Merritt, Johnson’s deputy mayor for business and neighborhood development, said the administration would share a report later this week about how the administration could streamline the development approval process on housing and commercial projects citywide.

Amid a pandemic that changed work patterns and a steady migration of employers to the West Loop, Lightfoot’s LaSalle Reimagined initiative aimed to put lingering unused office space downtown to residential and retail use. It was put on hold after Lightfoot’s defeat in the 2023 election.

In an interview Tuesday with the Tribune, Johnson’s new housing and planning commissioners said this program, plus Johnson’s planned $1.25 billion economic development bond — an idea also first pitched by Lightfoot administration leaders — show the new mayor’s dedication to equity and affordability while also preserving historic buildings.

Johnson’s planning commissioner, Ciere Boatright, told the Tribune Tuesday the proposal is one of the largest adaptive reuse efforts to move forward within any central business district in the country and “speaks volumes to this administration’s commitment to attracting investment.”

“These four buildings are sure to become our poster children, if you will, for the Loop’s rebirth as a mixed use neighborhood and we are thrilled with each team,” Boatright said Tuesday.

The winning proposals have changed just slightly since last spring and include more creative funding stacks that include federal loans, Boatright said. In some cases, the city pared down the tax increment financing, or TIF, dollars offered, while developers have changed the number of units they plan to offer:

• 79 W. Monroe St.: Eight floors of the Bell Federal building would be redeveloped by the Campari Group into 117 residential units. 41 would be affordable, thanks to $28 million in TIF help. The $64.2 million project would also include restoration of the “Weather Bell” sign that changes colors as it predicts temperature changes. The team is seeking city landmark designation and federal historic tax credits. The project “wasn’t part of last year’s initial selection due to timing issues,” Boatright said Wednesday, but was chosen after it became clear “sufficient funding was available.”

• 111 W. Monroe St.: The most expensive plan of the four, the remake of this 1911 high-rise would take place between 14 floors in a pair of adjacent buildings. It would create 345 rental units, of which 105 would be affordable. The $202.8 million project from Prime Group Inc and Capri Investor LLC would be funded with $40 million in city tax increment financing dollars, and potentially low-income housing tax credits, tax exempt bonds, a federal loan, and historic tax credits. Prime Group is also working on the renovation of the Thompson Center for Google’s new downtown headquarters. If the project receives a landmark designation from the city, a property tax break “would also support a planned 228-key hotel within the complex,” according to a city release.

• 208 S. LaSalle St.: Prime Group is also involved in this slightly scaled-down $122.7 million project to create 226 apartment units at the original home of the Continental and Commercial National Bank. 68 units would be affordable. The project was initially slated to cost $130 million and provide 280 units, 84 affordable ones. The proposal’s financing would include the use of $26.2 million in TIF — $6.8 million lower than the initial proposal — plus low-income housing tax credits, tax exempt bonds and a federal loan.

• 30 N. LaSalle St.: The redevelopment of this half-century old high-rise by Golub & Co would create 349 units, with 105 affordable. The original proposal included ground-floor retail, as well as green space and seating on streets bordering the property. The city would offer $57 million in TIF, down by $5 million from the original submission.

Two other proposed projects — at 135 S. LaSalle St. and 105 W. Adams St. — “continue to be evaluated” by the city’s planning and housing departments for city support.

Affordable units would be reserved for renters earning at or below 60% of the area median income, or roughly $53,000 for a two-person household.

Genie Kastrup, president of SEIU Local 1, supported the idea, saying the additional housing would help its members live where they work. “My union is over 100 years old, and it is the first time in the history of our city where a janitor who works in a commercial office building who gets done usually at 12:30 or 1:00 at night may be able to walk across the street to their home instead of commuting an hour.”

The tax increment financing district surrounding the developments is among the best-funded in the city, and is expected to rake in between $170 million and $200 million in diverted property tax revenues each year until it expires in 2030.

Despite worries from local aldermen Brendan Reilly, 42nd, and Bill Conway, 34th, that the mayor’s diversion of LaSalle TIF money to help balance this year’s city budget threatened the program, the city has earmarked a total of $320 million for LaSalle Reimagined projects in 2025 and 2026, according to Johnson administration officials.

aquig@chicagotribune.com