Adjusted plans for 1325 W. Fulton will go before Plan Commission

The Chicago Plan Commission will review an adjusted plan for the multi-phase condo development at 1325 W. Fulton later this month. Planned by Chicago-based developer Sulo Development, the project site is a full block, vacant site along W. Fulton St from N. Elizabeth St to N. Ada St. 

Designed by KPF and ParkFowler Plus, the three-tower project has been designed to connect to the industrial and historic context of Fulton Market with refined, elegant detailing. Predominantly brick buildings, the towers have been designed with modularity and rhythm to contribute to a more human scale design. 

The three-tower massing is spread across the site with two towers anchoring each corner and one building in the middle. With a goal to make a pedestrian-friendly design, the three buildings will be separated by two public pocket parks to provide relief for pedestrians walking past the site. 

Since the proposal was presented to the community, the scope of each building has adjusted slightly. Planned for the eastern side of the site, Phase 1 will be a 29-story tower reaching 438 feet in height with 80 condominiums, down from 83 at the time of the community meeting. The building is designed with a double-height lobby on the ground floor fronting W. Fulton St and N. Elizabeth St with parking accessed from the alley. The podium will have residential units screening the upper floors of parking, topped by an amenity floor that includes a loggia that sets back the building’s massing to highlight the podium height datum line. 

With a mix of two-bed, three-bed, and four-bedroom homes, the residential floors of the tower will have three residential tiers with four units per floor, three units per floor, and two units per floor as the tower reaches taller. The unit sizes range in size from approximately 2,400 square feet for two-beds up to approximately 4,500 square feet for four-bedroom layouts.

Phase 2 will be a 19-story tower reaching 301 feet in height with 50 condominiums (down from 53) and Phase 3 will be a 39-story tower reaching 538 feet in height with 110 condominiums (down from 114).

The largest adjustment to the plan is the parking count for the development. At the time of the community meeting, the development team was trying to target a 1.5 parking space per unit ratio while the city code would be limiting the project to just a 0.7 space per unit ratio. The developer was considering oversized or tandem spaces to try and fit more cars. Now, the project description for the Plan Commission shows 360 total parking spaces for the project, split into 195 spaces for Phase 1 and 2 and 165 parking spaces in Phase 3.

The developer is seeking to rezone the site from M2-3 to DX-7 with an overall Planned Development designation. The team will pay approximately $7.8 million into the Neighborhood Opportunity Fund to get an additional 4.5 FAR bonus. If the Chicago Plan Commission grants approval, the proposal will proceed to secure final approvals from the Committee on Zoning and City Council. 

The development team plans to open a sales gallery in August 2025 to pre-sell condos in the Phase 1 tower. Groundbreaking of the first tower is targeted for August 2026 and would be delivered sometime in 2028. Future phases would be built out over time. In the interim, the footprint for the future phases will include an open grass area and a new one-story sales center building at the west end of the site.