Despite the pandemic, Chicago high-rise construction still making headway compared to other cities: "By the end of the first quarter of 2021, Chicago had just a dozen active tower cranes operating on various high-rise projects. While it's certainly a lower figure than where the city was just a few years prior, Chicago still leads other major metros such as New York, San Francisco, and Phoenix, according to the RLB Crane Index." (RE Journals)
Preservationists roll out plan to save the city's vanishing workers cottages: "As developers continue to raze workers cottages for single-family homes and condos in gentrifying Logan Square and other parts of the city, preservationists are embarking on a project to raise awareness about the historical yet overlooked homes and to shape policies that would save them from demolition." (Block Club Chicago)
A row of workers cottages along Western Avenue in Brighton Park Chicago. This classic type of Chicago housing rapidly disappearing in neighborhoods like Lincoln Park and Logan Square. Shutterstock
Downtown condos are selling again, as buyers eye the end of the pandemic and a return to the office: "In March, more homes were sold in the Loop and the surrounding neighborhoods than during any other month in at least a year, according to data from the Chicago Association of Realtors. A total of 531 homes were sold across those neighborhoods in March, compared with 418 in March 2020." (Chicago Tribune)
New office leases are an encouraging sign for the post-COVID downtown market: "A trio of companies recently signed up for new or expanded office space downtown, a sign of tenants preparing to return to offices as COVID-19 vaccinations pick up speed... The deals are a welcome sight for landlords, perhaps signaling an end to the COVID-induced drought." (Crain's Chicago Business)
LG Development mulling more than 1,000 residential units in Fulton Market: "Reacting to an uptick in demand for rental housing, a developer has proposed building 665 units in Fulton Market and may soon file a separate request for 400 more. LG Development Group submitted a zoning proposal for property covering both sides of Lake Street between May Street and Racine Avenue. It marks a switch from a prior plan LG had offered that had offices in the mix." (Chicago Sun-Times)
A rendering from LG's earlier plan to redevelop Lake Street between May Street and Racine Avenue. The revised proposal swaps an office building at 1150 W. Lake for more apartments. Chicago Department of Planning Development
COVID will permanently change transit ridership: "As many as a fifth of public-transit riders in the Chicago area will not return to the CTA, Metra and Pace post-COVID, at least not as often as they used to, according to a new rider survey released by the Regional Transportation Authority. Still, sponsors of the study say they're not concerned enough to make major changes in the city's public-transit network, believing that, over time, things will improve and a new equilibrium be reached." (Crain's Chicago Business)
Check out these five architecturally significant vacation rentals: "From Bruce Goff to Earl Young to two Frank Lloyd Wright houses, here's your chance to sample some famous Midwestern design this summer." (Chicago Magazine)
