Plan Commission approves $3 billion Foundry Park development

The Chicago Plan Commission has approved the $3 billion Foundry Park development. Planned by Chicago-based developer JDL Development and Kayne Anderson Real Estate, the 28-acre project will take over the site which was formerly planned as the northern portion of Lincoln Yards, a stalled megadevelopment planned by Sterling Bay. 

Designed by Hartshorne Plunkard Architecture, the scheme will include 3,690 apartments and condos, 19 single family homes, 28 townhomes, 180-200 hotel rooms, approximately 420,000 square feet of retail space, and 350,000 square feet of office space.

The first phase of the development will be Subarea D, a triangular parcel bound by N. Southport Ave to the west, W. Cortland St to the south, and N. Kingsbury St to the northeast. The triangular parcel will be filled in with one and a half levels of underground parking, providing 300 parking spaces. Four buildings will rise above the site with no parking podiums, including an 11-story, 156-foot-tall hotel building, a 13-story, 170-foot-tall residential building, an 8-story, 116-foot-tall residential building, and a 38-story, 520-foot-tall mixed-use building. 

The four buildings will feature retail space that activates the newly created neighborhood creating an active environment for residents and visitors. The 38-story mixed-use tower will include a grocer within the ground floor retail space, potential nursery and dance school, office space, apartments, and condos at the top. 

At the northwestern end of the site, Subareas A and B will be the least dense with 19 single family homes lined up along the Chicago River with N. Dominick St running behind them. 28 townhomes will be organized in a U-shaped fronting N. Dominick St and W. Dickens Ave. The townhomes are expected to stand 55 feet tall with the single-family homes topping out at 50 feet tall.

With N. Southport Ave situated as the main north-south axis, Site C runs along its west side and will have a 12-story residential building, 20-story residential building and 25-story residential building getting taller as they go south culminating with the 25-story building at the northwest corner of N. Southport Ave and W. Cortland St. The maximum height in Subarea C will be 300 feet tall with a total of 950 residential units across the three buildings.

Site E encompasses all of the land south of W. Cortland St along the Chicago River. The six buildings planned in this area include a 30-story residential building, a 7-story residential building, a 24-story residential building, a 21-story residential building, a 5-story office building, and a 9-story residential building. The subarea’s maximum height will be 450 feet with a total of 940 residential units.

Site F, located on the west side of the river bounded by W. Cortland St and N. Elston Ave, will have a 35-story, 500-unit residential tower with a large fitness center and a 12-story office building. Subarea F is also planned with a maximum height of 450 feet.

With about one third of the site designated as open space, the 8.5 acres designed by Nudge Design include a new river walk, multiple parks, plazas, playgrounds, and a dog park. In Subarea A, a small green space is sited in the center of all the townhomes, while in Subarea B, a new riverwalk stretches along the river adjacent to the new single-family homes. “Crescent Park” and a dog park will be located adjacent to Subarea C along the river just north of W. Cortland St.

In Subarea D, the “Central Square” occupies the center of the block with a large open lawn and surrounding green space. Subarea E includes green space “Foundry Point” at the southern tip of the land with riverwalk sections along the entire riverfront as an extension of the 606 Trail. Subarea F has a green space along the riverfront between the buildings and leaves space for the future 606 Trail connection through the site and over the water. 

With Chicago Plan Commission approval secured, the amendment to the site’s Planned Development will proceed to seek final approvals from the Committee on Zoning and City Council. 

As approvals proceed, JDL Development plans to begin permitting and break ground on the $800 million Phase 1 in October of this year. When asked by commissioners, Jim Letchinger of JDL assured them that he has financing in place via their partnership with Kayne Anderson and they are ready to break ground.