The development has been to the city council, which is expected to approve the project, which will include an underground connection between two Chicago Transit Authority elevated stations – the Red Line's Roosevelt Road stop under State Street and the Orange and Green Line stops at Roosevelt Road above Wabash Avenue.

State Street Associates LLC will pay the city $6.2 million to $8.2 million for the site, depending on the cost of demolishing the former police station, which also housed the city's first district headquarters in addition to the department's top administration. The new police headquarters opened last year at 3510 S. Michigan Ave. in the Bronzeville neighborhood while the first district has moved six blocks south to a $25-million facility at 1718 S. State St.

Construction is scheduled to begin next spring, with completion of the retail space and three low-rise condo buildings expected in fall 2003. The 21-story tower is slated to open by the end of 2003.

Condominiums and townhomes in a Near South Side community that has seen a dramatic rebirth in recent years have sold from $108,000 to $733,586 but more than 400 properties are on the market now, ranging in asking price to $1.35 million.

"The redevelopment of the old police headquarters will continue to make the South Loop a vibrant residential and commercial neighborhood," says Mayor Richard M. Daley, who makes his home in the neighborhood. "The project will replace a vacant building on a key intersection with a mixed-use development that will complement the neighborhood's residential character, as well as serve the retail needs of the South Loop."

The New South Association, Near South Planning Board and Greater South Loop Association also weighed in with their support.

Instant Insights /

GlobeSt.com UPDATE: $123-Mil 11th & State Project Advances

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