498 More Units, Retail in Near South Side Plan

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CHICAGO-With a 249-unit building under construction one block north, CK2 Development LLC plans to add 498 units to the Near South Side condominium market with a 31-story building at 1720 S. Michigan Ave. In addition, Colin Kihnke’s group has plans to create retail and restaurant space on a 23,300-sf site to the west, on the 1700 block of S. Wabash Avenue, in what likely will be a project worth more than $130 million.

“We are a strong believer in the South Loop,” says developer Colin Kihnke. “We’ve been developing there for 10 years. We feel the retail space will be filled in time.”

Kihnke notes one-story industrial buildings already are undergoing conversions to accommodate restaurateurs hoping to serve a growing residential neighborhood. Likewise, he predicts his building in the 1700 block of South Michigan Avenue, as well as any new building on the 1700 block of South Wabash Avenue, will draw similar interest. “We would love to see some restaurants,” Kihnke says.

Kihnke’s group paid $4.2 million for the nearly three acres of South Loop land earlier this year, according to property records. The most recent proposal is the result of negotiations with the department of planning and development as well as the Near South Side Planning Board, which resulted in changing the placement of the condo tower’s 452-space garage and a larger environmentally friendly “green” roof.

Studio, one-bedroom and two-bedroom units at 1620 S. Michigan Ave. are priced from $265,000. Kihnke tells GlobeSt.com price points one block south will be similar.