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Developer acquires River North mixed-use property near tower project
A 60-story development is planned next door to Continental Property's recent purchase
UPDATED, 4:15 p.m., May 2: An entity tied to developer Continental Properties Company acquired a well-placed mixed-use property off the Magnificient Mile in River North.
Property records show the $24 million sale earlier this month for 740 N. Rush Street to the Milwaukee-based developer. Continental Properties has so far mostly built suburban housing, big box retail, and hotels.
The seller is an LLC tied to Victory Park Capital Advisors, a Chicago equity firm that purchased the site in 2011.
The corner property is home to the pizzeria Giordano’s, and next door to a planned 60-story tower designed by Skidmore, Owings, and Merrill for Symmetry Development and Fordham Real Estate. Called the “Carillon,” that project was announced a year ago. It includes part of the Giordano’s site and the rest of the block along Superior Street.
Continental could not be reached for comment about its plans for the site, which two other development teams have tried and failed to redevelop.
Victory Park Capital bought the site out of Giordano’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2011 for $15 million. Developer Albert Friedman and Indiana’s White Lodging Services proposed a 620-room hotel there but local Alderman Brendan Reilly rejected it in 2014. Victory Park sold part of the site to developer Golub in 2015, which drew up a two-tower plan there in a partnership with Symmetry Development.
That plan was apparently abandoned, as Symmetry returned last year with the Carillon project, according to Curbed. Reilly also opposed that project, which includes 216 hotel rooms, 120 hotel timeshares, 246 luxury condos, and 30,000 square feet of retail space, Curbed reported.
Fordham Real Estate President Christopher J. Carley said the Carillon team continues to work on the project with Reilly’s office, but could not comment on the Giordano’s site.
Correction: A previous version of this article incorrectly stated that Alderman Brendan Reilly supported the Carillon mixed-use project that was proposed last year.