Developer Advances Ambitious Plan To Extend The 606... & Pursues Amazon HQ2
By Stephen Gossett in News on Sep 13, 2017 5:09PM
Courtesy of Sterling Bay
The old Finkl Steel site, which runs along portions of Bucktwon and Lincoln Park, has taken a major step on its way toward radical transformation. Real-estate company Sterling Bay announced a new planning team to develop the 30-plus acre site—a reinvention that envisions the extension of The 606, plus other dramatic changes for the formerly industrial area. The announcement doesn't explicitly use the "A" word (that would be "Amazon"—as in, does the redevelopment simultaneously attempt to also lure the e-retailer for its second headquarters?), but company tongues are nevertheless wagging on that front, too.
Aside from the much-discussed extension into Finkl of the 606—the city's popular rail-to-trail conversion—the project's website also references a riverwalk, a new Metra station, mixed-use space for office, residential and retail, plus green space. No small plans indeed. Sterling Bay is calling the development Lincoln Yards—which seems as a good a signal of post-industrial urbanism as any.
The developers have lined up a slew of help for their ambitious vision: Boston-based design firm CBT and Chicago architecture heavyweights Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, plus landscape architects Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates and transportation consultants Nelson\Nygaard.
"Lincoln Yards is a once in a lifetime opportunity to transform an underutilized area of the city into a neighborhood built for the modern needs of Chicagoans,” Andy Gloor, managing principal of Sterling Bay, said in a release. "This team has unparalleled experience and unique expertise in managing successful projects of a similar scale both here in Chicago and around the world, as well as a shared vision that will allow the neighborhood to realize its full potential. This vision includes creating new open space, improving the access to the Chicago River, extending The 606 and creating other features that will enhance everyday experiences, build healthy communities and improve the quality of life for Chicagoans and visitors alike."
Sterling Bay bought the coveted Finkl Steel property last year for $140 million, then grabbed up ever more nearby acreage in July. The land was zoned for industrial use, but the North Branch Corridor framework opened the door for sweeping changes in parts of the corridor when it was OK'ed by the Chicago Plan Commission in May.
“It is rare to find a site of this magnitude in a great American city with such strong assets as the Lincoln Park and Bucktown neighborhoods, the Chicago River and the 606,” said Kishore Varanasi, Principal and Director of Urban Design at CBT, in release. "Currently disconnected by infrastructural barriers and industrial uses, Lincoln Yards presents an opportunity to create a place that is vibrant and engages the surrounding communities through a combination of careful and bold moves that opens the riverfront to all Chicagoans."
There is no bolder move on the table of course than landing Amazon's nationally salivated-over HQ2—and Gloor is indeed now publicly pushing for Lincoln Yards. "If you're looking at Chicago and trying to build a second headquarters, 100 acres of riverside land between Lincoln Park and Bucktown feels like a good place to start," he told the Tribune.
You can check out how that carrot might materialize further in the renderings above and below.
Courtesy of Sterling Bay
Courtesy of Sterling Bay