Clybourn Corridor retail property fetches $20 million By: Micah Maidenberg Two aggressive out-of-town investors have teamed up to buy a Clybourn Corridor retail property with a lot of vacant space, a risk and opportunity in a recovering retail leasing market. A venture between New York-based Jenel Management Corp. and White Plains, N.Y.-based Acadia Realty Trust […]

Mangia! Inside fancy food emporium Eataly By: Lorene Yue Eataly—New York’s celebrity-sponsored food emporium that is the definition of excess—is almost ready to devour River North. But will the neighborhood’s frequent-diner residents and tourists slaver over it? Part restaurant, part gourmet grocer and all show, Eataly is set to open off North Michigan Avenue at […]

Petco, Pier 1 ink leases in South Loop By: Micah Maidenberg Petco Animal Supplies Inc. and Pier 1 Imports Inc. have agreed to open stores in the Roosevelt Road corridor, a retail strip that’s thriving in part because of a lack of nearby competition. The pet supplies retailer leased more than 10,000 square feet in […]

More stores planned at Gold Coast corner By: Micah Maidenberg Evanston-based landlord Ralph Marol is raising his bet on the Gold Coast retail market. Mr. Marol plans to demolish a 14,800-square-foot one-story building he owns at the northeast corner of State, Rush and Cedar streets, replacing it with a three-story, 27,000-square-foot retail project. Redevelopment “seems […]

After losing key tenants, Mag Mile landlord lands Verizon By: Micah Maidenberg Facing a potential cash crunch, the owner of a prominent Magnificent Mile retail property has snagged a major new tenant in the nick of time. Verizon Wireless has signed a lease to open a store at 840 N. Michigan Ave., said Camille Julmy, […]

Are happy days here again in real estate? By: Ryan Ori and Alby Gallun After a half-decade slog, Chicago’s commercial real estate market is on the verge of something unseen since the recession: across-the-board growth. “We’re clearly a market out of boom-and-bust mode,” says Robert Kramp, research director for the Midwest and Great Lakes at […]

Developers see life on rundown stretch of Michigan Avenue By: Alby Gallun Michigan Avenue’s dead zone is coming to life. Developers are descending on the dreary three-block stretch south of the Chicago River, still mainly just a place tourists pass through on their way to Millennium Park or office workers go to grab lunch. Four […]

East Coast grocer to open in Lincoln Park Hospital By: Micah Maidenberg Boutique grocer Mrs. Green’s Natural Market plans to open a store in a development on the site of the former Lincoln Park Hospital, ending a long search for the project’s developer. Mrs. Green’s, a unit of Irvington, N.Y.-based Natural Markets Food Group, signed […]

In remembrance of the old-time coffeeshop By: Ashley Boncimino and Lorene Yue There’s no shortage of chic brunch spots in Chicago, but downtown’s share of cheap, authentic diners is shrinking. The latest casualty: Ohio House Coffee Shop, a River North classic with more than 50 years of history. It will close at the end of […]

Saks closing Mag Mile men’s store, combining with flagship By: Micah Maidenberg Saks Inc. is closing its standalone men’s store on North Michigan Avenue, teeing up a $5 million renovation of its department store across the street. New York-based Saks is jettisoning the 36,000-square-foot men’s store at 717 N. Michigan Ave. after a roughly 15-year […]