Developer Sean Conlon Betting On Chicago Condo Revival After 2011

Developer Sean Conlon is reportedly in the process of planning a seven-story apartment building in the River West area at 1100 W. Grand Ave.   Conlon is betting that demand for near-downtown residences will revive in coming years.

The Irish native and chairman and of Chicago-based Conlon & Co, recently applied for a zoning change to the River West site he acquired late last year for $1.9 million through his new Irish-backed investment fund that’s seeking to buy distressed U.S. real estate.  The new site is favored by Mr. Conlon because “the city views are fantastic and downtown is a straight shot”.  He is also betting that it is the logical place for the downtown area to grow in a westerly direction.

There’s no specific timetable for the project,  though it’s likely construction won’t begin until more than a year from now.  The site was acquired from a family that owned the former Marathon gas station there and has demolished the existing building and removed the underground gasoline storage tank and done other environmental remediation work already.

The proposed apartment building, which was designed by Axios Architects & Consultants, is to have about 4,000 square feet of first-level retail space and 59 parking spaces.