CVS Anchors Retail for 82-Story Multifamily

CHICAGO-CVS/pharmacy has signed on with a 20-year lease to anchor the retail component of mixed-use high-rise tower Aqua, with a 12,000-square-foot ground level location. The company is the first tenant to take space in the 37,000 square feet of retail, which will begin to deliver this spring in the 82-story building being developed by Magellan Development Group in Lakeshore East. The $4-billion Lakeshore East mixed-use development spans 28 acres along Lake Michigan between the Chicago River and Millennium Park.

“CVS will really be an amenity for our renters and buyers,” Brian Gordon, VP with Magellan, tells GlobeSt.com. “When this community is done, there will be 30,000 people living in Lakeshore East that will have that service available.” Magellan says Lakeshore East is the largest parcel of land being developed in any major US city. Aqua is only one building of many now under construction in the area, which when completed will include residential, retail, recreation and education components, as well as a six-acre public park. At its completion, the area is expected to see more than 2.2 million square feet of commercial space, 1,500 hotel rooms, 400,000 square feet of retail, and 5,000 homes.

Construction on Aqua, at 225 N. Columbus, began in early 2007. In addition to the retail space on the first and second levels, the building will offer 264 luxury condominiums, 474 rental units, 210 hotel units and 42,000 square feet of office space.