Next Realty's 620 N. LaSalle at the corner of Ontario St. once hosted Sports Authority, but soon could provide creative office space.
CHICAGO—River North is about to see another renovation of a historic structure or a new office tower that could rise 17 stories and total as much as 250,000 square feet. Skokie-based Next Realty, LLC could choose either path based on the response it gets for the now vacant 80,000 square foot building at 620 N. LaSalle St. The firm has retained CBRE to market the property, until recently a Sports Authority outlet, to corporate office space users and destination retailers.
“The building is a traditional River North building in the brick-and-mortar style,” Marc Blum, president and chief operating officer of Next Realty, tells GlobeSt.com. For decades, these structures have attracted droves of trendy small office users, and that makes him optimistic that this offering will garner a lot of interest.
“Many of the office users in the CBD are transforming their spaces so it looks more like River North,” he points out, including the elimination of outdated features such as drop ceilings. According to CBRE research, River North maintains the lowest vacancy of any downtown submarket, at 7.7% in the fourth quarter 2016, down from 7.8% the previous quarter.
And the neighborhood has also become popular with users such as Google. Until the internet giant decamped to the Fulton Market area, it occupied the gleaming tower at 20 W. Kinzie St. in River North. WeWork, the shared workspace provider, quickly took the Google space, illustrating again the desire among major corporations to find trophy spaces in River North.
“For significant office users, this could be a fantastic branding opportunity,” says Blum. The firm is prepared to act quickly, possibly within 90 days or less for a redevelopment, slightly longer for a corporate build to suit. The lower floors could be occupied by a retailer that wants to take advantage of the neighborhood's 24/7 activity. Occupancy dates range from Summer 2018 for a redevelopment to Spring 2019 for a corporate build to suit.
“Location is perhaps the most important factor in a company's site selection process,” Blum adds. “The location of this site, in a mixed-use neighborhood of newly constructed multifamily developments, historic office properties, destination retail as well as restaurant and entertainment spaces, makes it one of the most attractive areas for businesses looking to attract and maintain today's coveted downtown workforce.”
Michael Kazmierczak and Kerry Middleton of CBRE will list the property on behalf of Next Realty.
In the event CBRE finds both small office users interested in the existing structure and companies that want a new tower at the site, Next Realty will face a decision. “I hope that's a decision I have to make,” says Blum.
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Brian J. Rogal
Brian J. Rogal is a Chicago-based freelance writer with years of experience as an investigative reporter and editor, most notably at The Chicago Reporter, where he concentrated on housing issues. He also has written extensively on alternative energy and the payments card industry for national trade publications.
