After facing financial hardship, the Standard Club building has a new owner.
Real estate investor Remo Polselli purchased the property last week, according to a report by Crain’s Chicago. Located at 320 S. Plymouth Ct. in the Loop, the property is 96 years old and shuttered in May 2020 due to financial hardship and dwindling membership.
The club has been around for almost 150 years, and is a storied Jewish Institution in the city, serving as a social hub and hosting private lunches, events and weddings, according to the Chicago Tribune.
The sale price for the 166,000-square-foot, 11-story property was not disclosed and neither Polselli nor a spokesman for the Standard Club’s board of directors could be reached for comment, according to Crain’s.
The sale likely means the Standard Club will be unable to reopen in another iteration. When it initially placed the property for sale, the Club said it might look to retain some of the building as a way to satisfy debts while staying open. Tyler Hague of Colliers International marketed the property for sale on behalf of the club.
The building will probably need some renovation, and could be turned into a boutique hotel or a residential use like student housing given its proximity to several urban college campuses, according to Crain’s. What happens to the Standard Club will likely be watched, as other property owners within the Loop determine how to recover from the pandemic with less demand for office space and hotels.
The buyer has a complicated history with his developments. According to Crain’s, Polselli owned various inns in the Detroit area, but was sentenced to 27 months in federal prison in 2003 after pleading guilty to three federal tax violations. He was released from prison in December 2004.
The Standard Club was founded in 1869, and was a popular club for many of Chicago’s elite. According to the Chicago Tribune, members included Julius Rosenwald, the former Sears president who helped found the Museum of Science and Industry, and Max Adler, a businessman and philanthropist who helped create the Adler Planetarium.
[Crain’s Chicago] — Miranda Davis