Related Midwest Scores $500M Construction Loan for Lakefront Tower

Many developers are struggling to fund projects amid a tough lending climate, but that’s not the case for Related Midwest’s ambitious lakefront plans.

Related Companies’ Chicago office, headed by Curt Bailey, has secured $500 million in construction financing for its two-tower residential development on the site of the canceled Chicago Spire, at 400 North Lake Shore Drive, Crain’s reported.

Financing will stem from tax-exempt bonds from the Illinois Housing Development Authority, which were acquired from Wells Fargo and other lenders. Related Midwest and other partners are contributing equity to the project, the estimated cost of which remains undisclosed.

The first phase of the project calls for a 72-story, 635-unit apartment building, construction of the long-awaited DuSable Park and a pedestrian path that will connect the Chicago Riverwalk to Lake Michigan. Construction is underway, and the first phase is expected to be completed in Spring 2027.

Twenty percent of the units will be designated as affordable housing, available to residents with incomes between 30 and 50 percent of the area median income. This inclusion makes the project eligible for a tax break under a 2021 state law.

The project marks a shift from a $1 billion plan unveiled in 2018, which included a hotel and condos. Related Midwest tweaked its plans to make it fully residential and capitalize on Chicago’s booming multifamily market.

Bailey believes more highly educated people are moving to downtown Chicago than to any other downtown in the country.

“We are seeing that in our buildings,” he said. “We’re seeing it across the spectrum of apartments being built in downtown Chicago, so we think that the broader market, the country, will get this message at some point and you’ll probably see a lot more building.”

—Quinn Donoghue