Current Project
Bronzeville Lakefront
Lakefront & 31st Street, Chicago, IL – McLaurin and partners, Farpoint, Draper & Kramer, Chicago Neighborhood Initiatives, Loop Capital Markets, and Bronzeville Community Development Partnership, encompass the GRIT team. In partnership with MPEA, Illinois Governor Pritzker, and Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot the $3.8B project is in the pre-development phase. Ideally located just south of downtown Chicago alongside the lakefront and adjacent to rich-cultural communities. This multi-phased project is envisioned as a progressively designed, fully sustainable, high-tech campus over 100+ acres along Chicago’s Lakefront. For more details, visit www.BronzevilleLakefront.com.
The project would include:
100+ Acres of Prime Property
12M Square Ft of New Development
2 Miles of Lakefront
"This is a great opportunity to continue needed economic development south of the McCormick Square campus. We have selected a proven, talented and diverse development, finance and consulting team that can collaborate with us to fulfill the great potential of a vital part of Chicago."
– Lori T. Healey, CEO of MPEA
Current Project
Englewood Connect
62nd & South Halsted Parkway to 62nd & Halsted St. – The first Invest South/West project awarded by Mayor Lori Lightfoot and the Department of Planning and Development. This 9K SF historic firehouse will be renovated as a commercial kitchen and food hub. Additionally, a newly developed 20K SF culinary market, ‘Living Room’ and Green St. Plaza will become a gathering space for the Englewood community. For more details, visit www.englewoodconnect.com.
“Today is a milestone in our city’s journey in empowering residents to becoming change makers in their communities, to fully unlock the potential in those communities,” “To the skeptics, take heed: in Chicago we have a new way of doing business, and it’s called equitable, inclusive growth.”
– Lori Lightfoot, Mayor of Chicago 2021
Current Project
Bronzeville Heights
Chicago, IL – McLaurin is re-imagining this central and underutilized location within minutes of downtown Chicago. This development is in the shadows of White Sox Park, Illinois Institute of Technology, and Chicago’s lakefront. The development will create an elevated walking and biking path for residents from I-94 to the lakefront and bring much-needed economic development to Bronzeville’s entry point.
The project will include:
300K+ SF of commercial and recreational spaces
500+ new residential units
Pop-up retail opportunities for artisans and entrepreneurs
"Chicago’s downtown area and lakefront can keep you happily occupied for days, but you haven’t really seen Chicago until you’ve visited some of our distinct and culturally diverse neighborhoods. They’re fun and fascinating – and they’re just minutes away from downtown on public transportation."
– Chicago Office of Tourism
Current Project
BHF Portfolio C
McLaurin Development Partners, along with an Institutional Private Equity Fund Manager, purchased the BHF Portfolio C from Bankruptcy via auction. The portfolio consists of 187 units and 17 buildings dispersed across the south side in highly desirable neighborhoods including Bronzeville, Washington Park, Woodlawn, and South Shore. The MDP team will manage an extensive Cap Ex and Lease-Up program across all buildings and units to achieve stabilization.
"The default lines are a starting point, and so our goal is to stabilize the approximately 1,000 residential units in those 74 buildings," "Due to hazardous and unlivable conditions, only 30% of the units in those buildings are occupied. Stabilizing neighborhoods and keeping tenants in their apartments is the ultimate goal."
– Greg Janes, Law Department, WBEZ, Oct. 19, 2019
Current Project
Former Sears & Roebuck Store
79th St & the Chicago Skyway – This former Sears store was one of the first ten built by the iconic retailer. The 150K Sq FT building sat dormant for a decade before McLaurin and partners repurposed the asset. Extra Space Storage anchors the project. An additional 25K Sq Ft and 3 acres of vacant land are seen daily by thousands of commuters traveling the Chicago Skyway providing promising opportunities for imaginative use.
"For 88 years Sears resided in this building. It stood vacant for almost a decade. We are proud to supply the community with much-needed amenities and look forward to working with Alderman Harris to bring more value to residents in this central location."
– Zeb McLaurin, CEO McLaurin Development Partners
Creative and adaptive Re-use
Former Johnson Products HQ
8522 S. Lafayette Ave., Chicago, IL – McLaurin and partners identified a unique opportunity to enhance the value of the former home of Soft Sheen Products building on Chicago's South Side. The 250K Sq ft building on 14.5 acres of land was subdivided into commercial and educational use. The site was built to service Perspectives Charter School and Extra Space Storage.
"This type of asset repositioning is where McLaurin excels, a legacy urban property that had previously failed redevelopment attempts. We utilized our relationships, decades of experience, and creative management skills to transform a once dormant behemoth."
– Zeb McLaurin, CEO
An Unprecendent Transaction
Starbucks
71st & Stony Island, Chicago, IL – The corner where Starbucks currently stands was the former home to a shuttered fast food restaurant. It is now one of the company’s most successful franchises. McLaurin answered the call of the City and local Alderman to push the envelope for this under-valued asset in Chicago’s South Shore Community, now steps from the new Obama Presidential Center. After years of pursuing national tenants, McLaurin successfully developed the first Starbucks Urban Coffee Opportunity flagship on the South Side.
Press
Developers Eye Stony Island Ave. For Retail – The Herald, Jul 1999
For Some, It's Coffee; For Others, It's Class – Chicago Tribune, Jul 2004
Magic Partnership Brings Starbucks To The South Side – Chicago Sun-Times, Sep 2004
Starbucks More Than Just A Cup Of Coffee – Chicago Defender, Oct 2004
"This is a cornerstone for us. Who would ever think Starbucks would invest at 71st & Stony Island?"
– Richard Daley, Mayor of Chicago 2004
A Historic Land Swap
Target
Division & Larrabee, Chicago, IL – Target opened its doors on Division & Larrabee, the former site of Chicago Housing Authority’s (CHA) Cabrini Green Development, the neighborhood anchor to what became the most sought-after real estate in the city. McLaurin facilitated an economic boom in this community that otherwise may not have been realized by carefully crafting a historic land swap with the CHA. This location is, reportedly, the last big box Target store projected to be built.
Press
Vision For Cabrini Target Unveiled – Chicago Sun-Times, May 2011
New Target Opens On Former Site Of Cabrini Green Housing Development – CBS Chicago, Oct 2013
"20, 30, 40 years ago, Target nor anybody would ever go through Cabrini Green. Today, a resident of public housing was a developer and 60 employees at the store are residents from the neighborhood."
– Rahm Emanuel, Mayor of Chicago