Keeping Lincoln Park Cool

To channel our inner curmudgeon: Why are all these young people in Lincoln Park? Panelists at a  Lincoln Park Builders Council event last week said diversification and quality rental is key. Space Architects & Planners' Jean Dufresne says more young adults are looking for apartments with home-office type spaces, as well as tech, like wifi, built-in. JAB Real Estate Opprotunity Fund's Frank Campise says retail is able to grow more solidly in the neighborhood because the community is mostly made up of college-educated young adults, who have a much lower unemployment rate than non-college educated adults—just 3.7% in some areas, and those are people who tend to look for good retail. JMB Financial Advisors'John Pascal is confident that the neighborhood will see leverage near  2007 levels for deals done on apartments in the next year.
Jameson's Harry Huzenis first saw a downturn in the neighborhood in 2006 when an apartment he was converting into condos had trouble selling. But he says the 15 years of  positive growth from 1993 to 2008 had to end sometime. The Lord Cos.' Keith Lord says that toxic assets, such as some of the non-performing buildings in Lincoln Park, could be the medication for CRE when CRE pros buy them up to improve. Alderman Tom Tunney says the neighborhood still needs some help from government to come out of the recession—an infusion to the CTA and some decisions on outsourcing services like garbage pick-up and libraries might be in order to keep the neighborhood livable and taxes down.

Continue reading this story with a free account

Log in or register
Sign up for more articles like this
Subscribe to Bisnow's Chicago Newsletters
Related Stories

From Pandemic Darling To Cautionary Tale: Pickleball Clubs Face A Reckoning After Betting Big On Retail Space

Morningstar Releases New Details On Over 350K SF In Q3 Office Leases

New Bears Stadium Proposal Floated For Bridgeport

Prologis To Develop 3.8M SF Industrial Park On Former Casino Site

Foundry Robotics Leaves San Francisco For New East Bay HQ

Tenant Rep Firm Expands To Philly, Hires Industry Veteran

$120M Ambulatory Center Planned For Suburbs: The Chicago Deal Sheet

Data Centers Lose The Top Spot, San Francisco Jumps 40 Places: 9 Takeaways From ULI's 2027 Outlook

Obama Center Shows Chicago Is Starved For Development

Mapped: Major Chicago Office Sales Since 2024

Cushman & Wakefield, NYC Added To Suit Alleging $250K Agency Lease Shakedown

Denver Public Schools' $11M Centennial Hall Purchase Marks Rare Land Sale For ULC