Will a potential lease be a catalyst for new construction in the Loop? According to Crain's, the proposed 36-story John Buck office tower at 151 North Franklin may have just moved off the back burner and one step closer to ground-breaking. Law firm Freeborn & Peters, who signed a letter of intent on a few floors of office space, is looking at a 15-year lease. Landing a big tenant will open up the venture to more construction financing, and in the words of a broker, "makes the project for real."
Back in 2013, the tower proposal turned heads, but with only $145M in equity, this was still undoubtedly a proposal, and still required construction loans and a demolished Walgreen's to move forward.
With news of a major tenant making its future more concrete, the 151 North Franklin project joins other riverfront towers in the works that are bringing floors of new office space to the west part of the Loop. Projects at River Point and 150 North Riverside Plaza have already attracted an impressive list of future tenants to the area, including William Blair, Hyatt Hotels and law firm DLA Piper.
·Buck takes big step toward Loop tower groundbreaking [Crain's]
·John Ronan's 151 North Franklin Gets Its Close-Up [Curbed Chicago]
·Previous Loop coverage [Curbed Chicago]