Provided a newly issued permit is accurate, an empty River North lot at the northwest corner of Grand and LaSalle is apparently getting a new eight-story hotel. Given the sit’s DX-7 zoning, an eight-story limited service hotel could move forward without a zoning change or any sort of public meeting. The $15,000,000 foundation-only construction permit for 530 N. LaSalle lists ownership as an entity known as Choxy LLC out of Merrillville, Indiana.
According to ongoing speculation on the local development forum at skyscraperpage.com, the LLC name suggests this development could in fact be the rumored Chicago location of the Marriott’s boutique Moxy brand. The permit’s listed architect points to the mystery building likely coming from the designers at Chicago’s DLR Group.
Despite a 2010 proposal for a fast food drive-through ultimately going nowhere, the site at 530 N. LaSalle has remained fenced-off and idle as the surrounding neighborhood boomed with new residential, office, and hospitality developments. Last year, on-site signage from Stone Real Estate advertising commercial availability signaled that something was likely in the works behind the scenes, but the LaSalle address is absent from the company’s website.
Meanwhile, a phone call this morning to Chicago’s 42nd Ward for more information was not immediately returned. Stay tuned.
Update: More digging reveals that the hotel in question actually comes from River North developer Albert Friedman and partner White Lodging Services Corp. Considering that the same team had proposed a high-rise hotel at the corner of Rush and Superior in 2014 only to see their plans torpedoed by 42nd Ward Alderman Brendan Reilly, it’s perhaps understandable why Friedman has been hush-hush on his newest venture.
- New construction permit at 530 N La Salle Dr in Chicago [Chicago Cityscape]
- Previous River North coverage [Curbed Chicago]
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