Oak Park’s latest apartment high-rise tops out and gets a new name

The 20-story mixed-use tower will deliver new apartments and retail space to the heart of Oak Park

By Jay Koziarz May 2, 2017, 1:54pm CDT

The skyline of Oak Park, Chicago’s immediate western neighbor, is coming into its own as crews top-off a new mixed-use tower next to the city’s central transit hub. Consisting of a 20-story high-rise connected via skybridge to a five-story low-rise component, the two-building complex is expected to deliver 271 rental units, a small-format Target store, and 428 parking spaces for use by residents, shoppers, and downtown commuters.

Initially known as Oak Park Station before changing its name to Elevate Oak Park, the development has once again rebranded and is now called ‘The Emerson.’ The $85 million project comes from co-developers Clark Street Real Estate and Lennar Multifamily with FitzGerald Associates Architects heading design duties. Though hardly earth-shattering, the exterior of The Emerson does feature a visually interesting architectural screening in front of its parking garage—especially when viewed from the adjacent train station.

Scheduled to begin leasing this month, units inside the transit-friendly development will range between 560 and 1235 square feet in size and are expected to start around $1665 per month. When it opens later this year, The Emerson will join the nearby and only slightly taller Vantage Oak Park rental tower that welcomed its first residents last fall. Meanwhile, a third high-rise development—an 18-story tower at 1000 Lake Street—is in the planning stage.