24-story apartment tower breaks ground near McCormick Place

The South Loop apartment boom is adding another project to the mix as developer Draper and Kramer officially breaks ground on a 24-story rental building at northeast corner of Wabash Avenue and Cermak Road.

Known by its address of 2111 S. Wabash, the 275-unit development includes ground floor retail and 88-car parking podium topped by a glassy tower with an angular “sawtooth” facade. The design creates great views in all directions as well as a “prismatic effect in which the light will constantly change the appearance of the building depending on the time of day,” said architect John Lahey of firm Solomon Cordwell Buenz in a statement.

Announced back in 2015, Draper and Kramer’s plan for 2111 S. Wabash originally included a mix of roughly 250 apartments and 144 hotel rooms. The project later dropped the hotel component and increased the number of residential units to 275 when it earned city approval the following year.

Image courtesy of Draper and Kramer, Incorporated

The residential tower is the latest development to head to the city’s rebranded “McCormick Square” entertainment district in and around Chicago’s famous McCormick Place convention center and the historic Motor Row neighborhood—joining the 10,300-seat Wintrust Arena, the 1,200-room Marriott Marquis hotel, a trio of hotels in a 22-story tower at 123 E. Cermak.

Units in the upcoming building range between 529 and 1,411 square feet in size and will be offered in one-, two- and three-bedroom floorplans. Rents are expected to start at $1,800 per month when 2111 S. Wabash opens in summer 2020. It will be the largest residential development built in the area since 2010, according to its developers.

• Previous McCormick Place coverage [Curbed Chicago]