Megaproject near Soldier Field calls for skyscrapers, lakefront access, transit hub

Hours after the Chicago City Council’s voted in favor of Sterling Bay’s hotly-debated Lincoln Yards project on Wednesday, a different developer unveiled a new, even more ambitious megadevelopment slated for the rail yard along Lake Shore Drive next to Soldier Field.

Known as One Central, the 34-acre proposal would cap the Metra tracks with a 50-foot-tall deck topped by multiple skyscrapers, public open space, and a landscaped pedestrian bridge connecting the South Loop to the lakefront. The mixed-use, transit-oriented campus would include a transportation hub serving Metra, CTA, and Amtrak trains and a proposed “Chi-Line” circulator utilizing the sunken busway between Millennium Park and McCormick Place.

While jaw-dropping in its scope, the plan is in the early conceptual phase and still short on specifics. “The importance of this site requires that we take a very deliberate approach to how we build a plan for the future,” Wisconsin-based developer Bob Dunn told a crowd of residents packed into McCormick Place. “Right now there is no firm plan. We are trying to capture a sense of what the opportunities might be.”

Although still vague and lacking specific building heights and densities, Dunn’s presentation did include conceptual renderings showing ten placeholder skyscrapers with some appearing to tower over the nearby 896-foot-tall Nema project.

Third Ward Alderman Pat Dowell tempered the mood of concerned neighbors by explaining that although Dunn’s Landmark Development company controls the air rights over the tracks, the project will need to go through many approval processes before it heads to City Council for a final vote.

“This is a proposal, nothing more than that,” clarified Dowell. “This is not the last time the One Central project will be reviewed by the public or by the city.”

Even if everything goes to plan, the One Central development will take up to 15 years to complete, according to Dunn. In the meantime, it will face competition from other Near South Side megaprojects such as The 78, the Burnham Lakefront at the Old Michael Reese Hospital site, and the South Bank/Riverline developments.

The One Central presentation can be viewed here.