Taking the 29th spot in our year-end countdown is the residential development at 4600 N Marine Drive in Uptown. Sitting right across the street from Montrose Beach on the intersection with W Wilson Avenue, the project replaces a surface parking lot previously owned by Weiss Memorial Hospital after much controversy with locals. Developer Lincoln Property Company has been leading the charge of the Valerio Dewalt Train-designed building which broke ground recently.
4600 N Marine Drive. Photo by Jack Crawford
4600 N Marine Drive. Photo by Jack Crawford
4600 N Marine Drive. Photo by Jack Crawford
4600 N Marine Drive. Photo by Jack Crawford
Rendering of 4600 N Marine Drive by VDT
View of 4600 N Marine Drive. Rendering by VDTA
Rising 12 stories and 159 feet in height, the project faced protests by locals camping out on-site prior to construction starting, demanding for the hospital to purchase the land back and use it for an expansion of its facilities, though it averages 60 percent occupancy. After being removed, work was able to commence with the developer committing a $3 million payment to Sarah’s Circle nearby which helps women facing homelessness.
Ground Floor Plan for 4600 N Marine Drive by VDT
Typical Floor Plan for 4600 N Marine Drive by VDT
Residents can find a large lobby, office, and dog care room on the ground floor, along with parking for 157 bicycles and the parking garage entrance which will hold 136 vehicles across multiple floors of the U-shaped structure. Above that will be 314 residential units made up of studios, one-, and two-bedroom layouts, with select apartments having private inset balconies mostly on the building corners. Residents will also have access to a large outdoor deck on top of the podium below the third floor.
View of 4600 N Marine Drive. Rendering by VDTA
Aerial View of 4600 N Marine Drive. Rendering by Valerio Dewalt Train
Along with the aforementioned payment, eight of the units will also be considered affordable for those making 60 percent or less of the Area Median Income (AMI). Clad in a dark gray brick with white metal panels and wood-like accents, the structure will be slightly set back from the streets to create small ground-floor plazas as well. With construction underway on the $90 million development, we can expect a roughly 18- to 24-month completion timeline as work ramps up in the spring.
Subscribe to YIMBY’s daily e-mail
Follow YIMBYgram for real-time photo updates
Like YIMBY on Facebook
Follow YIMBY’s Twitter for the latest in YIMBYnews
Great to see some new construction in Uptown, but courtyard design? Ugh, I thought current trend is privacy and not having neighbors windows facing you ?
The courtyard concept is great and it would be peheomenal if it caught on around the city. The biggest problem is the building looks more institutional than residential.
A more traditional brick/stone facade without any techniques to break up the massing would have been high quality infill here.
Agree with you on all points, I love courtyards and they really help to make one feel like they’re part of something bigger than just their own life – especially when working full time from home.
The fact that this mediocre structure is in the top 30 buildings in Chicago is a sign of just how low this city has sunk. This place is not global tier, its just another Dallas, Atlanta, Houston etc
This should really have more parking spots. This is one of the toughest areas to street park in. They could have rental parking available for neighborhood people who need parking. Despite being “transit oriented development” , every condo in the Uptown, Edgewater, Buena Park area that I have sold has owners with a car each. Any new development should try to alleviate the lack of neighborhood parking. Maybe even with a city subsidy of some type.
There are plenty of places in Chicago’s neighborhoods and surrounding towns that have sufficient parking if residents should need it. Dense, vibrant neighborhoods don’t become that way because they have parking garages and free street parking. And by no means is it the responsibility of new developments to alleviate local parking availability. It’s their job to create new residences / offices / retail space.
Ideally, less parking would incentivize residents to either use public transportation more frequently (and rent a car when needed) or simply convince prospective residents that the neighborhood isn’t the best place to live based on their commute / transportation needs. The short-term hit of fewer prospective residents is a lesser evil than the notion that everyone deserves a spot to park their two-ton car for free/cheap. Not to mention residents who rely on public transportation earn and spend more money in their local communities.
Over the holidays you should read The High Cost of Free Parking (by Donald Shoup) and let us know if you still feel the same way.
Retail space in this project would be much more beneficial than parking. I live nearby on Windsor. There are MANY surface parking lots on that street. I have never seen any of them more than about 40% full. This is a dense urban neighborhood right next the park and the lake. Express busses will stop right in front of the new building, and the Wilson station is a short walk away. We should not be subsidizing peoples’ bad choices to own and park a car.