8/2/2006 10:00:00 PM 

West Loop development, sans the rancor
Developer’s promise of bigger units, smaller buildings ‘an encouraging sign’

Our View

In the coming months, the West Loop will play host to several skirmishes between community groups long opposed to an invasion of skyscrapers into the midrise neighborhood, and developers hoping to build 20-plus story condo buildings.

For the most part, we've supported the efforts of the West Loop Community Organization to limit the spread of high-rises in a neighborhood whose turnaround was predicated on its collection of aging, nine and 10-story warehouses that have largely been converted into residential lofts, and subsequent development that has respected this model. Especially in the area west of Morgan Street, we believe highrises over 20 stories are wholly inappropriate for the existing neighborhood, while the eastern end of the West Loop, near Halsted Street, may be able to stomach some high-density development.

Nevertheless, the WLCO and other residents wary of high-rises are girding for a wave of such proposals in the area as far west as Racine. And while the neighborhood's aldermen have for the most part listened to their constituents on this issue-with Second Ward Alderman Madeline Haithcock downzoning several hot development properties last fall-developers have shown no sign of shortening their high-rise blueprints.

So the news that Equinox Development is pursuing a more modest development model in a handful of West Loop properties is an encouraging sign for the neighborhood. Ryan Holden, director of acquisitions for Equinox, said this week that his company likes the friendliness engendered by smaller projects, but also believes that developers can save on construction costs-and pass on lower per square foot price tags to buyers-by building small.

To be sure, Equinox is not the only West Loop developer pursuing this model-the Belgravia Group has been lauded by neighborhood residents for its high-quality townhome projects-but the company's support for construction of modest heights is a positive sign.

Equinox is also planning to sell largely two- and three-bedroom units in its new properties, a commodity that the WLCO has long been yearning for. As West Loop residents start families and look for larger spaces, they often move after finding few condos nearby that have enough space for kids, a trend that the WLCO wants to reverse.

With several projects on the way in the next few years, it's too early to tell if Equinox's developments will rate the same high marks for quality that the Belgravia Group's projects have earned from neighborhood residents. At the very least, though, community groups should be encouraged by a development model that seems to have been lifted from their talking points.