“The Zoning Board of Appeals has approved a set of variations for an office to residential conversion planned at 401 W. Ontario. Planned by Monroe Residential Partners LLC, the four-story office building stands midblock along W. Ontario St between N. Orleans St and N. Kingsbury St. (Kugler, Urbanize Chicago, 5/18/26)
“A Chicago firm plans to switch uses for a River North building that it bought out of financial distress, adding to a wave of office-to-residential projects in the area just north of the Loop business district.
“Monroe Residential Partners said it will start converting the century-old building at 401 W. Ontario St. into 57 apartments in the fall after remaining office leases expire.
“The deal continues the trend of vintage, high-vacancy properties in the area selling to developers looking to convert them to apartments.
“That movement has come as office owners facing large vacancies and high property taxes have been unable to pay off loans and as developers have sought out properties to convert to apartments amid Chicago’s strong rent growth and an undersupply of new units in high-demand neighborhoods such as River North.
“That movement has come as office owners facing large vacancies and high property taxes have been unable to pay off loans and as developers have sought out properties to convert to apartments amid Chicago’s strong rent growth and an undersupply of new units in high-demand neighborhoods such as River North.
“‘Many of these buildings just no longer work as offices,’ Drew Friestedt, a principal at Monroe Residential Partners, told CoStar News. ‘The next logical use is residential.’
“Monroe and an affiliate general contractor, 3F Construction, have extensive experience with conversions in Chicago and other cities. The residential-focused firms are owned by Friestedt and Michael Obloy.” (Ori, CoStar News, 1/14/26)
Read the full story at Urbanize Chicago and CoStar News
- ZBA approves residential conversion at 401 W. Ontario; The office building will be converted into 57 units, Lukas Kugler, Urbanize Chicago, 5/18/26
- Loft offices in Chicago’s River North to be converted to apartments; Monroe Residential Partners buys building out of financial distress, Ryan Ori, CoStar News, 1/14/26
- River North office building teed up for residential conversion, Rachel Herzog, Crain’s Chicago Business, 1/13/26