Natalia Chi
Local apartment investors significantly expanded their holdings in the South Shore area, paying $22 million for two properties near the Obama Presidential Center, according to Koster and county real estate records.
New City Property Management purchased the 16-story Shorewind Apartments on the lakefront at 7000 S. South Shore Drive and a smaller building one block west at 6951 S. Oglesby Ave. from San Francisco-based Belveron Partners Did.
A Berberon spokeswoman said the two buildings have a combined 250 units, but declined to comment further on the sale. .
That price tag is much higher than the $16.8 million that Berberon, one of the nation’s largest affordable homeowners, paid for the 1920s building in 2019. Some community members are concerned about the price increase for the $830 million Presidential Center in Jackson, Woodlawn. A park just north is scheduled to open in 2025, which could push local housing costs out of reach for many residents.
“Buyers will want a return on their investment. I think the only way to make a profit is to raise the rent,” said community organizer Dixon Romero.
NCPM last year paid $14 million for 7100 S. South Shore Drive, a 10-story, 162-unit building one block south, making it one of the neighborhood’s largest landlords. Company officials did not return messages requesting comment.
In 2020, the Chicago City Council passed the Woodlawn Home Preservation Ordinance. The measure, pushed by a coalition of community organizations, requires all rental and condominium developments on city-owned property in the district to reserve a portion for ultra-low-income residents. It is Funded several programs to help residents and restore existing affordable housing.
Romero, founder and executive director of the housing advocacy group Not Me We, said the South Shore has similar community benefits agreements to build and maintain affordable housing and prevent existing residents from being displaced. said it was necessary.
“The South Shore has the highest eviction rate in the city and has been since 2010,” he said.
The district’s eviction rate was 8.7 percent in 2019, three times the citywide eviction rate, according to the South Shore Housing Data Project, a 2022 report by groups such as the South Shore Chamber of Commerce. Also, 30% of the resident is living below the poverty line and 57.6% are considered to have housing costs, meaning he spends more than 30% of his income on housing. .
According to a non-binding referendum on the Feb. 28 mayoral and city council elections, Romero said nearly 90% of voters in the South Shore neighborhood near Obama Center supported the Community Welfare Agreement.
“The Obama Center is like a giant object dropped in a body of water, causing a wave of speculation, but it doesn’t have to cause forced relocation. may give us something, but we have to be here to enjoy it.”
