A million bucks used to buy a really special home.
Today, that’s not necessarily true.
“A million isn’t the exciting threshold it used to be. It doesn’t buy ravishing, wild or different stuff,” said James Kinney, president of Chicago-based Rubloff Residential Properties.
Now those over-the-top luxury residences carry price tags that soar well over a million.
Among new housing in that stratospheric category are two unique developments near downtown Chicago. Both offer architecture inspired by the elegance of yesteryear. Both enjoy historic and socially prominent locations. Both have opened opulently decorated models.
If price is no problem, check out the Mansions on Prairie Avenue on the Near South Side and 65 E. Goethe St. on the Gold Coast.
Seventeen “mansions,” actually four-story row houses, are being built on the 1800 block of South Prairie Avenue by Rezmar Development Group. Base prices range from $1.6 million to $1.8 million for homes with 5,339 to 5,863 square feet. Most buyers add upgrades that push the final tab to $2 million or more.
Rezmar’s purpose was to turn back the clock with 21st Century renditions of the 19th Century mansions that once lined Prairie Avenue. Features in the new homes include elevators, the latest electronic bells and whistles and penthouse decks with lake views.
On the Gold Coast, a Parisian ambience has been created by the Fordham Co. at 65 E. Goethe St. The eight-story building, located just west of the 1200 block of Lake Shore Drive, sports architecture from France, marble from Italy and limestone from Indiana.
“This could be one of the highest priced residential developments between New York and San Francisco. A 13,000-square-foot condo (three combined units) will cost an estimated $15 million finished,” said Christopher Carley, chairman of Fordham.
By contrast, most of the condos in the 24-unit building carry “bargain” prices–raw space ranging from $2 million to $4.2 million for 2,618 to 5,308 square feet. Those same units finished cost $2.8 million to $5.8 million.
The street-level townhouses are bigger and pricier. They go for $4.2 million to $5.3 million for raw space, and $5.9 million to $7.4 million finished. Square footage ranges from 5,625 to 6,751.
Developer Carley and his architect, Lucien Lagrange, made two trips to Paris in search of ideas. The result is a limestone structure with a mansard roof and other typically French touches.
A special place at 65 E. Goethe is the 6,000-square-foot rooftop garden, complete with a profusion of flowers, a fountain and a bench with views of the lake.
Standard features include 24-hour security and doorman, private terraces, Juliet balconies with French doors, woodburning fireplaces in condos, gas fireplaces in townhouses and two parking spaces in the heated garage.
The 3,500-square-foot model on the fifth floor is open from noon to 3 p.m. on Sundays in August and September.
The saga of 65 E. Goethe could be called “The Incredible Shrinking Building.”
In 1996, the prime Gold Coast location was planned for a 32-story condo tower. Most of the units would offer views of Lake Michigan.
But after meeting with the neighbors, Fordham voluntarily reduced the project to 26 stories. Later, the city downzoned the building to 18 stories and then to 12.
“A group of influential residents of the area raised a war chest to fight the project. They claimed their views would be obscured, construction would be noisy and the building would change the character of the neighborhood,” said Carley.
Then the land was included in a historic district with a maximum height of eight stories.
To make way for 65 E. Goethe, two old residential buildings, with a total of 148 units, had to be demolished.
“But after it was built, people found they love the building. It has increased property values. I’ve gone from wearing a black hat to a white hat. Last year, I received the good neighbor award,” said Carley.
Most of the affluent buyers at 65 E. Goethe already live within walking distance.
“They want to stay on the Gold Coast, but they want more space for their lifestyle and entertaining,” he said.
Buyers have included prominent Chicago families, entrepreneurs, bankers, doctors and businessmen.
Sales began three years ago.
“The building sold well early. Then it slowed to a dribble because of the softer economy, 9/11 and then the war in Iraq. Even the confidence of the wealthy was down. They were nervous and that slowed us down,” Carley said.
“But this spring, with the war over, traffic picked up and we’ve had three closings and three reservations in the last 60 days,” he added. “We may have only one or two units left by the end of the year.”
Carley said that for eight years the building has been a labor of love, as well as a battle.
“There won’t be another building like this. I wouldn’t do it again,” he said.
While the Gold Coast may be Chicago’s most fashionable neighborhood today, that title was held by Prairie Avenue in the late 19th Century.
Rezmar’s Mansions on Prairie Avenue, designed by the architectural firm of Pappageorge/Haymes, represent the rebirth of that famous street that once was called “Millionaire’s Row.”
The model at 1815 S. Prairie Ave. is open from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday through Wednesday and by appointment.
With 5,838 square feet, the Adler floor plan is base-priced at $1.8 million, but after being outfitted as a model by interior designer John Robert Wiltgen with special furnishings and upgrades, it is valued at $2.9 million.
It has four bedrooms, six baths, granite countertops in the kitchen, wood-burning fireplace, ceilings from 9 to 11 feet, brick and stone facades and a two-car garage.
The penthouse includes a media room, wet bar and wine “cellar” and a deck with views of the lake and Soldier Field.
Under construction nearby are townhouses. The Mansions on Prairie Avenue represent the high end of the residential rebirth of the Near South Side.
This used to be city’s most fashionable address. Chicago’s captains of industry in the late 19th Century built ornate palaces here. They included Marshall Field, George Pullman and Philip Armour.
But as commerce and industry took over much of the South Side, the location lost its appeal with the elite.
Some moved to Hyde Park and others to the Gold Coast, following the lead of the city’s power couple, hotelier and real estate magnate Potter Palmer and his socialite wife Bertha. Palmer built his castle (now demolished) at 1350 Lake Shore Dr., just a short walk from 65 E. Goethe.
Today, only a few of the original Prairie Avenue mansions survive. One of them is Glessner House. Now a museum, it is across the street from Rezmar’s model.
Also on the west side of Prairie is a four-acre park and its centerpiece, the Clarke House, Chicago’s oldest home, built in 1836 and moved to this location.
Meanwhile, the new Mansions on Prairie Avenue are offering three different floor plans. The exteriors also are differentiated by five different shades of brick.
The width of the homes varies from 20 to 24.5 feet. Seven of the 17 have been sold.
“This is one of Chicago’s most beautiful neighborhoods,” said Rosalind Edwards, Rezmar’s sales manager.
When complete, the Mansions on Prairie Avenue should bring back some of its former elegance to one of the city’s most historic streets.
