Photo courtesy of Jason Thomas
The Walgreens at the corner of South and East boulevards in South End will be torn down to make way for a new office tower with retail space and a rooftop terrace.
What’s happening: This week, White Point, MRP Realty and Barings announced a joint venture to develop a high-rise office tower on a 1.2-acre parcel at 1728 South Blvd. It’ll have 400,000 square feet of office space.
- The JV bought the property in December for $12.8 million, property records show.
- The Walgreens is closing this month.
Details: The developers are still determining how tall the tower will be. Construction will begin in early 2023. It’s a spec building, meaning it doesn’t have any tenants lined up yet.
Why it matters: This development adds to South End’s rapidly evolving skyline. What was once a neighborhood filled with old manufacturing buildings has given way to sleek apartments and increasingly, to high-rise office towers, too.
- This tower will be next to another White Point development, a 24-story apartment tower they’re developing alongside Greystar at the former Rosemont site.
Nearby, a number of large developments are also either planned or underway:
- Last week, construction began on a 23-story office tower at the East/West light rail station, in the area that’s currently a parking lot behind The Manchester.
- Across Camden Road, Lowe’s is building a 23-story tech hub called the Design Center Tower.
- Chicago firm Riverside Investment & Development plans to build three towers with a range of uses, from office to residential, at the Midnight Diner site.
What he’s saying: “This acquisition enables the complete transformation of this block into a true live-work-play destination,” Jay Levell, co-founder of White Point Partners, said in a statement about the new office tower.
