Chicago's United Center Owners Propose $7B Mixed-Use Campus Around Arena
Owners of Chicago's United Center have announced a massive project that would replace the parking lots and area around the arena with a $7B mixed-use district.
The megadevelopment, dubbed The 1901 Project, would radically reshape the city's West Side, adding a new 6,000-seat music hall, hotel and retail buildings, public open space and thousands of apartments, the Chicago Sun-Times first reported. If approved, construction on the 10-year redevelopment project is planned in seven phases, with the first phase estimated to begin as early as next year.
Chicago Bulls President and CEO Michael Reinsdorf and Chicago Blackhawks Chairman Danny Wirtz are spearheading the 14M SF project, which would span 55 acres. The ownership group said it isn't angling for city funding or tax increment financing assistance.
“The 1901 Project represents a continuation of our families’ commitment to the future of Chicago’s West Side,” Reinsdorf said in a statement. “This investment will create a thriving, interconnected neighborhood, delivering significant benefits and resources to the community we have long called home.”
The major draw of the first phase of The 1901 Project will be a theater-style music hall on a parcel at the northeast corner of Damen Avenue and Adams Street, Crain's Chicago Business reports. Project leaders designed the 6,000-seat venue following feedback from musical artists, event promoters and other music industry stakeholders. Estimated to begin construction in spring 2025, the music hall would complement larger-scale events inside the United Center, according to the outlet.
The project's first phase will also feature an elevated 2.5-acre park along the western edge of the arena, built atop a new structure that includes parking, an expanded loading dock and outward-facing retail, Crain's reports. The park would include recreational space and sports courts and connect to green space surrounding the adjacent music hall.
Rounding out the first phase of development would be a mixed-use building that includes parking, retail and a hotel with an estimated 150 to 180 rooms, United Center officials told Crain's.
United Center executives said the megadevelopment, master-planned by international design collective RIOS, could deliver between 5,000 and 6,000 new residential units across its phases, and 20% of them will be designated affordable units.
RIOS Senior Project Director Richard Peterson said the development would prioritize humans over cars.
“Our goal with the master plan is to provide an urban canvas, rich with public spaces and diverse programs, for the legacy of the existing neighborhood to write its own new chapter,” Peterson said in a statement.
The development is projected to create about 63,000 construction jobs, 12,000 permanent jobs, $4.5B in annual economic impact and $104M in annual tax revenue, the Sun-Times reported. The first phase of development would create about 4,000 construction jobs, 1,900 permanent jobs and $275M in economic impact.
The announcement comes just weeks before the Democratic National Convention kicks off at the venue. The four-day event begins Aug. 19.
