Chicago's Biggest Co-Living Project Yet Breaks Ground In Pilsen
Common and CityPads are teaming up to build what they say is the Midwest's largest co-living project to date.
The JV broke ground on Common Addams, a 223-bed, four-story project across from Addams/Medill Park in Pilsen. It will have 5K SF of shared community space, including a gym, a movie room, lounges, a wet bar, communal dining areas, bike storage, package storage, 59 on-site parking spaces and a furnished roof deck. The 9-acre Addams/Medill Park is adding a new recreation center next year, which will give Common Addams residents access to new indoor basketball courts, a track and outdoor sports fields and trails.
Rents will start at $975/month, including all utilities, WiFi, furnished apartments, weekly cleanings of common spaces and shared supplies. The property, which is in both enterprise and opportunity zones, will open in 2020.
“I’m looking forward to bringing Common Addams to life in one of Chicago’s fastest growing neighborhoods, Pilsen, where nearly $1B is being invested towards urban infrastructure improvements,” CityPads founder Andy Ahitow said in a press release.
This is Common's fourth co-living building in Chicago and the third for the Common/CityPads JV. The property will triple the number of Common members in Chicago, Common Senior Director of Real Estate Sandy Albert said in the release.
Common opened its first Chicago location last year, and will bring its offerings to about 500 beds in the next two years. That won't touch demand — it is getting 1,400 applications a week in the city, it said in the release.
Co-living has really taken hold in the last two years, with providers like Common, WeLive and Ollie rapidly expanding across the country. The platform allows typically younger renters to more affordably live in hot urban areas. The exact strategy may yet evolve as co-living companies sort out what exactly co-living residents are looking for, but meanwhile projects like Common Addams are popping up with increasing regularity.
