In a show of confidence in Chicago's office market recovery, Sterling Bay is scheduled to open its new 25-story office tower this fall, located at 360 N. Green St. in the bustling Fulton Market district. The building is currently 90% leased, with major tenants like Boston Consulting Group and law firm Greenberg Traurig already on board.

Despite a historically high availability rate of 29.6% in downtown Chicago at the beginning of 2024, those figures dropped slightly to 29.1% in the second quarter, as reported by Colliers. The Fulton Market area stands out with a vacancy rate that is the second lowest across the city's submarkets, trailing only behind North Michigan Avenue.

Designed during the pandemic, 360 N. Green aims to cater to the sophisticated tenant, wishing to offer "just a little bit more of a sophisticated service-type tenant," according to Sterling Bay’s vice president of design, Steph Smothers. Boston Consulting Group is set to occupy approximately half of the office tower under a 15-year lease for 250,000 square feet of space.

While the city's office market gradually finds traction, Sterling Bay is simultaneously moving to sell off some of its local properties. The developer placed the development site for their approved 28-story, 390-unit apartment tower at 370 N. Carpenter St., on the market, in pursuit of a buyer through brokerage Jones Lang LaSalle. The site was initially purchased by Sterling Bay and J.P. Morgan Asset Management for $4 million in 2013 and has now been listed without a stated asking price, although bids over $14 million are expected, translating to at least $415 per square foot, according to a source familiar with the listing.

The selling endeavor coexists with Sterling Bay dealing with financial challenges, including debt maturation and investor relations, after facing economic headwinds from the pandemic and increased interest rates. "Our goal is always to put market forces to work for our investors whether through land transactions or development," a Sterling Bay spokeswoman shared in a statement obtained by Crain's. The report indicates the stakes are high, not just for Sterling Bay but for sizable real estate firms in Chicago, amid a shifting architectural and economic landscape.

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