Skender has broken ground on the adaptive reuse of 500 N. Michigan Avenue, launching the conversion of a 400,000-square-foot office tower on Chicago’s Magnificent Mile into a residential property.
The project will transform the largely vacant high-rise into a multifamily community totaling 320 residential units, repositioning a long-standing commercial address on one of Chicago’s highest-profile corridors.
Connecticut-based Commonwealth Development Partners is leading the development, while GREC Architects is responsible for the new design concept. The redevelopment plan calls for a comprehensive reimagining of the 24-story structure, shifting its primary use from office to residential.
The tower, originally completed in 1968 and designed by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, stands 304 feet tall at the corner of North Michigan Avenue and East Illinois Street. It has historically served as an office building but now forms part of a broader wave of downtown assets being repositioned as housing.
Under the current plan, floors 3 through 23, which are described as vacant, will be converted into 320 residential dwelling units. This program will effectively repurpose the majority of the building’s interior space, while retaining its prominent Magnificent Mile address and overall structural framework.
An additional 25th floor will be constructed atop the existing structure to house new amenity spaces. These amenities will include both indoor and outdoor areas, intended to support the building’s shift to a residential community and enhance its competitiveness within the downtown rental market.
Project completion is targeted for late 2027, positioning the building to deliver new housing supply to the urban core over the medium term. As one of the more significant office-to-residential conversions underway in Chicago’s downtown, 500 N. Michigan is cited as part of a broader city initiative both to address office vacancies and to expand the stock of housing in the central business district.
Skender vice president Alex Panici framed the assignment as aligned with the firm’s capabilities, noting the opportunity to revitalize a Magnificent Mile landmark in partnership with Commonwealth Development Partners and to contribute to the ongoing evolution of Chicago’s downtown environment.
