601W Cos. Buys Old Post Office, but Questions Remain

The Old Post Office has sat vacant since the mid-1990s, and even though a sale has been announced, the city plans to use the eminent domain process to take over.

CHICAGO—Another developer may get a shot at tackling one of the biggest question marks in the city’s downtown. Bill Davies’ International Property Developers North America announced yesterday a conditional sale of the Old Post Office, the iconic 2.7 million square foot property that straddles the Eisenhower Expressway, to New York-based investment group 601W Cos. It is still not clear whether the deal will survive, as city officials seem to have other ideas.

Earlier this week, after losing patience with Davies’ unsuccessful attempts to cobble together a workable plan since acquiring the site in 2009, the city’s Department of Planning and Development issued a RFP for the property with proposals due June 10. Officials want to take over the site through the eminent domain process, identify a company willing to buy it for fair market value and then transform it into an office or mixed-use project. Davies’ sale was announced the day after the RFP was issued.