Revised May 9, 2013
MESA REDEVELOPMENT PROJECT
Frequently Asked Questions
1. What is Vue53?
Vue53 is the mixed-use project being proposed by Mesa Development for the
redevelopment of 1330 E. 53rd Street in Hyde Park. The project includes 267
units of high-quality rental housing (a mix of studios, one-bedroom and twobedroom units), 230 parking spaces (including dedicated employee spots)
and approximately 29,000 square feet of ground-floor commercial space.
2. Who/what is Mesa Development?
Mesa Development, LLC, is a family-owned, Chicago-based real estate firm
committed to smart development, environmental sustainability, and
responsible corporate citizenship. The University of Chicago selected Mesa to
lead the redevelopment of the property it owns at 1330 E. 53rd Street. For
more information about Mesa, visit http://www.mesadevelopmentllc.com/.
3. How does Mesa’s redevelopment project fit in with other
redevelopment activity on 53rd Street?
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This project is an important part of the broader redevelopment effort on 53rd
Street and would redevelop a site that has been discussed in visioning
workshops attended by members of the Hyde Park community since 2007. In
addition to attracting more residents to the street, it will enhance the
vibrancy of the corridor by linking new development at 53rd and Lake Park
with existing retail near Kimbark Plaza -- creating a continuous retail
presence that will encourage a positive and interactive pedestrian
experience, benefitting all retailers in the corridor. Combined with retail at
Harper Court, this new development will help establish 53rd Street as a
pedestrian-friendly retail district with amenities to meet the needs of area
residents.
For more information on 53rd Street redevelopment, visit
http://fiftythird.uchicago.edu/ or http://53.secc-chicago.org/.
4. Is the University of Chicago or Mesa Development moving too fast to get
this project approved?
No. This project is part of broader redevelopment efforts on 53rd Street,
which have had a multiyear process for community input. Since 2007, local
elected officials, the South East Chicago Commission, and the University of
Chicago have worked together to hold four visioning workshops. This project
was a main topic of the last two workshops, held in November 2008 and
April 2012. In the November 2008 workshop, 175 members of the
community used building blocks to experiment with their own ideas for
development at 1330 E. 53rd Street and found the project to be economically
unfeasible at 11.5 floors. In April 2012, more than 200 people shared their
views and ideas on redevelopment of this site and other aspects of 53rd
Street.
In late 2012, representatives from the University of Chicago and Mesa
Development began meeting with local community groups to gather
additional input. In January 2013, Mesa Development presented its proposal
for the project at a public meeting of the 53rd Street TIF Advisory Council.
That proposal, which already reflected community input from visioning
workshops and other meetings, was further refined after that meeting. Mesa
will deliver another presentation at the TIF meeting in May 2013.
5. What amenities would Vue53 offer?
Vue53 would offer the following amenities to residents:
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24-hour doorman
in-unit washers and dryers
exercise facilities
bicycle storage
car-sharing service
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business center
4th-floor roof deck overlooking
Nichols Park
community room
6. What will the monthly rental rates be for apartments in the building?
The building will consist of upscale units that would be leased primarily at
market rates for the Hyde Park area. In response to requests from the
community, the developer also has agreed to make apartments available for
affordable housing, in line with the city’s Affordable Housing Ordinance. The
redevelopment will add new units of affordable housing in Hyde Park equal
to 20% of housing units in the project. Affordable units will be made up of
housing both within the building and off-site.
Of the 267 units in the building, Mesa Development would reserve 15% (or
40 units) for affordable housing. The University of Chicago, which owns the
land where the project would be built, would designate as affordable housing
an additional 14 units (5%) within other rental properties it owns, in
conjunction with this project.
7. Is the 20% affordable housing commitment “revocable and voluntary”?
No. Mesa has committed to reserve 15% of units in the building for
affordable housing; the first 10% are covered by an Affordable Housing
Ordinance Agreement with the City of Chicago, which is binding by the
Affordable Housing Ordinance. This commitment is a contractual obligation.
Mesa’s remaining 5% and another 5% from the University of Chicago are by
agreement with the alderman. Both Mesa and the University are fully
committed to these agreements.
8. Would the University of Chicago own Vue53?
No. The University of Chicago owns the land the project would be built on,
but it would not own the building.
9. What kind of retailers and how many would occupy the ground-floor
commercial space in the building?
It is too early to say what retailers would lease space in the building;
however, the goal is to attract a mix of local and national tenants that would
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reflect the character of Hyde Park while also introducing exciting new retail
concepts to the community.
Plans for the building include room for two to six commercial tenants,
depending on space needs. Mesa’s plans include one space of approximately
17,000 square feet that could be used for one or two larger tenants and about
12,000 square feet that could broken down for up to four smaller retailers.
10. Does Mesa plan to lease the commercial space to a “big box” retailer,
like Target or Costco?
No. The commercial space in the building would not be designed for big-box
use. The largest space available for retail in the building would be 17,000
square feet, which is about 8,000 square feet less than the Office Depot at the
Hyde Park Shopping Center.
11. How tall would the proposed building be?
The building would have 13 floors and be 135 feet tall at the roof of the
highest occupied floor. That would be roughly the same height, measured in
feet, as the Hyde Park Bank building and not as tall as the New Harper Court
office building. It would fit contextually within the 53rd Street corridor.
12. What factors did Mesa consider in determining the numbers of floors
and units in the building?
Mesa’s primary consideration was balancing concerns from the community
with economic feasibility. While the project includes a significant affordable
housing commitment at the request of the community, no public tax dollars
would be used to help fund the project. Mesa determined that 267 units
would be the right number to provide the affordable units and make the
project economically feasible.
In response to concerns about how the building would fit in with the
surrounding community, Mesa sought to distribute the units in a way that
would have the least impact on the community. Because the southwest and
northeast corners would be lowered to create setbacks from the street, the
building needs 13 floors to accommodate the necessary density to make the
project possible.
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13. How will the building’s height affect the surrounding neighborhood?
Will it be too tall compared to its immediately adjacent neighbors?
The planned building fits contextually within the 53rd Street corridor and has
been designed with setbacks so that the façade closest to 53rd Street is only
three stories. The residential portion of the building is also set back from the
north to minimize impact on other residences on Kenwood.
The building also fits contextually within Hyde Park, which includes many
larger structures west of Lake Park Avenue. Mesa’s building would be neither
the tallest nor the most dense building (as measured by Floor Area Ratio) on
53rd Street west of Lake Park Avenue
14. Would the proposed building include enough parking?
Yes, a parking and traffic study conducted by an independent third-party
firm found the planned parking spaces to be more than sufficient. The
building would include 230 parking spaces. The proposed parking ratio
exceeds the number of spaces required by the city’s zoning code by 30
spaces. It also exceeds parking ratios in comparable developments across
Chicago, and we are comfortable that we have the right mix of parking to
accommodate Vue53 residents, shoppers and other visitors to the building.
As a transit-oriented development, the project would also encourage public
transportation by providing ample space for bicycle parking and parking
spots dedicated to car-sharing services.
15. What is a transit-oriented development?
There are many definitions of Transit Oriented Developments (“TOD”) from
many different organizations. The Center for Transit-Oriented Development
(“CTOD”) is the only national nonprofit effort dedicated to providing best
practices, research and tools to support market-based transit-oriented
development. CTOD uses the following criteria to define a TOD.
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Transit-oriented development is often defined as higher-density mixeduse development within walking distance – or a half mile – of transit
stations. CTOD uses a performance-based definition and believes that
projects should also:
Increase “location efficiency” so people can walk and bike and take
transit
Boost transit ridership and minimize traffic
Provide a rich mix of housing, shopping and transportation choices
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Generate revenue for the public and private sectors and provide value
for both new and existing residents
Create a sense of place
We believe that TOD is really about creating attractive, walkable,
sustainable communities that allow residents to have housing and
transportation choices and to live convenient, affordable, pleasant
lives—with places for our kids to play and for our parents to grow old
comfortably.
Vue53 will accomplish all of the goals cited above. There is a diverse menu of
available public transportation within a ½ mile radius (CTA bus, University
shuttle bus, Metra train, bike share). The project will encourage alternative
transportation by having super adequate bike storage options (minimum 125
bike parking areas) and parking dedicated to car sharing services. Vue 53
will contribute to the ongoing creation of a compact, pedestrian friendly,
retail district along 53rd Street. The project will do this by introducing
exciting new retail tenants to the Hyde Park community and also by
providing 267 homes for residents who will patronize the shops in the 53rd
Street district. By introducing a new, class A, rental housing alternative to
Hyde Park it is anticipated that residents who work or attend school in the
community, but who currently live outside of the community and commute
in on a daily basis because their preferred housing type is not available, will
relocate to Hyde Park and walk or utilize public transportation for their daily
commute.
16. What impact would the redevelopment project have on the flow of
traffic on 53rd Street? Will it increase traffic congestion?
According to a traffic and parking study conducted by KLOA, an independent
third-party consultant, Vue53 would have minimal impact on current traffic
flow. Mesa’s goal is to construct a transit-oriented development (“TOD”),
which would minimize the need for the building’s residents to use cars. The
location provides superior proximity to public transit -- the Metra station,
multiple CTA bus stops and University of Chicago shuttle stops located within
a half-mile from the site provide more transit options than most locations in
Hyde Park or any neighborhood in Chicago. Compared to the site’s current
gas station and car wash, which exist solely to serve car-based customers, the
proposed building would attract tenants and visitors using many
transportation alternatives.
17. Will the project add jobs in the local community?
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Mesa’s redevelopment project will generate 275,000 man-hours of labor and
will employ about 300 union construction workers and supervisors. A
minimum of 50% of construction jobs will go to city of Chicago residents, and
the developer will use reasonable efforts to hire residents of mid-South Side
neighborhoods in the following zip codes: 60609, 60615, 60619, 60637,
60649 and 60653. A minimum of 25% of construction contracts will go to
minority-owned businesses and a minimum of 5% will go to women-owned
businesses.
While we don’t know the precise number of permanent jobs, we expect the
completed project to result to add dozens of retail jobs long-term and 5 to 7
positions at the building itself.
18. What is the cost of developing Vue53?
Mesa expects to invest between $70 million and $75 million in the project,
including both hard and soft costs.
19. Will public tax dollars be used to pay for the project?
No.
20. Would the project be part of the 53rd Street Tax Increment Financing
(TIF) district?
This project will be located within the 53rd Street TIF district, but it will not
use tax increment financing funds. However, it would contribute an
estimated $7.7 million in additional increment to the TIF district. This
represents funds that the community could invest in projects deemed
beneficial to Hyde Park residents.
21. Construction typically produces a lot of dust. How will the developer or
the University address the needs of property owners who may have
their homes or vehicles impacted by excess dust?
Mesa has significant experience with building in neighborhoods and handling
issues such as dust. They will do everything they can to minimize disruptions
to neighbors.
22. How will the developer avoid having workers obstruct neighborhood
parking spaces during construction?
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Mesa has agreed to keep the sidewalks open on both sides of 53rd Street
throughout the project so that current pedestrian patterns will experience as
little disruption as possible. Additionally, the construction company for the
proposed development, McHugh Construction, is also handling construction
for Harper Court. On that project, the University has arranged for
construction worker parking that does not occupy public spaces in the area.
Mesa will work with McHugh to apply any best practices and learnings from
Harper Court to this project.
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