A Boston-based firm that already has taken punches from decreased office values in Chicago is putting a distinctive tower in the Loop business district on the market in a likely short sale.
Cushman & Wakefield brokers have been hired to seek a sale of the 40-story building at 190 S. LaSalle St. in the heart of the city’s longtime Loop financial district, according to a brochure.
If the tower sells, it is likely to be at a big loss for owner Beacon Capital Partners and its lender, U.S. Bank, which also is an office tenant in the tower.
Completed in 1987 and known for its green gabled roof, the postmodern high-rise was designed by architects Philip Johnson and John Burgee, according to the Chicago Architecture Center.
The LaSalle Street tower is one of a few Chicago office buildings where Beacon has felt the crunch of remote and hybrid work trends and a sluggish investment sales market.
Beacon bought 190 S. LaSalle for $230 million in late 2019, just a few months before the onset of COVID-19, which led to historically low demand for corporate space and plunging property values. Minneapolis-based U.S. Bank provided a nearly $167.5 million loan in February 2020, according to Cook County property records.
As with many office sales these days, the lender and borrower are working together to see how much they can recoup in a sale.
U.S. Bank declined to comment to CoStar News. Beacon did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Falling values
CoStar News last August reported that Beacon is at risk of defaulting on the 52-story, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe-designed AMA Plaza tower along the Chicago River.
Recently, the firm sold the 30-story, Mies-inspired tower at 303 E. Wacker at a big loss for Beacon and lender Bank of America. The deal involved a deed in lieu of foreclosure, or a voluntary surrender, between Beacon and the bank.
Beacon, a longtime investor in Chicago, also has been on the other side of falling values. The firm in June bought the 36-story office tower at 333 W. Wacker Drive for $125 million. That was a steep discount to the previous sale price, $320.5 million in 2015.
Tenants departing
The tower at 190 S. LaSalle has relatively low vacancy, but the property is bracing for the loss of large tenants.
CoStar News first reported in February that consulting firm Bain & Co. is in talks to move from 190 S. LaSalle to the Citadel Center at 131 S. Dearborn St. That followed a Crain’s Chicago Business report earlier in the year that investment firm Neuberger Berman plans to leave 190 S. LaSalle for 191 N. Wacker Drive.
The move to sell 190 S. LaSalle, previously reported by Crain’s Chicago Business, follows a wave of office sales late last year and in early 2025 at big losses to the sellers and the lenders.
Beacon invested $13.6 million in renovations at 190 S. LaSalle completed in 2023, according to the Cushman & Wakefield brochure. Improvements were made to the fitness and conference centers, lobby and cafe.
For the record
The seller is represented by Cushman & Wakefield brokers Tom Sitz, Cody Hundertmark and Dan Deuter.