Fern Hill Wins Approval for 70-Unit Marielle on the Park in West Loop

• 23 S. Sangamon Street, Chicago, IL: Fern Hill's Marielle on the Park has received City Council approval for a 26-story condominium tower overlooking Mary Bartelme Park. The project will rise approximately 302 feet.
• 70 condos: The $150 million development will include 70 for-sale residences, 71 parking spaces, ground-floor retail and restaurant space, plus a fourth-floor amenity deck with a pool and dog run.
• Affordable housing handled off-site: Fern Hill plans to satisfy the city's affordability requirement through a partnership with Pilsen Housing Cooperative, which will develop affordable for-sale units in Pilsen.

What Fern Hill Is Building

Fern Hill is moving forward with Marielle on the Park, a 26-story condominium development at the northeast corner of S. Sangamon Street and W. Monroe Street in Chicago's West Loop. Designed by Eckenhoff Saunders, the tower will sit directly across from Mary Bartelme Park and will feature a stepped residential profile with private outdoor terraces for every condominium. Fern Hill identifies the project among its featured developments, highlighting its focus on condominium and mixed-use development.

What The 70 Condos Include

The residential tower will be organized into multiple tiers, with four homes per floor on lower residential levels before shifting to larger three-unit, half-floor, duplex and full-floor residences higher up. The fourth floor will provide resident amenities including a fitness center, lounge and kids room, along with an outdoor deck overlooking the park. A pool and dog run will also be included.

What The Ground Floor Adds

The building's base will include a residential lobby, restaurant and cafe space along W. Monroe Street. The S. Sangamon frontage will include bike facilities, parking and loading access, along with public restrooms and storage space for Mary Bartelme Park. The project originally included a much larger community center and fieldhouse, but those components were removed as the development evolved. The revised plan instead preserves a smaller public benefit tied directly to the adjacent park.

What The $150 Million Development Means

The approved project carries an estimated $150 million development cost and will use a 2.3 FAR bonus to reach 9.3 FAR. Fern Hill is also expected to make a $1.3 million contribution to Chicago's Neighborhood Opportunity Fund. The site has gone through several iterations since 2021, shifting from an 80-unit condo proposal to a much larger rental and mixed-income concept before returning to a smaller, for-sale project. The latest version reflects the developer's current focus on condominium housing in the West Loop.

What Comes Next For Marielle On The Park

With City Council approval secured, Fern Hill plans to begin condominium presales before construction. The project will need to reach its required presale threshold before breaking ground. For Chicago's luxury residential market, the project adds a relatively small number of high-end homes in one of the city's strongest development corridors, while its location directly across from Mary Bartelme Park gives the residences a major neighborhood amenity.