On Tuesday, October 15th, Primera Engineers along with our project partners LendLease, and other public officials came together to celebrate the official grand opening and ribbon cutting ceremony of 414 units of mixed-income housing and a publicly accessible landscaped park alongside a new Riverwalk. Located on the north side of Chicago at the intersection of Clybourn, Damen, and Diversey, this revitalized community, known as Lathrop, will soon offer over 1,000 units of mixed-income housing, retail and community space at the completion of the four-phase redevelopment project.

Primera provided pre-construction civil services, electrical and mechanical engineering, project management, and LEED services for the rehabilitation of the northern end four-story brick buildings, the reconstruction of an administration building into a community coffee shop, and the development of a brand new six-story residential structure. Additionally, the project will also add a half-mile-long pathway along the Chicago River that opens to a two-acre lawn, a new kayak launch, a children’s playground, and a circular dog run pen with surrounding wood benches.

“Lathrop Homes is such a transformational project for the community. As one of the first public housing buildings in Chicago, we made sure to preserve the architecture and history behind the original Lathrop homes,” says Lourdes Gonzalez, Senior Vice President. “In addition to restoring the existing structures, the project team also incorporated plenty of green and open space, as well as new amenities available to the community.”

The final phases of the project are set to be complete in 2020 and will focus on the south end of the community.