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Dearborn Wholesale Grocers Building for Lease in Uptown

By Adeshina Emmanuel | January 28, 2014 10:53am
 918 W. Montrose Ave., in Uptown.
918 W. Montrose Ave., in Uptown.
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Cook County Assesors's Office

UPTOWN — A new tenant is being sought to fill the the Dearborn Wholesale building at 918 W. Montrose Ave., according to Mid-America Real Estate Group.

The 12,500-square-foot supermarket building sits on a nearly 37,000-square-foot parcel of land that includes more than 50 parking spaces, according to a listing posted by the real estate brokerage firm.

The building currently houses wholesaler Dearborn Cash & Carry, a company that helps stock grocery retailers and foodservice operators.

The company opened on the South Side more than 35 years ago and has four locations in Chicago area and one in Milwaukee. It was unclear why they are closing and company management could not immediately be reached for comment.

Alyssa Berman-Cutler, president of Uptown's economic development organization, Uptown United, said in an email that there's been significant interest in the Montrose property, "which is likely to be purchased by new ownership soon."

She described the property as "a great development opportunity."

Given that it's "one of the few larger parcels available in the heart of Uptown," and close to a Target store and the Wilson Red Line station, which is supposed to get a $203 million makeover, "our preference would be a higher density mixed-use development on the site, and we’d support seeking a zoning change for that type of use," Berman-Cutler said.

Tressa Feher, chief of staff for Ald. James Cappleman (46th), also said that the 46th Ward office has heard of a lot of interest in the building containing, which is just west of Lake Shore Drive.

"Since the site is so large and in that commercial corridor, there are a lot of possibilities," Feher said.

The building is across the street from a Jewel supermarket, and sits a few blocks west of Montrose and Clarendon avenues, where a more than $200 million housing and retail development is being proposed by JDL Development.

The controversial plan includes about 26,000 square feet of retail space, possibly for a grocer to fill, and asks for a $14 million tax increment finance subsidy from the city.