RIVER NORTH — A vintage row home sandwiched by new condominiums in River North could be torn down for more condos.
A developer is under contract to buy and tear down the 19th Century Italianate at 154 W. Superior St., listing agent Peter Tortorello of Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Koenig Rubloff Realty said.
The 1,862-square-foot house, built in 1888, is the last one standing on a River North block now populated by new condominium towers.
The property at LaSalle and Superior streets is owned by the estate of a man who refused to sell while he was alive, leaving the home with wooden doors and limestone ornaments scrunched for years between new condominiums.
But the owner died in December, records show, and now a developer plans to tear down the vintage home and build as many as six new condos in its place, Tortorello said.
"You wouldn't want to live on that site with what it would take" to restore the home, Tortorello said. "It's really in pretty rough condition."
David Matthews chats about the row house that will finally be torn down.
The home at 154 W. Superior St. is listed for $1.28 million. [DNAinfo/David Matthews]
The teardown would be the latest in a neighborhood that's favored new towers over vintage row homes in recent years as developers run out of parking lots and other empty sites to choose from. A developer tore down old row homes at State and Huron streets to make way for a new apartment tower, two more were razed for Loyola University's new Downtown tower, and another developer just bought a three-story building at 46 E. Superior St. after floating plans for a 36-story tower nearby.
The home at 154 W. Superior is tucked between two condo towers built in 2006: the 14-story Superior at LaSalle, 150 W. Superior St., and a nine-story tower at 156 W. Superior.
Jehad Broderick of Albany Park was walking by the home when he was told it was slated for a tear down.
"It's really a beautiful building," Broderick said. "It's really a shame. They don't make buildings this like this anymore."
Tortorello declined to disclose the identity of the pending buyer, as well as the sale's closing date or price.
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