Cook County Hospital Building Could Become Apartments and Stores

CHICAGO, IL - One of Chicago’s largest and most recognizable eyesores could be getting a facelift fairly soon.

A development plan in the works by the Civic Health Development Group calls for revitalizing the old Cook County Hospital building on the Near West Side as a hotel and apartment building with retail shops located on the first floor, CBS-Chicago reports.

The $550 million to $700 million development plan would include the group renting out the space from Cook County as part of a 99-year lease. The development of the project is not expected to cost the county anything.

Having already been listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the longtime hospital building will also see its historic Beaux Arts facade restored.

CDHG’s redevelopment plan would also include the construction of a new research and technology center near John Stroger Hospital and other buildings for residential and retail use.

Cook County Hospital closed in 2002 when Stroger opened. The building, which sits near Stroger and Rush University Medical Center in the city’s Medical District, has been vacant ever since.

More via CBS-Chicago