Tribune Tower Sale Finalized; Does a New Owner Mean a New Name?

CHICAGO, IL — A Los Angeles-based developer is now the proud owner of the landmark Tribune Tower, according to the Chicago Tribune.

CIM Group paid $205 million in cash to Tribune Media at Wednesday's closing of the sale of the iconic building on North Michigan Avenue. The new owner will pay up to $35 million once certain conditions are met, making the total deal worth potentially $240 million.

The group plans to turn the 3-acre property — which includes a surface parking lot and the Chicago Tribune's old printing plant — into a mixed-use development that would include spaces for retail outlets, residential units and offices, the report added. A hotel is also a possibility, according to the report.

The 36-story, neo-Gothic tower, which takes up 737,000 square feet of the property, will continue to be the development's focal point, and CIM Group says it will work to maintain the views around it and "not just build to the maximum allowable limits," the Tribune reports.

RELATED: Deal Reached to Sell Tribune Tower for $240 Million

Currently, Tribune Tower's largest tenant is Tronc, the company formerly known as Tribune Publishing before Tribune Media spun it off in 2014, the report stated. Its lease runs out in 2018, the report added.

The sale of the tower continues Tribune Media's efforts to sell off all of its real estate holdings, which are estimated at $1 billion, the report stated. The company also sold its Times Mirror Square facility in Los Angeles on Wednesday, the report added.

CIM Group's redevelopment might not just change Chicago's skyline; it also might change the name of its newly acquired property. The Tribune Tower moniker might go the way of the Sears Tower and U.S. Cellular Field (or Comiskey Park, if you like), according to Time Out Chicago.

But the new owner says it's too soon to be thinking about potentially renaming Tribune Tower or even selling the naming rights, a spokeswoman for CIM Group told Patch on Wednesday.

YOUR TURN: Will you be upset if the Tribune Tower's new owner changes the name? Share your thoughts and opinions in the comments section. Plus, take Patch's poll on the subject.

More via the Chicago Tribune

The Tribune Tower (photo by Luke Gordon | Wikimedia Commons)

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