The Bronzeville Lakefront is a $3.8 billion development from GRIT on Chicago’s South Side that will create up to 7 million square feet of commercial, institutional and mixed-income housing and up to 20,000 temporary and permanent jobs.

The southern end of the property is proposed to include an innovation center, retail and a community spaces, a mixed-income residential building, a new park, and a rehabilitated Singer Pavilion, the only remaining building from the original Reese complex. Infrastructure construction started in spring 2023.

The northern portion of the site is planned to include a mix of medical research facilities, a data center, mixed-income residential units, retail spaces, offices and open spaces that would be constructed over the next two decades. GRIT is studying potential modifications to their design and future plans in response to shifting market conditions prior to proceeding with phase one of the development.

The 48-acre site is the former location of the Michael Reese Hospital and Medical Center, which closed in 2008. The City of Chicago acquired the property in 2009 and cleared most of the land in ensuing months.

In 2017, the City selected a team of local developers known as GRIT to purchase and develop the site through a Request for Proposal (RFP). GRIT is comprised of Farpoint Development, Loop Capital Management, McLaurin Development Partners,  Chicago Neighborhood Initiatives and Bronzeville Community Development Partnership.

GRIT's proposal began to move forward in fall 2019 in close collaboration with the Department of Planning and Development (DPD), Ald. Sophia King (4th Ward) and the Michael Reese Advisory Council. Multiple city commissions and committees approved of the plans, which required a Redevelopment Agreement that permits the sale of the site from the City to the developer for $96.9 million.

Additionally, a $60 million infrastructure agreement will create a walkable, vibrant, mixed-use community that includes more than nine acres of new green space, bike facilities, sidewalks, and utilities. The work will also re-establish a comprehensive roadway network throughout the site, including new and improved sections of 26th, 27th, 29th, and 30th streets; Lake Park Avenue; and Cottage Grove Avenue. To be financed by the City through general obligation bonds, infrastructure construction will be completed by GRIT in 2026.

Final City Council approval of the extensive agreements took place in July 2021. Details about engagement activities are listed below.