Trouble for Catalpa Gardens developers

There is a man named Reza Toulabi who, if I am not mistaken, lives in a walled compound in my neighborhood and owns a restaurant and a good deal of property on Chicago's North Side. One of his parcels is a narrow strip along the west side of the Red Line between Catalpa and Bryn Mawr, on which, several years back, he decided to develop a mid-rise condominium complex -- Catalpa Gardens. Mr. Toulabi hired a well-respected architect who produced a design that was interesting from an aesthetic point of view, but I had some concerns about the project's size. After the proposal was approved, the original architect was removed from the project, and they made some changes to the design that, in my opinion, harmed its aesthetics. I became even more concerned. Then they started building it, and it is a big, concrete building -- and I know I shouldn't pass final judgment on a building still under construction, but it doesn't look as nice as first advertised.

Somewhere along the line, Mr. Toulabi teamed up with developers Charles Cornelius and William A. Lockhart on this project, and I'm not even sure what his role is anymore. A recent article in Crain's describes Cornelius and Lockhart as "equal partners" and doesn't even mention Toulabi -- probably a good thing for him given the subject of the article. Mr. Lockhart was arrested last month, accused of cocaine possession. The following week, Lockhart was sued by Cornelius for mismanaging the project. I don't take any pleasure in their troubles. If you find yourself on the 5500 block of N. Broadway and look up over the roof of the alderman's office, there you will see an unfinished Catalpa Gardens looming eleven stories over the street, and it's not going away. I hope it gets finished, and I hope it will someday be an asset to the neighborhood.