Neglected buildings, rebuilt with the neighborhood.

We acquire distressed property in North Lawndale and West Town, then rebuild it with crews hired from the same blocks.

Explore investment Request investor materials

In the community. With the community. For the community.

Distressed buildings are cheap. Trust on the block is not. We buy the first and have spent years earning the second.

That pairing is what lets a rehab in Lawndale get permitted, get built, and stay intact after the crews leave. Local hiring is not a paragraph in an impact appendix here. It is how the work gets done, and much of why the buildings hold up.

  • AreaNorth Lawndale, Community Area 29
  • Ward24th Ward, 20 election precincts
  • AlsoWest Town, near North and Western
  • Built15 completed projects throughout Lawndale
A masonry crew working from a lift on a building facade in North Lawndale

Three outcomes, every project.

  1. Community renewal

    Vacant lots, blighted structures, and underserved corridors that conventional developers write off. Work is aligned with federal HUD guidelines and Illinois state development programs.

    • HUD and NMTC compliant
    • Illinois DCEO eligible
    • Opportunity Zones

  2. Local employment

    Crews are hired from the same blocks we build on, so construction spend stays in the community area. From framing to property management, neighbors build careers where they live.

    • Local first hiring
    • Section 3 commitments
    • MBE and WBE subcontractors

  3. Strong returns

    Deals are structured for competitive, risk adjusted returns to commercial investors, private partners, and participating agencies, with transparent reporting at every stage.

    • Commercial and private capital
    • Agency participation
    • Tax credit stacking

This is what we buy.

Debris piled in an overgrown vacant lot
Illegal dumping on a vacant parcel
Gutted interior of a vacant commercial building
Vacant building near North and Western
Apartment interior stripped to the studs
Harding Avenue, stripped to studs

For investors

How a project actually runs.

  1. Acquire

    Title and code review before close. Priced against rebuild cost, not comparable sales.

  2. Permit

    Full architectural set through a licensed architect, then City of Chicago permit.

  3. Build

    Neighborhood crews on a fixed scope, under our own superintendent.

  4. Operate

    Lease up and manage, or hand the finished building to a community operator.

Architectural building section from a permit drawing set

Permit set, building section

Commercial partners

  • Diversified exposure to redevelopment assets
  • Tax incentive upside
  • Long term appreciation

Private investors

  • Single deal or corridor fund participation
  • Preferred return tiers
  • Transparent quarterly distributions

Government agencies

  • HUD, CDBG, and NMTC co-investment
  • Opportunity Zone and Illinois DCEO programs
  • Compliance reporting built in

The same rooms, before and after.

Gutted apartment interior before rehabilitation
Before
Finished apartment with new flooring and kitchen
After
Vacant commercial floor before rehabilitation
Before
Finished community center lobby
After

Five new apartments on the 1500 block of South Harding. Rockwell Community Center, near North and Western.

The part that never shows up on a rent roll.

Cleanup days, distributions, a gym and meeting space the block actually uses.

Buildings surrounded by neighbors who want them to succeed lease faster and take less damage. That is the quiet half of the underwriting, and it is the half that takes years rather than months to build.

  • Sites1500 block of S. Harding Avenue
  • Independence Boulevard at 13th Street
  • CenterLobby, meeting rooms, gym, classrooms
Volunteers in safety vests clearing a Lawndale street
Neighbors lined up at a supply distribution tent
A group seated in the converted indoor sport center
Children playing at a neighborhood family day
Residents seated at a community meeting presentation

Cleanup day, distribution, indoor sport center, family day, community meeting

Who we work alongside.

Government

  • U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development
  • Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity
  • Chicago Department of Planning and Development
  • Chicago Housing Authority

Financial

  • Community Development Financial Institutions
  • New Markets Tax Credit allocatees
  • Private equity and family office partners
  • Commercial lending institutions

Community

  • 24th Ward aldermanic office
  • Neighborhood Housing Services of Chicago
  • MBE and WBE contractors, trade unions
  • Community based organizations

Get in touch

Let's build something together.

Whether you invest, fund, or organize on these blocks, we want to hear from you.

  • Office1225 Potter Rd, Park Ridge, IL 60068
  • FocusNorth Lawndale, West Town and the South Side, Chicago
  • EIN93-2398630
  • Emailcallingwaterllc@gmail.com
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