Woodlawn Central LLC, the group behind an eight-acre, $895 million mixed-use megadevelopment designed to keep Black residents and urban communities in south side Chicago, has chosen Transwestern as its commercial development partner.

J. Byron Brazier and his father, Dr. Byron Brazier, who, as leaders of Chicago’s Apostolic Church of God and community members, proposed the site as a centre for commerce and equity, will serve as project sponsors and lead developers.

“Woodlawn Central has a broad scope because it's been designed to bring significant economic benefits to an undercapitalized community in multiple ways. We wanted to partner with a firm that's multifaceted, agile and has deep expertise in development, project management, investment services, public engagement, and more. Transwestern checked all the proverbial boxes for us,” J. Byron Brazier, managing member of Woodlawn Central LLC, said in a statement.

A minority-led team will head the project. Vince Lane, Mary Richardson-Lowry, Lisa Mazique and Don Thompson will also contribute as Woodlawn Central LLC members, according to the groups 2060 proposal plan.

The sustainable development project could bring 870 homes to the area, ranging from affordable to luxurious. Moreover, it will have retail and restaurant space for vendors, a 154-room hotel, a black box theatre, a vertical greenhouse and a microgrid energy facility — all by 2060.

“Woodlawn Central is not a straightforward mixed-use development. It carries weight far beyond its physical parameters and economics. Our most important criteria in selecting Transwestern went beyond its deep expertise in real estate services. We also needed a partner that had an authentic, deeply rooted belief in the project,” Dr. Brazier said in a statement.

“This is about more than building a one-off development, no matter how great it is. This is an opportunity to not only make a major impact on the surrounding communities and break negative social and economic cycles, but to also set an example for transformative, community generated development that can be repeated nationwide,” the pastor added.

Meanwhile, for Transwestern, a capital firm with a commercial real estate arm, J.C. Griffin, vice president of its Midwest Capital Markets Group, will be the owner representative for the project through all phases.

His role will include coordinating brokerage activities, marketing and research efforts, project capitalization and financing, and project/construction services, according to a statement.

“We are looking forward to working with the Woodlawn Central LLC and a diverse, innovative team of architecture, engineering and construction professionals to create a wide range of sustainable economic development opportunities,” Griffin said in a statement. “Because it's been designed with extensive community engagement and broad-reaching, regenerative goals, Woodlawn Central is a unique and compelling project that will have a significant impact beyond its boundaries and for generations to come.”

Designing the future of Chicago's south side

Woodlawn's Apostolic Church of God, which has more than 20,000 members, is situated in the neighbourhood and, since 2009, has sourced input from the community to craft a plan to improve its quality of life by building infrastructure that supports better education, safety, health, and economics, according to a statement.

According to a 2022 Community Data Snapshot from the Chicago Metropolitan Planning Agency, residents in Woodlawn Central are over 91 per cent of minority groups. And yet, its median and per capita household income numbers are $27,541 and $20,824, respectively.

That is among the lowest in the City, with medians that are $62,097 and $39,068, respectively, city stats show.

Woodlawn residents also have the City's lowest median net worth among all 77 of Chicago's community areas at $4,439 vs. the national median of $97,680.

“That's why Woodlawn Central's design incorporates technology, agriculture, retail, the visual and performing arts, and sustainability. It's what the community said they wanted in the 2060 Plan. But most significantly, these are assets that set the stage for future neighbourhood reinvestment,” J. Brazier said in a statement. “We want this to be a national model for the successful development of the Black community from the inside out, challenging the notion that gentrification is inevitable as urban places regenerate.”