CL-RED Transforms Property to Create Upscale Apartments on Columbus St. in Ottawa, IL

History

Before we stepped in, 817 Columbus Street was a neglected, dilapidated section of an otherwise beautiful street in Ottawa, Illinois. What was once a productive stone mason’s workshop had deteriorated into vacant property with structural challenges. But we at CL-RED, despite the obstacles, saw the potential of the two buildings.

Our Vision

We realized that the property was located in a perfect location for a high-end apartment building. Residents would have access to everything they needed. As our CEO Nathan Watson put it: “Downtown Ottawa is an excellent place to live. Within a few blocks you have parks, trails, the YMCA, riverfront, coffee shops, restaurants, breweries, libraries, shops, schools, the movie theatre, nightlife—you have it all.” With that, the journey to transform the property began with our project manager Rafael Blanco at the helm! Using local contractors and architectural designs from Earl Lecki, our team worked to turn the big idea into reality.

Creative Solutions

Restraints became opportunities to apply creative solutions as we removed the roof of part of the one-story building to create a private, open-air courtyard on the ground floor and a spacious deck on the second floor offering scenic views of Fox River. These creative solutions turned into defining features enhancing the property with more daylight on the interior and more private space on the exterior.

With only a modest budget, we transformed this property into three modern single-bedroom apartments and one two-bedroom apartment surrounding the courtyard space. The two vacant, dilapidated buildings were reshaped into a high-end apartment building in a beautiful location.

The hard work and creativity of our team on this project, is an ideal example of CL-RED’s consistent commitment to revitalizing communities with big ideas!