Build A Better Burb – Wheaton 121

Wheaton 121, a new apartment complex in Wheaton, IL, is attempting to redefine suburban living in both form and function. Unlike most sprawling residential developments that are centered around single-family homes and car commuting, Wheaton 121 promotes a new model of an urban lifestyle in an upscale suburban setting—with all of the walkability, access to transit, and built-in community that a typical city locale offers.

An affluent town some 20 miles outside Chicago, “there had not been any new rentals in the Wheaton market in over 15 years,” says David Strosberg, president of Morningside Group and developer of Wheaton 121. A foreclosed site in downtown Wheaton seemed like the perfect spot for such a project. The city put up money in the form of tax-increment financing (TIF) funds for public infrastructure work—helping to repave area streets, adding trees and lighting along the pavement, and improving some public utilities. Otherwise, the project was privately funded.

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