Flexible workplace and on-demand meeting services provider, Convene, will nearly double its footprint in the Chicago central business district with the opening of its second metro location at the Citadel Center, 131 S. Dearborn Street. The 50,000-square-foot, 15-year lease spans across the tower’s ground and second floors. Convene will manage full-service, tech-enabled meeting and event spaces that can accommodate up to 450 people.
“We’ve seen incredible demand from the Chicago market for both our state-of-the-art, tech-driven meeting and event spaces and our office building amenity platform,” said Ryan Simonetti, CEO and co-founder of Convene. “For building owners like Angelo Gordon, Hines, Equity Office and other top property owners who are repositioning their assets to be more responsive to modern tenant needs, Convene’s purpose-built meeting spaces and tenant services provide tremendous value. We’re thrilled to be working with Angelo Gordon and Hines to amplify the tenant experience at the Citadel Center and provide modern meeting and event spaces to both tenants and the surrounding business community.”
Citadel Center, owned by a partnership of Angelo Gordon, Hines and Dearborn Capital, is currently undergoing a $100 million upgrade, including the addition of a roof deck, a 10,000-square-foot fitness center, lobby renovation and tenant building lounge. Renovations are expected to be completed by the end of 2018 and Convene’s 50,000 square foot space is anticipated to open in the first quarter of 2019. The Citadel Center lease comes on the heels of Convene’s previously announced 55,000-square-foot lease at Equity Office’s soon-to-be redeveloped Willis Tower, which is expected to open in 2020. Convene will offer contemporary meeting and collaboration spaces along with a dedicated meeting planning team, an on-site culinary team that prepares seasonal menus, robust technology infrastructure and unlimited access to snack and refreshment stations at Willis Tower.
“We aim to make Citadel Center one of the most highly amenitized buildings in Chicago and we are excited to have Convene become part of the Citadel Center community,” said Scott Glassberg, vice president of Angelo Gordon. “We are committed to creating active communal environments at our buildings to create a better tenant experience, and we believe Convene will play a big role in helping us to foster this at Citadel Center.”
A JLL brokerage team of Craig Coupe, senior vice president, and Matt Carolan, executive managing director, represented Convene in the transaction. The Citadel Center partnership was represented by the team of Danny Jacobson, Meredith Oliver and Luke Molloy of CBRE.
“As we continue to partner with Convene on their Chicago expansion, we knew we wanted to identify a second location that once again provided a dense urban environment with great accessibility throughout the Loop,” said Coupe. “131 South Dearborn not only offered an unrivaled location but the timing could not be better as Convene will be on the ground floor of the exciting and impressive renovations that are happening at this prestigious office building.”
Citadel Center is located in the heart of Chicago’s Loop, easily accessible to all seven CTA “L” lines and densely served by CTA bus service along Dearborn, State Street and Michigan Avenue. Nearby attractions include The Art Institute of Chicago, Millennium and Grant Parks and the heavily trafficked State Street retail corridor.