The Chicago Transit Authority is now looking for a buyer for the landmark Lakeview apartment building it famously preserved and moved out of the way of the Red and Purple Line tracks, along with a small neighboring parcel. The Vautravers, a three-story limestone greystone built in the 1890s, was lifted and slid out of the path of new tracks in 2021 and now sits closer to Clark Street. The new call for proposals follows the CTA's earlier promise to turn land it acquired during construction into transit-oriented projects.
The agency has issued three Requests for Proposals that include the Vautravers parcel at the southeast corner of W. Newport Ave. and N. Clark St. (officially portions of 3401 6-3427 N. Clark St. and 947 6-949 W. Newport Ave.), plus a Clark Street frontage site and the Roscoe/Clark corner, according to the CTA. Proposals are due Feb. 25, 2026, and the agency says it will favor development that fits the surrounding neighborhood scale and supports the goals laid out in its 2018 Transit-Oriented Development plan.
Completed in 1894, the Vautravers is a three-story limestone and brick walk-up with hammered copper bays and a detailed cornice. Preservation advocates and architectural records credit architects Emil H. Frommann and Ernst Jebsen with the design, according to Preservation Chicago. Research from Crain's Chicago Business traces the building's name to an early owner and notes that the original construction permit was pulled in January 1894.
How It Was Saved
When crews rebuilt and straightened a kinked stretch of Red and Purple Line track near Belmont, contractors lifted the roughly 1,000-ton structure and slid it about 30 feet to the west so the new track alignment could be corrected. The slow-motion move was captured in time-lapse video and widely shared at the time; WTTW and preservation groups covered the August 2021 operation. The Walsh-Fluor team and specialized building movers handled logistics, with Chicago YIMBY noting Wolfe House & Building Movers on site to stage the slide and stabilization work.
What CTA Is Asking For
The RFPs call for transit-oriented development that “promote[s] cultural, generational, economic, and family composition diversity” and seek affordable housing, retail and civic uses, priorities the agency says came out of community engagement linked to the 2018 TOD plan. CTA officials say they want proposals that feel at home in the neighborhood while making productive use of land that served as construction staging during RPM Phase One.
Price Tag And Local Reaction
Saving the Vautravers was not cheap. Local coverage at the time reported that the CTA paid about $1.75 million to acquire the building and spent roughly the same amount to move and stabilize it. The Chicago Sun-Times reported the purchase and moving figures when the structure was shifted in 2021. Preservation advocates hailed the move as a win for Lakeview and have urged that any redevelopment proposals keep the Vautravers' historic details front and center. Preservation Chicago has highlighted the building's landmark status and the group's role in pushing for its protection during RPM construction.
What's Next For Developers And Neighbors
Developers interested in the Vautravers and the two companion parcels have until Feb. 25, 2026, to submit their proposals. Details and submission instructions are available through the CTA's RFP materials and local outreach. The Lakeview East Chamber has shared the RFP information for neighborhood stakeholders. Neighbors and preservationists say they will be watching closely to see that the restored façade and the historic district's scale are respected as new uses move in.
