List Prices: $199,000 to $369,000
The Property: When work halted on a boom-years condo project meant to fill an unsightly gap in a block of historical homes in Kenwood, Lewis Korompilas spotted an opportunity.

The managing partner of his family’s Northbrook company, Premium Builders, Korompilas has a solid track record in righting broken properties on the South Side. Among others, he completed an unfinished condo project in Woodlawn and rehabbed a foreclosed greystone in Kenwood, now sold. (A prominent North Side project fell apart, though: Korompilas says that his attempt to buy and finish a condo ruin on Belmont Avenue “got complicated” and was called off.)

The condo site at 4351 South Lake Park Avenue appealed in part because he got it at a discount from the lender; the original builder failed after pouring the foundation. But there’s another reason Korompilas wanted to do this project. “The architecture is better on the South Side,” says this denizen of those historical blocks—and on this project, he could indulge in a brick and limestone structure that evoked the grandeur of Kenwood’s heyday a century ago.

As you will see in the video, the interiors, while not yet finished, reflect the old-line looks of the exterior, with ample wainscoting, high ceilings, and crown moldings. The building has ten units, which range in size from two to four bedrooms. The floor plans vary, as well, with some single-floor units and some two-floor units. The two-floor units might have a lofted space above the living room beneath a steeply peaked ceiling, or they will have a more formal library or media room in that same location, but enclosed on three sides by wainscoted walls. Two units open directly onto the rooftop deck, but residents in all ten condos share the space, which affords stunning views north to the city and east to the lake.

Price Points: The original builder had the condos priced well into the $500,000s. Even though Korompilas’s company put in a considerably higher level of finishes than were planned, the units are now priced much lower, from $199,000 to $369,000. Two of the units are already under contract; the first five are scheduled to be ready for occupancy in early May.

Listing Agent: Hasani Steele of Steele Real Estate; 877-724-0070