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Friday February 03, 2012
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Developer to Convert Historic Highland Park Site Into Luxury Gated Community

On Tuesday, January 16, Orren Pickell Designers & Builders, a Lincolnshire-based development company, introduced a plan to convert a historic estate in Highland Park into a luxury residential community.

The developer's presentation was made at an informal Highland Park Plan Commission meeting, and no official public comment was released by city officials. The meeting was set up so that Pickell could present its proposals and get feedback from commissioners on how to prepare for public hearings.

The lakeside property, formerly owned by convicted embezzler Michael Segal, was designed by landscape architect Jens Jensen and features a home created by Howard Van Doren Shaw. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Segal, a former insurance executive, forfeited the 17-acre lakefront estate as part of his 2004 conviction on fraud, racketeering, embezzlement and other charges.

CEO Orren Pickell purchased the historic property for $17.6 million in November, upon gaining a federal judge's approval.

Plans introduced by Pickell included building 11 private residences and rehabbing the palatial home and coach house currently standing on the property. Most of the land would be preserved as open space, with public access permitted twice a week.

The main house, a seven-bedroom Prairie-style Tudor Revival mansion designed by architect Howard Van Doren Shaw, would be converted into a single-family residence, with the coach house split into two dwellings. The curving driveway would be reconfigured and widened in spots, Pickell said.

In addition, Pickell proposed offering exterior maintenance services-including yard work and snow removal-to residents for a monthly fee. He also envisioned making the development a gated community to guarantee its residents' privacy.

The high-end development will be filled primarily, if not entirely, with multimillion-dollar houses. The main house has already been sold, though Pickell would not say to whom or for how much.

Pickell also plans to build a cabana with restrooms on the beach below a bluff. This proposal, along with his gated-entry concept, is causing friction between the developer and Highland Park officials. Neighborhood residents and preservationists have also long been concerned about the development of the historic property.

"This would really create the first gated community of Highland Park and would be out of character with the rest of the municipality," Edward Weil said. "We would have concerns about the cars backing up, traffic-control problems."

Cindy Wolfson, a neighbor who helped circulate a petition last fall to protect the property, said she would like to see fewer houses and roads on the land.

"These are all things that are going to have to be ironed out," she said.

A North Shore Chicago lakeside community, Highland Park is known for its beautiful homes, with the most expensive examples situated directly on the lakefront. The proposed Pickell development is the most recent example of a trend that's developed in Highland Park in recent years: demolishing older "tear down" homes and replacing them with sprawling luxury dwellings.

What remains to be seen is whether Pickell will be able to sell 11 multi-million dollar residences in a soft Highland Park real estate market that currently shows no obvious signs of improvement.

This winter, Highland Park real estate offices with hundreds of listings are showing fewer than 50 properties on an average Sunday-traditionally the busiest day of the week.

Highland Park Realtor Rozanne Kurman advises sellers to "Forget what your neighbor sold for last year. Your house will sell for 10% less, now . . . the press is telling buyers that the market has more to drop. They are listening."

We'll keep an eye on the Pickell property, as well as other breaking stories in Highland Park real estate, and keep you posted.

Check out the Chicago real estate blog for the latest in City of Chicago reports.