Bell Works ‘Metroburb’ leads renaissance of repurposing abandoned corporate HQ sites

Hoffman Estates village officials and the developer say 2025 could be the tipping point for realizing an ambitious vision — turning the former AT&T headquarters into the self-contained “Metroburb” of Bell Works Chicagoland.

Inspired by Somerset Development CEO Ralph Zucker now admits there was a major decision to be made whether to stop or push ahead at the height of the pandemic nearly five years ago.

Nevertheless, his New Jersey-based firm landed with a product even more in demand after the pandemic’s impact on the suburban office market and its aging inventory in particular.

Zucker isn’t giving much of the credit to chance or luck, however.

“It was an educated, calculated gamble,” he said. “The market has rewarded us very much. We had to say we were going to do as good a job as we could. There’s a flight to quality now. The underdesigned places are falling by the wayside.”

The parallel trend of replacing old corporate campuses with data centers, occurring as nearby as the former Sears headquarters at the west end of Hoffman Estates, also is a boon to projects like his that are rehabilitating a now scarcer amount of office space, Zucker said.

Hoffman Estates Economic Development Director Kevin Kramer commended Zucker’s brave decision during the pandemic that has led to the east wing of the sprawling headquarters near its leasing capacity this year.

“It feels full when you walk in there,” Kramer said.

While he’s not yet announcing the start of work on the western wing, Zucker agrees a main goal of 2025 will be to virtually complete the leasing of the east side.

Site work will begin in the spring on 164 townhouses on the east side of the property.

And this quarter Zucker expects to seek more detailed approval for nearly 300 apartments in the same 20-acre residential district.

“They’re beautiful plans,” he said. “I think the market is going to love them.”

He expects construction of the townhouses and apartments will overlap, progressing at the pace of consumer demand for each type.

A residential component always was key to the concept of the Metroburb and the entertainment and hospitality amenities among its commercial tenants.

“I’m super excited about the townhomes and the apartments and all the people that are going to move in,” Zucker said. “The vision is really going to come alive.”

“That will bring more people to the area,” Hoffman Estates Mayor Bill McLeod said. “There’s a great need for townhouses on the north end of town.”

He added increasing the variety of housing options is a goal of the village itself.

Whenever work does begin on the western wing of Bell Works, Zucker said it also will bring the responsibility to renovate the so-far unused central area of the former AT&T building. Though it doesn’t carry the same leasing potential as the two wings, it is an essential bridge between them.

“It is a vital component, with its roof deck and existing patio,” Zucker said.

Unlike the pioneer office tenants on the east side, even the earliest tenants on the west will have the incentive of the restaurant, retail and recreational amenities already available to them on the property, Kramer said.

Zucker sees this year as the one in which his concept will be readily apparent to all.

“We’re going into 2025 with the wind at our backs,” he said. “The marketplace has spoken that it likes the Metroburb.”