Yield

ABOUT YIELD

In early 2019, LISC Chicago and ULI Chicago partnered to address the lack of diversity in commercial real estate development, and Yield is the result. Modeled after ULI’s Product Councils, the Cohort convenes multiple times each year to share experiences, leverage relationships, learn from other developers, discuss challenges and opportunities around development, and build valuable connections.  The current Yield Cohort is comprised of 23 members, 60% of which are POC (Black, LatinX, Asian) and 35% of which are women.

Yield aggregates emerging and seasoned real estate professionals who share best practices and work together to further actionable neighborhood-based commercial real estate projects. Every member of the Yield Cohort has developed, or is in the process of developing, projects throughout Chicago.  More significant than creating dialogue through convention, the purpose is to drive projects to completion, providing financial and civic success. Some of the projects that developers will pursue include a cold storage facility on the West Side, several mixed-use projects in residential neighborhoods, and a community hub for arts and nonprofit space in a former school on the South Side.

The Yield Cohort held an official kick-off program in July 2020, where the group was joined by over 100 invited guests – key stakeholders for ULI Chicago and LISC Chicago, as well as multiple organizations key to the development and support of Yield – for a panel discussion with Chicago’s Mayor Lori Lightfoot. Moderated by Teri Frankiewicz (Crown Community Development) and Hugh Williams (MK Asset Management), Mayor Lightfoot talked about development opportunities in Chicago with two Yield Cohort members – Kim Adams (J.P. Morgan) and Tracy McKenzie (CBRE).

“I am very excited by this dynamic collaboration between Chicago’s nonprofit and private sectors to uplift our city’s diverse developers and empower them to make positive, impactful change across our communities. Our city’s future rests on all of us working together to marshal our shared resources toward a more inclusive, equitable and just future. This initiative will activate the next generation of talented developers on our South and West Sides, helping them to advance critical projects that will spur further neighborhood investment and support every resident on their drive to success, ” shared Mayor Lightfoot.

The Yield Cohort continues to meet and work towards the goals outlined above.  If you are interested in supporting Yield or participating in the future, please contact ULI Chicago.

Yield is funded through grants from J.P. Morgan Chase and the Pritzker Traubert Foundation.

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Yield Cohort Members At Work:

Yield Cohort Member Andy Gloor (Sterling Bay) & ULI Chicago Advisory Board Member & Yield Co-Chair Hugh Williams (MK Asset Management & Sterling Bay) have recently joined together to focus on furthering diversity in the workplace.  Hugh was recently featured on WGN’s “Back to Work” segment. “Let’s not confuse work with results, so we’ve got to get some victories and see some results,” Hugh shares.  “In order to make the impact we need, we have to change the model.”

Yield Cohort emerging developers Juan Moreno (JGMA), Tracy McKenzie (McKenzie Management), and James Webb (Nation Builders Construction), along with seasoned developer Zeb McLaurin (McLaurin Development Partners) have advanced to the shortlist for Invest South West’s North Lawndale site.  The project team has submitted  RK5 at Roosevelt & Kostner.  Watch their full pitch here.

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YIELD IN THE NEWS