‘The Invert’ hopes to bring underground building project to old Southeast Side steel mill

CHICAGO — A real estate development company in Chicago is hoping to take contaminated buildings left behind by old steel mills and build below them, underground.

The investors behind The Invert are hoping to take 140 acres of abandoned property and convert it to 6,000,000 square feet of usable commercial space, all below ground.

Steve King and Ozinga Investors know building subsurface could be an uphill battle. In its heyday, the property at 111th and South Buffalo was once home to the steel mill industry.

When it shut down, jobs dried up and the property was abandoned. Contaminants left in the soil made it impossible to develop since the 70s. But King claims the contaminants left behind from those steel mills are roughly 10-30 feet below the surface.

His builders would dig closer to 300 feet below ground, going under and around anything, King said.

“We’ve had people say ‘that’s crazy. This is really out there,” said King. “It’s just a very different way to think about building a building.”

Chicago is already familiar with the concept when you consider the deep tunnel project, Lower Wacker Drive and the pedway system.

The concept is already being done in other parts of the world; the closest to Chicago is in Kansas City called Subtropolis. Similarly, The Invert hopes to attract server storage, manufacturing, transportation and vertical farming.

“One of the things we’re very interested in, actually with the expansion of it in the State of Illinois, and it’s really seen a boom everywhere, is actually cannabis,” King said.

King said it was important to inform the community where The Invert would be located, on the Southeast Side.

He invited the largely Hispanic community to his office to discuss economic upside of the project. So far, staff has spoken with roughly 100 residents in the 10th Ward. Ald. Susan Garza said The Invert is doing the right thing by engaging with the community first.

If this project moves forward, the first shovel in the ground would likely be in 2023 with businesses opening in 2025.