The original plans for the Emerald, a recently completed two-tower condo structure at 123 South Green Street, included retail space on part of the ground floor. Then somebody had a better idea. "We realized that what we have here could be something really different," says William Senne, whose Senco Properties is one of the partners developing the project. Now, instead of a dry cleaner or a coffee shop, future residents will share an 8,000-square-foot common area whose design—glass walls and alternating large and small spaces—resembles the bar and clubrooms in a hip hotel.

Around 40 of the Emerald’s 212 condos remain for sale. They start at $297,000, for a 794-square-foot one-bedroom unit, and top off at $526,000 for a two-bedroom unit with 1,297 square feet. Standard finishes include sustainably grown bamboo flooring and stainless-steel appliances that, for an upgrade fee, buyers can complement with Montalco lacquered cabinets. Some of the one-bedroom units have a balcony looking from one tower across to the other, but the balconies in other units provide views of the neighborhood and the Chicago skyline.

Photograph: Chris Barrett