5 months agoRepost from @wsjrealestate
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Bakary Soumare, a professional soccer player between 2006 and 2016, grew up on New York’s Upper East Side. He played soccer at the University of Virginia, and moved to Chicago when he was drafted by Chicago Fire FC. Midway through his sports career, in 2012, he started a company named Pitch Concepts, which designs and builds outdoor residential spaces. “Soccer was my job; it always felt like work,” says Soumare, who goes by Baky. “My genuine passion is designing and building. It provides a deeper sense of fulfillment than my career in professional sports ever did.”
When he decided to buy a new residence in Chicago in 2019, he knew exactly what he wanted. “Since I spend half of my time in Chicago and the other half in New York,” says Soumare, “it made sense to switch to a work and live situation and to dedicate the studio as retail space for the brands we rep.” The space also had to have an attached garage.
He got a tip from friend and restaurateur Donnie Madia about an artist who might be willing to sell a building that had the potential to meet all of Soumare’s requirements, but it wasn’t on the market. Soumare reached out to the owner and ended up paying $715,000 for the property, knowing full well that he would have to invest considerable time and money in a gut rehab.
“We overhauled everything from the front façade to the plumbing, electrical and mechanical systems, as well as the floors, trusses and all interior walls,” Soumare says. “Basically, all I had left was the north wall and the south wall—that’s it.” From there, he started rebuilding the property in 2020 and the project was fully finished in 2022.
Soumare spent over a year on planning and permitting, which allowed a tenant time to move out. He used an architectural firm and structural engineer for technical drawings and permitting specifications. They formalized Soumare’s vision and design for the extensive renovation that added over 2,500 square feet of indoor and outdoor living space to the original 2,500 square foot building.
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