Pedestrians pass Block 37 in the Loop. (Antonio Perez/Tribune)

Block 37, the star-crossed shopping center in the Loop, was sold at a sheriff’s auction Wednesday to Bank of America for $100 million.

The sale means Bank of America will take title to the four-level mall at 108 N. State St., officially ending Chicago-based developer Joseph Freed and Associates’ ownership of the property.

In December, Cook County Circuit Court Judge Margaret Ann Brennan ordered Freed to surrender the retail center to a group of lenders led by Bank of America, bringing to a close a more-than yearlong effort to foreclose on the mall. Get the full story »