CHICAGO | Legacy at Millennium Park | 819 FT / 250 M | 73 FLOORS | 2010

[jcchii]

I take it that's still the working information...

that would be a treat to have this one cranking up

[mkdr2]

Spoke with sales office today. Construction scheduled to start 7-5-06.

[the urban politician]

^ :cool:

[SevenSevenThree]

Bump.

Demo was supposed to start today.

[BVictor1]

I know that when I rode past on the EL the other day, all of the store fronts had been vacated.

[kayosthery]

...demo, site prep, caissons, and excavation until April next year.

[Steely Dan]

^ does walsh have the contract for this one?

[kayosthery]

affirmative

[honte]

Congratulations. I hope you get to personally have a piece of the action (and report back to us geeks, of course!).

[kayosthery]

Before I found out about some of the other buildings Walsh would be building, I had hoped to work on this one. They haven't said anything yet, but I think I'm going to end up at The Fordham Spire or Aqua. :fingerscrossed:

[bnk]

This is one of the buildings I am most interested in as far as an investment property is concerned.

How much of a discount do you get for pre construction pricing vs. buying an existing similar condo, (percentages)?

Does any one know?

Thanks in advance.

:shrug:

[dvidler]

...demo, site prep, caissons, and excavation until April next year.

So the work is delayed till April? Or is it on schedule?

[chicubs111]

NO...i think that means the demo will be complete by next april.

[kayosthery]

So the work is delayed till April? Or is it on schedule?

It's on schedule. There is just a lot of work that needs to take place before concrete starts. Demo and facadectomy together are a slow and careful process, however, once the facade structure is secure, this will fly.

[bnk]

I am visiting the sales center on Thursday.

I was quoted 65% sold already!

I also think this one is a forgone conclusion.

Unfortunately I feel like I missed the boat again.


:(

[bnk]

I hope you do not find this an intrusion upon WVT or other intrusions.

Just letting you know, anyone would be welcome to join.





Dear Mr. K :

A LLC might work; E. B. , our contract administrator will be able to answer some of the technical question for the purchasing agreement. .

Meanwhile would you like to talk on the phone to see which home might be suitable for your purpose idea? We have 4 styles of 2 bedroom 2 bath homes with an open view to the lake front starting from $564,900


I will be here till 6pm today and tomorrow.

Truly yours,

K.


From: B K [mailto: .net]
Sent: Tuesday, July 11, 2006 12:09 PM
To: K P
Subject: RE: Thank you for your recent inquiry!

K

Thanks for the reply.

I am currently investigating a limited liability co. proposal for this purpose.

I hope to stop by the sales center this thursday.

Thanks again.

B K

Kalina Pon <kpon@LegacyChicago.com> wrote:

Hello Mr. K :

Thank you for your reply. What you are hoping to do sounds really interesting (what a fantastic idea) and actually are the first I have come across. Since I have not spoken to you regarding the great details, I can only presume the following:

We can not have more than 4 people on a single contract
We might be able to put the contract in trust or a company type of arrangement


Please let me know if you want further information regarding the homes.



Truly yours,

K


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: B N K [mailto: .net]
Sent: Monday, July 10, 2006 10:04 AM
To: K P
Subject: Re: Thank you for your recent inquiry!

K ,

Perhaps you could answer a question before I talk to you.

I am looking for a condo unit 650K-1M for fractional ownership.

I would like to split the unit into a about 20 shares for investment and personal use. Is this allowed at The Legacy at The Millennium .



Thanks in advance for your reply.

K P <kp @LegacyChicago.com> wrote:

Dear Mr. K :

Thank you for your recent web inquiry of The Legacy at The Millennium Park, a brand new luxury condominium located at the heart of down-town and positioned in front of the Millennium Park/Grant Park/Chicago Yacht Club. A breathtaking view of the harbor and sky line views are all made possible with our unique location.

We have recently grand open to the public and the reviews have been sensational, with outstanding compliments from the buyers; we are currently over 65% sold. We will be ground breaking this summer 2006 and 1st move-in are estimated to be the last quarter of 2009.

Please feel free to contact me to go over the grand opening prices and details by phone. Also you can call me to schedule an appointment for an overview and see the model home.

Website: www.TheLegacyatmillenniumPark.com


Truly yours,

K

[honte]

I am visiting the sales center on Thursday.

I was quoted 65% sold already!

I also think this one is a forgone conclusion.

Great news. With Aqua being so far along too, the market here seems ready to deliver a few more awesome high-rises!


Unfortunately I feel like I missed the boat again.


^ Park Michigan?

[Norsider]

I am visiting the sales center on Thursday.

I was quoted 65% sold already!

I also think this one is a forgone conclusion.

Unfortunately I feel like I missed the boat again.


:(


What boat?

[budman]

and what intrusion are you referencing?

[Kngkyle]

What boat?

The boat to getting a great deal.
(He's been looking for a place to buy)

[hi123]

has site demo started ?...wasn't groundbreaking supposed to be this month?

[hi123]

anyone?

[jjk1103]

........I seem to remember hearing that there was a LOT of site preparation before groudbreaking could start....it's a complicated site.

[honte]

I drove past the site tonight... the electricity is still on in the buildings, so demo isn't for a little while. No scaffold &c is there. There also appears to be some stuff still in there, which I presume someone might want to remove before it all ends up in the landfill.

They'd better start soon, before we hear that Mesa Development was sold to an Irish businessman for $65M. ;)

[the urban politician]

geoff diamond on SSC reported that he is seeing the beginnings of site prep/scaffolding placement for this development. Anyone wanna confirm?

[Steely Dan]

if anyone in the area could give a walk by and confirm that site prep/demo scaffolding is currently being erected at the site, that would be great, because i'd love to get this bad-boy updated on the boom rundown list. thanks in advance.

[Tom In Chicago]

^I'll be by there on the way into work tomorrow. . . will let you know. . . btw Steely. . . do you know where I put my farm photos? I can't seem to find them ;)

[Steely Dan]

^ i'm sure i don't know.

but didn't dan K. also snap some pictures of the infamous farm that same day? maybe he's got his pics laying around somewhere?

[budman]

I walked by there two nights ago and saw what appeared to be the beginnings of some scaffolding.

[Tom In Chicago]

Yeah. . . they started putting scaffolding up for this project. . . as well, the parking spaces are no longer accessible between the elevated tracks and the sidewalk. . . it's being cordoned off with Jersey barriers. . .

[honte]

Yeah. . . they started putting scaffolding up for this project. . . as well, the parking spaces are no longer accessible between the elevated tracks and the sidewalk. . . it's being cordoned off with Jersey barriers. . .

Is now the decorous time to start with the dancing bananas?

[Steely Dan]

Yeah. . . they started putting scaffolding up for this project. . . as well, the parking spaces are no longer accessible between the elevated tracks and the sidewalk. . . it's being cordoned off with Jersey barriers. . .

thanks tom. the status of this one has been changed to "site prep/demo" on page 1 of the boom rundown list. woo-hoo!

[SevenSevenThree]

thanks tom. the status of this one has been changed to "site prep/demo" on page 1 of the boom rundown list. woo-hoo!

At what point would it cross from being site prep to u/c?

[Steely Dan]

^ at whatever point they have significantly demolished enough of the exisitng buildings to be able to construct the foundations for the new tower, which i'm guessing will be caisson drilling. that probably won't happen until sometime this winter, at the earliest.

[SevenSevenThree]

^ at whatever point they have significantly demolished enough of the exisitng buildings to be able to construct the foundations for the new tower, which i'm guessing will be caisson drilling. that probably won't happen until sometime this winter, at the earliest.

Oh. Im not terribly knowledgable about these things. With my Paris Hilton moment in full swing, for some reason I thought that they simply reinforce the existing building and build on top. Never thought about the use of caissons or needing a new foundation.

[Steely Dan]

^ the foundations for the existing low-rise buildings, not to mention their above ground structures, are nowhere near strong enough to support an 820' tower. the existing buildings must be demolished, save for their facades, while an entirely new structure is erected behind them. it's a delicate and tricky process, but the same company pulled it off with the heritage, and it turned out quite nicely.

[SevenSevenThree]

I understand everything now. I wasnt using common sense before. Lets just blame it on the 400 LSD thread.

Thanks.

[kayosthery]

^ the foundations for the existing low-rise buildings, not to mention their above ground structures, are nowhere near strong enough to support an 820' tower. the existing buildings must be demolished, save for their facades, while an entirely new structure is erected behind them. it's a delicate and tricky process, but the same company pulled it off with the heritage, and it turned out quite nicely.

Go ahead Steely, you can say the name of the company, as blasphemous as that may be to some of the people here.

[SolarWind]

July 27, 2006

http://img150.imageshack.us/img150/2864/p7270117ol3.jpg

[honte]

^ Awesome! I'm sold. It's banana time.

:banana: :banana: :banana:

[Chicago Shawn]

Go ahead Steely, you can say the name of the company, as blasphemous as that may be to some of the people here.

Yes, Walsh did a wonderfull job on the Heritage. The Wabash facades likley haven't looked that good in 70 years, and it really brightened up that section of the street. I expect this tower to be even more successful because of its mid-block location which will really hide it from the street. Wabash will keep its character and the skyline recives another landmark. What I think is even more remarkable is how Wabash has become a hot spot for new luxury condos, who thought that was even possibile just 15 years ago?

[kayosthery]

:previous: :tup:

[spyguy]

Looks like an update
http://img65.imageshack.us/img65/3861/legacycq1.jpg

[BVictor1]

Work has begun on the site. I noticed on the train this morning that facade work has started on the facades of the 3 historic buildings.

[mkdr2]

Received an email from Legacy sales center the other day announcing that the barricades were up, construction has begun and sales are ahead of schedule.

[justin00]

So construction has officially begun? or no?

[Steely Dan]

So construction has officially begun? or no?

it depends on what you consider "under construction" to mean.

if by "under construction" you mean that there are dudes working on the site doing something, then yes.

but if you're going by emporis' more stringent definiton of "under construction" (ie. foundation work of some sort), then no.

[SolarWind]

August 8, 2006 - They're starting to remove the windows and portions of the facade. It's hard to get a good shot with the El in the way.

http://img65.imageshack.us/img65/7062/p8080130ed2.jpg

[kayosthery]

I heard caissons for the "facadectomy" structure will be starting soon. Maybe as soon as all those windows come out.

[sentinel]

I heard caissons for the "facadectomy" structure will be starting soon. Maybe as soon as all those windows come out.

It's gonna be a while perhaps, because they have to remove the whole facade, piece by piece before any type of new construction can begin. The Center on Halsted is a good example of this: even though it's only 3 stories, it's worth mentioning. The new building will utilize the old facade of an existing building which fronted Halsted for many years, but I remember a year or two ago, that construction seemed to be lagging for so long, until I realized that in order for them to re-introduce the previous facade (which consists of beautiful color glazed terra-cotta tile from the 20-30?), it first had to removed completely, then allow for pouring the new concrete garage (two levels), first floor, second floor, etc. THEN the existing facade will go back into place, but even then, only after the exterior wall is framed. It's too delicate to be inserted anytime before that, and potentially with the existing portion of the Legacy there is a lot more work involved. PHEW! That was long, sorry :notacrook: :P

[Tom In Chicago]

I pass by this site from time to time and today it was clear that they're removing the "crappy" facade first and can only presume that they will be looking at the structural integrity of the underlying material to determine the best way to proceed with restoration of the "salvagable" bits. . .

[kayosthery]

sentinel, I'm referring only to the caissons which will support the structure that will support the facade, not the caissons for the building itself. They are not using the same process that you describe in your post to save this facade. Walsh is using the same system that was used to save the facades at "The Heritage". The process goes something like this:

1. drill caissons for "facade saver" structure

2. erect "facade saver" structure

3. tie-in to existing facade, supporting all window and door openings, as well as columns.

4. start demo'

Some of the pieces will inevitably have to be replicated, however, over 90% of the structure remains intact.

on edit: sorry, guess I shouldn't link to those pictures. For those that missed them, there were two photos of "The Heritage at Millenium Park" during the very early construction phases. Pic # 1 was erecting the structure and pic # 2 was showing the actual tie-ins to the building's facade.

[sentinel]

^^^Yeah, that is a pretty different system, nevermind. But what they're doing on the Legacy sounds pretty intriguing though. (can't seem to see your photos).

[Steely Dan]

this will be one slick building, towering over the park.

here's a rendering spyguy posted over at SSC. i haven't seen this angle before.

http://img101.imageshack.us/img101/3713/lg3ia7.jpg

[chicubs111]

I really love this building...the only thing i dont understand is why they are building it with the thin side faceing the lake...never quite got that...you would think they would have the wide part of the building face the lake to maximize those views? Plus i think it would look better on the skyline panarame that way too.

[bnk]

I really love this building...the only thing i dont understand is why they are building it with the thin side faceing the lake...never quite got that...you would think they would have the wide part of the building face the lake to maximize those views? Plus i think it would look better on the skyline panarame that way too.

Actually 3 of 4 sides, north, east, south, all have lake views. Rather innovative design I would say. This is a well thought out building when it comes to views. :yes:

http://www.heritagecondo.com/

[Pandemonious]

If they put the wide side facing the park, 50% of the units would have no view of the lake. This way, pretty much everyone can see both the lake and the city, albeit from an angle (the lake). Also, the South (at least) face is at a slight angle. The building is not a rectangle, but a slight trapezoid I believe. It may only be the South face, actually.. which makes sense, so as to have the units slightly look away from 55 E Monroe

[bayrider]

And another from the Legacy website
http://i38.photobucket.com/albums/e118/kebandy/Legacy.jpg

[Pandemonious]

Was looking at the views on the website... man the upper floors of this building have the some of the best residential views in the city. This tower simply kicks ass. Nice slick glassy design, interesting shape/site configuring, it is fixing up what was a kind of not that great block along wabash, kickass location right next to an el station, and is along a park where the buildings around it sit on always valuable land.

[chicubs111]

It reminds me of the hancock tower in Boston.

[urban_encounter]

This tower is going to fit perfectly and add some additional elevation closer to Michigan Avenue.

I think the design is impressive.

[SteelCity15]

wow, that rendering showing it in the same picture with the Sears Tower is amazing

[chicago2stlouis]

any updates?

[BVictor1]

any updates?


http://img80.imageshack.us/img80/9722/p1040868mz0.jpg

http://img87.imageshack.us/img87/8494/p1040872fg1.jpg


I was also told by a worker at the site that caissons propably wouldn't begin until the new year

[denizen467]

Eep! There was a whole underworld under there. I know about State St., but how much of the East Loop has that?

[left of center]

I passed by on the Green Line today to and from the Sox Game (a brutal 9-1 loss) and passed by the construction site. They are really moving along. Glad to see those buildings being renovated. They looked in terrible shape before this, with glass blocks filling the windows. With all the new construction and L track refurbishing, Wabash is going to be amazing in 5 years.

[wrab]

Eep! There was a whole underworld under there. I know about State St., but how much of the East Loop has that?
About the entire Loop was jacked up in the mid-19th Century to alleviate flooding. Honest.

[Wild Onion Mike]

About the entire Loop was jacked up in the mid-19th Century to alleviate flooding. Honest.

That entire project still boggles my mind.

Jacking the city up out of the mud and changing the direction of the Chicago River; imagine doing either of those projects today, and they did it with 19th century technology. The civic leaders had "big ones." Undoubtedly two of the most important projects in the city's history and reason for it's continued success.

BTW, the Legacy kind of makes you salivate when you see those shots of it in the skyline.

[nomarandlee]

True, it will make a very big obvious impression from GP and the south. There will be some angles from the north and northwest that it might often be blocked or out of vision I would think.

[spyguy]

http://img365.imageshack.us/img365/6339/lgcy2fw7.jpg
Another angle. I can't wait for this one.

[Steely Dan]

^ that looks very sharp. what a thin profile it cuts through the sky from that angle.

[SolarWind]

September 19, 2006

http://img170.imageshack.us/img170/3839/p9190179lr8.jpg

[SolarWind]

http://img365.imageshack.us/img365/6339/lgcy2fw7.jpg
Another angle. I can't wait for this one.
^ Nice! Thanks for posting it spyguy!

[denizen467]

About the entire Loop was jacked up in the mid-19th Century to alleviate flooding. Honest.

Amazing stuff. I wish the feat was more apparent somehow from the average pedestrian's viewpoint.

[the urban politician]

September 19, 2006

http://img170.imageshack.us/img170/3839/p9190179lr8.jpg

^ What happened to the bottoms of those facades? Are we to assume that they will be replaced, or should we expect something else?

[Latoso]

:previous: They are being dismantled and restored to be put onto the base of the new structure when it rises. The rest of those facades will be coming down soon as well and for the same reason.

[wrab]

September 19, 2006

http://img170.imageshack.us/img170/3839/p9190179lr8.jpg

I'm surprised, given all the buzz about Sullivan's 150th anniversary etal, and given all of the foot traffic that Legacy is bound to create, that the Jewellers' Bldg (partly visable at the far left of the photo) is still looking so neglected. Does anyone on this board know who the owner is, and if the bldg has a brighter future than its current condition would suggest?

[jjk1103]

...I was by the site yesterday and they have made substantial progress on the "facadectomy". It looks like the outside facades are now shored up and seroius demolition can begin.

[Nowhereman1280]

There has been alot of talk about how well Legacy fits into the skyline and I agree completely. I think the reason why it fits so well is actually due to a combination of 55 Monroe (no matter how ugly you think it is) and the Chase building. The legacy's massing just fits so well into it location. It is the same with as 55 Monroe, but wayy skinnier and taller, which provides contrast as well as a stacking effect. I really like that contrast, I think Legacy makes 55 monroe's dominance of the skyline dimish and actually makes 55 Monroe look quite good.

The other reason legacy looks so natural in the skyline is that it is lined up with the Chase building which has height and a north-south width and is nearly lined up with Legacy to the West. There has always been the similarly shaped profile of Chase looming in the background so Legacy looks like its always been there to us, because there has always been a similarly shaped shadow back there.

I can't wait for this one to be built, any word yet on when they are planning to start with the actual building, not the preservation and site prep?

[BVictor1]

...I was by the site yesterday and they have made substantial progress on the "facadectomy". It looks like the outside facades are now shored up and seroius demolition can begin.

I was over there as well, and they only have the steel shoring up for the northern most of the 3 small buildings thus far.

[SolarWind]

...I was by the site yesterday and they have made substantial progress on the "facadectomy". It looks like the outside facades are now shored up and seroius demolition can begin.
November 2, 2006
http://img176.imageshack.us/img176/1030/pb020136hh4.jpg

http://img404.imageshack.us/img404/6158/pb020146ud8.jpg

http://img180.imageshack.us/img180/5606/pb020147om2.jpg

http://img428.imageshack.us/img428/1276/legacypg1.jpg

http://img187.imageshack.us/img187/718/pb020143no4.jpg

[Alliance]

Nice pics. I often enjoy seeing this stuff torn down almost as much as I enjoy seeing the stuff go up.

[urban_encounter]

Thanks for the photos Solar...

Nice to see that they're trying to preserve paert of Chicago's past while building for it's future..

[Lecom]

Looks like they're using the same facade braces as on Henry Miller Theater facade on Bank of America in New York.

[Alliance]

It saddens me that this will block our only view of Hyatt from the park.

But its tall :cool:

[museumparktom]

Solar that last shot? Where did you get that access - Rock On! Is there an alley that you went down? Spill.

[BVictor1]

Solar that last shot? Where did you get that access - Rock On! Is there an alley that you went down? Spill.

There's an alley there between the university club and the sharp building where these images were taken. hopefully the alley will be open like this for the duration of the construction.

[SolarWind]

Solar that last shot? Where did you get that access - Rock On! Is there an alley that you went down? Spill.
Yeah, as mentioned by BVictor1, there's an alley off of Monroe that you can go down and take pictures. I was surprised by the progress made on demolition. I thought that would only take place after all the buildings were braced.

[the urban politician]

Just a question for those of you who understand how 'facadectomies' work:

When a facadectomy occurs to, say, multiple buildings, does the new structure built behind the facade maintain the original separations between the buildings? I'm going to assume that they don't above the ground, but what about at street level (retail, etc)? Are the barriers between the buildings completely removed?

[honte]

^ In this case, the Landmarks Commission has a lot to do with the internal organization of the structure. I believe they are insisting - for good reason - that the facade storefronts behave as independent units.

[DePaul Bunyan]

Any updates? How will we know when they officially start construction, as this site is kind of tucked away behind a bunch of buildings?

[BVictor1]

Any updates? How will we know when they officially start construction, as this site is kind of tucked away behind a bunch of buildings?

the same way you know when any other highrise in Chicago is under-construction. we';; let you know that they have started drilling caissons

[pherek]

Site prep as viewed from the Madison St 'L' station

http://img300.imageshack.us/img300/6087/img1119sc3.jpg

[Big John]

From chicagobusiness.com Nov. 20, 2006

“Those 6,500 aren’t all going to get built, because they’re not going to reach their pre-sale,” says Mr. Hanson, whose firm is currently building a 72-story tower near Wabash and Monroe streets called the Legacy. Mr. Hanson says 255 of the 356 units are sold for the building, which is scheduled to open in fall 2009.

[URL="http://www.chicagobusiness.com/cgi-bin/news.pl?id=22930"]

[jjk1103]

....this one seems to be seriously stuck in "site prep"......when are they supposed to begin costruction?

[Chicago3rd]

....this one seems to be seriously stuck in "site prep"......when are they supposed to begin costruction?

It ain't a vacant lot and they have to preserve facade...so realistically how quickly do you think they could have taken down all those buildings under these circumstances?

[Mr Roboto]

Im glad they are preserving all those facades. While its not as good as preserving all the buildings themselves, it is an acceptable compromise. Its good they are willing to sacrifice the time and effort to do this, so I dont care how long site prep takes. As long as I know this building will go up eventually.

[Nowhereman1280]

Im glad they are preserving all those facades. While its not as good as preserving all the buildings themselves, it is an acceptable compromise.

I'd much rather have skyscrapers like Legacy built than presereve the architetually insignifigant back rooms of old buildings, nothings really being lost when you are just tearing down standard brick and beams and leaving the facade (which is what really differentiates these buildings) intact. I may be wrong, but weren't the interriors of these buildings already modified and thus did not contain anything of interest anyhow?

I think Legacy is a great building because its nearly nothing lost and a whole lot gained.

[Alliance]

It does bring up an interesting concept though...of buildings ontop of buildings.

If you follow this through to conclusion, you have whole cities with levels of historical development, or at least with newer buildings covering the onld short ones.

Kind of like strata in rock layers.

[honte]

I'd much rather have skyscrapers like Legacy built than presereve the architetually insignifigant back rooms of old buildings, nothings really being lost when you are just tearing down standard brick and beams and leaving the facade (which is what really differentiates these buildings) intact. I may be wrong, but weren't the interriors of these buildings already modified and thus did not contain anything of interest anyhow?


The Landmarks Commission investigated them and described the interiors as basically plain loft buildings. You'll of course get widely different answers from people concerning the historic value of the rear portions of these structures, but generally I don't think anyone is lamenting the loss of the rears too much.

Of course, the constant question that surfaces is whether or not we are actually preserving buildings, or just slapping the new facades on something else like that fake brick asphalt siding from the 1950s that you see around.

Aside, it is great to see how these buildings were constructed. The ironwork details that have been exposed on the Italianate structure are absolutely fascinating. The structure looks almost new, and is pretty modern in its technique.