http://www.suntimes.com/business/roe...eder01.article
October 1, 2008
BY DAVID ROEDER
$40 million view
REAL ESTATE | Beanie Baby mogul Ty Warner ponies up big-time cash for a prime-time spot in the Chicago Spire - if it ever gets built
There must be life yet in that Beanie Babies fad. Silly me, I thought the plush toys were about as popular as Y2K software. Then I got the word from Shelbourne Development Group Inc., developer of the 150-story Chicago Spire, that Beanie billionaire Ty Warner has purchased the building's two-floor penthouse that was on the market for $40 million.
The selling price was not disclosed. However, this appears to be easily the most expensive residential sale in the Chicago area.
Kim Metcalfe, spokeswoman for Shelbourne, said the contract was signed Monday. She said the penthouse occupies the 141st and 142nd floors, or some 10,000 square feet. It will be the highest residence in what, if built, will be the tallest building in the western hemisphere.
Perhaps it's a positive sign that Warner is investing in such an expensive residence when the market for condos and other single-family sales is dead. Say what you want about Beanie Babies, but the man knows how to make money. Forbes magazine last spring estimated he was the 256th wealthiest American with a net worth of $4.1 billion.
In the last 10 years, Warner has expanded his realm into ownership of hotels, resorts and golf clubs that cater to the super-rich. He made his first purchase, the Four Seasons Hotel in New York, in 1999 and since then has added the Four Seasons Biltmore in Santa Barbara, Calif.; the San Ysidro Ranch in Montecito, Calif.; the Kona Village Resort in Hawaii, and other properties that aim for nightly rates of at least $1,000.
Warner is an intensely private man who did not respond to an interview request relayed through a business associate. But he obviously authorized Shelbourne to disclose his purchase.
The publicity has to help the developer, who has reported that almost a third of the spire's 1,200 units has been sold. Shelbourne Executive Chairman Garrett Kelleher may need to at least double that before his crews can start building skyward at 400 N. Lake Shore Drive.
If the investment climate remains foul, Kelleher in any case could be unable to complete the estimated $2 billion building. For now, Metcalfe acknowledged that the credit markets have forced construction work to slow. Underground utility work will proceed, but more visible signs of the spire will have to wait until the markets improve, she said. Completion in 2012 is still the stated goal.
The spire's swirling design, in which each floor is rotated about 2 degrees from the one below it, is the work of celebrity architect Santiago Calatrava.
Metcalfe said Warner is a Calatrava fan, loves Chicago and wants a fabulous place in it. She said Shelbourne has asked most customers for 15 percent of the purchase price as a deposit, but she could not disclose if that rule applied to Warner.
Even if the transaction is for less than $40 million, it should easily top such notable sales as a $16 million deal in 2007 for a Lake Bluff estate and a 2006 deal for an 1894 mansion at 1435 N. Astor which records indicate sold for $14.5 million.
The spire's most prestigious unit may be reserved, but the building still has four-bedroom units that ought to do in a pinch. Metcalfe said they start at $5.7 million for about 3,800 square feet. The smallest units start at $750,000, but she said many of those are sold.
Warner would reside above everything except mechanical floors and a residents-only observation floor that's supposed to be Calatrava's "gift" to the owners. If the building ever happens, Calatrava will be able to afford it.
What do you get for $40 million?
Two floors and 10,000 square feet of whatever you want
Billionaire toy and hotel mogul Ty Warner inked a deal on the penthouse in the soaring, but yet-to-be-built, Chicago Spire on Monday. While Warner has complete say over the design and layout of his palace in the sky, there are some clues as to how it might happen:
The living room?
360-degree views are a staple for the living spaces.
The bedroom?
Nearly the size of an apartment in its own right, Warner would have the option of creating a master suite in need of a map and would wake up with the Chicago skyline as his front yard.
The layout
This is the 4-bedroom suite, roughly a quarter of Warner’s space, available for about $5.7 million.
Warner, the 256th wealthiest American with an estimated $4.1 billion, is the highest-profile buyer for the project.
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last update video online!
I just noticed that the Chicago Marathon will take place on the 12th, lol, totally missed that in my plannings. Hope the city isnt too crowded
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