CHICAGO | General Developments

[SamInTheLoop]

Someone mentioned this previously as well, but I am almost in disbelief at how quickly this one went up.......perhaps it's me - having not been in the area in ages, and perspective skewed since it took so incredibly long (at least felt like) for the project to get started in the first place......but still, this has been one fast job!

[Jibba]

^Speaking of Studio Dwell. This weekend I walked by their heavily butchered project on Broadway in Buena Park. It may not be finished yet, but some of the quality on that one, like the metal panels above the windows, is pretty horrid.

Let's hope this project fares better.

It looked, to me, like the developer scrapped the Dwell design altogether for the street-facing facade.

[Ned.B]

^I live in the area, and I feel it went up really fast. On February 27th they were still pouring the 3rd floor. 6 weeks later it is basically topped out. That's one floor per week.

[r18tdi]

713 Milwaukee – the small lot on the NE corner of Milwaukee/Morgan, across from the Gonnella Baking site – is getting a 6-story Studio Dwell building.

Speaking of Gonnella, what the heck is going on over there? Are they waiting on permits or something?

[Ned.B]

It looked, to me, like the developer scrapped the Dwell design altogether for the street-facing facade.

The window arrangement and general design didn't actually change. It was just stripped of all features and materials that made it unique. Extreme value engineering at it's worst.

[Jibba]

Yeah, it looked like they kept the fenestration scheme (which has structural implications) and tossed all the extraneous materials.

[Randomguy34]

Besides 713 N Milwaukee, another TOD building proposed for the Milwaukee corridor. 1868 N Milwaukee is going to be 6 stories, 47 units, 21 parking stalls.

https://html1-f.scribdassets.com/6r5tewf4lc56hml6/images/1-a8d2d8f013.jpg
Source: https://www.dnainfo.com/chicago/20160411/bucktown/47-apartment-bucktown-project-replace-rat-infested-lot

[Near North Resident]

Over the weekend there was a HUGE Manitowoc crane at Clybourn & Division st, it dwarfed the whole lot! Wish I snapped a pic, but the weather was so bad, maybe someone else will see it

edit: its still there, was upright today and the thing has to be 300'+ feet tall! kinda wierd considering its only going to be a 6 story development IIRC

[ithakas]

Besides 713 N Milwaukee, another TOD building proposed for the Milwaukee corridor. 1868 N Milwaukee is going to be 6 stories, 47 units, 21 parking stalls.

Excellent – have been wondering about this stretch. Now the stretch between the 606 and Western is getting two sizable TOD projects, along with the stretch between Western and California. This should help activate the sleepy stretch of Milwaukee between Wicker Park and Logan Square. :tup:

Time to up capacity on the blue line!

[lu9]

:cheers:

That simply needed to go. Now we just need to get rid of that awful strip mall with the Spin Cycle laundromat on Milwaukee Ave closer to North and Damen

Hahaha. I hear you. That spincycle's been gone for 2 or 3 years already. Replaced by a mighty 7 eleven and a Medical Office. Awful strip on what's becoming a great multi-use block.

[Jibba]

Besides 713 N Milwaukee, another TOD building proposed for the Milwaukee corridor. 1868 N Milwaukee is going to be 6 stories, 47 units, 21 parking stalls.
Source: https://www.dnainfo.com/chicago/20160411/bucktown/47-apartment-bucktown-project-replace-rat-infested-lot

Nice to see something modern out of Axios.

[spyguy]

Enclave Bucktown - 2500 W Cortland
49 units
http://s24.postimg.org/xkf1shttx/enclave_rendering_2_2tg.png

[deebirch]

Logan Square "L"

https://i.imgsafe.org/4467399.jpg

https://i.imgsafe.org/44b10e4.jpg

https://i.imgsafe.org/4537a15.jpg

https://i.imgsafe.org/457f169.jpg

[hammersklavier]

https://i.imgsafe.org/4467399.jpg

That rambly Brutalist Chase is actually pretty cool. :cool:

[Near North Resident]

Interesting. I guess it's possible at a height of 6 stories. Small crane.

small? the thing is frickin huge!

[marothisu]

small? the thing is frickin huge!

I was assuming, since the building is supposed to be 6 stories...unless it's another building or it has some super heavy pieces to move around?

[Near North Resident]

I was assuming, since the building is supposed to be 6 stories...unless it's another building or it has some super heavy pieces to move around?

I don't know but it appears to be comically oversized for the project, when its not in use they rest the boom on the ground and it literally takes up the whole lot! I saw them rise it up today and its gotta be 300' tall

[Near North Resident]

yea thats the one

ok maybe 250' tall but it just looks MASSIVE on the little pie shaped lot its in when you're up closer

[ardecila]

That rambly Brutalist Chase is actually pretty cool. :cool:

Yeah, agreed. We give bank branches a lot of shit because the site planning sucks so hard (especially in the city) but occasionally they really invest in good modernist architecture. All the below are in Chicagoland.

https://www.mbfinancial.com/~/media/e83da645a9714a0eabc6970703b38470/500%20westloop.jpg?w=452

https://c2.staticflickr.com/6/5317/5807183402_505b2268d7.jpg

https://api.wbez.org/v2/images/c5bc14c7-c275-4a16-8df6-e3d818caa2aa.jpg?width=640&height=312&mode=FILL&threshold=0

and here's a very recent one:
https://www.google.com/maps/@42.016868,-88.0800682,3a,75y,275.64h,81.19t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1scs2Es5vVB5fTwpmrkyMZvw!2e0!7i13312!8i6656

[BrandonJXN]

That rambly Brutalist Chase is actually pretty cool. :cool:

I agree. L actually makes it look a whole lot better. It looks like it's a part of the building.

[ardecila]

Why such a big crane for a small midrise? It seems like a very expensive move, especially when there is much open space at the back.

http://i63.tinypic.com/16bit07.png

[LouisVanDerWright]

They used a similar large lufting crawler on the cool precast one that went up across the street, not quite as large as this though. I have a feeling this is a similar construction method, but they probably need a longer reach since this triangular site means the crane needs to cantilever way out to the corner from the back where it's set up.

[LouisVanDerWright]

That rambly Brutalist Chase is actually pretty cool. :cool:

I do as much of my banking at this location as possible. This strip mall really isn't that bad, there is an awful lot of retail space for a lot that maybe holds 30 cars when full. If you are going to have auto oriented retail, a compact complex of stores like this is about as good as you are going to get. Who knows how long for this world this particular strip mall is, it suddenly feels really out of place sandwhiched in between 12, 10, and 6 floor buildings. Looks like this site should be cleared for an 8 story building to complete the step down from California.

[J_M_Tungsten]

Why such a big crane for a small midrise? It seems like a very expensive move, especially when there is much open space at the back.

http://i63.tinypic.com/16bit07.png

Cool photo find. Didn't know what the other side looked like. Pretty disappointed with that though. I guess it's better than the parking facing the street.

[ardecila]

Ah, you're right. If it's precast, that changes things. Big picks need a big crane.

I was assuming steel frame with metal siding.

Possibly the time savings/cost savings of the precast outweighs the added expense of the crane.

[Near North Resident]

Why such a big crane for a small midrise? It seems like a very expensive move, especially when there is much open space at the back.

http://i63.tinypic.com/16bit07.png

yeah the crane base is basically in the middle of that parking lot and can reach all the way to the south east corner of the lot, but man its BIG

[Via Chicago]

Yeah, agreed. We give bank branches a lot of shit because the site planning sucks so hard (especially in the city) but occasionally they really invest in good modernist architecture. All the below are in Chicagoland.


one of my favorites is the largely unheralded modernist gem of a building that is the Citibank on Ogden in Brookfield

http://www.roadarch.com/12/7/rciti2.jpg

https://i2.wp.com/farm4.staticflickr.com/3443/3898483278_6f48be9e4e.jpg

https://i2.wp.com/farm3.staticflickr.com/2512/3898482972_09c3d24eae.jpg

theres even a mini-me drive through across the street

https://i0.wp.com/farm3.staticflickr.com/2608/3898484106_eed343e11c.jpg

[LouisVanDerWright]

No Modernist bank circle jerk is complete without Diamond Bank!

https://www.wbez.org/shows/wbez-blogs/a-midcentury-gem-chicagos-diamond-bank/1b0bdc2e-5daa-4110-94da-39346f170d91

[ardecila]

one of my favorites is the largely unheralded modernist gem of a building that is the Citibank on Ogden in Brookfield

Thanks, that building sprang to mind but I couldn't remember where/which bank it was.

Lots of other great mid-century banks in the bungalow belt and inner suburbs as well, some of them gone by now.

[ithakas]

Fulton Market lands another London hotel brand

One of the developers behind Chicago's Soho House is bringing another London-based hotel brand to the city's Fulton Market district: the Hoxton.

Hoxton will open a 175-room hotel in an 11-story building that developer Jeff Shapack is set to build at Green and Lake streets in 2018, the hotel chain and the Chicago developer said.

The deal comes amid big changes for both the decade-old boutique hotel brand and the Chicago neighborhood west of the Kennedy Expressway.

Hoxton is currently only found in Europe, but is planning multiple U.S. hotels as part of a wave of expansion.

Fulton Market, meanwhile, is set to grow from 40 total hotel rooms to as many as 600-plus, if several planned projects come to fruition.

“The first Hoxton opened in Shoreditch, East London back in 2006 and since then we've been scouring the globe for areas and buildings located in cities that we love,” spokeswoman Julia Pearson said in an email. “We thought the emerging Fulton Market district was the perfect fit for the Hoxton brand as it has an incredible sense of community, is passionate about its neighbourhood restaurants and is attracting an interesting mix of technology and creative industries.”


http://www.chicagobusiness.com/realestate/20160413/CRED03/160419950/hoxton-plans-hotel-in-chicagos-fulton-market-district

[Chi-Sky21]

That Citibank in Brookfield must be the inspiration for the new Chinatown library.

[brandon03]

Ace Hotel still working below grade
http://i.imgur.com/2ioNt0xh.jpg (http://i.imgur.com/2ioNt0x.jpg)

I really had no idea how involved a below grade parking garage was. No wonder so many developers just slap up an ugly podium and are done with it.

[ithakas]

Fulton Market lands another London hotel brand


Here's a clearer rendering than we've seen so far, now part of the article:

http://www.chicagobusiness.com/apps/pbcsi.dll/storyimage/CG/20160413/CRED03/160419950/AR/0/soho-house-hotels-futon-london-shapack.jpg&maxw=600&cci_ts=20160413101413

[Via Chicago]

Thanks, that building sprang to mind but I couldn't remember where/which bank it was.

Lots of other great mid-century banks in the bungalow belt and inner suburbs as well, some of them gone by now.

this one in berwyn also comes to mind. a bit simpler, but love the funky artwork. i remember people calling it ugly over the years and wanted it taken down, its a miracle its survived in tact through countless owners

http://s21.postimg.org/6oqv5x5lj/2016_04_13_11_18_59_Oak_Park_Ave_Google_Maps.png

and the Chase on Lawrence for that matter

http://s24.postimg.org/fzm1lwwtx/2016_04_13_11_24_20_W_Lawrence_Ave_Google_Maps.png

[Steely Dan]

another cool one: Schipporeit-Heinrich's former banking rotunda at the base of chase tower in downtown evanston. it has subsequently been turned into a Lyfe Kitchen restaurant and lost some of its interior magic (though the spectacular radial pattern on the ceiling was preserved), but the miesian rotunda itself is still pretty damn cool from the outside. and at least the outdoor dining area of the restaurant now activates the formerly barren and windswept miesian plaza in the warmer months. when chase decided to abandon the banking rotunda years ago, there were actually some redevelopment plans floated that included demolishing/radically altering the rotunda and plaza area for new retail structures. i'm so glad the rotunda was saved mostly intact.


google streetview: https://www.google.com/maps/@42.0464932,-87.6807449,3a,76.7y,6.3h,91.52t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1szk985u1qC6clOA4I9oxTEA!2e0!7i13312!8i6656



http://www.lyfekitchen.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/eva-rotator-2.jpg
source: http://www.lyfekitchen.com/locations/il/evanston/

[emathias]

Ace Hotel still working below grade
http://i.imgur.com/2ioNt0xh.jpg (http://i.imgur.com/2ioNt0x.jpg)

I really had no idea how involved a below grade parking garage was. No wonder so many developers just slap up an ugly podium and are done with it.

Yeah, and the Gino's tower is still working on the below-grade levels, too, even though Ed's across the street started after it and has concrete above grade now.

[sentinel]

this one in berwyn also comes to mind. a bit simpler, but love the funky artwork. i remember people calling it ugly over the years and wanted it taken down, its a miracle its survived in tact through countless owners

http://s21.postimg.org/6oqv5x5lj/2016_04_13_11_18_59_Oak_Park_Ave_Google_Maps.png

and the Chase on Lawrence for that matter

http://s24.postimg.org/fzm1lwwtx/2016_04_13_11_24_20_W_Lawrence_Ave_Google_Maps.png

So funny story: that green bank building in the top photo, on Oak Park Ave, I worked there as a bank teller when I was a teenager (16-20ish) :haha: memories..

[Via Chicago]

no kidding? grew up within a couple blocks of there.

[LouisVanDerWright]

Another favorite Midcentury bank of mine is the brutalist concrete, bronze glass, and green tile one on Irving Park just West of the Kennedy.

[Skyguy_7]

As part of the CMH McCafery project, work on the Nellie Black Building is supposed to begin in July. Scope involves complete demo of the existing building (sad) and salvaging of various ornamental features, including most of the 1st floor facade and the cornice (happy). Finished product will be 2-story underground parking and 7-story senior housing to match the look of the current building. Caisson work for the new structure is on track to begin in December.

[pilsenarch]

Great story about the potentially devastating economic impact from unchecked NIMBYS:

http://www.vox.com/2016/4/14/11424532/mark-farrel-housing

[spyguy]

New C.H. Robinson HQ @ 1511 W Webster by Sterling Bay/ SOM
http://s30.postimg.org/z0oi1kudt/image.jpg
http://s30.postimg.org/qtwia04b5/image.jpg
Not that exciting

[mattshoe]

^ The building is decent, parking is terrible.

[J_M_Tungsten]

^Seems like a lot, but given the vast wasteland this site currently sits on, I'll take it for sure.

Today
Division and Clybourn
The crane looks a bit out of place on this site.
http://i592.photobucket.com/albums/tt1/JMTUNGSTEN/more/C1D2A154-2282-4ECE-930D-4CF715F04730.jpg (http://s592.photobucket.com/user/JMTUNGSTEN/media/more/C1D2A154-2282-4ECE-930D-4CF715F04730.jpg.html)

[Loopy]

one of my favorites is the largely unheralded modernist gem of a building that is the Citibank on Ogden in Brookfield

I love the polychrome glazed brick! Especially Sky Blue. Tres Gropius.

[ardecila]

^ The building is decent, parking is terrible.

Yeah, kind of a generic glass box. From the zoning app, though, it seems like the landscaping is a cut above. There is an pretty gracious landscaped entrance directly on Webster, probably so that employees can walk from the Clybourn Metra stop or the Ashland bus, or catch an Uber. The parking lot entrance is almost more like a back door.

As far as parking lots go, this one is pretty nice, with a huge bioswale in the middle and decent screening from the street. Hopefully there is a hedge.

[marothisu]

35 new luxury SFH coming to a big huge vacant lot up around 6050 N Sauganash (a little north of Peterson). A few of them were permitted new construction the other day. Found this on Trulia:

http://www.trulia.com/property/3217773357-6080-N-Sauganash-Ave-Chicago-IL-60646

CURRENTLY: https://www.google.com/maps/@41.991303,-87.735513,3a,75y,252.31h,84.98t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sYTgR9N6epvuDy7zyVBauPA!2e0!7i13312!8i6656

I know it's not near downtown or anything and near the suburbs but GOOD RIDDANCE.

[nomarandlee]

New C.H. Robinson HQ @ 1511 W Webster by Sterling Bay/ SOM
[I]http://s30.postimg.org/z0oi1kudt/image.jpg[/IMG]
[IG]http://s30.postimg.org/qtwia04b5/image.jpg[/IMG]
Not that exciting

I'll reserve judgment for now on the building itself but in my mind parking fronting the river should be considered a non-starter at this point.

[ardecila]

I'll reserve judgment for now on the building itself but in my mind parking fronting the river should be considered a non-starter at this point.

How is a tastefully landscaped parking lot worse than the ass end of Home Depot or a scrap metal shredder? This is a big improvement over what's there now, and with PMD zoning still in place the land values are still (artificially) too low to build structured parking.

[Ned.B]

How is a tastefully landscaped parking lot worse than the ass end of Home Depot or a scrap metal shredder? This is a big improvement over what's there now, and with PMD zoning still in place the land values are still (artificially) too low to build structured parking.

Plus the site seems to be developed in a way that the south half could either be split off and developed separately if land values or increased transit ridership warranted it in the future. Or it could be used to expand the headquarters with ground floor parking.

[marothisu]

Looks like the now closed The Edge in Lincoln Park (Clark & Schubert) might be demolished for a new 2 story building with ground floor retail and a school on the 2nd floor. I wonder if they'll get rid of most of that parking lot to the west of it. Looks like the developer is Centrum.

[tjp]

Looks like the now closed The Edge in Lincoln Park (Clark & Schubert) might be demolished for a new 2 story building with ground floor retail and a school on the 2nd floor. I wonder if they'll get rid of most of that parking lot to the west of it.

The ground floor retail is going to be a Banana Republic (per Crain's).

[marothisu]

The ground floor retail is going to be a Banana Republic (per Crain's).

Totally missed that story - only from a few days ago. It looks like there would be another store next to Banana Republic too:
http://www.chicagobusiness.com/apps/pbcsi.dll/storyimage/CG/20160412/CRED03/160419968/AR/0/Banana-Republic-Lincoln-Park-store-planned.jpg&maxw=600&cci_ts=20160415145756

http://www.chicagobusiness.com/realestate/20160412/CRED03/160419968/banana-republic-plans-lincoln-park-store

[tjp]

Totally missed that story - only from a few days ago. It looks like there would be another store next to Banana Republic too:
http://www.chicagobusiness.com/apps/pbcsi.dll/storyimage/CG/20160412/CRED03/160419968/AR/0/Banana-Republic-Lincoln-Park-store-planned.jpg&maxw=600&cci_ts=20160415145756

http://www.chicagobusiness.com/realestate/20160412/CRED03/160419968/banana-republic-plans-lincoln-park-store

I'm pretty excited about it. The whole Diversey / Clark / Broadway intersection is getting a nice little boost, between this and the two midrises planned to go up over the old Walgreens and Vitamin Shoppe.

edit: and the new Target taking over the Best Buy that was almost always empty!

[the urban politician]

^ 2 midrises? I know about the Vitamin Shoppe one, but what is the other one (unless you're referring to the replacement planned for the hotel just east of there).

Actually, that's quite a dynamic intersection, one of the best in the neighborhoods, probably only secondary to Milwaukee/Damen. I would like to see a prominent building there, analagous to the flatiron building at Milwaukee/Damen or the new 9 story building going up at Belmont and Clark (which will really change the feel of that intersection)

[VKChaz]

^ 2 midrises? I know about the Vitamin Shoppe one, but what is the other one (unless you're referring to the replacement planned for the hotel just east of there).

Actually, that's quite a dynamic intersection, one of the best in the neighborhoods, probably only secondary to Milwaukee/Damen. I would like to see a prominent building there, analagous to the flatiron building at Milwaukee/Damen or the new 9 story building going up at Belmont and Clark (which will really change the feel of that intersection)
Is it this?
http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showpost.php?p=7267848&postcount=2064

It would be ideal to see developers make an effort to do something special (like Flatiron) at these notable intersections.
Is a rendering of the Vitamin Shoppe proposal available?

[tjp]

^yep, that's what I was talking about. There's also another midrise planned down the street at 508 W. Diversey. It's approved, but I have no idea if it has financing or will begin construction anytime soon.

[aaron38]

Chicago to upgrade 270,000 street lights over 4 years
http://abc7chicago.com/news/chicago-to-upgrade-270000-street-lights-over-4-years-/1296000/
Over the next four years, the city will replace more than 270,000 street, alley and park lights with higher quality lighting. Low-energy LED lights will replace the outdated, high pressure sodium lamps.

The city said the brighter lights will improve visibility and thus make streets, sidewalks and bike paths safer. Emanuel's office said that by making neighborhoods brighter at night, it will give residents a "greater sense of safety."


I'm going to try and find more details on this, because with lighting details are everything. I'm designing an LED light fixture right now, so I've been doing a lot of research and want to compare the specs. I really hope they're not overdoing it on brightness.

The image in the ABC7 report shows a fully shielded light fixture, which is good as that will reduce the horrible horizontal glare which actually makes night vision and safety worse, by creating dark shadows. But even with fully shielded lights, making the lights brighter can also reduce safety. Our eyes adjust very well to the dark. And by making the streets and sidewalks brighter, the shadows get that much darker. Walking down a brightly lit California and then turning onto a much darker side street gives an attacker an advantage. They should be reducing lumens, not increasing them.
http://www.bloombergview.com/articles/2013-02-24/turn-down-the-city-lights-and-make-streets-safer

But I am looking forward to see if getting rid of the old orange monsters starts to reduce the ever present orange muck in my view of the stars to the south east.

[Steely Dan]

But I am looking forward to see if getting rid of the old orange monsters starts to reduce the ever present orange muck in my view of the stars to the south east.

i for one will miss the ever present orange muck.

i know it's a very silly thing to get nostalgic about, but chicago at night is supposed to be orange, IMO.

c'est la vie......

[aaron38]

^^^ This should interest you Steely.
The art and science behind the glow of Chicago's skyline
https://www.wbez.org/shows/curious-city/the-art-and-science-behind-the-glow-of-chicagos-skyline/ec91b586-84b3-448d-b017-96e845faf1bc

[Via Chicago]

Chicago to upgrade 270,000 street lights over 4 years
http://abc7chicago.com/news/chicago-to-upgrade-270000-street-lights-over-4-years-/1296000/


I'm going to try and find more details on this, because with lighting details are everything. I'm designing an LED light fixture right now, so I've been doing a lot of research and want to compare the specs. I really hope they're not overdoing it on brightness.

The image in the ABC7 report shows a fully shielded light fixture, which is good as that will reduce the horrible horizontal glare which actually makes night vision and safety worse, by creating dark shadows. But even with fully shielded lights, making the lights brighter can also reduce safety. Our eyes adjust very well to the dark. And by making the streets and sidewalks brighter, the shadows get that much darker. Walking down a brightly lit California and then turning onto a much darker side street gives an attacker an advantage. They should be reducing lumens, not increasing them.
http://www.bloombergview.com/articles/2013-02-24/turn-down-the-city-lights-and-make-streets-safer

But I am looking forward to see if getting rid of the old orange monsters starts to reduce the ever present orange muck in my view of the stars to the south east.

LEDs also mess with your circadian rhythm, and can cause other health issues.

Unfortunately, exposure to blue-rich light at night can lead to decreased melatonin secretion in humans. Melatonin is a hormone secreted at night by the pineal gland that helps balance the reproductive, thyroid, and adrenal hormones and regulates the body’s circadian rhythm of sleeping and waking. Lower Melatonin levels have been tenuously linked to increased risk of cancer.

Exposure to blue-rich light also disrupts natural sleeping and eating patterns in wildlife. “In an area that has a lot of blue-rich white light, you would stay alert, you would stay as if it was day,” says Bob Parks, executive director of the International Dark-Sky Association, a nonprofit that works to raise awareness about the hazards of light pollution. “Now, people can certainly close their blinds and block-out that rich blue-white light. The problem is that every other species on the planet can’t do that, so you have an impact on everything else. And not just animals — we are talking plants, trees, right down to one-cell organisms. Every living creature has this circadian disruption issue.”


im really hoping they decide to trend these toward the yellower side of the spectrum as opposed to blue, and yea, tone down the brightness. i mean, the whole beauty of LEDs is you can choose your color spectrum, right?

[Busy Bee]

Bye bye old friends...

https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5492/11899049066_5bfb86cea6_b.jpg
https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5492/11899049066_5bfb86cea6_b.jpg

[The Pimp]

Chicago to upgrade 270,000 street lights over 4 years
http://abc7chicago.com/news/chicago-to-upgrade-270000-street-lights-over-4-years-/1296000/


I'm going to try and find more details on this, because with lighting details are everything. I'm designing an LED light fixture right now, so I've been doing a lot of research and want to compare the specs. I really hope they're not overdoing it on brightness.

The image in the ABC7 report shows a fully shielded light fixture, which is good as that will reduce the horrible horizontal glare which actually makes night vision and safety worse, by creating dark shadows. But even with fully shielded lights, making the lights brighter can also reduce safety. Our eyes adjust very well to the dark. And by making the streets and sidewalks brighter, the shadows get that much darker. Walking down a brightly lit California and then turning onto a much darker side street gives an attacker an advantage. They should be reducing lumens, not increasing them.
http://www.bloombergview.com/articles/2013-02-24/turn-down-the-city-lights-and-make-streets-safer

But I am looking forward to see if getting rid of the old orange monsters starts to reduce the ever present orange muck in my view of the stars to the south east.

I agree! But, I will miss all the orange lights as I land at the airport.

[SolarWind]

http://i1381.photobucket.com/albums/ah214/ngc1976sct/69541s_zps1tsdv0st.jpg (http://news.nationalgeographic.com/content/dam/news/photos/000/695/69541.jpg)
Jim Richardson, National Geographic

http://chicagoinfrastructure.org/initiatives/light-grid/

The City of Chicago is planning to replace about 400,000 streetlights with new LED’s. The Chicago Infrastructure Trust (CIT) Board announced a meeting will be opened for public remarks to be held this Wednesday, April 20, 2016 at 10:30 A.M. at the Metropolitan Planning Council, 140 South Dearborn Street, Suite 1400.

Agenda
http://chicagoinfrastructure.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/Agenda-Board-Meeting-April-20-2016.pdf

Request For Information (RFI) document with some good information on the Chicago Smart Lighting Project:
http://shapechicago.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/ChicagoSmartLightingRFI-Final_20150917.pdf

[ardecila]

To be fair, they're only replacing the luminaires. The poles and mast arms will remain (although hopefully they will get repainted).

Bye bye old friends...

https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5492/11899049066_5bfb86cea6_b.jpg
https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5492/11899049066_5bfb86cea6_b.jpg

[Rizzo]

LEDs also mess with your circadian rhythm, and can cause other health issues.



im really hoping they decide to trend these toward the yellower side of the spectrum as opposed to blue, and yea, tone down the brightness. i mean, the whole beauty of LEDs is you can choose your color spectrum, right?

The LED color temperature was a subject at one of our neighborhood meetings. Neighbors had identified a street with new LED lights that had a warmer color appearance that they liked and the city had agreed to install them.

EDIT: on a side note streetscapes photograph so much better under the new lighting.

[Busy Bee]

@ardecila... No doubt. Yeah I was referring to the "bucket" lenses that are so ubiquitous to Chicago. I've never noticed lenses like the post-cobra head 1970s luminaires anywhere except Chicago. For that reason I hold kind of a warm nostalgia for them.

[deebirch]

Clark / Belmont TOD

https://i.imgsafe.org/9470b00.jpg

606 / Milwaukee Avenue / Former Aldi

https://i.imgsafe.org/9576ef9.jpg

Belmont / Lincoln / Ashland Whole Foods

https://i.imgsafe.org/95193b7.jpg

[aaron38]

I went by the Whole Foods over the weekend. Still disappointed that it's just a grocery store, but it is imposing and does hold the corner well. Belmont/Clark looking real good too.

[Tom Servo]

http://i1381.photobucket.com/albums/ah214/ngc1976sct/69541s_zps1tsdv0st.jpg (http://news.nationalgeographic.com/content/dam/news/photos/000/695/69541.jpg)
Jim Richardson, National Geographic

http://chicagoinfrastructure.org/initiatives/light-grid/

The City of Chicago is planning to replace about 400,000 streetlights with new LED’s. The Chicago Infrastructure Trust (CIT) Board announced a meeting will be opened for public remarks to be held this Wednesday, April 20, 2016 at 10:30 A.M. at the Metropolitan Planning Council, 140 South Dearborn Street, Suite 1400.

Agenda
http://chicagoinfrastructure.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/Agenda-Board-Meeting-April-20-2016.pdf

Request For Information (RFI) document with some good information on the Chicago Smart Lighting Project:
http://shapechicago.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/ChicagoSmartLightingRFI-Final_20150917.pdf

Just another completely frivolous expenditure! :hell:

Rahm might be the worst thing to ever happen to Chicago. This really pisses me off. Pay the damn teachers, police, and firefighters, and leave the fucking streetlights alone!

[Busy Bee]

^You did read that the replacements are essentially payed for by future savings on energy costs right? If you had you probably would be a little more calm.

[Busy Bee]

A couple good articles on LED street lighting from a few years back:

http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2011/07/the-light-fantastic/308545/

http://gizmodo.com/led-streetlights-will-change-hollywood-and-make-every-c-1514840416

[the urban politician]

Just another completely frivolous expenditure! :hell:

Rahm might be the worst thing to ever happen to Chicago. This really pisses me off. Pay the damn teachers, police, and firefighters, and leave the fucking streetlights alone!

^ This is yet another symptom of our top-down, managerial based society which has taken over at all levels of life, from the business world to government.

Nobody wants to allow the people out in the real world, the people doing the actual WORK of conducting a society, or conducting business functions, to solve problems.

It's all about going from one heavy-handed, top-down approach to the next, with the person on top usually having very little skin in the game. And if it doesn't work out, it's someone else's money and heck, I'll just resign and it'll be the next guy's problem!

[Kngkyle]

If the energy savings will pay back the cost of switching within a few years then it would be stupid not to do it.

[Busy Bee]

^ This is yet another symptom of our top-down, managerial based society which has taken over at all levels of life, from the business world to government.

Nobody wants to allow the people out in the real world, the people doing the actual WORK of conducting a society, or conducting business functions, to solve problems.

It's all about going from one heavy-handed, top-down approach to the next, with the person on top usually having very little skin in the game. And if it doesn't work out, it's someone else's money and heck, I'll just resign and it'll be the next guy's problem!

I'm having trouble making sense of what you mean by this. So a city should just get out of the business of making decisions...? Please tell me you're not advocating privatization.

[Mr Downtown]

^Sounds like he's advocating having very strong aldermen who run their wards as fiefdoms, because they really know their neighborhoods well. Like when Paddy Bauler insisted on his own special design for stop signs in the 43rd Ward.

[LouisVanDerWright]

Um yeah, LED's will pay for themselves very quickly and are being financed with private money lent to the city and secured by those savings. Not only will a shit ton of electricity (380,000 high voltage lamps that run 50% of the time) be saved, but the cost of replacing burnt out bulbs will be all but totally eliminated for the next 30 years or so and THAT is real money as the city can lay off or stop allocating union employee time to it. This is a no brainer.

[marothisu]

Just another completely frivolous expenditure! :hell:

Rahm might be the worst thing to ever happen to Chicago. This really pisses me off. Pay the damn teachers, police, and firefighters, and leave the fucking streetlights alone!

Do you even understand what you're saying? It's not necessarily a silly expenditure in the long term. LED lights save energy and therefore money. If every light cost $100, but saves you $30/year versus the alternative (since these lights are on for hours a day every single night), then you would essentially break even in a little more than 3 years. After that, you're essentially saving $12M on that alone every year. Not to mention that LED lights last much longer, so you have to replace them less frequently which saves even more money (and probably potentially a few million extra per year). And then there's the safety part about having street lights that actually don't go out as fast.


Perhaps you should think about these things before you speak. Sometimes you have to spend money to make money, or in this case - you spend money to save money in the long term. It's basic investment. I suggest you research it.

[BWChicago]

I feel like in a few years, the technology will mature to a point where you can do much more adaptive control of the lighting - dimming or brightening, changing the color temperature (or even color)... things that would be more efficient and less intrusive. Maybe after a certain time of night, the side streets get dimmer if there's no motion detected. Or if there's an emergency call, the lights go to full brightness. And the city will have already completed the transition and missed that opportunity. Looks like Glasgow has pilot projects like this. http://futurecity.glasgow.gov.uk/intelligent-street-lighting/

[J_M_Tungsten]

^^^Mind blown. That would be amazing. Thanks for posting that.

[Busy Bee]

Seems like a solution in search of a problem. The investment needed for such a complicated system would easily out way the benefits. I also think you'll have a hard time finding a single resident who thinks dimming the alley lights after a certain time of the early morning is an even remotely good idea.

[J_M_Tungsten]

If it is based on motion, maybe it could be tampered with? On/off lights could be disruptive to the neighborhood and cityscape views throughout the night. May be cool to see though?

[pip]

Unless these new lights they are going to install in the future are different then the new ones they started to put in a few years ago I believe the yellow ones are easier to see at night especially in the summer nights.

[UPChicago]

If its as bright and blue-white as the new ones on LSD then no thanks, it make it hard to look at downtown from the north lake front trail.

[ardecila]

If it is based on motion, maybe it could be tampered with? On/off lights could be disruptive to the neighborhood and cityscape views throughout the night. May be cool to see though?

I mean, the current lights aren't tamper proof. With the right tools you can absolutely open the access cover and strip some copper. If you're just seeking to throw a block into darkness, it's even easier.

The bigger issue is privacy. It will be tough to convince people to accept streetlights that track their movements, even in the aggregate. English cities, especially London, are now blanketed with cameras in every corner of the city.

[sentinel]

Forest Park has had LED streetlights installed for two years now, and they are incredibly bright and provide very clear but also highly focused light. It's a world of difference.

[deebirch]

Logan Square "L"

https://i.imgsafe.org/fd15a9c.jpg

Logan Square / SNS Realty Condos

https://i.imgsafe.org/fdcd49d.jpg

Wicker Park / LG 6 Corners

https://i.imgsafe.org/fd64850.jpg

[msu2001la]

I feel like in a few years, the technology will mature to a point where you can do much more adaptive control of the lighting - dimming or brightening, changing the color temperature (or even color)... things that would be more efficient and less intrusive. Maybe after a certain time of night, the side streets get dimmer if there's no motion detected. Or if there's an emergency call, the lights go to full brightness. And the city will have already completed the transition and missed that opportunity. Looks like Glasgow has pilot projects like this. http://futurecity.glasgow.gov.uk/intelligent-street-lighting/

The city is/has already investigated technology that would allow more central/remote control over lighting and allow for some of the features you are describing. There was an RFP from either DEO or CDOT within the last year or so that looked into "smart lighting" and other smart technology options. Some of this was also explored as part of the Fulton Market streetscape project (which will have LED Davit Arms, but no smart controllers). It's actually a pretty simple hardware addition to the LED lighting package, and basically involves attaching a small wireless puck to the top of each fixture that can send/receive data. The more complicated upgrade is building a network of wireless receivers/transmitters to bring info/data back to a central location, and getting the city to agree on a single type of software to control them.

The big barrier for Chicago with all of this smart tech in general seems to be the proprietary nature of these systems and lack of standardization. There are different companies making these systems, but none of their technology is compatible with their competitors. The city won't single-source something like this, so they need the industry to standardize things a bit so they can use parts from various manufacturers, much like they do with the current fixtures and poles.

[harryc]

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-pHxD2GcpSkE/VxZYaKT-9FI/AAAAAAAEe0Q/Cs7qLp5vj2M0e1Y8f7IS3DPttgpARP7qQCCo/s1024-Ic42/IMG_4930.jpg

Niche905 - SLCondos - 347 Next
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-ZKvkKAq4mIo/VxZYbCWwHiI/AAAAAAAEe0U/aBLmO0s6LJw0zPSA_hEhdClvB_BaMA1DQCCo/s1152-Ic42/IMG_4937.jpg

[spyguy]

^Nice construction updates everyone.

---
Looks like there might be two Booth Hansen midrise condos planned for what I think is the corner of Washington and May in the West Loop:
http://i63.tinypic.com/2lo6jjo.jpg
Peerless Real Estate Investments
(https://www.instagram.com/p/BDBsLO_jiUu/)http://i68.tinypic.com/s2gunn.jpg

[Ned.B]

I'm pretty sure that many architects and developers have lost all sense of how to design a welcoming human scaled base on buildings. Why does that Elmhurst Building have such an enormous blank space between the ground floor and the first set of residential windows? There had to be a better way to do that.

[LouisVanDerWright]

^^^ Parking, the root of all evils. Developers in the city have shown absolutely no trouble building quite attractive buildings from a pedestrian perspective under the TOD code, just look at the other pictures on this page. But when parking enters the equation it mucks everything up and, in many cases, there simply is no cost effective solution other than "squeeze a short parking floor in between the retail and the units and line it with brick".

[SamInTheLoop]

Looks like there might be two Booth Hansen midrise condos planned for what I think is the corner of Washington and May in the West Loop:


Nice.....I believe I just actually requested more Booth Hansen this boom, as it happens....

[Jibba]

Some items from the upcoming zoning meeting:


1317 - 1335 N Western - 5 stories / 29 units
2529 - 2537 W Fullerton - 6 stories / 19 DUs
1708 - 1712 W Cermak - 4 stories / 24 DUs
715 - 717 N Milwaukee - 6 stories / 25 DUs
927 - 931 W Irving Park - 5 stories / 28 DUs
5161 - 5229 W Lawrence - 4 stories / 39 DUs

[ardecila]

^Nice construction updates everyone.

---
Looks like there might be two Booth Hansen midrise condos planned for what I think is the corner of Washington and May in the West Loop:
[URL="https://www.instagram.com/p/BDBsLO_jiUu/"]Peerless Real Estate Investments


Seems foolish to post this unless they've already brought it to the alderman. This will certainly need a zoning change and signoff from the West Loop crazies...

[ithakas]

Seems foolish to post this unless they've already brought it to the alderman. This will certainly need a zoning change and signoff from the West Loop crazies...

I'm beginning to wonder if the West Loop crazies will soon have too many projects on their hands to rally against them all in coordination. If they pick any one project to put up a fight against, I could see it being the H20 site. (The Mary Bartelmes seem a particularly zealous sub-set.)

[spyguy]

I didn't know there was one. Just searched for it, didn't find it.

Here you go: http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showthread.php?t=198789

[Jibba]

Some items from the upcoming zoning meeting:


1317 - 1335 N Western - 5 stories / 29 units
2529 - 2537 W Fullerton - 6 stories / 19 DUs
1708 - 1712 W Cermak - 4 stories / 24 DUs
715 - 717 N Milwaukee - 6 stories / 25 DUs
927 - 931 W Irving Park - 5 stories / 28 DUs
5161 - 5229 W Lawrence - 4 stories / 39 DUs


Also, 650 N Morgan (6 stories / 25 DUs) received zoning approval back in March. This will make for four new mid-rises on/near Milwaukee between the Ohio feeder and the Kennedy (including 1001 W Chicago and 830 N Milwaukee). 768 N Aberdeen applied for a zoning change in September and would be 12 stories / 190 DUs.

River West still needs a neighborhood center. A good start would be having the Ogden ROW between Milwaukee and Chicago merged with the island of land that has the S blue line entrance. That intersection is currently pretty pedestrian-hostile.

[LouisVanDerWright]

^^^ I have a feeling they will address that intersection when the Milwaukee Ave rebuild finally gets down that far. Unfortunately that's like 4 years out. They are starting to tear up Milwaukee Ave between Addison and Belmont this summer. I think Belmont to Diversey is next summer and then Logan Square finally gets turned into a proper roundabout. Maybe a traffic circle is a logical solution for Milwaukee Ogden Chicago? Configure the Blue Line entrances so they double as pedestrian tunnels under the busy intersection.

[Mr Downtown]

^With six elevators for ADA access? CDOT's Complete Streets leadership will have a good laugh over that idea.

I've been traveling a lot in East and Southeast Asia recently, where they love to make their big auto intersections free of those pesky pedestrians. Being forced under or over the intersection you just want to cross is incredibly frustrating, even when, as here in Tokyo, they've installed escalators to make them more palatable. The subterranean ones are a little easier, but more appealing only if they're full of underground retail, which seems a very unlikely prospect for Milwaukee & Ogden.