CHICAGO | 300 North LaSalle | 785 FT / 239 M | 60 FLOORS

[spyguy]

And so another one begins

[dvidler]

This why I love commercial buildings. Usually you do not have to wait too long for them to start.

[creamcityleo79]

This is one of my favorite buildings in the works for Chicago. It is so classy!!!

[SevenSevenThree]

Another piece of the puzzle is set in place. Cool news.

[the urban politician]

^ Oh, and that's not just symbolic (if you get my drift )

[kazpmk]

Congrats. I love the design of this tower.

[Pandemonious]

And yet another gigantic skyscraper begins construction within just blocks of my apartment... this boom is amazing. GO CHICAGO!

[jcchii]

excellent

[honte]

Great news. Is it too late to plop 45 stories of condos on top?

[denizen467]

Originally Posted by BVictor1

(Today 03:53 PM)
I just passed the site while giving one of my tours and that small caisson rig was spinning dirt off of the auger.

Um, BVictor, do you get off work by 3pm or did you make a point of rushing to a computer while on the job to post this news flash? Pretty amazing...

[BVictor1]

Originally Posted by denizen467

Um, BVictor, do you get off work by 3pm or did you make a point of rushing to a computer while on the job to post this news flash? Pretty amazing...

I used the computer in between tours. Didn't get off til' 5:30. After work, I did walk over to the site to take this picture.

[Chicago2020]

http://www.300northlasalle.com/

[honte]

Originally Posted by Chicago2020

http://www.300northlasalle.com/

The Brilliant Future of Chicago’s Skyline—a towering design in a landmark location. Elegant and timeless, its soaring stainless steel and glass façade begins directly above the waters of the Chicago River and touches the sky as one of the tallest buildings in the city.

Why do they keep saying it's going to be one of the tallest in the City? I don't think number 10 (likely soon to be number 12 or greater) counts. Sorry to vent, but it's getting on my nerves.

I'm going to repeat what I said earlier: I think this tower is very nice, but compared to Hines' other projects, Chicago keeps getting the shaft. They know what it means to really build a landmark when they want to.

[Tom In Chicago]

I count 55 encolsed floors above ground in that stacking plan. . . they sure added those numbers up oddly enough. . .

http://www.300northlasalle.com/_dl/300NLaSalle_stackingPlan.pdf

[Rocket1]

Originally Posted by honte

Why do they keep saying it's going to be one of the tallest in the City? I don't think number 10 (likely soon to be number 12 or greater) counts. Sorry to vent, but it's getting on my nerves.

So what does it take to be "one of the tallest" to you?

[honte]

Originally Posted by Rocket1

So what does it take to be "one of the tallest" to you?

Well, the way they hyped this building, you'd think it was going to come close to the height of the Sears Tower! Seriously, though, 60 "office height" stories got us 850' with the First National Bank building in the 1960s, and as recently as the late '90s, office buildings like 311 S. Wacker, AT&T, and Two Pru got far beyond that when in the 60-story range.

I think most people who follow skyscraper development in the US would not consider anything below 800' to be especially noteworthy on the height scale.

But more important than statistics, I see a major difference in the new towers from the ones I mentioned above. The height figures of the above buildings seem to indicate that the developers were really striving for something great. The new crop of office buildings (John Buck buildings, Hines buildings, Hyatt Center), while generally very pleasant in their design, do not seem to be driven by much other than making a ton of cash. They offer very little to the public or the skyline beyond the typical glass office box. A plaza here or there, a restaurant, public parking, that's about it.

[Rocket1]

Originally Posted by honte

The new crop of office buildings (John Buck buildings, Hines buildings, Hyatt Center), while generally very pleasant in their design, do not seem to be driven by much other than making a ton of cash. They offer very little to the public or the skyline beyond the typical glass office box. A plaza here or there, a restaurant, public parking, that's about it.

True. But I don't think it's realistic to hope that every new building will push the limits ala the Fordham Spire.

Like you say, though, 300 N. LaSalle is a very pleasant looking building.

I much prefer a glass office box myself than another beige, condo box that tends to dominate the skyline north of the river.

[Fabb]

Originally Posted by Tom In Chicago

I count 55 encolsed floors above ground in that stacking plan. . . they sure added those numbers up oddly enough. . .

http://www.300northlasalle.com/_dl/300NLaSalle_stackingPlan.pdf

Curiously enough, there is a 13th floor.

[honte]

Originally Posted by Rocket1

I much prefer a glass office box myself than another beige, condo box that tends to dominate the skyline north of the river.

Absolutely. All those office buildings I mentioned are about 1000x better than the junk in River North and elsewhere.

I'm still psyched that this building is being built. It looks like it's going to be proportioned and detailed well, even if it's not the most distinctive or distinguished. And it brings a new name and vision to Chicago's architectural landscape.

[spyguy]

http://www.chicagobusiness.com/cgi-bin/news.pl?id=21197

Hines finds familiar backers for 300 N. LaSalle St.

Developer Hines Interests LP has turned to some familiar partners to finance construction of 300 N. LaSalle St., the 60-story, riverfront skyscraper anchored by Kirkland & Ellis LLP.

New York-based JPMorgan Chase Bank issued a $310 million construction loan for the 1.35-million square foot tower, according to property records filed last month.

That loan is more than twice the $140 million loan that Bank One issued in 2003 to finance 1 S. Dearborn St., the 828,500-square-foot tower anchored by rival law firm Sidley Austin LLP.

JPMorgan took over that loan as part of the 2004 merger of its parent company and Chicago-based Bank One Corp. Hines completed the 40-story structure last year.

Meanwhile Barrington investor Marvin Herb, who provided financing for the Dearborn Street tower, is providing a mezzanine loan for the Kirkland building, sources say.

But unlike 1 S. Dearborn, Houston-based Hines isn’t looking outside the company for investors in its most recent Chicago development. An undetermined amount of equity is being contributed by several Hines affiliates, including Hines Holdings Inc., owned by Jeffrey C. Hines, chairman of the development firm, public records show.

Gregory Van Schaack, senior vice-president in Hines' Chicago office, declines comment on Herb’s investment.

In August, Kirkland signed a 20-year lease, starting March 1, 2009, for 675,000 square feet of space, a little more than half of the building. As a part of the deal, the law firm has four options to extend the lease, with Kirkland determining whether each extension will be for five or 10 years, according to a summary of the lease.

Hines hasn’t signed up another tenant since the Kirkland deal, one of the largest leases in the history of the downtown market.

Nonetheless, Van Schaack says he’s encouraged. “2009 tenants are out shopping,” he says.