CHICAGO | Boom rundown - everything over 12 floors. v5 - Page 159

Ecker · #**3161** Posted **Sep 14, 2007, 3:56 PM**

Photo update from last week (9/6)

Ten East Delaware

I walked by yesterday and have a few additional updates to add to the above photos:

- The site at 10 East Delaware is now being excavated and raker beams are being install.

- Demolition has begun on the mansions that are part of the Walton on the Park development. The facades are being preserved but the backside of one of them was being demoed yesterday by the black/white/red crane on that's one the left side of this photo from last week.

VivaLFuego · #**3162** Posted **Sep 14, 2007, 4:04 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ecker

- Demolition has begun on the mansions that are part of the Walton on the Park development. The facades are being preserved but the backside of one of them was being demoed yesterday by the black/white/red crane on that's one the left side of this photo from last week.

I thought the whole point was that the mansions were going to be preserved and restored, not demolished and facadectomied? That basically defeats the whole purpose, they might as well have bulldozed all of them for more buildable high-rise space.

a chicago bearcat · #**3163** Posted **Sep 14, 2007, 4:10 PM**

I agree that closing pearson and making it pedestrian only works in this case

but the blanket comment of less streets is always good,
is entirely wrong and not built on any fact or theory
in fact more streets is better for planning, allowing more options and routes through the city to reduce bottlenecks, etc.

in this case eliminating a street that leads to nowhere and is filled with pedestrians regularly is a good thing.

similar to closing streets in parts of madison wisconsin to cars, which worked, unlike the closing of state street

Nowhereman1280 · #**3164** Posted **Sep 14, 2007, 4:24 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by a chicago bearcat

I agree that closing pearson and making it pedestrian only works in this case

but the blanket comment of less streets is always good,
is entirely wrong and not built on any fact or theory
in fact more streets is better for planning, allowing more options and routes through the city to reduce bottlenecks, etc.

in this case eliminating a street that leads to nowhere and is filled with pedestrians regularly is a good thing.

similar to closing streets in parts of madison wisconsin to cars, which worked, unlike the closing of state street

Yeah, that is correct, I didn't mean to make a blanket statement. I meant to use the word street to refer to useless dead end side streets, not useful parts of the street grid. I.E. closing Michigan or something would be a terrible idea...

Though in this case, I think it would be kinda cool if the completely got rid of Pearson from Michigan to State. I Know it would cause some problems with circulation, but it would really draw people in a whole new direction from the Water Tower and expand the Michigan retail area. There are plenty of other routes people can use to get around it.

Edit: PS, closing streets in Madison is always a good idea because driving in Madison is a joke, it takes forever to get anywhere, you may as well just walk, its WAY faster, or take a Moped (like everyone else). Not to mention there is absolutely nowhere to park and even if you do find somewhere there is a 75% chance you'll get a few parking tickets...

Ecker · #**3165** Posted **Sep 14, 2007, 5:11 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by VivaLFuego

I thought the whole point was that the mansions were going to be preserved and restored, not demolished and facadectomied? That basically defeats the whole purpose, they might as well have bulldozed all of them for more buildable high-rise space.

Yeah, that didn't make any sense to me either. I figured I should investigate further and I'm glad I did because my statement above was not entirely accurate. Turns out I didn't look close enough and the structured being demolished is actually behind the Carpenter House, and not actually part of it. It's hard to get a good view of the action from the street.

Here are the photos I just took...

You can see the building in this image from Google Maps

Here's the site plan

There's still no sign of any work about to start on the actual high-rise portion of this project, but I'm okay with that since I'm not too fond of the proposal.

harryc · #**3166** Posted **Sep 14, 2007, 5:39 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Steely Dan

^ will this be a rare instance where they excavate the site first before drilling caissons? if so, it makes determining construction start a bit more foggy.

Don't think so,. It appears that they want a flat surface for the drill rigs The Sidwalk and Alley need to be shored up before they start.

First in a series.

Bucky · #**3167** Posted **Sep 14, 2007, 6:22 PM**

Isn't the locaion for Columbia College's new media center (the Jean Gang thing) 1546-1558 S. State? Therefore, project #69 on the proposed list along with related project #70 should probably be removed and consigned to the dead list. I realize there are a number of other projects on the list that are no doubt dead, but this site has a different owner with a different project which is to start soon so project #69 is certainly dead.

Mr Downtown · #**3168** Posted **Sep 14, 2007, 7:51 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bucky

Isn't the locaion for Columbia College's new media center (the Jean Gang thing) 1546-1558 S. State? Therefore, project #69 on the proposed list along with related project #70 should probably be removed

The Columbia project is south of 16th. However, DPD declined to permit residential on the old Wicklander Printing site, so Daystar School bought and renovated it for use as a private school.

Sir Isaac Newton · #**3169** Posted **Sep 14, 2007, 10:18 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bucky

Isn't the locaion for Columbia College's new media center (the Jean Gang thing) 1546-1558 S. State? Therefore, project #69 on the proposed list along with related project #70 should probably be removed and consigned to the dead list. I realize there are a number of other projects on the list that are no doubt dead, but this site has a different owner with a different project which is to start soon so project #69 is certainly dead.

What's going up at 1546-1558 S. State?

SolarWind · #**3170** Posted **Sep 15, 2007, 1:13 AM**

September 14, 2007

honte · #**3171** Posted **Sep 15, 2007, 1:37 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nowhereman1280

Why don't you like the idea of closing the segment of Pearson? No one really uses it anyhow, other than Cab drivers who tear down it recklessly almost hitting students. Most people who use it are students going to class and completely blocking it for about 15 minutes at a time. It dead ends after state as it is.

Do you mean that building literally adjacent to the new residence hall? I think that one might be save actually, I think they are aiming more for the State and Pearson corner, not being directly adjacent to Baumhart. I am fairly certain they own the whole block, but I think I remember something about reusing at least a couple buildings for something...

If they save the Speyer house (and maybe a few other worthy buildings around there) in addition to the new tower, they can make Pearson into a fiery pit for all I care! That's good news - please keep us posted as you get other news.

Concerning Pearson, I just don't like the idea of reducing city infrastructure, especially for the benefit of private interests - or any kind of special interest, for that matter. It feels much more appropriate for Boulder, CO, than Chicago. I'd have to see the plan, I suppose. But I do use that street, and I think additional street closures in this part of town are only going to add to congestion, which increases NIMBYs and other similar issues.

Consider the Moody Bible campus, for instance. Of course it's a totally different scenario, but the presence of all of those superblocks just deadens the area and creates a barrier of sorts between neighborhoods (hmm, I wonder why they did that?).

Alliance · #**3172** Posted **Sep 15, 2007, 2:43 AM**

Fun article from a non-traditional skyscraper source:

Chicago: Tracing modern architecture

"Architecture buffs savor Chicago's buildings, but you don't have to be a connoisseur to appreciate the city's masonry and steel marvels."

-CNN

the urban politician · #**3173** Posted **Sep 15, 2007, 3:21 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by honte

Concerning Pearson, I just don't like the idea of reducing city infrastructure, especially for the benefit of private interests - or any kind of special interest, for that matter. It feels much more appropriate for Boulder, CO, than Chicago. I'd have to see the plan, I suppose. But I do use that street, and I think additional street closures in this part of town are only going to add to congestion, which increases NIMBYs and other similar issues.

^ Think of some of these ped-only streets as wider versions of what they have in London. London has tons of pedestrian-only streets.

SolarWind · #**3174** Posted **Sep 15, 2007, 5:14 AM**

September 14, 2007

ChiPsy · #**3175** Posted **Sep 15, 2007, 12:01 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by the urban politician

^ Think of some of these ped-only streets as wider versions of what they have in London. London has tons of pedestrian-only streets.

Yes, and there have been some really successful transformations of streets into college campus greenspaces in the US, including Saint Louis University and DePaul's Lincoln Park campus, right? I agree about the awful Moody superblocks, though, so it has to be done carefully.

spyguy · #**3176** Posted **Sep 15, 2007, 7:22 PM**

http://www.chicagobusiness.com/cgi-bin/mag/article.pl?article_id=28430

Condo collapse
Scrapped 1,000-unit South Loop project signals market shift to apartments

By Alby Gallun

In the most striking example of the local condo market slowing, the nation's second-largest homebuilder scrapped a 1,000-unit project in the South Loop and sold the development site to a firm that wants to build apartments.
-------------------------

Highlights of the article:

-Lennar sold its South Loop parcel to AvalonBay, which wants to building 2-3 towers with 984 apartments for $280 million, and start next summer.

-Hom/Aristocrat Tower is also dead but Warman may try again next year.

-Also another mention of the Curve changing plans and building 600 apartment units instead. Hopefully this means the project is still alive.