CHICAGO | Boom rundown - everything over 12 floors. v5

[the urban politician]

^ Uhh, yeah... And PDNA isn't shitting their NIMBY diapers over this?

[emathias]

Originally Posted by brian_b

First they chased the condo boom, and then it was the hotel boom. Now they are chasing the apartment boom, and I am thinking it will end just as badly.

There are too many apartment towers going up in the city. And they are all "luxury" apartments. Where are the apartments for people with normal jobs and normal paychecks?

St. Louis?

[emathias]

Originally Posted by the urban politician

^ What the hell is this? Sounds like a huge project

A year ago Crains reported a 146 unit building on that site first called Aristrocrat Tower, then renamed Hom Chicago, which was scrapped but would have looked like this.

If the 900+ units number is accurate, they'd have to all be studios or something. Seems more like a hotel proposal than residential.

[Eventually...Chicago]

Originally Posted by aic4ever

I doubt Walsh will be spending a dime out there until the money starts flowing from a legitimate source again.

I just don't understand how one could screw up that badly! Okay, we all pretty much knew waterview was hanging from a thread, pretty much from day one, but for this project to actually disassemble the crane. Like everyone else, i'm hoping it's just that there isn't any need for the tower crane any more.

To get that far along in construction and just shut it down makes no sense to me. You figure that somewhere there is some money to complete the building. I mean, it is a hotel so to have it sitting there 75% finished instead of at least getting it to the point where you can start to have revenue would be worth it. I just don't see how anyone involved, whether it be the lender or the developer is better off having the project sit rather than figuring out a way to get it done. A mostly finished building is a pretty illiquid asset.

[Dr. Taco]

Originally Posted by emathias

A year ago Crains reported a 146 unit building on that site first called Aristrocrat Tower, then renamed Hom Chicago, which was scrapped but would have looked like this.

If the 900+ units number is accurate, they'd have to all be studios or something. Seems more like a hotel proposal than residential.

yikes, that looks really shitty... please let them have completely redesigned it...

[spyguy]

171 N Wabash

[VivaLFuego]

^Nice. It's tough to tell from the renderings what the exact "fit and finish" of the materials will be, but this could turn out very nicely. I'm particularly intrigued by the terrace on the western setback

[Saber925]

^ Love the rendering...no sign of the "L", just a wide boulevard.

[DHamp]

^ It took me a sec to get my bearings for this one. So in the first pic, we're looking at the north face, on Lake St. and in the second pic we're looking at the south face, on Benton Pl., correct? If so then the 'L' would be just out of view to the left of the second pic.

171 is rental, right? This will be a very welcome improvement to that little area. I despise every one of those surface lots/parking garages on that Wabash corridor through the Loop. *Looking at YOU surface lots at Wabash and Van Buren*

Hope it happens.

[jpIllInoIs]

Yeah, Nice find SG. 171 N. Wabash is a huge improvement over the fugly surface lot and 3 level parking deck. This kind of infill is worth getting excited about. And it looks like it will add to the skyline.

[Chicagoguy]

Originally Posted by jpIllInoIs

Yeah, Nice find SG. 171 N. Wabash is a huge improvement over the fugly surface lot and 3 level parking deck. This kind of infill is worth getting excited about. And it looks like it will add to the skyline.

What is the proposed height of this one? Also when might they be looking at starting this one? Sometime in 2009 maybe?

[jpIllInoIs]

^ From the rendering it looks about the same ht as the Smurfit-Stone bldg, about 580ft.

[ColumbusTim79]

I dont think it looks more than 500ft from that pic

[Tom Servo]

Originally Posted by spyguy

171 N Wabash

is that scb???

[Eventually...Chicago]

yeah i'm confused about this one too. Is this that goofy empty site next to a hot dog stand, across from intelligentsia?

[Marcu]

Originally Posted by Eventually...Chicago

I just don't understand how one could screw up that badly! Okay, we all pretty much knew waterview was hanging from a thread, pretty much from day one, but for this project to actually disassemble the crane. Like everyone else, i'm hoping it's just that there isn't any need for the tower crane any more.

To get that far along in construction and just shut it down makes no sense to me. You figure that somewhere there is some money to complete the building. I mean, it is a hotel so to have it sitting there 75% finished instead of at least getting it to the point where you can start to have revenue would be worth it. I just don't see how anyone involved, whether it be the lender or the developer is better off having the project sit rather than figuring out a way to get it done. A mostly finished building is a pretty illiquid asset.

Aren't cranes leased? I doubt the developer had anything to do with this directly. More likely, the crane provider wasn't paid for a few months or had some contract dispute with the developer and moved the crane out. I'm much less worried about this project than I am about Waterview, even with the crane situation.

[Tom Servo]

Originally Posted by Eventually...Chicago

yeah i'm confused about this one too. Is this that goofy empty site next to a hot dog stand, across from intelligentsia?

this site is a huge L shape. it starts on lake next to that elephant and castle, where that cantina is now and a garage... and wraps around to wabash where there is an open area with a crappy garage... that hot dog place/ popeyes is in that shit hole next door... is that being razed too?


LAKE STREET SIDE


WABASH SIDE (the portion of this building that fronts wabash is that small box in the bottom left corner)


hopefully that helps with placing this one mentally if you're not in this part of loop very often...

[Chi_Coruscant]

Originally Posted by spyguy

171 N Wabash

Finally, the Wabash street is getting some new kind of life instead of serving as a back alley for State St or Michigan Ave.

No pun intended but please don't build a dedicated thread for this project. It's pointless to do that.

[denizen467]

Originally Posted by AdrianXSands

that hot dog place/ popeyes is in that shit hole next door... is that being razed too?

Unfortunately the junky garage on the NE corner of Wabash/Randolph is unaffected by this. But that just means it remains ripe for some kind of tall luxury tower redevelopment someday down the road.

It's kind of strange that this gets right up to Smurfit-Stone's height, and then doesn't bother to exceed it. Units higher than that could offer unbelievable views of Grant Park - what a waste.

[Nowhereman1280]

Great news everyone! I just drove by the old NBC(?) place over on McClurg and there is a soil testing rig in the parking lane on the street! There are holes drilled in the street around the building which seems to suggest they may be getting ready to move quickly on the 630 N. McClurg towers. I suspect they are trying to fast track it because they are drilling now instead of waiting for the structure to be torn down.

This is older news, but they also have construction sidewalk barrier things around the whole building as well.