CHICAGO | General Developments - Page 711

ardecila · #**14201** Posted **Dec 16, 2011, 9:21 PM**

This is Midway Games.

Quote:

Originally Posted by harryc

And N on the river ...

Nov 19

zolk · #**14202** Posted **Dec 16, 2011, 9:52 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hayward

If the land for the school is going PD, doesn't that mean they'll probably add athletic fields and stuff as opposed to an actual school expansion?

Plans call for a three-story academic building to be built on the NE corner of 35th/Michigan, complete with space for retail tenants along 35th. A pedestrian bridge would extend over Michigan Ave to connect the new building to the existing facilities. Again, these plans have been on hold for several years but the school is still interested in moving forward once funding is available.

Nowhereman1280 · #**14203** Posted **Dec 16, 2011, 10:30 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by ardecila

This is Midway Games.

I thought it was the slot machine maker?

george · #**14204** Posted **Dec 16, 2011, 10:35 PM**

The old Bond department store

http://archpaper.com/news/articles.asp?id=4767

markh9 · #**14205** Posted **Dec 16, 2011, 11:45 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nowhereman1280

I thought it was the slot machine maker?

I believe you are right.

http://chicago.curbed.com/archives/2...cago-river.php

Curbed mentioned it is being built on the 'WMS Gaming technology campus', which would be the slot machine maker you mentioned.

aic4ever · #**14206** Posted **Dec 17, 2011, 12:02 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hayward

Eh...it kind of just means the neighborhood isn't really going anywhere. Most new stuff is institutional. There's no new commercial development except for the bank. If the land for the school is going PD, doesn't that mean they'll probably add athletic fields and stuff as opposed to an actual school expansion?

BTW, I hope Michigan Boulevard Garden Apartment sees a rehab someday in the future.

I found their PD online someplace. It's designated to be a building that will occupy that whole lot. There's even a footbridge over Michigan Avenue leading from the school to the new building (though who knows if this will happen). So I think it is to expand the square footage of available building that they have. I forget the uses, as I read it over a year ago, but I believe DeStefano was the architect.

aic4ever · #**14207** Posted **Dec 17, 2011, 12:04 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by zolk

De La Salle, not DuSable.

That building was once the Pickford Theatre. The original plan was to incorporate it as part of the new school development. The concern was the building's bowstring truss roof. Those are prone to collapse during a fire, as was the case at another building on the south side last year that led to the death of two firefighters.

The plans to build a new school on that site are on hold pending availability of funds.

You're right, DeLasalle. Sorry. Mind thought one thing and fingers typed another.

There was something of a stink in the neighborhood about the Pickford but not enough to stop it.

aic4ever · #**14208** Posted **Dec 17, 2011, 12:20 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by ardecila

aic, what's involved in the site work? You mentioned the utility upgrades. Is Related also re-landscaping the open spaces? It would be nice to get something like they did at the Cabrini Rowhouses. It really changed the feeling of the space, even if the original buildings had pretty awful design.

Full redo of the site. Upgrading the on site storm drainage system to include a bunch of underground detention, as the site as a whole is frequently flooded. All of the paving will be redone, as well as all of the sidewalks. There are four existing spaces interior to the site that have concrete knee walls forming a triangular space, filled with dirt, so that you step up onto them, that I believe were used once upon a time as kind of planting/picnic areas. These will all be dug out down to grade. Two will become picnic areas with BBQ's and tables and benches, and the other two will be playgrounds with rubber surfacing and playground equipment. New benches will be installed all throughout the site along the sidewalks. There will also be two new community gardens going in. As mentioned, we've already removed trees...117 to be exact, that were either dead or structurally unsafe. The remaining ones were pruned and look much better. Everything gets re-landscaped at the end, with new trees and plantings throughout.

I think perhaps the best thing happening is that the sort of frontage drive that is there now, along MLK, that runs the whole length of the site will be ripped out and redone as three separate entry drives leading to the interior parking lots. The tall wrought iron fence along MLK that effectively makes the place a prison at this point will be torn out when the entries are redone. In between the driveways, the property will be filled in with landscaped space, with sidewalks extending out to the MLK sidewalk from each building's front door. Two of the lots that currently connect MLK to Calumet will no longer do so.

I like this last bit the best, psychologically speaking. At least it is connecting the property back to the rest of the community to some extent, rather than leaving it walled off. It really is like a prison in there. Overall it should make it a genuinely nicer place to live, and anything that makes it harder for police to randomly raid a property with 30 police cars, as happened when I left the site this evening (and as I understand it happens there fairly regularly), is fine in my book.

ardecila · #**14209** Posted **Dec 17, 2011, 7:33 AM**

Thanks for the detail. Less suburban access drives is definitely a good thing, but I'm not sure about closing off the accesses to Calumet. Why even maintain a street there? Nobody is gonna use it... the city should just vacate it and sell it to Related for some extra green space.

The removal of the fence is probably a good thing... the edge won't be as well-defined, but the skinny-ass, parkway-less sidewalk won't be so scary for pedestrians - an important thing for a site right beneath a CTA station.

The buildings are actually somewhat attractive, and they seem to have good bones. I've never paid much attention to them before, but the sawtooth bay windows and the plaques over the entrances are pretty nice. With a good design strategy for the outdoor space, this could be quite a nice complex...

aic4ever · #**14210** Posted **Dec 19, 2011, 6:13 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by ardecila

Thanks for the detail. Less suburban access drives is definitely a good thing, but I'm not sure about closing off the accesses to Calumet. Why even maintain a street there? Nobody is gonna use it... the city should just vacate it and sell it to Related for some extra green space.

The removal of the fence is probably a good thing... the edge won't be as well-defined, but the skinny-ass, parkway-less sidewalk won't be so scary for pedestrians - an important thing for a site right beneath a CTA station.

The buildings are actually somewhat attractive, and they seem to have good bones. I've never paid much attention to them before, but the sawtooth bay windows and the plaques over the entrances are pretty nice. With a good design strategy for the outdoor space, this could be quite a nice complex...

There is still through access to Calumet via the access drive at south end of the site. The interior lots that connected through will no longer do so, however.

Calumet is used largely by the residents for parking, and is actually a very busy street for that, as well as for access for deliveries and garbage pickup. There is also a school to the north of the property that uses Calumet for access/parking.

As to the buildings, I do like them as well, and they are apparently historic in nature. Whether that's NHR or Landmarks, though, I'm not really sure. Everything about the buildings is out of my scope.

spyguy · #**14211** Posted **Dec 19, 2011, 11:03 PM**

Construction is well underway at the Gateway site.

Tenants so far include Mariano's, Tom & Eddie's (burger joint by two former McD execs), and possibly a Mexican QSR and a cafe

Rizzo · #**14212** Posted **Dec 19, 2011, 11:24 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by spyguy

Construction is well underway at the Gateway site.

Tenants so far include Mariano's, Tom & Eddie's (burger joint by two former McD execs), and possibly a Mexican QSR and a cafe

Thanks spyguy. Do they still plan on a mid rise attachment building to this?

spyguy · #**14213** Posted **Dec 19, 2011, 11:45 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hayward

Thanks spyguy. Do they still plan on a mid rise attachment building to this?

The midrise hotel is gone but they're still planning to build a residential/hotel tower at the NW corner as phase II. The other good news that I mentioned a week or two ago is that the old bank building next door finally showed up on the landmarks commission. Apparently the owner wants to reconstruct the cornice, build a rooftop addition, and convert the first floor to retail.

the urban politician · #**14214** Posted **Dec 20, 2011, 1:31 AM**

^ Great news on the heavily taxpayer subsidized luxury development in a luxury neighborhood.

Seriously, though, despite my sarcasm, I'm glad to see the parking lot go. Halsted street is really going to be quite a thoroughfare in the upcoming years

ardecila · #**14215** Posted **Dec 20, 2011, 7:01 AM**

^^ Indeed.

Honestly, I'm worried we'll end up with a North/Clybourn situation where the amount of retail generates more traffic than the sidewalks can handle. On Halsted, though, there will be many more people arriving on foot due to the dense surroundings and pedestrian-friendly, strip-mall-free environment.

Personally I think the West Loop stretch of Halsted needs some re-imagining... maybe make a one-way street pair with Green, but keep a contraflow bus lane on Halsted. That would allow enough room for wider sidewalks, 2 bus lanes, and two northbound lanes.

I'm definitely looking forward to the restoration of the cornice at Halsted/Madison. That building and the MB across the street form such an awesome gateway to the West Loop... it's one of the few places in the downtown area where building height equals street width and creates that magical human scale. Booth Hansen deserves some serious kudos for the MB. Even the Skybridge podium contributes to the street somewhat, although its corner kinda sucks.

Tom Servo · #**14216** Posted **Dec 20, 2011, 9:39 AM**

Where is that?

spyguy · #**14217** Posted **Dec 20, 2011, 6:41 PM**

^Halsted and Monroe.

More grocery store news: the new owner of the burned-down Dominick's on Broadway is planning to build a 80k sf, two-story Mariano's with five floors of apartments above. Even better, Valerio Dewalt Train is designing the project.

Rizzo · #**14218** Posted **Dec 20, 2011, 6:55 PM**

Excellent news. I look forward to seeing a design.

OhioGuy · #**14219** Posted **Dec 20, 2011, 6:57 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by spyguy

^Halsted and Monroe.

More grocery store news: the new owner of the burned-down Dominick's on Broadway is planning to build a 80k sf, two-story Mariano's with five floors of apartments above. Even better, Valerio Dewalt Train is designing the project.

Meaning a 7 story building with presumably several levels of underground parking? Hopefully there won't be any major neighborhood opposition to building something 7 stories tall. It'll be interesting to see how the design turns out.

k1052 · #**14220** Posted **Dec 20, 2011, 7:19 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by OhioGuy

Meaning a 7 story building with presumably several levels of underground parking? Hopefully there won't be any major neighborhood opposition to building something 7 stories tall. It'll be interesting to see how the design turns out.

I live basically across the street, everyone I know would literally kill to have a Mariano's in that spot. We gave up on the Dominick's ever coming back. A few more apartments isn't going to phase anyone and the curb cuts on Broadway are already there.