Mystery (Moxy?) Hotel starts construction in River North

Posted on January 20, 2017 by danieldschell

Caisson work is underway at the new Moxy Hotel, 530 North LaSalle Street, in River North.

With little fanfare, Pepper Construction has begun foundation work on what some believe (C.A.B. included) will be a new Moxy Hotel in River North at 530 North LaSalle Drive. A permit was filed back in November for the site, calling for an 8-story hotel on caissons. Well, we can all agree there’s definitely caisson work going on, as the big blue Stalworth machines are ripping into the soil as we speak.

The named architect on the permit works at DLR Group. A blog post on DLR’s website names Moxy By Marriott as a brand they work with. The Marriott News Center page names Chicago as a destination for a new Moxy Hotelk in 2017. It’s funky math, but it kind of adds up. I’m sticking with the Moxy tag on this one until told I’m wrong.

: So here’s your permit, electronically…

: …and physically, like on paper and stuff.

Not just any single family residence rises up in River North

Posted on January 19, 2017 by danieldschell

The five-story, single family home at 455 West Superior Street.

Chasing single-family construction in Chicago would probably feel like a fever dream. Maybe in a small town like Mars, Pennsylvania, or Conover, Wisconsin, that would be possible. But not here.

But there is one single-family home being built that can’t be ignored. The city filed a permit for it back in March, to the tune of $9,980,000.00. Yep, just under ten million. Five stories, one family, with caissons. A permit so stunning, even Dennis Rodkin at Crain’s reported it. And in June, I watched the soil start to turn. But then…I forgot about it.

Until this week, when I went by the lot at 455 West Superior Street and saw four stories’ worth of erected steel. I guess they kept working on it, even though I wasn’t there to watch. Power Construction is out there building the Wheeler Kearns Architects-designed home. It’s shrouded in plastic and mystery for now, but at the rate it’s moving, we’ll get to see what it looks like soon.

: The Empty Lot.

: The Permit.

Construction Update: Prairie Court townhomes

Posted on January 19, 2017 by danieldschell

A lot of work has been done on the townhomes of Prairie Court since our last visit in September. In that time, Summit Design + Build has done some major cinder-block stacking, window installing, and even bricked up the wall at the north end of the project. In all, there will be 55 four-story homes from Golub and Sandz Development, slated for completion in 2018.

Construction Progress: Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

Posted on January 18, 2017 by danieldschell

There are bricks in the wall at the new Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Near North. The 7-story design by Dixon + Associates of Salt Lake City, Utah has already climbed to the sixth floor. McHugh Construction has been on the job since May of last year.

Before we head to the photos, here’s a reminder of what David Dixon of Dixon + Associates sent us last summer:

The new building in Chicago is unique for the Church. While they typically complete a new standard single-story meetinghouse every day somewhere in the world, this project is specifically designed for Chicago. Following the Neoclassical Romanesque Revival style of architecture, the building will incorporate the traditional red brick and limestone appearance that is prevalent in this area of Chicago. It will be six stories above grade (three meetinghouse and three parking levels) with a partial story of parking below grade. The building will open in about a year with a two-story chapel and associated classrooms. The top floor can accommodate another smaller chapel and classrooms in the future. Three or four congregations from the downtown area will utilize the building with staggered meeting schedules. A unique feature of this building is a landscaped courtyard on the fourth story. The courtyard provides semi-private outdoor space that could be used for receptions, mingling between meetings, or children’s activities. Plans were presented to the local neighborhood and were very well received.

: Render from Dixon + Associates.

The Ronsley renovation gets serious

Posted on January 17, 2017 by danieldschell

The Ronsley, 676 North Kingsbury Street in River North. Render from The Ronsley website.

There’s quite an ambitious renovation taking place in River North, and after a long period of interior work, the outside is catching up with the inside.

The Ronsley, at 676 North Kingsbury Street, is well on its way to being transformed into a stellar condominium building. The Ronsley renovation was designed by Antunovich Associates for LG Development, and includes adding four additional stories atop the original 5-story timber loft office building, as well as putting additions on the west and south sides of the structure. All that work, which LG Construction is doing themselves, will result in 41 luxury condos ranging from two to four bedrooms, plus parking for 50 vehicles, including hydraulic lifts for stacking cars on cars.

The Ronsley in August of 2015. Sadly, the water tank is gone.

The water tank that is no more.

The back of the original loft timber office building, which faces south. It was…gritty.

The rear of the building under transformation, April 2016.

On to May of 2016, and the interior gutting:

A month later, more interior work, the west addition takes shape, and there’s more work going on around the back:

October 2016, and here come the windows! The west addition rises up the side of the original building, and the south addition gets off the ground:

Finally, January of 2017. Those new windows look great against the brick. There’s ironwork on top, to the west, and in the rear:

LG’s TOD taking shape at 1241 North Milwaukee in Wicker Park

Posted on January 11, 2017 by danieldschell

At the intersection of Ashland and Milwaukee Avenues, and just off Division Street, LG Development is building a seven-story rental building that will include 16,000 feet of retail space and the renovation of the existing two-story structure facing Ashland. Designed by Jonathan Splitt Architects (who also did the new Blue Plate Catering digs over in the Fulton Market District), 1241 North Milwaukee will have 60 apartments. As is often the case on LG projects, LG Construction is handling general contractor duties.

: Rendering of 1241 North Milwaukee from Jonathan Splitt Architecture.

: 1241 North Milwaukee. (This development needs a name.)

: August work.

: The Permit.

851 West Grand takes shape alongside the Kennedy Expressway

Posted on January 5, 2017 by danieldschell

851 West Grand in River West, up to floor #3 of 6.

The 851 West logo.

Over in River West, construction crews are busy erecting 851 West, a six-story apartment building at 851 West Grand Avenue from developer Monroe Residential Partners. Designed by FitzGerald Associates Architects, 851 West will bring 36 “boutique apartments” with 18 parking spaces across West Grand Avenue from the newly-opened Kenect Apartments.

The City of Chicago filed the construction permit back in June, and Summit Design + Build has been on the job ever since, with work having now reached the third floor.

There are lots of great construction photos over on 851 West’s Facebook page.

: Rendering of 851 West from Monroe Residential Partners.

: The view of 851 West from the B.U.C. HQ.

How about a McDouble? There will be a pair of tower cranes at McDonald’s headquarters

Posted on January 4, 2017 by danieldschell

That tower crane obscured by all the caisson equipment doesn’t belong to the McDonald’s HQ site. But soon, there will be two of them here.

By now you know, tower cranes are a favorite of mine. Two tower cranes? I can barely contain my bliss. We’ve seen them here in Chicago within the past 12 months at The Sinclair, the Simpson-Querrey Biomedical Research Center, and most recently, at Vista Tower. And coming soon, McDonald’s HQ. (HQ stand for headquarters, not headquarter-pounders)

On December 15, the City of Chicago filed permits for the two cranes at 110 North Carpenter Street in the West Loop, and look what they did! They’ve already named them West Crane and East Crane! Which really takes the pressure to come up with clever crane monikers off me.

They’re still busy with caisson work at the new Home of the Golden Arches, so don’t expect cranes to sprout right away. But they’ll be here soon enough. Now, if that completes your order, please pull up to the next window.

East Crane.

West Crane.

Obvious Update: Driving piles at McDonald’s headquarters is noisy

Video

Crank up the volume on your pc/tablet/phone, and you’ll be able to enjoy what West Loopers are hearing, as piles are driven into the ground at the new McDonald’s headquarters at 110 North Carpenter Street.

But don’t worry. Locals know the importance of bringing such a high-profile company to the neighborhood, so they’re willing to put up with the noise for a few days. Besides, all major construction projects are noisy, and the folks on adjacent properties are always understanding of the temporary inconveniences.

Right?

: This guy was working much more quietly, not disturbing a soul…

: …despite working right beside the pile driver.

Construction Progress: The Apple Store on the Magnificent Mile

Posted on December 31, 2016 by danieldschell

https://twitter.com/BuildUpChicago/status/814578616721899520

The thing about high-profile two-story developments is, you can miss a lot of progress in a very short period of time. And I don’t want you missing that progress. So here are a few shots of the current state at the new Apple flagship store along the Chicago River at 401 North Michigan Avenue. Featuring the lowest tower crane in Chicago, the Apple Store also affords unobstructed construction views from multiple vantage points. Apple’s new location is expected to open in October 2018.