Consumers arrive by boat to get in line for the October 20 opening of the new Chicago Apple Store. Probably.

Multiple outlets have reported (honestly, everyone has mentioned it. Call your Aunt Susie, and I bet it’s the first thing she wants to talk about) that Chicago’s new Apple Store will open October 20 on the Magnificent Mile. When it does, it will be the place to go for fancy smart phones, computers, watches, and more. But what it used to be was *the* place to see a really low tower crane. You tower crane you could just about reach up and touch.

Power Construction continues to add finishing touches to the two-story glass box at Michigan Avenue and the Chicago River. Once complete, they’ll turn their attention to building the Apple Store 2S. (Not true at all.)

The Apple Store on Chicago’ Magnificent Mile, at 401 North Michigan Avenue.

For some reason, there’s been a rash of stories lately stating how the new Apple Store on Chicago’s Magnificent Mile is “taking shape.” Well, we know it’s been in the shape of a future two-story glass cube for quite some time now. Here are a few shots of how things are progressing as of this week.

What says “glass box” better than an actual glass box? That’s pretty much what Power Construction is building in Pioneer Court these days. And while some use the “glass box” description as criticism, the new Apple Store at 401 North Michigan Avenue along the Magnificent Mile sure is making it work.

A barge lends a hand as glass is installed at the new Apple Store.

Last week, I learned it takes a whole mess of suction cups to a glass curtain wall on an Apple Store. It was also a thrill to see a barge being utilized in construction once again, something I’d hoped — actually, kind of assumed — would happen, given the Apple Store’s proximity to the Chicago River. And there’s no mud to be excavated, so it probably won’t sink.

The new Apple Store in Pioneer Court features Chicago’s lowest tower crane.

You can handle more pictures of the Apple Store construction, right? It’s still cool, and it still has that tower crane where you can just about reach your hand up and high-five the crane operator. The only negative I can find right now with this project is that the lower-level sidewalk of the Michigan Avenue Bridge is closed for work, so that’s one less vantage point for viewing.

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.