Prepping for a tower crane jump at Centrum Hubbard

Centrum Hubbard tower crane

Two new sections of tower crane wait to take their reps at Centrum Hubbard.

All the tell-tale signs are there: Extra tower crane parts … Okay, that’s really the only tell-tale sign there is. But it’s also the only one you need.

Centrum Hubbard made (my) headlines last week by installing the first few panes of glass on the future residential building, and now it looks like the tower crane is gonna be jumpin’ very soon. of course, if you look towards the top of the crane, it appears it may have jumped recently, as well.

 

165 North Desplaines goes craneless

165 North Desplaines tower crane

You are in no danger of losing your jobs to me. I’ll be fine down here on terra firma.

This past weekend at 165 North Desplaines in the West Loop was spent dismantling and hauling away the tower crane that had been erecting the rental development since June of last year. The 14-story building topped out in late January, and now it’s a matter of buttoning up the exterior, and getting to work on 199 apartment interiors.

165 North Desplaines tower crane comes down this weekend

165 North Desplaines tower crane

A friday-night look at the 165 North Desplaines tower crane, which comes down this weekend.

The Lord giveth, and the Lord taketh away.

The West Loop got two new tower cranes within the past week, and on the same lot to boot, when McDonald’s erected a pair at 110 North Carpenter. But now we’ll have to give one back.

165 North Desplaines topped out over a month ago — on January 26th, to be exact — and now all the heavy lifting is done, and it’s time for this tower crane to move on. An email from the 42nd Ward tells us that happens this weekend.

As you shed a tear for the departing tower crane, remember we should have one soon at One South Halsted. And perhaps the Nobu Hotel, should this week’s excavation work be the real deal.

My iPhone and I stopped by 165 North Desplaines on the way home tonight, to take one last look.

Centrum Hubbard brings a touch of glass to the River North neighborhood

Centrum Hubbard

Centrum Hubbard gets in on the glass action.

A big milestone has been reached in River North this week. The first level of cladding is being installed at Centrum Hubbard, the residential tower going up at 215 West Hubbard Street. The 23-story, 193-unit apartment companion to the 9-story office building next door at 412 North Wells, both designed by Hirsch Associates Architects, is up to the 17th floor.

A Sunny Day At: 8 East Huron

8 East Huron

Straight up, 8 East Huron looks best on a sunny day.

Okay, so sunny days were almost the norm for awhile during our February Spring. Still, new construction is meant to be seen when the sun is shining. And winter ain’t over yet, so the sun could be gone just as quickly as it appeared.

Here’s an update on progress at 8 East Huron, the residential tower from CA Ventures and Harlem Irving Companies. The building, designed by Valerio Dewalt Train Associates, will have 102 apartments, 31 parking spaces, and more than 2,700 square feet of ground-floor retail. Clark Construction is on the build.

The Big Green W warns of a tower crane jump in Alta Roosevelt’s future

When the Big Green W talks, people listen. Especially skyscraper nerds and construction junkies. Even more so when they use your photo and give you a shout-out.

Walsh Construction promised a tower crane jump at Alta Roosevelt on their Instagram feed, and since Sunday’s brunch was only a block away (PLUG: I highly suggest you all head to Sociale sooner, instead of later) I stopped by 801 South Financial. I didn’t catch the jump, but they’re certainly prepared for it.

Below, you’ll find a video, and then a photo gallery. The video was intended for you to hear the sounds of the wind howling through the construction site. It was magically musical; alas, all you’re likely to hear is the wind whipping through my phone.

Yep, I got more from Wanda Vista Tower for ya

There’s still a lot going on, so why wouldn’t construction and skyscraper nerds take more photos? Really, it’s out of our control. So here ya go, another slew of action shots from this week at the ever-changing Vista Tower site.

3Eleven gets a webpage, signage

And with that tweet, The John Buck Company announced that 3Eleven now has its own website. So in addition to looking fantastic in the sunlight, you can now find 3Eleven on the interwebs.

Construction Progress: Studio Gang’s Solstice on the Park

Solstice On The Park

Solstice On The Park will reside at the corner of South Cornell Avenue and East 56th Street.

On a previous visit to Hyde Park, less than two months ago, Solstice On The Park had just erected its tower crane, and construction was still in the groundwork stage. Apparently, crews from Linn-Mathes have continues to work even though I wasn’t around to track their progress.

Solstice On The Park, the “other” big residential project from Studio Gang (I assume you’ve heard of Wanda Vista Tower?) is coming along quite nicely. A development from Antheus Capital, it will deliver 250 apartments within its 27 stories, stacked atop 300+ parking spaces, all capped off by a green roof.

Landmark West Loop takes over where 1035 West Van Buren began

Landmark West Loop

From this day forward, 1035 West Van Buren would like to be called Landmark West Loop.

You know the guy at the office who refills the stapler for you, then staples the last four pages together and takes credit for the TPS reports you spent all week working on? Well, that’s a very vague analogy for what’s just happened at Related Midwest’s new apartment tower in the West Loop.

New signage had been spotted, and Stephanie Lulay at  DNAinfo reported yesterday, that what had been called 1035 West Van Buren through all the digging and heavy lifting shall henceforth be known as Landmark West Loop.

There’s still a little ways to go to top off the 30-story tower, as it’s reached about 25 floors in height, but still, a lot of the work was done before this new name swooped in. Though to be fair, buildings named after their addresses aren’t especially clever, and three-word street names are just clunky anyway. Besides, no one has moved into any of the 300 new, unfinished rental units yet, so it isn’t like they’ll need change-of-address cards already. So a new moniker for this one seems fitting. Landmark West Loop it is.

Landmark West Loop

Landmark West Loop rises along the Eisenhower Expressway.