It’s all downstream from here for The Hudson

Posted on January 16, 2017 by danieldschell

The Hudson, 750 North Hudson Avenue, and its very impressive podium.

Once famous for its glow-in-the-dark tower crane, The Hudson, at 750 North Hudson Avenue in River North, is topped out, glassed up, and looking like it will easily meet its Summer 2017 opening. Pappageorge Haymes Partners designed The Hudson for Onni Group, which is not only the developer, but the general contractor as well. That summer opening will feature 240 apartments, 240 parking spaces, and 10,000 square feet of ground-floor retail.

The Hudson doesn’t need a glowing crane anymore to catch the eye.

: Tron Crane at The Hudson, December 2015.

8 East Huron glasses up River North

Posted on January 16, 2017 by danieldschell

8 East Huron is showing off 3 full levels of glass these days.

The 26-story 8 East Huron is 18 stories into its climb in River North. The latest big achievement for the CA Ventures project is glass on all four sides, starting on the fifth level. When Clark Construction completes work, 8 East Huron will be home to 105 apartments, 31 parking spaces, and some ground-floor retail.

: There’s the glass, right over there.

: Sorry about the selfie.

At Alta Roosevelt, glass is in session

Posted on January 13, 2017 by danieldschell

Glass. Glorious Glass. Appearing now at Alta Roosevelt.

Alta Roosevelt (follow along on Twitter), the 33-story apartment tower from Wood Partners, has added some new shiny things for us to look at: Glass.

A few of the future 496 apartments have windows already installed. Bummer if residents have Macs, I guess. Anyway, the Pappageorge Haymes-designed tower continues to rise at 801 South Financial Place in the South Loop. It’s up to the 11th floor on the main tower; the fourth floor of the parking deck.

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.

Return to New York City: Central Park Tower

Posted on January 10, 2017 by danieldschell

Central Park Tower, left, and 220 Central Park South, right, face off on a chilly October night.

You remember the post from last month about 220 Central Park South right? Well, you may have noticed another skyscraper rising adjacent to that tower. That “other” development will only be New York City’s tallest residential tower, at over 1,500 feet, when completed in 2019.

Meet Central Park Tower. At its official address of 217 West 57th Street, Central Park Tower will stand back-to-back with 220 Central Park South, in essence sharing 58th Street as a high-profile alley. A project of Extell Development Company, the 131-story monster was designed by Chicago’s own Adrian Smith + Gordon Gill Archecture, and will include a 7-level Nordstrom flagship store. Lendlease has the tall task of general contractor on this one.

Want to know more about Central Park Tower? (Yes, you do. You have to!) Please check out these sights, in addition to the links above:

New York YIMBY

Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH)

: Rendering of Central Park Tower by Extell Development Company.

: That’s One57 in the background, another Extell development.

Construction Progress: 1136 South Wabash aims to go vertical

Posted on January 9, 2017 by danieldschell

Time is running out to see Flyboy, as 1136 South Wabash gets off the ground in the South Loop.

Caissons are done, the tower crane is in place, and 1136 South Wabash is looking more like a 3-dimensional construction site these days. CA Ventures’ 26-story residential tower will bring 320 apartments to the South Loop, with retail on the first floor, and 143 parking spaces. SCB did the design; Lendlease is on the build.

One Grant Park caisson work rolls along

Posted on January 6, 2017 by danieldschell

A gorgeous rendering of One Grant Park from Rafael Viñoly Architects.

When it rains, it pours. Cement into caissons, that is.

Add One Grant Park to the list of skyscrapers getting busy in Chicago. Permitted for foundation work back in October, the empty lot bounded by Michigan Avenue, Roosevelt Road, and Indiana Avenue finally saw some action in December, when crews started site prep. Now, the familiar blue and gold of Case Foundation is on the scene, drilling holes into the South Loop soil to support the 76-story, 792-unit Rafael Viñoly Architects design.

That foundation permit includes twelve (!) levels of parking, so we could see a lot of time and concrete trucks pass between now and the full building permit. But it’s all good; we can kill time running back and forth between One Grant Park and another McHugh Construction supertall in progress, Vista Tower.

: The view from the Roosevelt CTA platform.

: That looks like a 34.

: Yep, it’s a 34.

Essex Inn looks under all the mattresses, comes up with money to begin demolition

Posted on January 6, 2017 by danieldschell

It’s demo time! Goodbye parking garage and swimming pool, hello 475 apartments.

As Crain’s Chicago Business reported on Tuesday, Essex Inn at 800 South Michigan Avenue has secured the funding necessary to upgrade the hotel, and add a new a 56-story apartment tower as its new next-door neighbor.

The Demolition Permit.

And no sooner had the ink on the check dried, crews were out on Michigan Avenue, setting up barriers and scaffolding for the temporary sidewalk that will keep pedestrians safe during demolition of the 5-story garage next to the hotel, while also making sure bloggers and skyscraper nerds can’t get too close to the goings-on.

None other than Heneghan Wrecking (we need t-shirts with Heneghan Again on them) will be making space for the new tower, with a demolition permit having been filed way back on October 27.

The Chicago Plan Commission approved the development back in May of 2016, and I quote:

The Applicant intends to create two subareas within the overall 28,744 square foot site. Subarea A, located at 800 South Michigan Avenue consists of an existing 160’ hotel building and will be rehabbed to include a maximum of 290 hotel keys. Subarea B, located at approximately 812 South Michigan Avenue, will be redeveloped with an approximately 620’ residential building including a maximum of 476 dwelling units, 100 hotel keys as well as 100 parking spaces and commercial space.

Essex on The Park, the name of the Hartshorne Plunkard Architecture-designed tower according to Crain’s, should be complete in 2018, and coincide with completion of the hotel renovation.

This rendering, from the Crain’s story, is from Hartshorne Plunkard Architects. Too pretty not to include.

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.

Illume Chicago not going light on the caisson work

Posted on January 5, 2017 by danieldschell

The big blue Stalworth caisson rig drills caissons for Illume Chicago.

Buildings are heavy. Buildings need support. Which explains the presence of the big blue Stalworth machine at 111 South Peoria Street in the West Loop, site of the now-underway Illume Chicago. That’s the beast responsible for drilling caissons into the earth for the future 10-story, 79-condominium project from LG Development and Pappageorge Haymes Partners to rest upon. And rest it will — everyone will — once things quiet down a little bit. Caisson work is loud.