One Grant Park plants its second tower crane

Posted on September 14, 2017 by danieldschell

Tower Crane Stub #2 at One Grant Park, courtesy of a reader.

A little birdie told us the second tower crane stub arrived at One Grant Park on Wednesday, and proved it with a couple photos. Birdies are smart. And good sharers.

McHugh Construction got the second permit on August 24, then got a foundation permit for it on August 29. 12 piles were driven into the ground for support, and now the stub stands ready for a “free-standing Pecco SN 160 tower crane.”

: Tower Crane #2 peeks out above construction fencing at One Grant Park.

: Meanwhile, that looks like 16 levels of progress on Crescent Heights’ apartment tower.

Essex On The Park is a Tower On The Rise in the South Loop

Posted on September 14, 2017 by danieldschell

Essex On The Park is starting to rise alongside its mother ship, the Essex Inn.

One floor at a time, Essex On The Park is starting to show itself along the Michigan Avenue Streetwall in the South Loop. Of course, we ain’t seen nothing yet. What’s pictured is merely a fraction of the eventual 56 stories that will house 476 new apartments. And that’s a good thing. It means we have lots of progress still to come, lots of watching still to do.

: I guess Dr. Drew’s gonna live here?

Expect a very busy September for Chicago tower cranes

Posted on September 11, 2017 by danieldschell

As you surely must know by now, Chicago began the month of September with 31 operating tower cranes in the air. And even though we’ve already seen one of those come down — the East Crane at the McDonald’s Headquarters (followed soon by West Crane) — there are plenty more where those two came from, already permitted and ready to rise. As of Friday afternoon, Chicago had seven outstanding tower crane permits.

Which isn’t to say we won’t lose a few more. A permit was issued last week for a crane to remove the two tower cranes at the Simpson Querrey Biomedical Research Center. Eleven40 and 1407 On Michigan in the South Loop are both topped out, so we’ll likely lose those two cranes soon as well.

But let’s concentrate on the positive. Here are the seven tower cranes with active permits that will dot the skyline in the immediate future:

One Grant Park

Beams are driven into the ground at One Grant Park to support its second tower crane.

One Grant Park put up a tower crane way back in April. But then, on August 24, the city issued a permit for a second crane. McHugh Construction started driving a dozen beams into the ground to act as caisson for supporting Crane #2, which will be utilized to construct the parking deck that rises up to the 16th level. Crane #1 will continue working on the residential tower.

The Lincoln Common

Overhead shot of The Lincoln Common south tower crane, from Curtis Waltz at Aerialscapes.

Another “second tower crane.” W. E. O’Neil erected a tower crane at The Lincoln Common the week of August 21st. The two 20-story towers will each require a tower crane of its own, so expect the second to be erected within the next week-to-10-days.

900 West

A tower crane stub marks progress at 900 West.

900 West is a relatively small building, at nine stories and 22 condominium units. But it’s just tall enough to require a tower crane. A stub was erected on the West Loop site the first week of September.

Hoxton Chicago

Another West Loop stub, this one at the Hoxton Chicago hotel at Lake and Green Streets.

Like 900 West above, the Hoxton Chicago hotel is another Power Construction project in the West Loop, and another recently-planted tower crane stub, having been set in place on Friday. The Hoxton will be a 12-story, 175-room boutique hotel for the booming Fulton Market neighborhood. Sadly, Building Up Chicago can no longer watch this site from HQ, having moved HQ to the South Loop.

Hayden West Loop

The tower crane will follow caisson work at Hayden West Loop.

Yet another West Loop development, Hayden West Loop is another project that may not look like it needs a tower crane, but come on. They all need a tower crane. Hayden will be a nine-story, 28-unit condominium building, and it received a tower crane permit on September 7.

808 West Van Buren

Deep excavation work, but no tower crane yet, at 808 West Van Buren.

You didn’t think we were done in the West Loop, right? 808 West Van Buren is a 12-story, 148-unit apartment tower replacing the empty lot at Halsted and Van Buren. It received a tower crane permit last week, on the 6th, and with caisson work wrapped up, a stub should be appearing any day now.

3833 North Broadway

3833 North Broadway, back in June. Looks like I better get back there soon and catch up on progress.

Way up north, 3833 North Broadway will be an eight-story, 134-unit apartment project, with ground floor retail space. The tower crane permit came through on September 6, and will be the first one on the Chicago count for DLG Development.

School is in session for cleared South Loop lot

Posted on September 5, 2017 by danieldschell

When Chicago Public School students arrive for class at 1601 South Dearborn in the South Loop, the most notable new kid in school will be the school itself.

1061 South Dearborn South Loop elementary school

Rendering of the new South Loop elementary school from Madison Construction website.

The City of Chicago issued a permit on the First of this month for a new elementary school on that location, adjacent to the South Loop Mariano’s. The Public Building Commission of Chicago announced bidding for the project back in June; Madison Construction Company of Orland Park is the victorious bidder, and will serve as general contractor.

The four-story, 120,000-square-foot school, expected to open in time for Fall 2019 classes, will serve 1,200 students in nearly 50 typical and specialized classrooms, including science classrooms, computer classrooms, a gym, library, and even a rooftop play area. The school is a design from Chicago architecture firm SMNG A.

: The Permit.

: The Lot.

One Grant Park jumps the big tower crane as we wait for the little one

Posted on August 31, 2017 by danieldschell

That’s a good looking group of recruits lined up for the One Grant Park tower crane jump.

Thursday was crane-jumping day at One Grant Park in the South Loop, as crews got ready to raise the tower crane to Phase Two. McHugh Construction got a permit tie in for phases 2-thru-5 back on August 4. How many tower-crane phases will there be for the 76-story tower? Well, that’s a question I wish I hadn’t asked, because I have no idea. Let’s pretend that sentence isn’t here.

The second tower crane permit, issued 08/24/17.

As for the “little one,” the City of Chicago issued a permit for a “FREE STANDING PECCO SN 160 TOWER CRANE” on the 24th of this month, then followed it up with a foundation permit for said crane on Tuesday of this week, the 29th. So yes, One Grant Park will have two tower cranes.

: The tower crane has the cutest little house.

: Oh, hey.

Night time along the Wabash Avenue Tower Crane Corridor

Posted on August 30, 2017 by danieldschell

: Nighttime tower cranes at 1326 South Michigan…

: …and 1407 On Michigan.

The Wabash Arts Corridor gets the bulk of the attention, but hovering over Wabash Avenue like superheroes are a number of Chicago’s working tower cranes. Yes, the South Loop is booming with development. Just like every other section of the downtown area.

There are only two good times to view construction: when there’s daylight, and when it’s dark. Here are some night shots of South Loop construction along and near Wabash Avenue.

Essex On The Park

Essex On The Park will be a 56-story, 476-unit apartment tower to the immediate south of the existing Essex Inn hotel. Power Construction is the general contractor. Hartshorne Plunkard Architecture is the design architect, with Oxford Capital Group the developer.

Homewood Hilton Suites

The Homewood Hilton Suites will be a 30-story, 281-room hotel. Lendlease is the general contractor. Lothan Van Hook DeStefano Architecture is the design architect. S.B. Yen Management Group is the developer.

Eleven40

Eleven40 will be a 26-story, 320-unit apartment tower, which may or may not be topped out now. Work has for sure reached the 26th floor. Lendlease is the general contractor. Solomon Cordwell Buenz is the design architect. CA Ventures and Keith Giles are the co-developers.

One Grant Park

East of Michigan Avenue but too close to exclude, One Grant Park will be a 76-story, 792-unit apartment behemoth with a possible future tower next door. James McHugh Construction is the general contractor. Rafael Viñoly Architects is the design architect. Crescent Heights is the developer.

1326 South Michigan

1326 South Michigan is the New Kid On The Corridor, and there isn’t much to see yet of this future 47-story, 500-unit apartment tower. Walsh Construction is the general contractor. Solomon Cordwell Buenz is the design architect. CIM Group and Murphy Development Group are the developers.

1407 On Michigan

1407 On Michigan will be a 15-story, 199-unit apartment building, with a Rush Primary Aid Specialty Care center on the ground floor. Lendlease (they’re really busy down here) is the general contractor. BKV Group is the design architect; Russland Capital Group is the developer. It, too, is very close to topping out.

1407 On Michigan is glassing up the South Loop

Posted on August 25, 2017 by danieldschell

New glass of 1407 On Michigan hovers above the Chicago Firehouse Restaurant.

The newly-renamed 1407 On Michigan now has some newly-installed cladding to show off. The 15-story rental tower from Russland Capital Group looks to have reached the underside of the 15th floor, so it should be topping out very soon. Unless, of course, we missed a floor of the podium, and it already has topped out.

And that would mean Lendlease is that much closer to having the 199 apartments and 40,000 square feet of commercial space open. As you can see from the signage, Rush Primary And Specialty Care will be included in that space.

Russland originally planned to have 1407 On Michigan open before the year was out. There’s a lot of work to do in the next four months; we’ll see if construction extends into 2018, or if that goal will be met. Stay tuned.

More from One Grant Park

Posted on August 14, 2017 by danieldschell

One Grant Park rises on the corner of Indiana Avenue and Roosevelt Road.

It’s been a couple weeks since we’ve checked in on One Grant Park, when the Rafael Viñoly Architects-designed tower scored its full-build permit. And sure enough, McHugh Construction is still building it. That’s what you do when you get permits.

Have a look:

: It was moving day for that…loading-platform thing.

: Night views.

1326 South Michigan construction ramps up

Posted on August 10, 2017 by danieldschell

Someday, this gate will open, leading you up the ramp to the parking podium at 1326 South Michigan.

Standard joke. When you see the beginnings of the ramp that will lead to a parking podium, you make the pun. It’s the law.

1326 South Michigan, the shiny new 47-story apartment tower underway in the South Loop, is in that phase. As support columns start rising from the ground, the parking ramp is taking form off the alley at the back of the site. It will provide access to the 180 indoor parking spaces allocated for the 500 or so apartments being built at the SCB-designed tower.

Walsh Construction, who just erected a tower crane here to make up for the one they took down at Alta Roosevelt, is efforting to meet Murphy Development Group’s (along with CIM Group) goal of a Fall 2018 opening for 1326.

Hilton Homewood Suites at Wabash and 11th makes an appearance above street level

Posted on August 9, 2017 by danieldschell

Hilton Homewood Suites 1101 South Wabash

Lendlease continues work on the Hilton Homewood Suite at 1101 South Wabash in the South Loop.

Bird’s eye view in June of foundation work.

After lots of foundation work — not to mention the demolition of the two-story parking deck previously on the site — Lendlease is sending the new Hilton Homewood Suites vertical at Wabash Avenue and 11th Street in the South Loop.

The 30-story tower, designed by Lothan Van Hook DeStefano Architecture and developed by Hinsdale’s S.B. Yen Management Group, will start with parking up to the 7th floor, then rise upward with an amenity level on the 8th floor, hotel rooms from 9 to 23, corporate suites on floors 24 through 29, capped off with another level of creature comforts on the 30th floor.

The garage demolition was permitted in January of last year. Ground was broken in December 2016; completion is expected late next year.