Wintrust Arena, from the corner of Cermak Road and Indiana Avenue.
What was once the McCormick Place Event Center is now, through the miracle of naming rights, Wintrust Arena. The 10,000-seat basketball arena/300,000-square-foot event space by Pelli Clarke Pelli is almost fully enclosed on all four sides now. Sadly, no access to the McCormick Place rooftop garden this visit. Pictures from street level will have to suffice.
A CTA Orange Line train passes 30 East, 30 East Balbo Avenue, in the South Loop.
You can see the light at the end of the tunnel for 30 East, the 16-story rental high-rise from Gilbane Development Company. The 134 student-centric apartments at 30 East Balbo Avenue in the South Loop are 99.8% cladded, with only a few panels yet to be installed near the top of the tower. Sadly, I hadn’t been by the site since the October topping-out, so I missed the tower crane’s departure. Which is okay in the end, because the same crane has probably already been installed atop another Chicago project.
Fresh off the presses, Monday’s permit for 22 stories and 466 units at 123 East Cermak Road.
Last week, a permit to prep the lot at 123 East Cermak Road was filed by the City of Chicago, and it appeared at the time there would be a new hotel coming to the north end of Motor Row. Now it’s official.
A permit was filed Monday, allowing for:
466 UNITS, 22 STORIES, MIXED USE-HOTELS, ASSEMBLY AND MERCANTILE, NO PARKING
As mentioned last week, McHugh Construction owns the lot, and they’ll serve as their own general contractor. Antunovich Associates handled design duties.
Now that construction can begin, it’s time to crowd-source a name. The Hughtel?
Looks like it’s finally time to move some soil at 123 East Cermak.
Yesterday, a permit was filed by the City of Chicago for “SITE PREPARATION WITH SOIL RELOCATION AND RE-GRADING” at 123 East Cermak Road. That’s a lot owned by McHugh Construction, and a site where Antunovich Associates has helped design a mixed-use development along East Cermak between Michigan and Indiana Avenues.
A couple years ago, those plans included a hotel, data center, and retail space, all to be located within a block of the new Wintrust Arena. Which of these plans are becoming reality? Could it be all of them?
The small empty lot in the background is 123 East Cermak, with 111 up front.
Those are H-piles that have been driven into the ground at 1411 South Michigan.
If you’re within a 4-to-6-block radius of 1411 South Michigan Avenue in the South Loop, then you’re fully aware that piles are being driven into the ground as work has begun on Russland Capital Group’s 15-story apartment tower. That’s where we’ll see 199 new units, along with 40,000 square feet of commercial space, opening late in 2017. The ever-busy Lendlease is the general contractor for the Boarman Kroos Vogel Group-designed project.
Crews are clearing the lot and prepping for the start of construction for Rafael Viñoly’s 1200 South Indiana
*** UPDATE: Crescent Heights, on its website, is calling this project One Grant Park. Let’s go with that then, at least for now. ***
The empty lot on the corner of Michigan Avenue and Roosevelt Road (or Indiana Avenue and Roosevelt, which coincides with the project address) is no longer idle.
On Wednesday of last week, the Sloopin Blog reported that neighbors had been told to expect construction to start this week on 1200 South Indiana, the 76-story rental tower from developer Crescent Heights. And sure enough, what remained of the concrete slabs has been scraped up, smoothed over, and crews are erecting safety fencing on the perimeter of the lot. Soon, foundation crews will start drilling massive caissons into the ground to support the 792 apartments atop 12 levels of parking within the Rafael Viñoly Architects design.
1200 South Indiana will be another big project for McHugh Construction, already busy at The Sinclair and Vista Tower.
Alta Roosevelt, 801 South Financial Place, is done spreading out. Now it’s going skyward.
Get it? Because it’s called “Alta Roosevelt.” This is what happens with no editor to reel me in.
Alta Roosevelt is the 33-story apartment tower Wood Partners is building at 801 South Financial Place in the South Loop. Walsh Construction started hammering away at the foundations back in the spring, and now the Pappageorge Haymes Partners design sits six stories above the ground, with the core rising slightly higher. When all is said and done, Alta Roosevelt will contain 496 apartments and 348 parking spaces. No retail space, though.
The tower crane at 1136 South Wabash, looming high above the South Loop.
Hebru Brantley’s Fly Boy mural on the south-facing exterior wall of 1132 South Wabash Avenue won’t be visible in the South Loop forever. That’s because 1136 South Wabash will soon obscure our view. But for now, Flyboy remains, supervising Lendlease construction crews as they go about the task of erecting the CA Ventures project.
Remember, 1136 South Wabash got a foundation permit and a full-build permit on the same day, October 4. Caisson work is done, and that’s why the tower crane has been brought in, to start taking this SCB design vertical. Expect a 26-story tower with 320 rental units, 143 parking spaces, and retail on the first floor.
1136 South Wabash burst onto the scene back at the beginning of October with two building permits, one for a foundation, one for a full build, on the same day. Now, it’s ringing in fall with a bang. Actually, dozens and dozens of them. Crews are driving piles into the South Loop soil like Kyle Schwarber attacking the first pitches he’s seen in six months. Gotta feel a little bit sorry for the folks working at the Five Guys next door; only a single wall separates them from the hammering of steel. Though the burgers are worth it.
The SCB-designed 1136 South Wabash tower will deliver 320 apartments and 143 parking spaces near the corner of Wabash and Roosevelt, along with some ground-floor retail. CA Ventures is your developer, with Lendlease as the general contractor.
The lot is ready at 1411 South Michigan.
A foundation permit was filed Monday by the City of Chicago, allowing construction to begin at 1411 South Michigan Avenue in the South Loop. It may be one of the wordiest foundation permits in recent history:
DIRECT DEVELOPER SERVICES. SCOPE OF WORK : CAISSONS, CAISSON CAPS, GRADE BEAMS AND SUPERSTRUCTURE OF FLOORS 1 TO THE TOP OF 6TH FLOOR SLAB. THE GROUND FLOOR SLAB IS NOT INCLUDED IN THE SCOPE OF THIS PERMIT. PROJECT DESCRIPTION : NEW TYPE 1-A 15-STORY , FULLY SPRINKLERED BLDG. WITH NO BASEMENT, MIXED -USE OCCUPANCY WITH 141 PARKING SPACES ON LEVELS 1-3, MEDICAL OFFICE TENANT ON LEVELS 1,4 & 5 AND 199 RESIDENTIAL APARTMENTS (68 EFFICIENCY UNITS + 131 DWELLING UNITS)
1411 South Michigan will be a 15-story residential tower from Chicago developer Russland Capital Group. Designed by the architecture firm of Boarman Kroos Vogel Group, 1411 South Michigan will have 199 apartments ranging from studios to 3-bedroom units. 40,000 square feet of commercial space is included in the plans as well. Lendlease will serve as the general contractor.
Building Up Chicago 