Construction at 151 North Franklin is rising above street level, highlighted by the steel on the south side of the lot.
I’m kind of obsessed with this steel work going on right now at 151 North Franklin. It reminds me of the glorious contraption on the south end of 150 North Riverside when it first went up. Sadly, the CNA Center requires no massive red crane on a barge.
In honor of last week’s double permit festivities — one for the full build, one for the climbing tower crane — I took a quick walk past the new CNA Center at 151 North Franklin again today. Twice, actually. Once in the morning, once on the way back home. Alas, they haven’t set up that pseudo-tower crane thingamobob yet, but they do have some stellar steel work protruding from the ground at the south end of the site. So, rather than waste the trip(s), here are a few pictures:
215 West Lake continues ever skyward.
By now, you know the basic details of 215 West Lake. Designed by Chicago firm Thomas Roszak Architecture (who may or may not be calling the new tower “Level”), the new apartment tower at 215 West Lake Street in The Loop replaces a parking garage and a late-1800s-era office building with 33 stories and 265 apartments. Throw in ground floor retail and 152 parking spaces in floors 2-4, and you’ve got yourself a new downtown digs.
This is a Clark Construction build. They’ve been on the job since demolition started last fall. And they’ll continue to build until 215 West Lake opens in 2017.
The permit for the kinda-sorta tower crane at the CNA Center, 151 North Franklin Street.
On Thursday, I passed along the heartbreaking news that the new CNA Center, the 35-story office tower being built at 151 North Franklin Street in The Loop, wouldn’t have a regular tower crane, but instead would utilize a crane attached to the structure itself. Well, that apparatus still requires a permit from the City of Chicago, and it was filed on Friday.
Phase 1 Temporary construction of World Free Standing Tower Crane Model Potain MR608
World Free? Wasn’t he an NBA player?
Interesting factoid: The standard tower crane permit shows an estimated cost of $60,000. This pseudo-tower crane permit goes for just $30,000. So they’re saving half from the get-go. Let’s just hope it’s cool to watch.
https://twitter.com/BuildUpChicago/status/753781369000656896
https://twitter.com/BuildUpChicago/status/753752507982151684
You can imagine my distress. Just hours after penning a post about the number of permitted tower cranes that had yet to be planted around Chicago, I wandered past 151 North Franklin and couldn’t believe I had left it out. I got home and leafed through the permits, and lo and behold…there wasn’t one.
How could that be? The CNA Center is going to be 35 stories high! How can that be accomplished without a tower crane?
The answer? A clip-on. Like the neckties we wore as kids. Sort of. I’m told by folks at Lendlease, the general contractor for this Loop office tower, that the crane to be used will attach to the building itself, and move higher with the tower as construction progresses. Which sounds cool enough to be an adequate substitute for the real thing.
https://twitter.com/BuildUpChicago/status/753968058515927045
Twitter. It’s how I keep myself amused.
In the meantime, Lendlease is doing all kinds of cool stuff at 151 North Franklin Street. As you’ll see by scrolling through the following photo gallery:
Foundation work is on and ongoing at 151 North Franklin.
It looks like the digging is done dug at 151 North Franklin, The Loop’s latest 35-story office tower from The John Buck Company. Gone are the backhoes and front loaders, replaced by rebar. Lots and lots of rebar.
As a reminder, those are Lendlease crews you see gettin’ stuff done at the future CNA Center, a John Ronan Architects design.
215 West Lake, in the Chicago Loop.
It started with the demolition of a parking garage, then upping the ante by taking down an office building dating back to the late 1800s. Now, 215 West Lake Street in the Loop is a construction site for a 33-story, 265-unit apartment tower.
Designed by Thomas Roszak Architecture, 215 West Lake started foundation work back in February. Surrounded by parking garages, it’s a fun one to watch. Clark Construction is providing the entertainment.
Crews shored up the pilings around the perimeter, then started digging. And digging.
It’s a bad time to grab a quiet lunch in The Loop. And it will be for quite some time, save weekends. Particularly in that cute little pop-up park on the northwest corner of Franklin and Randolph streets. Unless, of course, eating dust is on your menu. In that case, consider those dump trucks going in and out of 151 North Franklin your personal food trucks.
151 North Franklin is a 35-story, John Ronan Architects-designed office tower being developed by The John Buck Company. Lendlease is the general contractor.
Maybe you miss the Walgreen’s store that occupied this space; I do not. Come on, the best prescription for this lot was new construction. Admit it.
Digging under the shore line. Sort of.
Don’t mind me, Lendlease. Just grabbing a few shots, then I’ll be on my way.
That’s 215 West Lake rising in the background. This is a busy corner of The Loop.
From the 151 North Franklin website, a rendering of the finished tower.
Building Up Chicago 