One of Chicago’s longest-running shows, No. 9 Walton lowers the curtain on its tower crane

Posted on February 7, 2018 by danieldschell

The tower crane at No. 9 Walton is slowly lowering itself to the ground, one segment at a time.

If you thought No. 9 Walton at 9 West Walton Street in the Gold Coast neighborhood topped out months ago, and that it seemed strange how long that hammerhead tower crane remained aloft, you were on to something. While we can’t confirm anything, we’ve got our suspicions that the $58.5 million sale for the top four floors may have had something to do with the longevity of the crane. (Dennis Rodkin over at Crain’s Chicago had the scoop back in January.)

The stub was planted at No. 9 Walton in March of 2016, after getting its permit on the first of February. By my calculations, that’s about two years ago. That’s a long time for a tower crane to be on a job site, especially one that’s “only” 38 stories high.

No. 9 Walton is a project from JDL Develoment. You may recall hearing that JDL’s president and founder, James Letchinger, had set aside a unit in this tower for himself. That’s a pretty good indication he’s paid very close attention to every facet of its construction.

The design was by Hartshorne Plunkard Architecture. Lendlease handled the GC duties.

Expect No. 9 Walton to be open in 2018.

: This was a handsome tower crane.

: There’s the stub in March 2016, while excavation work continued.

: More of the stub, circa March 2016.

No. 9 Walton nears the top

Posted on April 5, 2017 by danieldschell

No. 9 Walton grows up behind Harvest Chicago Cathedral.

No. 9 Walton continues its climb toward completion in the Gold Coast. The 37-story uber-luxurious condominium tower from JDL Development will have just 66 units when all is said and done and built, with condos ranging from two to six (SIX!) bedrooms. Designed by Hartshorne Plunkard Architecture, No. 9 Walton is being constructed by Lendlease.

: Chicago’s funkiest tower crane.

Construction Progress: No. 9 Walton nears 30 stories

Posted on January 23, 2017 by danieldschell

No. 9 Walton plays peek-a-boo with its new Gold Coast neighbors.

Rendering of No. 9 Walton from JDL Development.

In a very short period of time, No. 9 Walton has gone from vacant lot, to huge hole in the ground, to nearly 30 stories of Gold Coast high-rise. Originally approved as a 35-story tower with 67 uber-luxurious condominiums, the Chicago Plan Commission later filed approval to tack on two additional stories, though it isn’t know if those two extra stories will go on top of the tower, or somewhere in the middle. Say, one between the 17th and 18th floors, and one between floors 24 and 25, for example.

Wherever those floors appear, JDL Development is so excited about this new endeavor, company president and founder Jim Letchinger has reserved one of the units for his own full-time residence. Hartshorne Plunkard Architecture took care of the design for this one; Lendlease is taking care of the construction.

Construction Update: No. 9 Walton rises (now even higher) in the Gold Coast

Posted on September 21, 2016 by danieldschell

No. 9 Walton, 9 West Walton Street in the Gold Coast.

Over at 9 West Walton Street in the Gold Coast, JDL Development is erecting what may turn out to be one of the crown jewels in an already rather jewel-encrusted neighborhood. No. 9 Walton, a design from Hartshorne Plunkard Architecture, originally set out to be a 35-story residential tower comprised of 67 ultra-luxury condominiums. But then, after beginning construction last summer, JDL asked the City of Chicago to go higher:

A proposal for the amendment of residential business planned development #1043, submitted by West Walton Chicago Investors LLC, for the property generally located at 9 W. Walton Street. The Applicant is proposing to increase the maximum allowable height permitted for tower 2 from the previously approved 430’ to 456’ to allow for the construction of 2 additional floors. The increase would allow for the construction of a total of 5 additional dwelling units. The applicant would be using the Neighborhood Opportunity Bonus to allow for an additional 0.29 FAR within the planned development. The Applicant is requesting to rezone the properties from Residential Business Planned Development #1043 to Residential Business Planned Development #1043, as amended. (2 nd Ward)

And sure enough, the Chicago Plan Commission said yes:

Commission approves updated plan for 9 W Walton. Using Neighborhood Opportunity Bonus, developer will add two floors pic.twitter.com/blMLAUIzO4

— Chicago DPD (@ChicagoDPD) August 18, 2016

So now, No. 9 Walton will rise to 37 stories and a height of 456 feet. And if all goes according to plan, Lendlease, the general contractor on the project, will have condos ready for habitation by Summer 2017. Seem optimistic? We’ll just have to sit back and watch them work.