Darn Near Done: Old Town Park Phase III

Posted on March 31, 2021 by danieldschell

All that remains of Atrium Village stands in front of Old Town Park Phases I, II, and III.

Exterior work is nearing completion at the final phase of the Old Town Park re-development in Chicago’s Near North neighborhood.

Old Town Park Phase III, at 228 West Hill Street got its full-build permit on New Years Eve 2019. That permit authorized construction of a 41-story, 456-unit apartment tower.

Old Town Park Phase II, the 39-dtory, 425-unit tower at 202 West Hill Street, got its first permit in December 2017.

The baby of the group, Phase I, got its first permit in February 2016. It has 405 apartments across 32 stories.

That puts developer and general contractor Onni Group in construction mode here just over five years. They also lit up all three tower cranes over the course of this development, so kudos for that, Onni! You’ll always hold a special place in the B.U.C. heart for that alone.

Hartshorne Plunkard Architecture is the design architect on Old Town Park.

A sunny day at Old Town Park Tower 3

Posted on March 4, 2020 by danieldschell

Tower 3 rises at Old Town Park. Immediately to the left is Tower 2. Remember, 3 will be taller.

Yesterday we watched Onni Group and Adjustable Concrete jump the tower crane at Old Town Park. Today, a look at progress on the 41-story Hartshorne Plunkard-designed tower from a pair of sunny afternoons.

Onni, Adjustable jump the tower crane at Old Town Park

Posted on March 3, 2020 by danieldschell

Another section of the tower crane slides into place at Old Town Park.

General contractor/developer Onni Group and concrete contractor Adjustable Concrete are sending the tower crane a little higher this week at Old Town Park Tower 3, which will, of course, allow the tower itself to go a little higher. At 41 stories, Tower 3 is the tallest and final of the Old Town Park phases.

: NOOOOPE

: Lined up, ready to go.

: L shot.

Old Town Park goes for the triple play

Posted on February 17, 2020 by danieldschell

The Third Edition of Old Town Park rises in Near North.

This is Tower #3 at Old Town Park, the new development from Onni Group that used to be Atrium Village. Just one building from Atrium Village remains, as this third apartment tower rises at 228 West Hill Street. When completed, it will deliver 456 rental units across its 41 stories.

As they’ve done with the first two tower of Old Town Park, the residential building The Hudson, and at the under-construction 369 West Grand, Onni Group is both the developer and general contractor. Hartshorne Plunkard Architecture is the design architect. Adjustable Concrete is the concrete contractor. I’m including them because they’ve got a couple sweet overhead shots from early construction on their website.

Sometimes I forget where I’ve been and what I’ve done. And with that I admit the following photos are more than two weeks old, having been snapped on February 2. If I hadn’t told you, you’d have never known. But still, I’m sorry for the delay. I try to keep content fresh around here.

: Tower 2 in the background.

Onni lights up a tower crane over Old Town Park

Posted on December 11, 2019 by danieldschell

“Onni” is Vancouverian for “It’s lit”

You never tell your children one of them is your favorite. That’s Parenting 101. It’s equally dangerous to announce personal affection for any one particular tower crane. But in a city where lighting tower cranes doesn’t really seem to be a thing, Onni Group once again shines through with their workhorse high overhead at Old Town Park Tower III. Watch for it next time you ride a Purple or Brown Line train between Chicago Avenue and Sedgwick. It’s pretty darn close to the tracks, so look up, or better yet, ride in the rear car and watch out the back window.

Onni’s put on this show before, not only at previous phases of Old Town Park, but also a few blocks away at The Hudson. They’re also working at 369 West Grand, but I forgot to look west from the train to see if that tower crane was glowing as well. Someone let me know, please?

Atrium Village’s Phase 2 is going three-dimensional

Posted on June 5, 2018 by danieldschell

AVP2-3D, you might say.

Who else could use a quick walk-around out at Atrium Village? That’s where Onni Group is erecting the second tower of the redevelopment for this Near North mainstay. The first tower, Old Town Park, should be opening any day now.

Progress Update: Atrium Village Phase II (Old Town Park 2?)

Posted on April 26, 2018 by danieldschell

Atrium Village Phase II? Old Town Park 2? 202 Hill Street? The second tower Onni Group is constructing in Near North doesn’t have an official name yet, but it does have a tower crane and a building permit. And those are the important things. That permit calls for a Hartshorne Plunkard Architecture-designed 39-story tower, including a 6-level parking podium, with 428 apartments. Onni Group is once again the developer and general contractor, just as they are next door at Old Town Park, and The Hudson a few blocks away.

Act II at Atrium Village is in full caisson mode

Posted on March 2, 2018 by danieldschell

Case Foundation is at work in Near North, drilling caissons for Atrium Village Phase Two.

The tower crane is gone from Old Town Park in the Near North neighborhood, but it will be replaced on the same block very soon. Onni Group is doing foundation work on the next phase of the Atrium Village redo, with Case Foundation on site drilling caissons at this very moment.

There isn’t much I can tell you about Phase Two besides what we find in the building permit, which the City of Chicago issued for 202 West Hill Street back on December 8, 2017. That permit calls for a Hartshorne Plunkard Architecture-designed 39-story tower, including a 6-level parking podium, with 428 apartments. Onni Group will act once again as their own builder. Someday soon, this tower is likely to get a fancy new name. We hope.

Atrium Village gets a permit for Tower #2

Posted on December 9, 2017 by danieldschell

The permit, issued Friday, for 39 stories at 202 West Hill Street.

We don’t know much, but we do know there’s a brand-spankin’-new permit for the second tower at Atrium Village in the Near North neighborhood. Just as Onni Group appears ready to take down the tower crane at Old Town Park, the City of Chicago granted a permit on Friday to begin foundation work on the second tower, at 202 West Hill Street, of the Atrium overhaul.

This one will be 39 stories high, with 428 units above a six-story podium, and some ground-floor retail space. As with Old Town Park, Onni Group will be their own general contractor, and Hartshorne Plunkard is the design architect.

Sure, we look forward to another tall building, but we’re more anxious to see Onni light up another tower crane!

Onni Group lights up the Old Town Park tower crane. Again.

Posted on November 27, 2017 by danieldschell

The moon and the glow crane were out Sunday evening at Old Town Park.

For the second year in a row, Onni Group has strung some serious lights on the tower crane hovering above Old Town Park in the near North neighborhood. Of course, it was still Atrium Village at this time last year. Not to mention construction had barely risen above street level. But now, Old Town Park is topped out at a full 31 stories, and glass has reached the 25th floor, or thereabouts.

Folks, let me just tell you that glow-in-the-dark tower cranes are THE. BOMB. Chicago needs more of them. I would love to see this become a trend here. But at least Onni gets it right. Two years ago, they also lit up the tower crane at The Hudson for the holidays. So kudos to them for their three-year streak. Will we see another this time next year when the next Atrium Village phase is underway?