Tag Archives: The Gateway Apartments

I’m almost sorry I counted, as Chicago dips to just seven tower cranes in the air

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Fine, that seems a little dramatic. But seven tower cranes ain’t a lot of tower cranes. (And one of them isn’t even in operation yet.) The Chicago Seven are:

  1. Salesforce Tower (333 West Wolf Point Plaza.) Walsh Construction is the general contractor. Hines is the developer. Pelli Clarke Pelli is the design architect.
Salesforce Tower

2. 300 North Michigan. Linn-Mathes is the general contractor. Sterling Bay and Magellan Development are the co-developers. bKL Architecture is the design architect.

300 North Michigan

3. Plumbers Local 130 Parking Garage (1371 West Randolph.) W.E. O’Neil is the general contractor. Plumbers Local 130 is the developer. OKW Architects is the design architect.

1371 W Randolph

4. The Reed at Southbank (234 West Polk.) Lendlease is the general contractor and developer. Perkins + Will is the design architect.

The Reed at Southbank

5. 354 North Union. Onni Group is the general contractor and developer. Pappageorge Haymes Partners is the design architect.

354 North Union

6. Gateway Apartments (2050 West Ogden.) Global Builders is the general contractor. Piekarz Associates is the design architect.

Gateway Apartments

7. 345 North Morgan is being assembled as you read this, so I’m counting it. Skender is the general contractor. Sterling Bay is the developer. Eckenhoff Saunders Architects is the design architect.

345 North Morgan

Yes, there are a few on the way. These have tower crane permits:

410 South Wabash is done with foundation work.
1000M will hopefully be back in business soon.
164 North Peoria is still in caisson mode.
ALLY at Lincoln Yards hasn’t broken ground quite yet, but site work has started, at it got a foundation permit last week.
1306 East 61st Street – The University of Chicago doesn’t have any other permits yet.
178 West Randolph and 320 South Clinton? I’m not holding my breath.

No permit, but . . .

UIC had a tower crane at the UI Health Outpatient Surgery Center & Specialty Clinics crane is being dismantled this week. UIC may need a crane at 700 West Taylor for its Computer Design Research and Learning Center. But there won’t be a city permit for it, should there be one, because this is being built under the State of Illinois’ authority.
513 South Damen just got a foundation permit for 21 stories.

Did I miss any? Let me know.

Progress Update: The Gateway Apartments

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Construction at The Gateway Apartments.

We checked in on The Gateway Apartments at 2050 West Ogden this week. Global Builders’ lone tally on the Chicago Tower Crane Survey is rising above the fenceline for your viewing pleasure.

Reminder: This is an 11-story, 161-unit apartment development in the Illinois Medical District, which looks like it could become a very busy construction zone in the next couple years. Keep an eye out over there.

The Gateway Apartments, June 14, 2021

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Tower Crane Drone Video from Global Builders

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Drones are cool. Tower cranes are cool. Combine the two, and it’s cool squared, times two, to the third power. That’s how math works.

Global Builders put together a drone video of their tower crane going up at 2050 West Ogden in the Illinois Medical District.

Check it out. (I need to get me one of those. A drone, not a tower crane. Although . . .)

A Sears Tower Tower Crane Survey

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Visits to Skydeck aren’t quite back to pre-pandemic normal. I usually go up there and spend a couple hours taking pictures of everything I see. Three times. Can’t do that anymore. So I got what I could remember I wanted to get.

Like tower cranes. Some of them, anyway.

One of the secrets to taking photos from Skydeck is avoiding the bad windows. Much of what looks like smooth, clear glass will distort your pictures. Short on time, I failed to be selective. I also failed to be prepared.

You’ll see what I mean.

Clarendale Six Corners is missing; it’s too far away. I also tried to see the tower crane in Oak Park, but had no luck. Oh for a tripod, more time, and something ridiculous like a 1000mm zoom lens.

  • 320 South Canal is the easiest one to see. That booom just about touches the Sears Tower. Okay, not really. But it’s nearby.
  • 609 West Randolph.
  • 1043 West Randolph. I forgot to look for ths one, so instead of using a zoom lens, I cropped a photo. Fail.
  • 1400 and 1454 West Randolph.
  • Gild Chicago. Another one I forgot to look for. It is *barely* visible, and only partially so, dead-center of this crop.
  • 300 North Michigan. Yep, forgot this one too. Another crop. Another tough-too-see one.
  • One Chicago.
  • Salesforce Tower
  • The Gateway Apartments (2050 West Ogden)
  • UI Health

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Make it 12: The stub at 2050 West Ogden has sprouted a tower crane

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The wait is over.

May’s 12th tower crane is up and ready for a workout at The Gateway Apartments. Now Global Builders can begin verticality on the 11-story, 161-unit building.

Got there a little late Friday, as only the finishing touches remained. No matter. I still took too many pics.

Tower crane, 2050 West Ogden, May 2021

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The Gateway Apartments tower crane is halfway here

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Late Wednesday afternoon at The Gateway Apartments tower-crane build.

It’s (almost) here! Global Builders’ tower crane we’ve been waiting to sprout (it *is* spring, after all) at 2050 West Ogden for The Gateway Apartments began its climb Wednesday. And while Thursday’s weather forecast doesn’t look particularly promising, Crane Completion is still expected this week. We’ll take another jaunt down to the Illinois Medical District in the next couple days so you all can see it fully erected and ready to lift the heavy stuff.

The rest of the parts are in place.

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Full permit, no tower crane, at 2050 W. Ogden

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A stub awaits its tower crane at The Gateway Apartments.

“Fellas, you’re gonna want that cowbell.”

To paraphrase Bruce Dickinson (yes, *the* Bruce Dickinson) you’re also gonna want that tower crane.

The Gateway Apartments at 2050 West Ogden in the Illinois Medical District got its full-build permit last week, several weeks after planting a tower crane in the ground. Alas, that tower crane has yet to be erected, but I’m willing to assume Global Builders knows what they’re doing out there. It’s what they do. I just get a little anxious when our tower crane count dips near single digits. We’re gonna want that tower crane.

A design by Avondale’s Piekarz Associates, Gateway Apartments will bring 161 rental units atop ground-floor retail space to its 11 stories.

Early-stage construction at The Gateway Apartments.

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