Harrison Hall glasses up the joint at UIC

Posted on June 18, 2018 by danieldschell

Pepper Construction works on both the north-facing and south-facing facades of Harrison Hall at UIC.

Chalk up another milestone for Pepper Construction at UIC, where they’ve started putting windows on Harrison Hall. (This is neither the time nor place to argue that a university’s academic hall should be using Macs instead of installing Windows)

I don’t know why I didn’t make a “glass is in session” pun in the headline for this, but I more than made up for it with the Windows thing, dontcha think?

Anyway, topping out the concrete in late April and removing the tower crane last month are two other recent achievements Pepper can be proud of at Harrison Hall. Of course, the one that counts the most will be having the 151,000-square-foot, SCB-designed facility open for UIC students in the fall.

UIC’s Harrison Hall clads without glass

Posted on June 4, 2018 by danieldschell

That’s not glass on Harrison Hall, but we’re clad to see it anyway.

There’s no glass on UIC’s Harrison Hall yet, but swing by the site these days and you’ll notice the exterior getting a new outfit. Pepper Construction is cladding the outer layer, just not with windows. And most impressively, they’re doing it without the tower crane, which is down from the site already. Just one more surprisingly-fast step in progress on the new academic & residential center.

UIC’s Harrison Hall to top out concrete this week

Posted on April 24, 2018 by danieldschell

Solomon Cordwell Buenz designed the complex, which marks the first new dorm facility for UIC since 2007. Included in the residential hall will be 550 student beds, with 16,000 square feet of community space for scholars to share, a top-floor sky lounge, and 1,600 square feet of retail space.

Harrison Hall, on the campus of the University of Illinois at Chicago.

We can expect Pepper Construction to top out concrete at UIC’s Harrison Hall this week. That comes as no surprise when visiting the site, and seeing how quickly this project has climbed.

Solomon Cordwell Buenz designed the residential/academic complex, which marks the first new dorm facility for UIC since 2007. Included will be 550 student beds, with 16,000 square feet of community space for scholars to share, a top-floor sky lounge, and 1,600 square feet of retail space. UIC plans to open Harrison Hall in Fall 2019.

Construction Progress: UIC’s Harrison Hall

Posted on March 25, 2018 by danieldschell

Pepper Construction’s progress at UIC’s Harrison Hall.

I took a boatload of photos last week at the University of Illinois at Chicago’s new Harrison Hall construction site (there’s a live-stream!) Apparently, it’s been longer than I remembered since I’ve stopped by. Either that, or Pepper Construction is looking to break some sort of speed record.

Wanna see the pics? Cool. Here ya go.

The University of Illinois at Chicago has its own tower crane

Posted on February 28, 2018 by danieldschell

Central Contractors Service was on the UIC campus Tuesday, schooling the masses on proper tower-crane assembly procedures.

What a teaching tool it could be, that big yellow tower crane across the street from the University of Illinois at Chicago. Higher learning, or something like that.

Anyway, tower-crane assembly at the academic/residential complex UIC is building on West Harrison Street between Peoria and Morgan began Monday, and Tuesday saw the jib lifted into place. A few gears and cables will be attended to Wednesday, and it should be ready to go as we enter March.

This marks Pepper Construction’s first tower crane in town since they removed the self-erecting crane from the Moxy Hotel job in River North.

Normally, the photo gallery below would include the building permit for that shiny yellow crane. However, this project isn’t being built on city land. Therefore, the City of Chicago doesn’t issue any permits at all for it. UIC is responsible for making sure the tower crane is erected properly and safely.

: The rebar is for a different job.

University of Illinois at Chicago plants a tower crane for its new Academic/Residential Complex

Posted on January 21, 2018 by danieldschell

The University of Illinois at Chicago is building a 10-story academic and residential complex, and this tower crane will help.

There’s no substitute for walking the streets of Chicago on a regular basis. Otherwise, you’re going to miss things. For example, the new 10-story residential & academic complex being built by the University of Illinois at Chicago. It looks, according to the Chicago Tribune, like construction started way back in December. But darned if I can find any building permits for it. But sure enough, the surface parking lot is gone, Revcon is on site drilling caissons, and there’s a bright yellow tower crane stub planted in the middle of the site, at Harrison and Morgan Streets.

Solomon Cordwell Buenz designed the complex, which marks the first new dorm facility for UIC since 2007. Included in the residential hall will be 550 student beds, with 16,000 square feet of community space for scholars to share, a top-floor sky lounge, and 1,600 square feet of retail space. Pepper Construction is the general contractor, and that tower crane will be their first in the Chicago sky since the removal of the crane at the Moxy Hotel in River North. Construction is expected to extend into Fall 2019.