|
Originally Posted by ChgoLvr83
The article is a month old & nothing exciting but I thought what the hell:
Until recently, Chicago's supertowers have remained on the fringe of the city's core. The John Hancock Center to the north, Sears Tower to the west, and Aon Center to the east. Moreover, these buildings are all products of the last century, and while they foreshadow coming events, their scattered locations prevented any kind of critical mass from allowing super-tall buildings to become accepted in the public subconscious. Majestic as they are, the three originals are curiosities to be ogled by tourists and grimaced at by people living in their shadows.
.....to lure more businesses, more tourists, and more curious suburbanites to the city, Chicago needs an ad campaign, and it's in the middle of putting one together. The city's skyline is the city's biggest asset. It is a 20-mile-long billboard advertising the urban lifestyle. But as mentioned earlier, the jewels in this crown are few and far between. It's easy for the eye to dismiss the Sears Tower as a fluke, given its remote location when viewed from the west. Same for the Hancock Center. And Aon is so far east that its height is diminished unless viewed from Lake Michigan. Now imagine Chicago six years into the future -- Sears, Hancock, and Aon are no longer anomalies. They are joined by the Trump project, Waterview Tower, and a glittering new building on South Wabash. The skyline is no longer fragmented -- it features a regular pattern of supertowers. The hole in the middle is filled, and the city has a slightly healthy bulge. When that image -- that billboard -- is complete, it will help change views about the city, and the Loop. It will be the most powerful advertisement for Chicago ever, and it will have cost the city just a few million dollars in tax incentives.
Chicago is remaking its skyline. The old standard was 30-stories. Then 50. Now if you're not 70, you're not even trying. The new sentiment isn't just good for architects, developers, and land owners. It's good for the city as a whole. It means more jobs and more money, and more people flowing to the city, all without the devastating environmental impact of plowing up virgin ground to build another soulless suburban cul-de-sac. Chicago's development is sustainable for the foreseeable future. As long as the skies remain open, the city can grow. And as it grows it prospers. Now all we have to do is get building.
|