CHICAGO | General Developments - Page 2176

LouisVanDerWright · #**43501** Posted **Dec 5, 2018, 2:59 AM**

What do you mean that's not how it works? The lower levels of a building carry more load. The way UH is designed is just different, maybe it is less efficient than just making the columns bigger, but more columns blocking views obviously wasn't a priority for Netsch or he wouldn't have made arrow slit windows.

Brutalism obviously isn't about just doing what is easiest, it's highly sculptural. In this case the shape of the building and column pattern is meant to express the math behind the structure even if it's not Mies' "less is more".

Barrelfish · #**43502** Posted **Dec 5, 2018, 4:10 AM**

I appreciate all the reasons that brutalist buildings are appealing on an intellectual level.

For me, there's no getting over the aesthetic judgment that raw concrete is just an unattractive material. Especially when it has accumulated dirt and weather stains.

Something in my lizard brain just interprets brutalist buildings as oppressive and dreary, and no amount of intellectual appreciation will overcome that

10023 · #**43503** Posted **Dec 5, 2018, 7:06 AM**

^ It depends somewhat on the quality of the concrete. But American concrete construction is not good (as opposed to, say, Japanese).

harryc · #**43504** Posted **Dec 5, 2018, 11:39 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Barrelfish

I appreciate all the reasons that brutalist buildings are appealing on an intellectual level.

For me, there's no getting over the aesthetic judgment that raw concrete is just an unattractive material. Especially when it has accumulated dirt and weather stains.

Something in my lizard brain just interprets brutalist buildings as oppressive and dreary, and no amount of intellectual appreciation will overcome that

Went to school at Circle - had an office in UH - loved every minute of it. Viva La Concrete !

Kenmore · #**43505** Posted **Dec 5, 2018, 11:51 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by marothisu

That's awesome news for both the city and Uptown. Uptown entertainment will be even better with this and then the upcoming Uptown Theatre renovation and re-opening.

I feel like people have been saying Uptown is gentrifying for so long that people have kind of been sleeping on the current wave which is going to be quite transformative, for better or worse. The neighborhood hasn't seen investment in transit, housing, retail, and entertainment on this scale in our lifetimes. Hopefully the neighborhood's character, services, and low-income housing are preserved.

k1052 · #**43506** Posted **Dec 5, 2018, 1:40 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kenmore

I feel like people have been saying Uptown is gentrifying for so long that people have kind of been sleeping on the current wave which is going to be quite transformative, for better or worse. The neighborhood hasn't seen investment in transit, housing, retail, and entertainment on this scale in our lifetimes. Hopefully the neighborhood's character, services, and low-income housing are preserved.

The making of Uptown into a true entertainment district may actually happen.

The Baton is moving out of River North and into Uptown:

https://blockclubchicago.org/2018/12...nt-owner-says/

the urban politician · #**43507** Posted **Dec 5, 2018, 2:27 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kenmore

I feel like people have been saying Uptown is gentrifying for so long that people have kind of been sleeping on the current wave which is going to be quite transformative, for better or worse. The neighborhood hasn't seen investment in transit, housing, retail, and entertainment on this scale in our lifetimes. Hopefully the neighborhood's character, services, and low-income housing are preserved.

Shouldn’t you be mad? Don’t you basically hate Chicago?

tjp · #**43508** Posted **Dec 5, 2018, 2:50 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kenmore

I feel like people have been saying Uptown is gentrifying for so long that people have kind of been sleeping on the current wave which is going to be quite transformative, for better or worse. The neighborhood hasn't seen investment in transit, housing, retail, and entertainment on this scale in our lifetimes. Hopefully the neighborhood's character, services, and low-income housing are preserved.

add to that a significant decrease in violent crime during the past couple of years (moreso than the city as a whole). The neighborhood has only seen one homicide in 2018, actually.

Steely Dan · #**43509** Posted **Dec 5, 2018, 2:56 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by tjp

The neighborhood has only seen one homicide in 2018, actually.

wow, that's a significant improvement compared to recent years in upown.

2018 - 1
2017 - 6
2016 - 9
2015- 11
2014 - 4

Baronvonellis · #**43510** Posted **Dec 5, 2018, 3:32 PM**

A big part of it is due to Alderman Cappelman who has taken an incremental approach to improving the neighborhood building by building and the CPD for doing some major drug raids in Uptown. Like the broken windows theory, they have been fixing up and cleaning each building in Uptown bit by bit, showing the drug dealers they aren't welcome in the neighborhood. After doing the drug raids it's also brought down crime, as the dealers aren't there to fight and shoot each other over territory now.

The last Alderman Schiller famously didn't care at all about crime, and told everyone if they didn't like it they should move to Lincoln Park!

It's gradually been building like a tiny snowball of gentrification into an avalanche now!

Uptown has way too much low income housing that should be distributed across the city and metro, the whole reason it got so bad was because it was super concentrated in one neighborhood.

west-town-brad · #**43511** Posted **Dec 5, 2018, 3:39 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Baronvonellis

A big part of it is due to Alderman Cappelman who has taken an incremental approach to improving the neighborhood building by building and the CPD for doing some major drug raids in Uptown. Like the broken windows theory, they have been fixing up and cleaning each building in Uptown bit by bit, showing the drug dealers they aren't welcome in the neighborhood. After doing the drug raids it's also brought down crime, as the dealers aren't there to fight and shoot each other over territory now.

The last Alderman Schiller famously didn't care at all about crime, and told everyone if they didn't like it they should move to Lincoln Park!

It's gradually been building like a tiny snowball of gentrification into an avalanche now!

Uptown has way too much low income housing that should be distributed across the city and metro, the whole reason it got so bad was because it was super concentrated in one neighborhood.

glad to see some moementum. uptown was supposed to be the next thing since I've lived in chicago (15 years). seems that many other hoods keep taking the lead though.

tjp · #**43512** Posted **Dec 5, 2018, 4:08 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Steely Dan

wow, that's a significant improvement compared to recent years in upown.

2018 - 1
2017 - 6
2016 - 9
2015- 11
2014 - 4

Thanks for posting that! Where is the historical data from? I'd be interested in seeing years prior to 2014.

Steely Dan · #**43513** Posted **Dec 5, 2018, 4:38 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by tjp

Thanks for posting that! Where is the historical data from? I'd be interested in seeing years prior to 2014.

i pulled those figures from https://heyjackass.com/

the urban politician · #**43514** Posted **Dec 5, 2018, 4:59 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kenmore

reading is fundamental

I know, and fundamentally, you've displayed nothing but self-contradiction when discussing Chicago. You are glad Amazon isn't coming (specifically stating you don't want the jobs--your words).......but on the other token you complain there needs to be more jobs.. On one hand you hate that it's becoming more prosperous, but here you are happy that Uptown is gentrifying. And of course you always grab an opportunity to troll other threads to drop negative one liner comments about Chicago.

Perhaps I have a reading problem--that's fine--but then you have a problem making it clear what the hell you actually believe, if you believe anything at all

harryc · #**43515** Posted **Dec 5, 2018, 6:41 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kenmore

I feel like people have been saying Uptown is gentrifying for so long that people have kind of been sleeping on the current wave which is going to be quite transformative, for better or worse. The neighborhood hasn't seen investment in transit, housing, retail, and entertainment on this scale in our lifetimes. Hopefully the neighborhood's character, services, and low-income housing are preserved.

As someone who worked in Uptown and lived next to Uptown - and took many long walks there in the middle of the night - not real sure that I'd wan't that preserved.

marothisu · #**43516** Posted **Dec 5, 2018, 7:36 PM**

Speaking of Uptown, the river north drag club Baton is moving to the former Uptown Underground space at 4707 N Broadway (Broadway and Leland) ..right near Riviera and the Lawrence red line stop.

Lakeviewguy · #**43517** Posted **Dec 5, 2018, 10:22 PM**

Also, has anyone heard about IKEA opening a store in downtown Chicago? See the attached story from Citylab today.

http://www.citylab.com/life/2018/12/...uburbs/576952/

gebs · #**43518** Posted **Dec 5, 2018, 10:36 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lakeviewguy

Also, has anyone heard about IKEA opening a store in downtown Chicago? See the attached story from Citylab today.

http://www.citylab.com/life/2018/12/...uburbs/576952/

They could lease up a ton of space in the Old Post Office if they wanted (and could afford) to. That would be one spectacular store.

Steely Dan · #**43519** Posted **Dec 5, 2018, 10:43 PM**

^ i think ikea might rather be over by mag mile for branding purposes.

isn't there lots of space in some of those old vertical malls?

sentinel · #**43520** Posted **Dec 5, 2018, 10:59 PM**

Architect's Newspaper announced their "Best of" awards, and a Smith+Gill project that I'm not aware of received an Honorable Mention for Urban Design...and holy smokes!

https://archpaper.com/2018/12/2018-b...lery-0-slide-1

Not really sure how this fits into (before or after) any of the active proposals for the north branch of the Chicago river, but it is an impressive study, if only for how massive it is.