CHICAGO | General Developments

[spyguy]

There's really no space left in Sullivan Center (including the basement) except for the smaller storefronts on Wabash.

Maybe the Wrigley Building?

[ardecila]

Originally Posted by Nowhereman1280

Also, it's interesting that that are marketing the entire block as contiguous floor plates. One would assume the floors don't line up perfectly between all of the buildings on the block or was the block designed with floor sharing in mind?

Of course it was designed with floor sharing in mind; it's a department store. There might be a few inches' difference as there is in Field's.

[Nowhereman1280]

Originally Posted by ardecila

Of course it was designed with floor sharing in mind; it's a department store. There might be a few inches' difference as there is in Field's.

Again, I'm talking about the entire block, NOT just Carson Pirie Scott now. I'm not asking if the Sullivan designed building lines up with the other Sullivan building, no shit they do they are just expansions on each other, I'm talking about whether all the other buildings on the block that are a part of Sullivan Center line up with CPS. You know, the ones along Wabash, etc that AREN'T a part of the CPS building. They are advertising 80k SF floors when I doubt the ~25k SF CPS has identical floor levels to every single other building on the block.

[george]

Originally Posted by aic4ever

I seriously doubt you'll end up seeing the glass and the metal panels staggered at different levels. I don't really even see that in the picture. It seems like the staggered effect is more of an optical illusion than anything.

Even if that was the intent, that's the kind of stuff you only see on institutional or government projects where money is just thrown down a hole because the owner will be the owner for the life of the building. Developers are in the business to make money, period. Once the numbers start rolling in, a staggered facade would be one of the first things to go.

At the end of the day, my bet is that you'll see that building with composite metal panels attached to a metal stud & gypsum board wall, and slab loaded storefront windows with spandrel glass/panels as "trim" at the slab before you see a curtain wall, because it will be the cheapest way to do it.

For everyone's sake we can only hope they choose to at least go with Centria metal panels or maybe Alucabond so they don't oil can the building into oblivion after a few years.

Possibly, but according to the developers comments at last night's meeting, the metal panels will sit approx. 6" further out from the glass.

[sammyg]

Originally Posted by ardecila

Of course it was designed with floor sharing in mind; it's a department store. There might be a few inches' difference as there is in Field's.

I don't know what it looks like now, but when it was Carson's, the floors didn't line up - there were ramps and stairs where the buildings met, and there was an alley running half-way through the block between the State and Wabash sides, so you had to go around in a U to get from one part of the Men's section to another.

[ardecila]

For Ashland/Division, I was hoping for something in the 12"-18" range, but as aic4ever already mentioned, that creates all sorts of costly extra structural and waterproofing issues.

BTW... has anybody noticed the lit tables on Quincy, just off State in front of the Dirksen Federal Bulding? Pure sex. The concrete benches seemed sorta haphazard, but I'm hoping they are restored to some order once construction is finished on the Bond/Benson & Rixon buildings.

These things look good despite tons of McDonalds patrons eating their Quarter Pounders there... somebody must clean it.

[george]

The metal panels seem to have a sharp bevel, top & bottom to help shed water, barely visible in these pics. Pardon the low res & the mystery hand.

I like those lit tables^

[J_M_Tungsten]

Whoa! Great find George, me likes!

[spyguy]

^Looks so much sharper in the renderings. Are PNC, Farmstead, Intelligentsia actually looking to open in this building or are those signs just typical rendering BS?

Originally Posted by Buckman821

I heard a rumor today that an office building is going to be built above the Gino's east on Wells in River North. I can't really speak for the source so I'm not sure what to make of it. However I did see some surveying going on at the site this afternoon. There is a squat 6 story office building in relatively close proximity to the east on the same block.

Came across this project on McHugh's website:
167 West Erie

After a little searching, this project showed up in the LinkedIn profile of an employee at Halvorson + Partners who identifies it as an apartment building by Loewenberg.

[ardecila]

^^ You mean the same Farmstead with only two locations, both of them in Providence?

Doubt it. The southernmost retail space is actually designed with a bank in mind, since it will have a drive-thru.

Another Intelligentsia would be awesome there. I don't want to see them on every corner, but one somewhere along Milwaukee and one somewhere in the South Side would make sense. LA has just as many locations as we do, which is a cryin' shame.

I love the angled facades. They allow the building to capture some of the dynamism of an acute-corner site, but on a typical 90-degree corner.

[denizen467]

^ It's not uncommon to see brunch spots, bakeries, restaurants, etc. to put an Intelly logo on their facade to announce they're serving quality coffee (see e.g. Wildberry in the Pru Building), so the renderer could have just been invoking that. Actually Wicker Park has maybe the best independent coffeebar scene in the city, so an Intelligentsia there could even possibly harm that. On the other hand there are virtually no high quality coffeebars in River North or Streeterville or Lincoln Park, so that would be as nice as adding one on the South Side.

[denizen467]

http://www.chicagorealestatedaily.co...for-loop-hotel

Expansion planned for Loop hotel
February 28, 2012

The new owner of the W Chicago City Center plans an expansion of the Loop hotel that will add about 35 rooms to its current 368.

... would build out the 21st and 22nd floors of the building, which are currently open, he said. “I think it's going to be a very good use of our capital and generate strong incremental returns,” he said. ...

---------------------------------------------------------
---------------------------------------------------------

I've had a question lingering for a while - what is the building on the NE corner of Adams/Wells (McDonald's on ground floor)? It happens to be pictured next to the W Hotel in the photo in the above article.

Does it have any historical significance? It kind of looks like it doesn't, and I've always thought that it might be the one of the *last* remaining prewar buildings in the Loop that are almost certainly fated to be demolished. (Incidentally the 199 West Monroe project designed by Solomon Cordwell Buenz during the boom did not appear to extend to this site.)

[untitledreality]

Not sure how I feel about the 'tucked' facades. On one hand I enjoy the experience they could create for passing by the ground floor spaces, but I feel the effect on the rest of the building diminishes its otherwise powerful corner presence.

Either way, I have faith in Whealer Kearns.

[lawfin]

Originally Posted by ardecila

^^ You mean the same Farmstead with only two locations, both of them in Providence?

Doubt it. The southernmost retail space is actually designed with a bank in mind, since it will have a drive-thru.

Another Intelligentsia would be awesome there. I don't want to see them on every corner, but one somewhere along Milwaukee and one somewhere in the South Side would make sense. LA has just as many locations as we do, which is a cryin' shame.

I love the angled facades. They allow the building to capture some of the dynamism of an acute-corner site, but on a typical 90-degree corner.

Sorry OT; but yeah I agree I wish there were a few more Intelligentsia and I think WP / Ukranian Village / East Humboldt / Polish Triangle could make sense.

I was at the one in Venice last week once again and that is an awesome location. loved grabbing some home brew while I enjoyed the 65 degree Venice weather.

[ardecila]

Originally Posted by denizen467

^ It's not uncommon to see brunch spots, bakeries, restaurants, etc. to put an Intelly logo on their facade to announce they're serving quality coffee (see e.g. Wildberry in the Pru Building), so the renderer could have just been invoking that. Actually Wicker Park has maybe the best independent coffeebar scene in the city, so an Intelligentsia there could even possibly harm that. On the other hand there are virtually no high quality coffeebars in River North or Streeterville or Lincoln Park, so that would be as nice as adding one on the South Side.

Possibly, but the other two logos are pretty random.

There's a cupcake shop here in New Orleans that serves Intelly. I was shocked to see that window sticker while passing by, and a little concerned about how long those beans spent in transfer. My cappuccino was pretty awesome though. They don't do drip.

There are obviously a ton of coffee shops in Wicker, but I haven't seen any with a focus on top-quality coffee. They can serve whatever gourmet roaster they want (almost always Intelly or Metropolis) but most baristas aren't the trained experts of Intelligentsia. Most of them concentrate on the coffeehouse experience, which some of them do very very well and Intelligentsia does not.

[denizen467]

Originally Posted by ardecila

There are obviously a ton of coffee shops in Wicker, but I haven't seen any with a focus on top-quality coffee. They can serve whatever gourmet roaster they want (almost always Intelly or Metropolis) but most baristas aren't the trained experts of Intelligentsia.

There are a couple of them; the best places actually get training directly from Intelligentsia staff (or Metropolis) or have people who used to work there and are equally as dedicated. One of them, Wormhole, also has some national notoriety, in part because of its extensive '80s pop culture decor, including an actual whole DeLorean car in the front window souped up to match the time machine in Back to the Future. A must if you're giving a tour to any visitors...

[george]

[george]

Originally Posted by spyguy

^Looks so much sharper in the renderings. Are PNC, Farmstead, Intelligentsia actually looking to open in this building or are those signs just typical rendering BS?



Came across this project on McHugh's website:
167 West Erie

After a little searching, this project showed up in the LinkedIn profile of an employee at Halvorson + Partners who identifies it as an apartment building by Loewenberg.

PNC definitely, Intelligentsia is likely, under negotiations and Farmstead is just a placeholder.

[Mr Downtown]

Originally Posted by denizen467

what is the building on the NE corner of Adams/Wells (McDonald's on ground floor)?

The Textile Building, 1911, Samuel N. Crowen, architect. For many years the upper floors were unoccupied or mostly so, but a couple of years ago they were renovated for loft-style office users.

[ChiPhi]

Originally Posted by denizen467

.

... would build out the 21st and 22nd floors of the building, which are currently open, he said. “I think it's going to be a very good use of our capital and generate strong incremental returns,” he said. ...

So when they say open, does that mean empty or that it is open as hotel rooms and they will renovate these rooms and break them into smaller ones?