Tagged : Chicago Development News

Chicago’s latest building boom along the riverfront is about to enter its next phase, as long as a new high-profile project that’s being discussed gets approval from the Chicago Plan Commission next month. Being proposed is a massive 52-story tower that, if built, would be situated at 110 N. Wacker right alongside the South Branch of the Chicago River. 

Although the new tower will house offices rather than residential living spaces, 110 N. Wacker would still be a prominent addition to the Loop, which has seen a high concentration of large-scale development over the last couple years. 

In fact, several other major developments are already in the works just down the street from 110 N. Wacker, most notably Riverline, which is occupies one of the last

It feels like there’s been talk about Uptown eventually becoming Chicago’s new hottest neighborhood for awhile now, but progress has been slow to say the least, and especially for residents already living in the area who are hoping to see improvements made throughout the community. 

But with several new projects possibly in the works, Uptown could finally be getting the makeover it richly deserves, which could be the beginning of something special to happen in one of the city’s most historic neighborhoods. 

If you haven’t been keeping up, here’s a quick look at just some of what’s being discussed for the Uptown community: 

New Apartment Tower at Sheridan & Wilson 

Being planned for the southeast corner of Sheridan and Wilson is a proposed

West Loop residents who are less-than-thrilled with how dense the neighborhood is becoming were recently presented with a revised plan to redevelop a site at 845 W. Madison. And while the original plan called for 627 units, the new version would still add 586 luxury rentals to the West Loop landscape, as well as 14 townhouse, 293 parking spaces, and about 10,000 square feet of retail space. 

Developers are also saying the revised version also greatly reduces its visual impact at street level, most notably when viewed from Adams & Sangamon Park, which sits directly across the street. 

In addition, the new design also includes a number of setbacks, which should help minimize shadows and still allow for the park to enjoy plenty of natural sunlight. If

Residential development around The Loop has certainly picked up in recent months, but that certainly isn’t slowing down commercial development within Chicago’s primary business and financial district. Just this week, plans for a pretty sweet looking loft-style office building, which if approved, would be developed at 145 S. Wells. 

What would stand 20 stories high, the new boutique office development is designed by Chicago-based Thomas Roszak Architecture, and as you can see, features a slick maze-like exterior that can only be described as something you might ordinarily see over in River North. 

As of now, an established four-level parking garage occupies the potential building site, but given the location of 145 S. Wells sits right in the heart of

Chicago’s most iconic tower is getting a facelift, according to numerous reports coming in from all over. City officials revealed a series of proposed improvements to the famed Willis Tower earlier this week, which are estimated to cost around $500 million. 

In a nutshell, it appears the plan is to make the Willis Tower much more accessible and inviting to visitors, even despite the building already attracting 1 million people annually. 

Blackstone Group L.P., who previously purchased the building almost two years ago, will be heading the makeover, which will include adding 300,000 square feet of new retail space, restaurant, and entertainment space, as well as a new 30,000 square foot outdoor deck. 

According to the release, the new retail

Two impressive new renderings have just been released that would totally change downtown Chicago’s skyline if either of the two happen to be built. According to last night’s article in the Tribune, architect Helmut Jahn has submitted one such design for the redevelopment of the James R. Thompson Center—a building that Governor Bruce Rauner wants the state of Illinois to sell to a major developer who would build something much bigger at its prime location at Clark and Randolph street in the heart of the city’s bustling business and financial district. 

Should one of these proposals actually come to fruition, there’s no doubt the goal of building something bigger and better would be accomplished. As noted by the Tribune, one such proposal features a

With the issuing of a permit that will allow Florida-based Dolce Living Communities Residential to convert a vintage office tower into stylish new apartments and additional ground level retail space, the Loop’s on-going transformation into one of the hottest places to call home in downtown Chicago seems to be pushing forward as we navigate the first month of 2017.

The building, which is located at 29 S. LaSalle, was originally designed by Jenney & Mundie and first completed all the way back in 1902. But now, roughly 114 years later, a totally revamped interior is on the way for 29 S. LaSalle, which according to reports is being designed by renowned Chicago-based architectural firm FitzGerald Associates Architects.  

Permit documents have the total

The last undeveloped lakefront parcel in the Gold Coast could soon see some action, at least according to a new report from Curbed Chicago. Being proposed is a new eight-story building that could include as many as 58 units, which is significantly different from the original proposal from Draper & Kramer that called for a sprawling 40-story high-rise. That proposal, which as made all the way back in 1997, drew significant resistance among Gold Coast residents and of course failed to materialize into anything concrete over the years.  

But now, the new 58-unit building seems to be gaining strong momentum as it heads to the Chicago Zoning Board for approval this month, especially as new construction condo inventory is still low heading into 2017. 

The

A pair of spectacular new office towers is being planned for the 300 block of South Wacker, just steps from the Willis Tower. As first reported by Crain’s, the ambitious new project is being spearheaded by local developer John Murphy, who’s planning to close on the parcels at 301 and 321 S. Wacker sometime before the end of the year. 

Although only in the planning stages at this point, the new towers would essentially replace a small park and plaza at 301 S. Wacker, and a surface parking lot at 321 S. Walker, which has seemingly occupied that space for as long as we can remember. 

The good news for developers is that zoning for the gleaming new towers is already in place, and as you can see from the rendering, much of the design work also appears to

The future of Chicago’s newest luxury tower officially starts today. In case you haven’t heard, groundbreaking for the city’s stunning new Vista Tower begins today, which when finished, will bring a collection of fabulous new hotel rooms and luxury condo residences to a prime location right alongside the Chicago River. 

When finished, Vista Tower will be Chicago’s third tallest building, standing 95 stories high and offering some of the most insane views of any building currently standing in the Windy City. 

According to reports, the project is brining 2,500 jobs to the city and has an estimated construction cost of $950,000,000. Despite all the hype and excitement surrounding Vista Tower condos for sale, don’t expect the building to top out anytime