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Chicago’s most infamous vacant site of the 21st century is finally getting a tower. But will we be getting the architect’s best vision — or just half of a good design? A look at some recent history of large projects in the city offers some guidance, and reason for concern.
I have no reason to doubt Related’s stated intention to build both towers, but if history is a guide, it’s more likely than not that the single tower will never see its sibling.
— Chicago Tribune
The Windy City's newest architecture critic, Edward Keegan, explains 400 Lake Shore Drive (designed by SOM's Chicago office with David Childs) against five other similar projects that never saw the original vision of their architects fully realized. He says a potential void might become a... View full entry
Yesterday marked the official groundbreaking ceremony for Developer Related Midwest’s Chicago Spire replacement designed by the Chicago Office of Skidmore, Owings, and Merrill (SOM) with David Childs. What will become a pair of new architectural centerpieces for the Lakefront and... View full entry
Fifteen years ago, a world renowned architect planned to bring the Spire to Chicago a giant luxury condo building with sky high prices. Years later, all that's there is hole in the ground, at a prime spot by the river and the lake. Now, a new project may actually come to life there. — CBS Chicago
Construction is set to start later this year at 400 Lake Shore Drive after more than a decade as an empty plot. The site was originally reserved for the Chicago Spire, a 2,000-foot tall, twisted tower designed by Santiago Calatrava. The project, however, was canceled following the onset of the... View full entry
The fate of one of the most iconic artworks in the nation’s capital has been officially resolved months after The Cultural Landscape Foundation assured that its future would be set in stone. Artist Elyn Zimmerman’s massive granite Marabar installation has found a new home... View full entry
A twin-towered residential development slated for the former Chicago Spire site on Lake Michigan has received formal municipal approvals and is now heading toward construction. The project, developed by Related Midwest and designed by SOM will bring 1,100 residential units to the site across... View full entry
A District of Columbia preservation panel told the National Geographic Society on Thursday to suspend its current campus redesign plan pending further review of the proposed removal of an acclaimed sculptural installation on the site. — The New York Times
A controversial plan to demolish an existing stone sculpture located at the National Geographic headquarters complex in Washington, D.C. has hit a road block as the city's preservation board has asked the project team to reconsider their designs in an effort to save or repurpose the artwork... View full entry
A long simmering SOM-designed skyscraper pair slated for the former Chicago Spire site has taken a step forward in Chicago, where the city's planning commission has given the green light for the project to proceed. Now that the project has been approved by the Chicago Planning Commission, it... View full entry
New details and renderings have been released for 35 Hudson Yards, set to be the tallest residential tower in the Hudson Yards neighborhood at over 1,000 feet. The boutique apartments come with a wide array of in-house lifestyle services, some provided by the Equinox Hotel, which is part of the development. David Childs and Skidmore Owings & Merrill are the architects, while interior design is being led by Tony Ingrao. — New York YIMBY
To make 35 Hudson Yards your new home address, be prepared to open the checkbook extra wide — two-bedroom condos start at $5 million, while the average unit of the overall 134 apartments will set you back $11 million ($4,100 per square foot). The three penthouses have yet to be priced, reports... View full entry
The long-awaited vision for the 2.2-acre site along the Chicago River and Lake Michigan, unveiled in the first community meeting for the project, is toned down a bit from the 2,000-foot-tall Spire plan that stirred emotions but never advanced beyond a 76-foot-deep foundation hole. The design, by One World Trade Center architect David Childs, includes a south tower rising 1,100 feet and an 850-foot north tower. — Chicago Tribune
Ever since work on Santiago Calatrava's 2,000-foot-tall Chicago Spire came to a halt in 2008 due to financial troubles, the city was left with a gaping hole in the ground rather than the nation's tallest building. Rendering: Related Midwest.A new proposal by Related Midwest for a pair of towers... View full entry
