Chicago - Trump Tower [Archive]

qwerty1324

September 24th, 2003, 06:50 PM

From the Chicago Tribune:

Trump unwraps building plan
Skyscraper would be city's 4th-tallest; completion set for 2007

By Mary Umberger and Thomas A. Corfman
Tribune staff reporters
Published September 24, 2003

Charging into Chicago in the midst of a questionable real estate climate, Donald Trump on Tuesday unveiled plans for his massive mixed-use skyscraper on the site of the Chicago Sun-Times building.

Trump said that construction on the 2.4 million-square-foot Trump International Hotel & Tower would begin next summer with the demolition of the Sun-Times building and that the tower would be ready for occupancy in 2007.

The 90-story structure will include condominiums, office space, a "condominium hotel," retail stores and restaurants. At 1,125 feet, it would be the city's fourth-tallest skyscraper, two feet shorter than the John Hancock Center.

The plan has been scaled back since 2001, when Trump announced he would build a 150-story building. That plan was loudly criticized for overwhelming the space along the Chicago River at 401 N. Wabash Ave.

Acknowledging the criticism, Trump said Tuesday that the design changed because the original size became less desirable after the 2001 terrorist attacks.

"Prior to Sept. 11, we had plans for 150 stories, the tallest building in the world," he said. "What we end up with is a better building, a more practical building."

He also ends up in a questionable real estate climate in Chicago, where both the office and condo markets have entered a slump.

Some real estate analysts say that even though the city's condo boom has greatly subsided, the residential part of the plan could have relatively little competition at its highest end.

Trump's condos, on the 40th through 88th floors, will range from $470,000 for a one-bedroom unit to $8.7 million for an 11,616-square-foot penthouse.

"We've had very little new construction of high-end condos until the last two years," said Gail Lissner, who tracks the downtown residential market for Appraisal Research Counselors. "There has been a lot of pent-up demand for high-end luxury. Most of the [downtown] development in the late 1990s was middle market."

Others are less optimistic.

"He doesn't have financing, and most lenders are going to insist on [having significant numbers of] pre-sales before giving him financing," said James Kinney, president of Rubloff Residential Real Estate, which is known for sales of high-end Gold Coast properties.

"In this market, the investor crowd has gone to the sidelines. At the prices they're looking at, I don't think you can convince them of turning a profit in 2007."

Trump said he wasn't worried about financing the structure, which would be topped by television broadcasting antennas and which could cost as much as $650 million.

"It's very easy for me to get financing," he said. "Every major financial institution wants to be involved in this deal."

Although the condo hotel concept is fairly well known in other major cities and in Europe, it has been relatively untried in Chicago. Under the concept, hotel suites are sold as condominiums to private buyers, who allow the hotel to rent them out when they're not in use.

"If you're talking about 2007 and beyond, that time frame is good news" for Trump, said Melinda McKay, who analyzes the hotel market for Jones Lang LaSalle in Chicago. "The hotel market has undergone a severe downturn over the past couple of years, though now Chicago is one of the better-performing markets in the U.S.

"It's an excellent location, and the condo approach to financing hotel development is becoming increasingly popular. Trump did the same thing in New York. I think it could work."

The office market is also a hurdle, and Trump is offering far less office space than originally planned. The initial plan of more than 1.2 million square feet was cut to 351,500 in the version announced Tuesday.

The Sun-Times could account for as much as third of that if it moves back in, an option that has been under consideration since parent company Hollinger International Inc. announced the joint venture with Trump more than two years ago.

"They could very well come back. ... We're trying to work out a deal," Trump said.

The Sun-Times is still evaluating its options, including short-term arrangements, should it decide to return, said Publisher F. David Radler, who is also president and chief operating officer of Chicago-based Hollinger International.

Despite the reduced office space, which will be on the 17th through 26th floors, Trump insisted that interest among potential tenants is strong.

Although Trump is confident about finding financing, some experts said the deal didn't depend as much on his financial wizardry as on his marketing machine's ability to sell condos and sign leases with office tenants and retailers.

"This is not an environment in which lenders are looking to take a lot of risk," said Bruce Cohen, chief investment officer of Chicago-based real estate investment bank Cohen Financial

"When all is said and done, the project has to have some of the risk taken out of it. If it's residential, it's pre-sales. If it's retail or office space, it's got to be pre-leased."
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

A graphic of the building:
http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/chi-030924trump-graphic,1,4361089.graphic

Tom in Chicago

September 24th, 2003, 07:07 PM

Here are the graphics associated with the Tribune article:

http://images.chicagotribune.com/media/graphic/2003-09/9535885.gif

http://images.chicagotribune.com/media/photo/2002-08/4061839.jpg
DECEMBER 2001: The first version of Trump Tower Chicago is made public. It is sharply criticized as too bulky and a visual bore.

http://images.chicagotribune.com/media/photo/2002-07/4048082.jpg
JULY 2002: Architect Adrian Smith of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill dramatically alters the original design, making it less a series of stacked boxes and more an essay in soaring verticality.

http://images.chicagotribune.com/media/photo/2003-09/9536768.jpg
SEPTEMBER 2003: With fewer floors devoted to offices, Smith further slims the tower, refining its glass exterior and breaking down its scale so it is less domineering alongside the Wrigley Building.

http://images.chicagotribune.com/media/photo/2003-09/9536079.jpg
Donald Trump describes his planned Trump Tower of Chicago, to be built on the site of the Sun-Times building on the Chicago River.

Tom in Chicago

September 24th, 2003, 07:09 PM

Here's the news article from today's Chicago Sun-Times:

Trump's power play

September 24, 2003 - DAVID ROEDER Business Reporter

Donald Trump, master of real estate showmanship, plied his art in Chicago on Tuesday.

He and an entourage flew into town, served comments to the media and wine to some 500 guests in the posh confines of the Peninsula Hotel, all to announce that what was inexorably coming is here: the start of condominium sales for his 90-story tower on the site of the Sun-Times building, 401 N. Wabash.

He's going to take down the old building on the river, home of the Sun-Times since 1958, and replace it with what he said would be the largest building constructed in North America since the Sears Tower in 1974.

At 2.4 million square feet, it is Trump in its elegance, scale and audacity. While paying homage to Chicago's architectural tradition, he wants to embellish it. He didn't need a PowerPoint presentation, just a 7-foot-tall model (the architectural kind) to announce his intentions.

"With all due respect to New York,'' the New Yorker said, "Chicago has got the great architecture.'' His Trump Tower Chicago, he said, "will be a very, very special building and we have spared no expense'' in the design. He added: "We're looking to make a statement that's top-of-the-line.''

A condo prototype that hints at the city and river views is open on the top floor of the Sun-Times building.

He promised not to scale back on materials if the profit margins get tight, pointing to the fits and finishes of projects that have redefined high-end construction in Manhattan, such as his Trump Tower and his Trump International Hotel & Tower. For Chicago, he hired Adrian Smith of the firm Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP, who designed a curtain wall of stainless steel and glass, with gentle curves and strategic setbacks.

"We strive to have a building that both fits in and stands out,'' Smith said.

Speaking to an audience of brokers, Trump elicited gasps when he said he's been able to drive Manhattan residential prices to as high as $5,000 a square foot. In Chicago, the most expensive condos go for about $800 a square foot, a price level Trump is testing.

Ultimately, he hopes to push that to more than $1,000 a square foot. He talked of higher prices a couple years ago, but is now bowing to the reality of Chicago prices without acknowledging disappointment.

Lower land prices here make the venture still workable, and Chicago's high-rise builders know how to meet a budget, Trump said. "I think this building will create a whole new set of numbers [for the market] because it's going to be so good,'' he said.

Around Chicago real estate, there are plenty of doubters that Trump can pull it off. He has to sell 326 condos plus 174 units that'll be part of a Trump International Hotel here. There's some 351,000 square feet of office space in the package, too.

The Chicago condo market is steady but not robust, while office leasing remains in a slump. To questions prefaced by those observations, Trump bore down on the bravado.

He said he expects to begin demolishing the seven-story Sun-Times building in summer 2004 and to deliver condo units sometime in 2007. "We're talking a lot of years away yet,'' he said. "Markets will change three or four times by then.''

Trump insisted interest from buyers and tenants is extremely strong. He wouldn't specify sales or leasing thresholds required for financing, but said he expects little trouble clearing them. "We're going to do a lot of pre-sales'' of units before construction begins, he said.

"Every major financial institution wants to get involved in this deal.''

Trump is known to be talking with the law firm Jenner & Block, currently in the IBM Building at 330 N. Wabash, as a potential lead tenant. And the Sun-Times could move back to the site, which Trump owns in a joint venture with the paper's owner, Hollinger International Inc.

Talks with the Sun-Times continue, and the paper's publisher, F. David Radler, said he's looking at other space to either lease or buy in the River North area. Radler said the paper's space requirements range from 70,000 to 120,000 square feet.

Trump said he'd like to have a paper as a tenant, but joked about Radler when first asked about it. "I deal too much with David, and he doesn't want to pay the rent,'' Trump said.

---

TRUMP TOWER CHICAGO - The numbers
Projected delivery: 2007
Area: 2.4 million square feet
Height: 1,125 feet with 90 stories
Residences: 326 super-luxury condominiums, including five penthouses
Trump International Hotel: 174 condominium guest rooms and suites
Initial prices: $470,000 to $1.8 million for residences, $3.6 million to $8.7 million for penthouses, $425,000 to $932,000 for hotel rooms
Health Club and Spa: 60,000 square feet
Offices: 351,000 square feet
Parking: 1,150 indoor spaces with deeded residences-only section
Retail: 60,000 square feet of boutique shopping and fine dining
Riverfront park: 1.2 acres with 500 lineal feet along Chicago River

the players
Owners: Donald Trump and Hollinger International Inc.
Architects: Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP
Construction manager: Bovis Lend Lease Inc.
Residential marketing agent: Koenig & Strey GMAC Real Estate
Commercial marketing agent: U.S. Equities Realty LLC

New Jack City

September 24th, 2003, 09:10 PM

WOW, thanks for all that info, great news for Chicago!

Too bad it was scaled down from being world's tallest. The first version was awful, way too bulky, I love the finished product.

Way to go Trump and Chicago!

De Snor

September 24th, 2003, 09:23 PM

I made this thread "sticky" cause I guess this building shall be more popular in the future :)

This tower is very good news for Chicago :banana:

New Jack City

September 24th, 2003, 10:57 PM

Improved design wrapped in promises

By Blair Kamin
Tribune architecture critic
Published September 24, 2003

Donald Trump is, if nothing else, a very shrewd operator, so no one should have been surprised Tuesday when he went out of his way to promise that his planned 90-story Chicago tower would be "top, top quality."

This is Chicago, after all, where luxury high-rises are supposed to be architecturally distinguished, not just blessed with a prime location and a good doorman, as in Manhattan. If you want to charge Midwesterners a staggering $8.7 million for a full-floor penthouse or even an unbelievable $470,000 for a one-bedroom, as Trump does, then you'd better not put them in a high-rise barn.

Trump's press conference was more spectacle than real news, but there were encouraging signs that his still-evolving Trump Tower Chicago--to be built on the riverfront site occupied by the bargelike, seven-story Chicago Sun-Times building at 401 N. Wabash Ave.--has taken a few more steps toward becoming a quality addition to Chicago's vaunted skyline.

The developer's architect, Adrian Smith of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill of Chicago, has designed several new features that make the office-hotel-condominium tower less a behemoth and a more persuasive synthesis of the trim vertical look of the 1920s and today's dynamic, asymmetrical forms.

Though the height of the proposed skyscraper remains 1,125 feet, which would make it the city's fourth-tallest building, the number of condominium floors has grown, and the number of office floors has shrunk markedly, resulting in new setbacks and a more pleasing overall profile.

The setbacks create interlocking masses that make the tower more sculptural and less bulky, a refinement of the improved version of the design that Smith made public in July 2002. Just as important, the setbacks modulate the scale of Trump's giant, which has always threatened to dominate such distinguished neighbors as the frilly white Wrigley Building.

Additional positive changes include a richly articulated glass wall for the silvery skyscraper.

To be sure, there are weaknesses: The tower's top is more stumplike than before. But Smith and Trump have come a long way from the developer's terrible first proposal, unveiled in December 2001, which was a series of stacked boxes, with an occasional setback to relieve its overwhelming bulk. Amazingly, city officials praised it. Thankfully, it was junked.

So is there reason to relax and to expect that Trump won't defile the skyline if, as planned, he signs up tenants and starts tearing down the Sun-Times building next summer?

Hardly.

The ever-political Trump is saying all the right things, promising Tuesday, for example, that he will spend, spend, spend on the building's highly visible curtain wall. But that's just a promise.

Maybe "The Donald," like his tenants, should be required to sign on the dotted line.

Copyright © 2003, Chicago Tribune

Sky_Man

October 9th, 2003, 12:48 AM

I think this one will definitely get built, and it going to look awesome when it does.:cool:

http://***************************/random/trump200.gif

atkinson1

October 11th, 2003, 12:57 PM

Donald Trump never ceases to amaze me. I wonder what the combined value of all his projects (ever) is.

Trances

October 14th, 2003, 09:14 PM

So this is approved now and will go ahead ?

Sky_Man

October 14th, 2003, 09:44 PM

Originally posted by Trances

So this is approved now and will go ahead ?

It has been approved for a while now, and the condo units have been on sale since September 23, 2003. If enough condo's are sold, and a tenant takes the office space it will be built. Trump wants to start site preparation next summer, for delivery by late 2006, early 2007.

http://www.trumpchicago.com

http://***************************/random/trump200.gif

PornStar

October 15th, 2003, 12:51 PM

Wow, this is such an amazing tower! It's also really great news for Chicago, my favourite city in the Americas.

New Jack City

October 18th, 2003, 05:12 PM

From Chicago Sun Times:

http://newspaperads.suntimes.com/newspapers/chicagost/sections/031003/001_031003.jpg

http://newspaperads.suntimes.com/newspapers/chicagost/sections/031003/004_031003.jpg

http://newspaperads.suntimes.com/newspapers/chicagost/sections/031003/005_031003.jpg

AtlanticaC5

October 22nd, 2003, 02:35 PM

:eek: This building is just AWSOME!! Let's hope that it will get built, it's so impressive!! :cool:

Fabb

October 26th, 2003, 05:46 PM

I bet it will.
Trump is the perfect man for the job.

Wu-Gambino

October 28th, 2003, 04:32 AM

I'm glad it is taking the place of that ugly Sun Times building. BTW-Is 7SD lot still abandoned? I was in Chicago a while back and there was a huge abandoned lot in the Loop which looked perfect for development.

Rivernorth

October 28th, 2003, 11:37 PM

The lot is being prepared for groundbreaking for 1 South Dearborn. Its the same lot at 7SD, but they changed the address number so as to not associate the new building with the famed 7 South Dearborn proposal.

1SD will be a 40 story glass office building. Nothing too special. Ill try to find a pic of it to post.

Rivernorth

October 28th, 2003, 11:52 PM

1 South Dearborn (on the 7SD lot)

http://www.hksepc.com/images/news-onesouthdearborn.jpg

Chi-town

October 29th, 2003, 01:11 AM

Question about 1 S Dearborn: Are they going to tear down that hideous former Toys R Us store on State Street behind the site, and incorporate that into the building? I can't really tell, but from the rendering it almost looks like that's a possibility (the building looks really deep for the size of the empty lot there now).

Rivernorth

October 29th, 2003, 02:30 AM

I think so. When you figure in the plaza in front, then that dosent leave that much room left on the empty plot alone to hold in that building. What i think will happen is the old Toys R Us store will be demolished, and they will rent out retail space on the ground floor of the new building.

Tom in Chicago

October 29th, 2003, 10:03 PM

Are they going to tear down that hideous former Toys R Us store on State Street behind the site, and incorporate that into the building?

To my knowledge there is no plan to do anything of the sort. . . the building footprint will be contained entirely on the eastern half of the quarter block site adjacent to the alleyway. . . soil bore testing was done in May of this year and the caissons were clearly deliniated with steaks until they recently began construction at the site. . .

FloTownballer

October 31st, 2003, 05:40 PM

Very nice I think this is the best building trump has done so far

trussedtube

November 3rd, 2003, 12:32 AM

It's exciting to see a supertall that may actually be constructed in Chicago. Fantastic location on the river, and the revised designs are much less imposing to the other structures in the area. The slender, soaring profile of the building as viewed looking south from Wabash is particularly nice.

But overall I have to say it still is an unsatisfying, almost frustrating design. Other than it's height, location, and maybe name, I don't think it's worthy of being called "a new Chicago landmark for the 21st century." I agree with xgokhan -- the impression is that it's just some uninspired derivative of the Sears Tower, with simply the application of a curvier, brighter pallette.

Yes, the setbacks and shape of the building are defined by its contextual setting, with a sensitivity to its riverfront location and the rooflines of its distinguished neighboring buildings. Still, the shape variations of Trump Chicago as viewed from different angles seem manufactured and contrived -- not a natural expression of its structure, as with the three-dimensional interplay of the Sears Tower's bundled tubes, and for sure not an expression of a strong architectural vision.

I still hope this gets built. I just wished that Chicago was getting something more deserving of the best riverfront site in the city, and that gems like Marina City, IBM Tower, and Wrigley were getting a more worthy neighbor.

Chi-town

November 4th, 2003, 12:28 AM

There are some constraints when designing a building of this height in a city like Chicago, though, especially when it is a mixed-use tower. I was explaining this to a friend of mine when he said it was similar to the Sears Tower, referring to its setbacks.

You can't build a building of this height without either setbacks or an open plaza adjacent to it, due to zoning laws meant to allow adequate natural light at street level. This is even more of a requirement for a mixed-use building, in which the upper floors containing condominiums can't possibly have as large a footprint as the lower floors containing offices, retail, and parking.

Given those constraints, I'm not going to fault the design. Is it ground-breaking architecture? Certainly not. Is it better than any 1,000+ foot skyscraper constructed since I.M. Pei's Bank of China in Hong Kong? I'd say so. And even that was a Sears Tower derivative, albeit with very interesting geometries. As you said, the design is conceived with the riverfront site in mind, and the setbacks respect its two most important neighbors. The facade detail also looks like it will be top notch. And it's infinitely better than the rest of the condo towers with parking at the bottom that have been going up recently.

trussedtube

November 4th, 2003, 04:05 AM

Chi town, agreed. It goes without saying that this is far superior to any of the condo-tower-on-parking-garage-pedestals plaguing the city. And I meant to add in my original post that, in spite of any criticisms, it definitely is better than most of the actually-constructed supertall designs of recent memory.

It's quite a compliment to go back all the way to Pei's tower to find something superior, and I think you may be right. TTC's facade detailing is certainly a high point, and I hope this aspect of the tower will really push the design up to a higher level aesthetically when/if it is realized.

So I was probably a little hypercritical when I said I wanted something more worthy of the site and its neighbors, as it certainly is a worthy building. Still, it's been so long since our last supertall, and this will be such a dominating/overwhelming presence at such a key location, that I do wish for something better, something truly outstanding, something "groundbreaking" -- something that would truly be a landmark.

Sky_Man

November 6th, 2003, 11:05 PM

Here's TTC from another angle.;)

__________http://www.som.com/resources/projects/4/9/4/trump_wabash08_03_494.jpg

ganjavih

November 7th, 2003, 09:23 PM

Man, that first design was such a piece of crap - how could that even be considered. This new design will look great.

Chi-town

November 9th, 2003, 05:54 AM

I see what you mean, trussedtube. Sears and Hancock seem to have a way of getting themselves featured or at least mentioned in every skyscraper book written, and this may or may not be the case for TTC. Still, I think that's quite a tall order to ask for.

Sometimes "groundbreaking" just doesn't look good, either. Taipei 101 is groundbreaking, at least in its engineering and uniqueness, but I think it's a hideous building. Unless you're going to get Norman Foster to design a supertall (and raise the $1.5 billion or so that a design of his this size would probably cost), I don't know if you can expect better. SOM does supertalls... that's their thing. Adrian Smith is their #1 guy. And this building is a definite improvement on his past designs.

I also think it's atypical enough for a major Chicago building to become a landmark. Maybe not something that the rest of the country/world recognizes Chicago from, but at least for Chicagoans and people in the metro. It'll be our first non-modernist supertall, and there's really nothing like it in the city so far.

New Jack City

November 13th, 2003, 12:47 AM

Here are new larger renderings of the final design from skyscrapers.com:

http://www.emporis.co.uk/files/transfer/6/2003/11/228304.jpg

http://www.emporis.co.uk/files/transfer/6/2003/11/228305.jpg

De Snor

November 14th, 2003, 10:30 AM

:okay:

who doesn't like this tower :D

MiCH

November 18th, 2003, 10:59 AM

<--- Not so much actually. I think the base is too wide.

Trances

November 18th, 2003, 11:12 AM

I like this tower
Feature remind me a little of Chifly in Sydney

Steely Dan

November 18th, 2003, 05:45 PM

well, here is an article from today's tribune that outlines some potential troubled waters for TTC, but at least trump sounds confident that any ownership change at hollinger/sun-times will have no effect on his proposed tower. we'll see what happens.

Trump sees no effect on plans: `Our deal is done'

By Thomas A. Corfman
Tribune staff reporter
Published November 18, 2003, 12:00 AM CST

A new chief executive at the parent company of the Chicago Sun-Times won't affect Donald Trump's plans for a 90-story mixed-use project that would replace the newspaper's riverfront headquarters, the New York developer said Monday.

"No impact at all; we have a signed contract," he said. "We're well under way in the sales process. We've sold in excess of $250 million [in residential units] already. Our deal is already done."

Trump's deal with Chicago-based Hollinger International Inc., parent company of the Sun-Times, was reached two years ago, when Hollinger planned to continue to own the newspaper but move it from the seven-story, 535,000-square-foot building at 401 N. Wabash Ave. But Monday, Hollinger announced an executive shake-up and said it would explore a sale of its assets, including the Sun-Times.

The $75 million value given to the site is widely regard as a top-dollar price, but the possible sale of the newspaper could prompt a re-examination of the joint venture, experts said.

"I have to believe there are some complications to the Trump deal that a buyer is going to look at very carefully," said John Goodman, executive vice president in the Chicago office of Julien J. Studley Inc.

Legal experts said it would not be unusual for Hollinger to have the right to cancel the venture with Trump.

"In a complicated transaction like this one, there are probably a series of points at which either party could bail from the deal," said Anthony Licata, managing partner of Chicago-based law firm Shefsky & Froelich.

But terminating the deal would typically require a payment to Trump, who has spent money on architects, marketing and advertising.

Financing has not yet been announced for the 2.4 million-square-foot project, which will include luxury condos, a hotel, office and retail space.

Although Trump and Hollinger are 50-50 partners, Hollinger is to receive $75 million before any other profits are distributed, according to a regulatory filing. Hollinger also made a $900,000 investment in the deal.

But their deal doesn't give Hollinger the option to terminate the project, Trump said.

Copyright © 2003, Chicago Tribune

AND here's the sun-times blurb about this whole affair:

Sale won't affect Trump Tower plans

BY DAVID ROEDER Business Reporter

The potential sale of Hollinger International Inc., the owner of the Sun-Times, will have no impact on plans to replace the newspaper's downtown headquarters with a 90-story residential and commercial building, executives said Monday.

Developer Donald Trump's contract for the property at 401 N. Wabash is a partnership with Hollinger International. Executives said there were no separate deals with Hollinger International Chairman Conrad Black and former Sun-Times Publisher F. David Radler.

Individual payments Black and Radler received as part of other Hollinger International transactions brought shareholder criticism on both men.

Tere Proctor, sales director for the Trump project, said 70 percent of the building's 500 residential units are under contract to buyers.

"The project couldn't be a bigger success,'' Proctor said. However, the Trump International Hotel and Tower still must secure retail and office tenants before it can finance construction.

Rivernorth

November 22nd, 2003, 01:24 AM

Amazing news. With this tower having such sales success, not only does this increase, and possibly solidify plans for TTC, but Trump might be inclined to build another tower in Chicago! Maybe this time, building a WTB here, as was the origional plan with TTC. Trump is getting angry with NYC, and if they wont let him build his WTB there, he will build it in Chicago! :D

Rivernorth

November 22nd, 2003, 01:52 AM

there is an interview of Adrian Smith at skyscrapers.com
In that interview, he gives us some interesting TTC information:

How does contextualism relate to Trump Tower and Burj Dubai?

That’s a good question. On Trump Tower the heights of the surrounding buildings have an influence on the massing. The first setback relates to the Wrigley Building, the second setback relates to the height of Marina City and River Plaza, and the third setback relates to the IBM Building.

The texture of IBM influenced the texture of Trump, as did the rhythm and lightness of the Wrigley Building. I think the challenge in making this a contextual piece is that it’s located in the middle of several dynamic buildings that each have their own importance to the city and to the field of architecture in general, so I was trying to synthesize the surrounding architecture by taking the IBM Building’s delicate simplicity and yet rejecting its darkness.

In your interview on Chicago Tonight you mentioned that the spire was decorative and was designed to help "uplift" the building.

Yes, to give it a higher visual aspect ratio. I want to make the spire more dominant than it is as we move forward on the design.

There was a prior rendering that had a taller spire than what is on there now.

Yes... well, we’re going to make it taller than it is now.

What’s the color of the skin going to be when finished?

It’s going to be stainless steel and natural anodized aluminum.

Sort of like the Inland Steel Building?

Yes, it’s going to have textured stainless steel spandrels with horizontal polished stainless steel tubes projecting about a foot out from the façade. The anchorage system for those tubes will be intricate, and the shadows and reflection from the tubes will give the skin a very lattice-like or lacy quality. Similar to what was done at Jin Mao, but not nearly as vociferous. I wanted Jin Mao to read as a solid metallic building, and I used as much metal as I could get away with.

Here I think it’s all right to be glassy, but I wanted an expression of depth to the wall and a lacy filigree appearance. With a glass wall that’s fairly reflective, one can use the reflective nature of the glass to increase the sense of depth by hanging elements away from the glass and have those elements reflected in the glass to give the illussion of depth. In this case, it will reflect the projected tubes that surround the building, so it will seem as though the wall is two feet thick. The depth will give it a more solid but delicate appearance. I wanted to be neutral to the pallettes of both IBM and the Wrigley Building.

zulu69

November 27th, 2003, 01:02 PM

I think its great news that the spire will be changed. Right now it looks kinda cheap.
Still wouldnt mind if they topped it off with a dome (like Chrylser) wonder why not many bulidings are???

De Snor

November 27th, 2003, 11:38 PM

A dome , hmm why not a kind of crown ?

Midnight Rambler

November 28th, 2003, 06:03 AM

that is one cool building

rj2uman

November 29th, 2003, 08:28 AM

I really didn't like this in the B&W pic. But the in color it's starting to grow on me.....

Brunswick

December 30th, 2003, 03:23 AM

The Trump Tower is going to look great .

JPKneworleans

December 30th, 2003, 04:28 AM

Perhaps...just perhaps...the sale of so many residential units could inspire the addition of a few more floors to the building. Two-five would be nice!

qwerty1324

December 30th, 2003, 04:46 AM

Originally posted by JPKneworleans

Perhaps...just perhaps...the sale of so many residential units could inspire the addition of a few more floors to the building. Two-five would be nice!

That is what many of us are hoping for - more floors. Trump Tower has sold its condos at a blazing pace.

Tom in Chicago

January 2nd, 2004, 01:11 AM

That is what many of us are hoping for - more floors.

Regardless of how they configure the floors, the building will not be any taller than 1,125' to the roof. . .

Style™

January 9th, 2004, 02:50 AM

Anymore renderings? :)

New Jack City

January 10th, 2004, 07:13 PM

http://www.emporis.co.uk/files/transfer/6/2004/01/239122.jpg

http://www.som.com/resources/projects/4/9/4/trump_lakeview_113003_494.jpg

[Smeagol]

January 11th, 2004, 04:54 AM

uooooo!!!! Wonderful;)

JPKneworleans

January 13th, 2004, 04:38 AM

Originally posted by Tom in Chicago

That is what many of us are hoping for - more floors.

Regardless of how they configure the floors, the building will not be any taller than 1,125' to the roof. . .

Why's that? Was there something in the city's approval?

Rivernorth

January 13th, 2004, 11:15 AM

Trump does not want to build it taller than 1,125. He wants it to descretely remain Chicago's 4rth tallest due to terrorism. However, that might change, as it seems Mr. Trump wants to compete with Freedom Tower in NYC, as shown by the high flying new spire on TTC.

New Jack City

January 24th, 2004, 12:10 AM

Chicago Sun-Times

Trump gets OK to increase condo units in planned tower

January 23, 2004 - DAVID ROEDER Business Reporter

With office tenants hard to find, Donald Trump has secured city approval to increase the number of condominiums and hotel rooms in his planned Chicago tower.

The action means Trump could proceed without including office space in the building, which would replace the Sun-Times headquarters at 401 N. Wabash. But its overall size -- 90 stories, 2.4 million square feet -- would not change.

Russell Flicker, vice president at the Trump Organization, said Thursday it hasn't decided whether it'll stick with earlier plans for 351,000 square feet of office space. The city approval was sought to make certain Trump could legally make the switch, Flicker said.

"As with anything, we want to retain as much flexibility as possible,'' he said. In a letter dated Jan. 5, the planning department said Trump could increase the number of residences by 200, to 700. The total includes 500 condominiums and 200 hotel rooms, which also are offered for sale.

The residential sales have been strong at what will be called Trump International Hotel & Tower. Flicker said deposits have been received for 350 units, including about 80 of the hotel rooms. Prices for the condos range from $518,000 to more than $11 million.

Trump has been stymied in his search for a sizable office tenant. The downtown market remains soft, with other new buildings sopping up what little demand exists for large blocs of space.

Flicker said the residential sales have long since surpassed thresholds for financing the $650 million building. Trump hopes to begin demolishing the Sun-Times building this fall.

The paper is seeking a new downtown headquarters. Sources said three buildings are in the running: the former Apparel Center at 350 N. Orleans, the former Traffic Court at 325 N. LaSalle, and the 111 E. Wacker building.

Meanwhile, the Sun-Times has notified tenants in its building that they must vacate by June 30.

Trump is developing the new building in a venture with Hollinger International Inc., the parent of the Sun-Times.

New Jack City

January 24th, 2004, 12:12 AM

Chicago Tribune

Trump erases tower's offices
Number of condos, hotel rooms to rise

January 23, 2004 - Thomas A. Corfman

Donald Trump has eliminated office space from the 90-story skyscraper proposed for the site of the Chicago Sun-Times building. Instead, the tower will contain 40 percent more condominiums and hotel rooms.

Eliminating the office space, which would have occupied the 17th through 26th floors in Trump Tower, is a bit of an about-face for the developer, who four months ago professed optimism about that part of the project. "The pressure [from potential tenants] has been very extraordinary. People want to be in this building," he said.

Trump could not be reached Thursday for comment.

The change is a sign of the New York developer's remarkable success selling condos at prices never before achieved in the downtown Chicago market. With a goal of averaging $1,000 a square foot, Trump is charging about $500,000 for a one-bedroom condo after an October price increase.

But the change also is a sign of Trump's failure to attract an anchor office tenant to what is likely to be one of the city's premier buildings. It is expected to be completed in 2007.

Although the weak downtown office market may be partly to blame, the location itself bears the brunt of the responsibility, real estate industry experts say.

Despite spectacular views from the site, which sits along the north bank of the Chicago River at Wabash Avenue, large office tenants prefer the West Loop, and particularly Wacker Drive, because of the closeness to commuter train stations and expressways.

"High-priced office product on the eastern part of the central business district is a tough sell," said Joseph Learner, executive vice president with Chicago office of tenant representative Julien J. Studley Inc. "The office migration is westward."

Other factors in the West Loop's office boom include the renewed vitality of the downtown entertainment district, the increasing number of trendy restaurants and new housing on the Near West Side.

Trump had been reducing the office portion of the 2.4 million-square-foot project almost from the moment he announced the development in July 2001. By September the office space had been reduced to 351,000 square feet, down from 1.2 million square feet in the initial plan.

Now the number of condos could increase to as many as 500, compared with 326 earlier. The number of so-called condo-hotel units could rise to as many as 200, up from 174. The Chicago Planning Department gave administrative approval this month to the changes.

In December, Trump's New York-based development firm said it had agreements to sell 300 units, including both condos and condo-hotel units.

Nearly 2 million square feet of office space has been leased in new buildings since Trump announced his project, according to a report by Studley.

Among the anchor deals that Trump missed:

- In 2002, Deloitte & Touche LLP signed a lease for 424,200 square feet of space at 111 S. Wacker Drive, a 1 million-square-foot office tower developed by John Buck Co. The Chicago-based developer followed up that deal by signing a 194,000-square-foot lease with law firm Lord Bissell & Brook LLP.

- Also in 2002, law firm Mayer, Brown, Rowe & Maw agreed to be the anchor tenant in Hyatt Center, 71 S. Wacker Drive, by taking about 450,000 square feet in the 1.3 million-square-foot structure being developed by Chicago-based Higgins Development Partners LLC, which is backed by the Pritzker family. New York investment bank Goldman Sachs & Co. also signed a lease for 180,000 square feet of space.

- Trump also failed to win the one deal that bucked the westward trend, when law firm Sidley Austin Brown & Wood LLP signed up for more than 500,000 square feet at 1 S. Dearborn St., an 820,000-square-foot tower being developed by Houston-based Hines Interests LP.

Trump's early marketing efforts were marred when his firm was represented in 2001 by a fledgling real estate firm whose co-founder, John Thomas, was arrested in 2000 but never charged in connection with an alleged fraud scheme in New York. Trump executives denied that they ever formally hired the firm, called Carnegie Realty Partners LLC, and severed ties in February 2002.

Trump then hired a well-known Chicago firm, U.S. Equities Realty LLC, to handle leasing.

Style™

January 24th, 2004, 01:49 AM

Well, not bad news for Chicago. At least they are still getting the building! :D

Trump made a smart move though. What transportation options are near this building?

This also shows that the condo market in Chicago is strong! I would love to get a place up there with those views! :cool:

james2390

January 24th, 2004, 07:53 AM

Great news for Chicago, This adds to the list of buildings I cant wait to get completed:D

jordanb

January 24th, 2004, 09:02 PM

It's about two blocks (1/4th of a mile) from Grand on the red line (and about two blocks from Lake on Loop and Red Line. It's also less than a block from Michigan Avenue, which has a *shitload* of busses on it.

oscyrkorso

February 9th, 2004, 12:25 AM

so when will they finally start building the tower¿?¿?

Wu-Gambino

February 9th, 2004, 04:29 AM

I don't know if this has been said, but how much of the tower is residential. It would seem Trump would want the World's Tallest All-Residential Building.

SHORTY

February 14th, 2004, 09:18 PM

A quick note FYI! After some panic that the tower had been scraped we can now report that Trump Tower Toronto is now undergoing a marketing change. The sales centre is being renovated and the Donald is reportedly coming up to launch the new sales campaign. Cross your fingers that our Trump tower will also be rising soon.
I love the way TTC fits it's site in Chicago. SOM and Trump have done a great job at designing a tower to work in that area.

Chi-town

February 18th, 2004, 09:59 PM

Originally posted by oscyrkorso

so when will they finally start building the tower¿?¿?
Construction (or at least demolition of the existing building) is planned for July 2004.

De Snor

February 19th, 2004, 09:36 AM

Originally posted by Chi-town

Construction (or at least demolition of the existing building) is planned for July 2004.

I want a webcam on this spot so I can follow daily what happens here :)

qwerty1324

February 20th, 2004, 07:46 AM

Originally posted by De Snor

I want a webcam on this spot so I can follow daily what happens here :)

Don't worry, I will be happily taking pictures of the destruction of the eyesore and the construction of the new building.

Roch5220

February 26th, 2004, 08:55 PM

I'm so jealeous, words are hard to come by.

L.M.B.

February 28th, 2004, 02:01 AM

I love this building. This will look great in Chicago!

:dance:

C'mon Donald, lets see what changes ya got in mind for Trump Toronto.:soon:

New Jack City

February 28th, 2004, 06:17 PM

Trump on the tower from CNN's Larry Larry King Live last night:

KING: You're building a building, the second tallest building in Chicago?

TRUMP: I'm building actually the largest building in the Midwest since the Sears Tower, 2.7 million square feet at the Sun-Times site on the river. It's going to be mostly apartments and hotels and it's going to be, we already sold $40 million of apartments and we haven't started building the building.

Here's the transcript source:

http://www.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0402/27/lkl.00.html

Roch5220

February 29th, 2004, 05:35 PM

^ I saw that to. He said $400 million were sold, not $40 million. I saw a person calling from Toronto and I really wanted them to ask about Trump Toronto but they didn't

Roch5220

February 29th, 2004, 05:59 PM

I'm confused about Trump's finances. Can anyone help me out here. Trump is in trouble of losing his company due to his $1.8 billion LT debt, Credit Suisse has offered to give the company $400 million in exchange for a controlling interest in the company. But then I heard that his real estate holdings were not apart of his company? What is he in danger of losing if the Credit Suisse offer is accepted and what will he still control, and will he still have enough financial backing to start other quality projects?

NWside

March 2nd, 2004, 02:14 AM

Trump shuffles tower mix
Cuts office space, boosts residential
By Kelly Quigley
_
The Trump Organization on Monday confirmed plans to scale back the office portion of its planned $650-million tower along the Chicago River, and add 161 more condos and hotel suites in its place.

Donald J. Trump’s development company said it also plans to add larger condo and hotel lobbies, “elegant” ballrooms, a conference center, indoor and outdoor restaurants and an enclosed river walk.

“The overwhelming reception, exceeding all our projections, to the building since our grand opening in September has enabled us to create these new amenities,” Mr. Trump said in a statement.

The high-rise on the site of the Chicago Sun-Times building will remain 90 stories tall, but Trump’s revised plan calls for nearly one-third more condominium and hotel units, which will substitute for the lost office space (ChicagoBusiness.com, Jan. 22).

Trump’s last proposal included 500 units: 326 condos and 174 “hotel-condo” units—hotel suites sold to individual owners like condominiums. Under the new plan, the New York-based developer plans to build 661 units—461 condos and 200 hotel suites.

The company said it already has more than 300 units under contract to be sold. The condo units range from $512,000 to $11 million, while the hotel units range from $409,000 to more than $1 million.

The move to expand the residential portion makes sense, considering how well the condo and hotel units have sold and how much trouble Trump has had luring office tenants to the 2.4-million-square-foot project.

Architecture firm Skidmore Owings & Merrill LLP, which designed the Trump building, had considered moving there, and Trump representatives also had talked to law firm Jenner & Block LLC, a logical target considering the firm is right next door in the IBM Building. Talks with another law firm, McGuire Woods LLP, broke off in late November.

The Trump International Hotel & Tower is a joint venture between the Trump Organization and Hollinger International Inc., the Sun-Times’ Chicago-based parent. Trump executives have said the project will move forward despite the scandals that have embroiled Hollinger and recent plans to sell a controlling stake in the company.

Trump executives said they want to break ground on the tower this summer.

3-1-04 chicagobusiness.com

New Jack City

March 4th, 2004, 03:50 AM

This means no office space at all?

Would it also count as tallest residential buiding and hotel in the world?

Tom in Chicago

March 6th, 2004, 06:48 PM

This means no office space at all?

The fact that this buiding will no longer contain any office component is actually a bit of old news. . . but true. . . the building will contain a mix of hotel and condominium units. . .

Would it also count as tallest residential buiding and hotel in the world?

No. . . since there is a hotel component, the building is pretty much referred to as "mixed-use" and falls under the same category as the John Hancock Center or Jin Mao. . .

Chi-town

March 6th, 2004, 10:14 PM

Personally, I feel that, given their particular nature, these "hotel" units should count as residential. The entire building is under the ownership of individuals, if you want to use that standard.

Tom in Chicago

March 7th, 2004, 09:33 PM

For all practical purposes this is a mixed-use building. . . there will be commercial revenues generated from the hotel units as opposed to the regular condominum units. . . therefore the City of Chicago has it zoned as such and there's no reason to categorize it any other way. . .

Wu-Gambino

April 16th, 2004, 05:51 AM

Congrats Bill!

james2390

April 16th, 2004, 06:19 AM

When will the tower most likely be open?

mypetrobot

April 16th, 2004, 09:24 AM

if anyone watches tv or not. the winner of the appretnece (sp?) wil head the construcion of the trump tower in chicago. so now we know its going to be built.

i think it opens up in july '07. i know for sure in 2007 though.

Ed007Toronto

April 16th, 2004, 04:30 PM

I'm not saying the project won't be built, but basing a $700 million US project on the basis of someone winning a reality show is just plain irrationnal. Trump Chicago will be built based on finances not because they now need to give Bill a job.

mypetrobot

April 16th, 2004, 09:12 PM

maybe i should've ended it with /sarcasm.

but either way its going to be built. don't be pissy about you tornoto trash. btw. leafs are going down. go sens!!

chara is my hero.

Style™

April 17th, 2004, 04:55 AM

If it gets behind schedule, you know who to go to.

New Jack City

April 17th, 2004, 04:42 PM

Tribnet

'Apprentice' winner gets Trump tower, but will it happen?

MONICA DAVEY AND TIMOTHY L. O'BRIEN; The New York Times

CHICAGO - Some in the real estate industry in Chicago have long wondered whether Donald Trump's plans for a glassy, high-end, 90-story hotel and condominium tower along the banks of the Chicago River were reality or just some New Yorker's fantasy of leaving his mark on the city.

It seemed fitting, then, when real life and fiction blurred some more, and the Trump International Hotel & Tower found its project manager on the finale of a "reality TV" show.

Trump named Bill Rancic, who won NBC's "The Apprentice" on Thursday night and had earlier made a living selling cigars on the Internet, as "president" of the $700 million project. The plan still needs financing, final sign-offs from City Hall and demolition of the Chicago Sun-Times building that sits on the site of the tower-to-be.

"This is a large and sophisticated project, and the job is like being the conductor of an orchestra," Bruce Cohen, the chief executive of Cohen Financial Capital Management in Chicago, observed. "I don't know how somebody can conduct the Chicago Symphony Orchestra if they've never gone to a concert before, and if they've never played any of the instruments."

On Friday, Trump said he was still working out precisely what duties Rancic, 32, will hold as president of the project Trump says will become the fourth-tallest building in Chicago. The plans were still being worked out, but it's slated to be finished in 2007.

This had all just happened so fast, he said.

"It will be an important job," Trump said. "He will be a project manager."

Why entrust such a key-sounding role on a complicated construction project to someone of Rancic's experience?

For one thing, Trump said, Rancic will be "working with a team of highly trained professionals who have done nothing but build buildings their whole lives - including me."

And for another, he said, there was simple business to consider (as any successful apprentice would surely know): How better to show the world where they can buy sky-high condominiums in Chicago's downtown than on a national television broadcast with sky-high ratings?

"I felt that this was a great opportunity to promote a great project," Trump said. "If I didn't have Bill to do this, I would have lost that opportunity."

This, Trump's first foray into Chicago, has hardly been smooth.

He and his partner in the project, Hollinger International Inc., which owns The Chicago Sun-Times and other newspapers, announced three years ago that they planned to build a tower on the site of the Sun-Times, a squat and otherwise unimpressive boxlike building along the architecturally rich Chicago River in the heart of downtown.

No one pretended they would miss the Sun-Times building (all seven stories of it), but Trump's dreams of building into the sky - with perhaps the tallest building in the world and, more disturbing to some, the tallest building in Chicago - did not sit well. This is a city that prides itself on its skyline and some feared that Trump might leave a blemish.

After the attacks of Sept. 11, the desire for tall buildings vanished and Trump's plan grew shorter. Then, early drawings drew scoffs. Blair Kamin, the architecture critic for The Chicago Tribune, compared one version to a "bloated blob of a skyscraper" and a "skyline dud."

Eventually, Trump's people drew up a new plan, which won more praise from the architectural world but many doubts from other developers and those who finance buildings in the city.

The project has yet to receive financing, and some Chicagoans wonder whether it will. Hollinger International is fending off troubles of its own in recent months: Conrad Black, the former chief executive, quit in November after directors questioned millions in payments to him. And Trump presides over an increasingly troubled gambling empire, with his casino holdings stuck in almost $2 billion in bond debt.

"There is a lot of healthy skepticism about it, I would say," said Anthony Licata, the managing partner of Shefsky & Froelich, a Chicago law firm that often deals with real estate. "That said, Trump has made a career of proving people wrong. I would never bet against that guy."

On Friday, Molly Morse, a spokeswoman for Hollinger International, said she had no comment on whether the company's current troubles might affect the Chicago project, of which Hol-linger would have half ownership, she said. But Trump said the doubters - if there were any - were wasting their time. He said he was discussing the financing with five major institutions "all of which are dying to do the job." And he said that the project had the City Hall approvals it needed.

City Hall officials say the tower has received the most crucial zoning and planning approvals, but add the plan also requires a final administrative sign-off from the city once the most detailed drawings are submitted and Trump applies for demolition and building permits.

"This thing is happening," Trump said.

And even some early doubters say they could not ignore the success Trump has had at convincing buyers to sign contracts for the building. Though the units in the tower are selling at prices far beyond Chicago's usual levels (the condos range from $579,000 to $15 million), and though they are at least three years away, many units are under contract.

Buyers have signed contracts on 325 of the building's planned 461 residential condominium units, and on 128 of the building's 200 hotel condominium units (which buyers can rent out as hotel rooms), said Tere Proctor, the director of sales in Chicago.

SIDEBAR: What about the golf course?

When Bill Rancic aced "The Apprentice," Donald Trump gave him a choice of two plum jobs: managing a Trump-owned golf course in California or overseeing a 90-story building project in Chicago.

"In a way, I'm very happy he didn't choose the golf course, 'cause I put someone there about a month and a half ago, and they're doing a great job," Trump said after the Thursday night broadcast. "It could have been a little bit embarrassing."

The snag was averted.

http://www.tribnet.com/images/tribnet/xtq_pictures/20040417-images/539168-195153.jpg
Here's how Donald Trump thinks his 90-story Trump International Hotel & Tower, the tallest building on the right, will look in Chicago's skyline.

mypetrobot

April 17th, 2004, 10:25 PM

i don't know if these pictures have been posted but heres some renderings of pictures of the trump tower in the chicago skyline:

http://www.mypetrobot.net/pics/trump.jpg

http://www.mypetrobot.net/pics/trump tower.jpg

The Windy City

April 20th, 2004, 08:03 AM

Trump Tower Chicago is going to break the mold when it comes to modern architecture of the 21st century. With the $450 million dollar Millenium Park set to open, along with the $650 million dollar state of the art Soldier Field, Chicago is taking the first bold step into the new century.
http://www.musc.edu/cando/geocam2/graphics/chicago.jpg

mypetrobot

April 21st, 2004, 06:18 AM

true that brotha

Steeltrees

April 25th, 2004, 03:52 AM

Considering that it was begun in 2001, I don't think there's much of a worry about it getting built. Good news, though.

New Jack City

April 26th, 2004, 09:15 PM

Chicago Tribune

Far from a done deal

RedEye news services
Published April 26, 2004, 6:31 AM CDT

Some experts in the Chicago real estate industry have long wondered whether Donald Trump's plans for a high-end 90-story hotel and condominium tower along the banks of the Chicago River were reality or just some New Yorker's fantasy of leaving his mark on this town.

It seemed fitting, then, that the next stage of this dream of Trump's found its project manager on the finale of a reality television show.

rump named "The Apprentice" Bill Rancic as "president" of this $700 million project, which still needs financing, final signoffs from City Hall and demolition of the Chicago Sun-Times building, which sits on the site of the tower-to-be.

This, Trump's first foray into Chicago, began bumpily.

He and his partner in the project, Hollinger International Inc., which owns newspapers around the globe, announced three years ago that they planned to build a 150-story tower on the site at 401 N. Wabash St. After the Sept. 11 attacks, the desire for tall buildings vanished.

Eventually, Trump's people drew up a new plan, which won some praise from the architectural world, but many doubts from other developers and those who finance buildings here, because of its high prices.

The project has yet to receive financing, and some here wonder whether it will. Hollinger International has been fending off troubles in recent months, and Trump has dealt with a troubled gambling empire.

"There is a lot of healthy skepticism about it, I would say," said Anthony Licata, the managing partner of Shefsky & Froelich, a Chicago law firm that often deals with real estate. "That said, Trump has made a career of proving people wrong. I would never bet against that guy."

But Trump said that the doubters were wasting their time. He said he was discussing the financing with five major institutions, "all of which are dying to do the job." And he said that the project had the City Hall approvals it needed.

City Hall officials said the tower had received the most crucial zoning and planning approvals, but that the plan would also require a final signoff once the most detailed drawings were submitted.

"This thing is happening," Trump said.

And even some early doubters said they could not ignore the success Trump has had, already, at persuading buyers to sign contracts for the building and put down earnest money. Though the units in the tower are pricey ($579,000 to $15 million) and though they are at least three years away, many units are under contract.

Buyers have signed contracts on 325 of the building's 461 residential units, and on 128 of the building's 200 hotel units (which buyers can rent out as hotel rooms), said Tere Proctor, director of sales in Chicago.

http://images.chicagotribune.com/media/thumbnails/photo/2004-04/411495.jpg

Route

April 27th, 2004, 05:00 AM

Man, let this thing happen!

Chi-town

May 2nd, 2004, 10:38 PM

- edit

dancethingy

May 3rd, 2004, 07:57 AM

This is great news. I hope Adriane Smith will come out with a final model/design of the building in the next few weeks. The building needs some final alterations to make look less bulky. I hope the top tapers of more sharply, it seems to kinda just tapers a bit and then end. I dunno what i'm talking about, I just think it needs more shape.

Steeltrees

May 4th, 2004, 07:15 PM

Considering that it was begun in 2001, I don't think there's much of a worry about it getting built. Good news, though.

I guess construction actually started this year, but plans have been around since 2001...my bad.

mypetrobot

May 10th, 2004, 03:18 AM

AP Wire Posted on Sat, May. 08, 2004

Chicago Sun-Times signs lease for new location

CHICAGO - Officials with the parent company of the Chicago Sun-Times have signed a lease to move the newspaper's employees to a building six blocks west, freeing developer Donald Trump to demolish the newspaper's current site on the Chicago River.

Trump plans to replace the seven-story building - which the newspaper has occupied since 1958 - with a 90-story condominium and hotel tower. The newspaper's owner, Hollinger International Inc., is a co-investor.

About 500 newspaper employees will move to the former Apparel Center, with a target move-in date of Sept. 30, the Sun-Times reported Saturday.

The newspaper will occupy 128,000 square feet in the two-building complex, which also has river views. Details about rental rates were not disclosed.

Sun-Times Publisher John Cruickshank said once printing presses were moved from the building at 401 N. Wabash Ave. to a location south of downtown several years ago, the building became more valuable for redevelopment.

He said the new location will allow for efficient use of space and is easily accessible by public transportation and car.

"This is part of starting new," said Cruickshank.

Trump has reported signing sales contracts for about 70 percent of the units in his new building. He's expected to begin demolition soon after the newspaper staff departs.

Overseeing the project will be Bill Rancic, the Chicagoan who last month won a job with Trump on the television program, "The Apprentice."

:drunk: now demolition can take place.... woohoo

Route

May 23rd, 2004, 05:19 AM

Would love to see a skyline rendering with this tower and the new 1000 ft. residential tower added.

Wu-Gambino

May 24th, 2004, 05:23 AM

Isn't there a model of it somewhere in the city?

geoff_diamond

May 25th, 2004, 05:46 AM

RafflesCity

May 25th, 2004, 05:55 AM

Hi! Welcome to the forum! :)

geoff_diamond

May 25th, 2004, 06:17 AM

danke :)

Wu-Gambino

May 26th, 2004, 12:51 AM

Hi all! This is my first post here :) Can't belive I've let this resource go untapped for so long! At any rate, Naptown, if you're referring to a model of Trump Int'l... I'm pretty sure there's one in the sales center at the Sun Times bldg.
I'll be in Chicago in a few weeks, so maybe I'll check it out.

I can't believe the Sun Times is moving to an even uglier building! :lol:

geoff_diamond

May 27th, 2004, 05:50 AM

Well that's not even funny!

New Jack City

May 27th, 2004, 09:39 PM

Chicago Tribune

Will Trump say: 'You're higher'?

By Blair Kamin
Tribune architecture critic
Published May 27, 2004

Donald Trump has a new choice to make, but it's not Bill versus Kwame.

It's whether his ego or his pragmatic side determines the official height of his planned Chicago skyscraper, the one that got so much attention on "The Apprentice."

At stake is whether the reality TV star and developer's Trump International Hotel and Tower will be (gee whiz!) the nation's second tallest building or (ho-hum) Chicago's fourth tallest building after Sears Tower, the Aon Center and the John Hancock Center.

It all may boil down to how Trump and his architects play the arcane rules that determine a building's official height.

A month after picking Chicago's Bill Rancic over Wall Streeter Kwame Jackson to be the nominal supervisor of the Chicago project on "The Apprentice," Trump called the Tribune last Friday to chat about (a.k.a. beat the publicity drums for) the proposed 90-story hotel and condo tower, which still requires final approval from City Hall.

Snippets from the conversation:

Timing: Trump wants to begin tearing down the seven-story Chicago Sun-Times building, which occupies the site of the proposed tower, this fall. "We're getting ready to start as soon as the Sun-Times moves out," he said. The demolition may begin in September or October.

Financing: Trump said he has five banks bidding on the project, adding, with typical bravado, "It's easy for me to get financing." He didn't name any of the banks, adding he would decide within 60 days which bank to use.

Casino troubles: Trump denied that the financial troubles at his three Atlantic City casino hotels would have any impact on the Chicago project. "That's a totally separate company," he snapped. "That's less than 2 percent of my net worth."

Sales at the Chicago project: Trump said he had sold more than $500 million worth of apartments. "That's probably 60 percent of the building has been sold already," he said. The tower's first tenants are supposed to move in in 2007.

Materials: Trump said he is considering two materials for the structural framework of the tower, steel and concrete. The advantage of steel, he added, is that it can be constructed more quickly than concrete. But concrete, which typically requires less height between floors, would make the building about 25 feet shorter than originally planned. When the design was unveiled in 2002, it was 1,125 feet tall, which would have made it the city's fourth tallest building -- two feet shorter than the 1,127-foot Hancock Center and 11 feet shorter than the 1,136-foot Aon Center.

The slim margin reflected post-Sept. 11, 2001, nervousness about tall buildings being terrorist targets and it represented a big shift for Trump, who had planned to erect the world's tallest building here.

"I don't want to be the tallest," Trump reiterated Friday. "Before Sept. 11, I wanted to be the tallest."

"I think the fourth tallest sounds good to me."

But a close look at the latest drawings of his tower, by Adrian Smith of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill of Chicago, reveals that the developer has plenty of wiggle room. The reason:The off-center spire of the tower, which Smith adorned with communications dishes in 2002, no longer is pictured with the dishes.

When the dishes were present, the spire was, technically, a broadcast antenna. Broadcast antennas do not count in official height measurements of the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat, the Chicago-based group that is the arbiter of such matters. Ornamental spires do count.

Without the dishes, the spire officially could be ruled part of the building's height, meaning that Trump's tower would "grow" to about 1,300 feet. That would make it taller than the 1,250-foot Empire State Building, now the nation's second tallest building, and second only to 1,450-foot Sears Tower in the U.S.

Smith acknowledged Tuesday that the door remains open for Trump to count the spire as part of the building's height.

"It's meant to be a formal architectural element," he said.

Whatever Trump chooses, there's reason to cheer Smith's latest refinements to the tower's summit: They make the top appear less stumplike than when Trump released drawings last fall. The new version, which shows the spire popping up like a waterjet from a rounded, Buck Rogers base, has just the right hint of skyline exuberance. It handsomely culminates the upward drive of the curving walls on the tower's northern side.

Still, from some angles, this remains a very broad building and that underscores the importance of Trump keeping his promise to pay for premium-quality exterior walls. They would be the equivalent of a well-cut tuxedo that makes a chunky fellow look svelte.

Not to worry, replies "The Donald," with a trademark blast of hype: "The curtain wall's gonna be brilliant. It'll be one of the finest buildings in America."

RafflesCity

May 27th, 2004, 11:23 PM

Amusing article!

So theyre gonna use the spire to cheat :puke:

Wu-Gambino

May 27th, 2004, 11:39 PM

Well not really, if they put those communication dishes on. Besides, it's already over 1,00 0 feet, that's all I care about.

RafflesCity

May 28th, 2004, 12:38 AM

Yah..as long as the bulk of the building is tall enough to create presence, whimsy spires dont matter.

qwerty1324

May 28th, 2004, 02:05 AM

Amusing article!

So theyre gonna use the spire to cheat :puke:

No kidding, especially after all of our bitching from Chicago about spires.

geoff_diamond

May 28th, 2004, 06:25 AM

So much for August demolition :\

CHI

May 29th, 2004, 08:30 PM

I think adding spires for height is one of the stupidest things to ever happen to highrise architecture.

texasboy

June 24th, 2004, 07:19 AM

http://eras.free.fr/images/chicago/trumpch.jpg

New Jack City

June 29th, 2004, 01:32 AM

AP

Trump buying out Hollinger's stake in tower venture

Posted on Thu, Jun. 24, 2004

CHICAGO - Donald Trump will pay $73 million to buy out Hollinger International's stake in the 90-story condominium and hotel tower Trump plans to build on the site of the Chicago Sun-Times building, the two parties said Thursday.

Under the terms of the agreement, Trump is paying $4 million now and the remaining $69 million at closing in exchange for the downtown property and its share in the joint venture. The deal is expected to close soon after the Sun-Times completes its move in September to a new headquarters building a few hundred yards west along the Chicago River.

Trump thanked Hollinger in a news release for its contributions to the skyscraper project, for which he said nearly $500 million worth of units have been sold even before construction starts. The 2.6 million-square-foot tower, expected to be completed in 2007, is to have 461 residences and 227 hotel units plus a health club, two ballrooms, a conference center, retail shops and a riverwalk park.

"When completed, Trump International Hotel and Tower will be one of the finest buildings anywhere in the world, in what is long considered to be the best location in Chicago," the New York developer said.

Hollinger International said it will realize a pre-tax gain of about $37.5 million from the transaction, marking a strong return on its investment in the project.

"The sale of our interest in this project to Trump is an important step forward in ensuring that we maximize value for all of Hollinger International's shareholders," said interim chairman and CEO Gordon Paris.

John Cruickshank, chief operating officer of Hollinger International's Chicago newspaper group and publisher of the Sun-Times, called the deal a good result for the Sun-Times and said it will allow the company to devote its full attention to newspaper publishing.

"We look forward to moving into our new space at 350 North Orleans, and we expect the transition to go smoothly," he said.

Hollinger International put many of its newspaper holdings up for sale after the controversial Conrad Black was forced out as CEO last year amid accusations he and his associates had received millions of dollars in unauthorized payments that should have gone to the company. On Tuesday, it announced the sale of its Telegraph Group, which includes The Daily Telegraph in London, to the billionaire Barclay brothers for about $1.3 billion.

bdonn

July 3rd, 2004, 02:29 PM

That's a pretty nice looking tower.

The one being built here in Toronto is so much thinner. (really small plot of land)

geoff_diamond

July 4th, 2004, 05:56 AM

Interesting. Didn't know that the Times had decided to move to Mart Plaza. I didn't even realize the building had enough available space to accomodate them.

Good find savethewtc.

Tom in Chicago

July 4th, 2004, 08:09 PM

The SunTimes are moving to the Apparel Center accross the street from the Merchandise Mart. . . also the image texasboy posted is old. . . here is more recent version in the context of the urban landscape:

http://skyscraperpage.com/gallery/data/500/5298trump_chicago.jpg

geoff_diamond

July 5th, 2004, 05:15 PM

OOOH!!! Bad Photoshop job there! Trump sorta sticks out like a sore thumb! BTW - I think alot of people call the apparel center "Mart Plaza."

Rivernorth

July 6th, 2004, 08:42 AM

OOOH!!! Bad Photoshop job there! Trump sorta sticks out like a sore thumb! BTW - I think alot of people call the apparel center "Mart Plaza."

thats the first time ive heard of that :) the apparel center has always been called the apparel center by everyone i know. the merchandise mart on the otherhand...

simulcra

July 7th, 2004, 02:20 AM

the apparel center has always been called the apparel center by everyone i know

I second that :)

geoff_diamond

July 8th, 2004, 03:33 AM

Ahhh yes, but, the Holiday Inn that's in the apparel center is called "Holiday Inn Mart Plaza." Which is probably where our (all of my friends) version of the name comes from.

Rickster885

July 8th, 2004, 05:45 AM

I love the design of this building. I think it ranks right up there with the Empire State Building and Chrysler Building. It is interesting to look at, and not too boxy. This building has a lot of class, which is to be expected with Donald Trump.

flyin_higher

July 8th, 2004, 12:04 PM

Yeah i agree, very nice building, classy indeed! Will be solid yet elegant addition to the most historic skyline in the world

WhiteSoxFan

July 16th, 2004, 07:18 PM

I like it :)

Wu-Gambino

July 16th, 2004, 10:10 PM

The Apparel Center is uglier than the Sun Times, somebody needs to buy that out and build a highrise residential there.

smiley

July 20th, 2004, 06:43 PM

I disagree. It should be fixed up and left as a colossal landmark.

geoff_diamond

July 21st, 2004, 02:55 AM

Umm... there's nothing colossal about the apparel center? It's just a mid-sized brutalist piece of crap severely lacking in windows. Given how prime of a location it (and Wolf Point) occupies, the sooner it could be taken down, the better.

manylander

July 26th, 2004, 11:50 PM

Apparel center is as terrible looking as the Sun-Times building. Only, unfortunately higher. I'd like to see it gone but it's highly doubtable.
Can't wait for the Trump Tower to rise and hide that ugly architectural midget behind its beautiful bulk.

BTW, I work at the loop and there is still absolutely no activity going on at the future site. Can anybody brief me on the latest on this issue?
Thanks...

Go BEARS!

simulcra

July 27th, 2004, 04:01 AM

Nothing much should be happening till destruction in October, right?

Rivernorth

July 27th, 2004, 08:54 AM

There are talks of recladding the Apparel Center with a glass curtain wall. Chances are, eventually it will happen. Or something will be built on the Wolf Point parking lot. Either way, its all good :)

manylander

July 27th, 2004, 05:48 PM

Simulcra,
So come October, good bye Sun-Times building? This is the date I was looking for. Thanks. I hope they'll be on schedule and we won't go through the Millenium Park syndrome again.

L A T E R

geoff_diamond

July 29th, 2004, 04:24 AM

I think it's just a matter of the Sun-Times packing their bags at this point. As soon as they're out, the building should start coming down. I'm guessing demo's going to take a while though because I'm guessing it will all have to be done by hand.

Rivernorth: I sure hope you're right about the Apparel Center. I've got to side with you, though, in thinking that with all the improvements along the river lately, it's only a matter of time before they fix it up (or even better, tear it down).

Steeltrees

July 29th, 2004, 05:33 AM

I disagree. It should be fixed up and left as a colossal landmark.

Apparel Center is an exquisite example of smut. I could be wrong, but I'm assuming one of two things:

1.) Smiley is mistakenly referring to Merchandise Mart

or

2.) He has no idea what he's talking about

(I'm putting more weight on the first one)

simulcra

July 29th, 2004, 05:35 AM

goeff: why will the demo be done by hand? Can't they just do implosions?

Wu-Gambino

July 29th, 2004, 05:36 AM

^ I doubt it, it might do some damage to the Wrigley, IBM, or Tribune Tower. Plus, it would get into the River.

BVictor1

July 30th, 2004, 01:19 AM

I am going to guesstimate that demolition is going to take at least 6 months. There will probably have to be some asbestos removal first, seeing as the building is 50 years old. But what they could do is pull a couple of barges up along the building to help take away demolition debris and to bring in construction material. This process would certainly help ease congestion in the area.

Any way, I just came from visiting the sales center for Trump Tower, to get an update;b here it is:

Of the 461 condominiums, about 71% are sold or have contracts. That means about 325 units have been sold, and there are only about 136 units remaining.

Out of the 200 hotel suites, about 75% have been purchased or have contracts. So that means that about 150 have been sold, and there are approximaataely 50 hotel suites remaining

There are still some availiable north facing studio units.

The sales agent also told me that the demolition permits have already been lined up, and as soon as the Sun-Times and Hollinger International leave at the end of September, demolition SHOULD start.

He also told me that financing for the building has already been lined up, and that it just needs to be announced.

robhut

July 30th, 2004, 05:41 PM

Is there a web site to check out Trump tower like Watertowerview has?

Tom in Chicago

July 30th, 2004, 07:59 PM

http://www.trumpchicago.com

geoff_diamond

July 31st, 2004, 07:43 AM

simulcra - I am actually more concerned about the slurry wall that holds back the river than I am about neighboring buildings. They have implosions down to such a science that I don't doubt for a minute that they could successfully raze the Times without damaging its neighbors, but, there's no way they could do it without flooding every basement in River North.

manylander

August 3rd, 2004, 09:40 PM

BVictor, thanks for the update. It is better to hear from a real mouth than word of mouth. Now things are more settled in my mind.

Tom in Chicago, thanks for the URL.

cya

manylander

Chi_Coruscant

August 6th, 2004, 01:37 AM

I think our beloved Da Mayor Daley should bulldoze the Apparel Center while we are asleep. (hint: Meigs Field)

:guns1:

geoff_diamond

August 6th, 2004, 07:39 AM

the only difference is... nobody would oppose this midnight massacre :)

CULWULLA

August 10th, 2004, 07:34 AM

hi there.
hey i was going to build a scale model of trump tower for my display at council and was wondering if this is latest desgn>
http://skyscraperpage.com/gallery/data/500/5298trump_chicago.jpg

i noticed it changed a bit from large B&W renders. is the spire height 405m?
does anyone know ehwere i can get a floor plan to make model?
cheers guys

geoff_diamond

August 12th, 2004, 03:03 AM

Glad to hear you're making a model of Trump!

1) yes, I believe 405m is to the tip of the spire, the roof is at 1125' (343m).

2) here's a link to the last site plan I've seen (no floorplans though): http://www.emporis.com/en/il/im/?id=154075

3) there's also a stacking plan available at trumpchicago.com, but, I doubt this will be of much use.

Good luck and be sure to come back and show us pictures of how it turned out!!!

robhut

August 12th, 2004, 01:23 PM

Thanks Tom in Chicago for the web site.

BVictor1

August 17th, 2004, 05:33 PM

^If you want to get some floor plans of the building and its units, I suggest that you visit the sales center (if possible) which is located in the Sun-Times Building. You can ask for a sales packet which has floorplans. I believe that there are also some floor plans availiable on the website.

geoff_diamond

August 18th, 2004, 06:08 AM

There are, indeed, floorplans shown on the web site... but, to the best of my understanding, you can only view the plans for remaining units (which are sparse). The best bet would probably be, as Bvic mentioned, to visit the sales center, let them know what you're doing, and see what they can give you to help out.

New Jack City

September 6th, 2004, 05:28 PM

Is it me, or has the top been altered again looking at the renderings on the SOM website?

http://www.som.com/resources/projects/4/9/4/trump_river_04_15_04a_494.jpg

edsg25

September 6th, 2004, 06:41 PM

savethewtc, i believe that picture has been out there for awhile, so,no, i don't believe you are seeing something new.

but i've got to wonder: with fears of height fading the further we get from 9-11, what are the chances that trump will go up above its announced height?

I have to wonder if it is too late to do so now, if the city would approve, and how many more high priced condos in the city could the market handle (feeling fairly certain nobody is going to resurrect the office portion that was supposed to be there).

is anyoe aware if any of these ideas are floating out there or can we pretty well expect down goes the S-T and up goes Trump as planned?

geoff_diamond

September 7th, 2004, 05:10 PM

My parents were in town for the holiday, and naturally, I had to take them on a river-tour. At one point during the tour, the guide began talking about Trump and the ST, and said that demolition on the ST was slated to begin September 25! Now, where he got this date, and whether he should be trusted remains to be seen... but, just thought I would share the very latest information I had heard :)

The Urban Politician

September 7th, 2004, 07:52 PM

Nice news, GD!

geoff_diamond

September 8th, 2004, 12:16 AM

now let's just hope it's true :P

simulcra

September 8th, 2004, 05:27 AM

September 25th = raucous celebration!!! That should be a day after I return to chitown, so I'll probably be throwing a big bash in my dorm to celebrate!

24gotham

September 10th, 2004, 08:15 PM

Did any one notice on the intro to the Apprentice last night that Trump spoke of his former winner Bill Rancic, and then showed him on a construction site as though he was working on Trumps building here in Chicago? Way out of context, and definately not reality.....

simulcra

September 11th, 2004, 01:04 AM

I wonder what Rancic actually is doing...

TPX

September 11th, 2004, 04:47 PM

yes, ive wondered that as wel... and didnt he make more money as a cigar sellsman than working with trump?

BVictor1

September 11th, 2004, 06:08 PM

Scoopsville . . .

September 10, 2004

BY MICHAEL SNEED SUN-TIMES COLUMNIST

It's gonna be pizzazz and all that jazz.

Sneed hears real estate mogul Donald Trump plans to say bye-bye to the Chicago Sun-Times building in a big way.

In fact, his demolition "party" could make television history.

"It's gonna be big. It's gonna be sensational, but we can't implode the building," a Trump source said. "But Trump has a flair for the dramatic and is going to create a send-off in a big way."

Could this be a party to end all parties? Could this be akin to the destruction of the "Bartman Ball?"

Sneed is told Trump's favorite "Apprentice," Bill Rancic, who won his coveted job on Trump's popular TV show, will be on hand for the "party," which will take place some time in mid-October.

When Rancic was hired, he chose to work in Chicago on the new Trump International Hotel & Towers, which will be built on the Sun-Times site.

Trump officials are being hush-hush about how exactly they're going to tear down the building, but the event is expected to draw the rich and the famous as well as being part of Trump's show.

The 2.6 million-square-foot, 90-story tower -- which will have 461 residences in addition to 227 hotel condos, a health club and spa, two ballrooms, a conference center, retail shops, more than 1,000 indoor parking spaces and a 1.2 acre riverwalk park -- is a far cry from the seven-story Sun-Times building, which was built in 1957 and has been called by some the ugliest structure in the city.

The Sun-Times is scheduled to move into its new headquarters, at the old Apparel Center, early next month.

Stay tuned for an update.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

We hadn't heard anything in a while, so this is promising news.

geoff_diamond

September 11th, 2004, 07:04 PM

woooooooooooooohaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!!

simulcra

September 11th, 2004, 07:59 PM

"It's gonna be big. It's gonna be sensational, but we can't implode the building,"

wow, they're going to explode the building! tourists on michigan avenue had better duck!

The Urban Politician

September 11th, 2004, 08:39 PM

They should helicopter the building into the air and drop it onto the Apparel Center

24gotham

September 11th, 2004, 08:45 PM

They should helicopter the building into the air and drop it onto the Apparel Center

I couldn't have put it better myself!

geoff_diamond

September 11th, 2004, 09:54 PM

ahahahha... two very ugly birds with one big brown stone!

BVictor1

September 12th, 2004, 05:24 PM

BLAIR KAMIN answers the burning question: Will Trump's tower happen?

BLAIR KAMIN
Published September 12, 2004

It seems odd that the most widely anticipated architectural event in Chicago this fall is not a new building, but a demolition. Yet such is the celebrity of Donald "You're Fired" Trump these days that the pending destruction of the barge like, seven-story Chicago Sun-Times building along the Chicago River, which is to make way for Trump's 90-story hotel-condominium tower, is sure to get a lot of attention, perhaps more than it deserves.

There are a lot of other significant projects opening this fall, in Chicago and around the nation. And while they lack the gloss of being associated with a hit TV show, they nonetheless will be worth examining, especially because of the impact they will have on such familiar buildings and places as New York's Museum of Modern Art, Frank Lloyd Wright's Robie House and the National Mall.

TRUMP INTERNATIONAL HOTEL AND TOWER: Is it really going to happen? Trump's people say "yes," beginning with the tearing down of the Sun-Times building at 401 N. Wabash Ave. They've hired a demolition firm, they say, and demolition work is scheduled to start between Oct. 1 and Oct. 15. The architect of the hotel-condominium tower, a glass-faced setback skyscraper, is Adrian Smith of the Chicago office of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, though Smith is get-ting considerably less airtime than Bill Rancic, the winner of the first "Apprentice" show. Rancic is working on the project as an "owner's representative."

simulcra

September 12th, 2004, 06:53 PM

they say, and demolition work is scheduled to start between Oct. 1 and Oct. 15.

Bah! I guess my celebration will have to wait.

Trances

September 12th, 2004, 08:45 PM

where is a photo of the current tower ?

Tom in Chicago

September 12th, 2004, 10:30 PM

this is it. . .
http://www.som.com/resources/projects/4/9/4/trump_river_04_15_04a_494.jpg

Trances

September 12th, 2004, 10:33 PM

sorry i ment the sun times that is on the block

Trances

September 12th, 2004, 10:39 PM

found it not my image btw
http://www.december.com/places/chi/images/suntimes.jpg

Dubai-Lover

September 12th, 2004, 11:32 PM

beautiful tower with a perfect location!!! must be a dream to walk on this promenade in 2007!!!

Tom in Chicago

September 13th, 2004, 01:41 AM

Trances. . . you said "tower". . . stop confusing me :)

BVictor1

September 18th, 2004, 09:47 PM

UPDATE!!!!!

I just spoke with a sales center representative for Trump Chicago. Sales have slowed down over the past month or so.

Out of the 461 condominiums, about 327, or 71% have contracts or have been sold.

Out of the 227 hotel/condo units, about 175, or 77% have contracts or have been sold.

The sales center will be moving out of the Sun Times Building by October 4th and relocating to the Bloomingdales Building on Michigan Avenue until a new sales center is completed.

The Chicago Sun Times has already started to move out of the building, and they should be done by the 2nd or 3rd week in October.

We might not see anything rising into the sky for 9 months to a year. They must demolish the preset building, interior first. They must do an environmental clean up of the site. Then they must do site prep work like keep the Chicago River form bursting into the site and re-work Wabash Avenue.

I haden't expected to call the salaes center, but I couldn't wait. I got too fucking impatient waiting for a response to my email.;) :nuts: :D

STR

September 19th, 2004, 03:43 AM

Is it me, or has the top been altered again looking at the renderings on the SOM website?

http://www.som.com/resources/projects/4/9/4/trump_river_04_15_04a_494.jpg

http://skyscraperpage.com/gallery/data/500/5298trump_chicago.jpg

It has been changed. Take a close look at the cylindrical antenna base. In savethewtc's post it sticks out less and has a slightly different facade.

SJM

September 21st, 2004, 12:58 AM

http://skyscraperpage.com/gallery/data/500/5298trump_chicago.jpg

Looks amazing!

Imperial Teen

September 28th, 2004, 05:37 AM

We have been promised demolition Oct 1- Oct 15. Has anyone seen a damn wrecking yet?

geoff_diamond

September 28th, 2004, 08:09 AM

A wrecking what? Ball?

I wouldn't expect to see much visible equipment on the site for some while. This thing's going to have to be taken down by hand... piece by piece. The only thing we may notice for months from the exterior is a few barges in the river to haul off the debris.

edsg25

September 28th, 2004, 01:09 PM

Question here:

balconies would have destroyed the architecture of this building and obviously the prestige and Trump name made sales a moot point. meanwhile a glass wall with a drop-dead view makes for a wonderful condo.

that said, do you think a lot of residents will regret not having a balcony? Isn't that one of the automatic amenities of today's luxury high rises? Unless I'm wrong, I can't think of any other recent very-high end project that does not include at least some units with balaconies. can anyone else?

another question: the bottom set-back in the tower will have an outdoor seating deck for what will be one of the city's top restaurants inside at the 16th level. does anyone know what will be on the other set-backs.

Imperial Teen

September 28th, 2004, 03:38 PM

Tom in Chicago

September 28th, 2004, 03:43 PM

the bottom set-back in the tower will have an outdoor seating deck for what will be one of the city's top restaurants inside at the 16th level. does anyone know what will be on the other set-backs.

Probably mechanical or structural transfer floors. . .

geoff_diamond

September 29th, 2004, 01:13 AM

edsg... no balconies on Millennium Center, River East Tower 1 (Holmes Place) or the Contemporaine. :)

BVictor1

September 30th, 2004, 06:32 PM

Yesterday, Wednesday September 29, 2004 I visited the sales center for Trump Tower Chicago, at the Sun-Times Building for the last time.

I was told by 2 security guards, 2 sales center workers, and a person who works for the Sun-Times, what workers for the paper should be out of the building by Friday, October 8th, 2004; which is next Friday. The sales center will be moving out this weekend, and into the Bloomingdale's Building on North Michigan.

I didn't ask about sales or anything else. Donald Trump should be coming to town within the next couple of weeks, didn't get the exact date.

Hope this puts a smile on someones face!!!:cool: :D :laugh: :) ;)

Steely Dan

September 30th, 2004, 06:45 PM

edsg... no balconies on Millennium Center, River East Tower 1 (Holmes Place) or the Contemporaine. :)

geoff, the contemporaine most definitely has balconies, they're one of the building's most prominent features, perhaps you were thinking of a different building?

geoff_diamond

October 1st, 2004, 02:14 AM

Well... it sure does. I wasn't thinking of another building... I think I just wasn't thinking. For some reason, when I pictured it in my head, I was just picturing a giant, uninterrupted curtain-wall. I'll double check some pictures before I open my mouth next time :)

zulu69

October 6th, 2004, 10:06 AM

One amazing looking building! Keep on building them chi-town!! ;)

BVictor1

October 8th, 2004, 09:59 PM

Sun-Times cracks open building's time capsule

October 8, 2004

BY SHAMUS TOOMEY Staff Reporter

The time capsule was built to last 18,000 years, but it didn't even make it to 50.

The Chicago Sun-Times on Thursday cut open a copper time capsule encased for decades -- and mostly forgotten -- in a wall at its soon-to-be-former home at 401 N. Wabash.

The capsule, a bit bigger than a shoebox, wasn't as empty as, say, Al Capone's vault. But its collection of old newspapers, audio recordings and microfilm left some wanting a bit more.

The story would have been different if more time had passed -- a note in the capsule boasted it could survive 18,000 years. But the Sun-Times Building, which began being built in 1955, is slated for demolition. It's to be replaced by a Donald Trump condo tower.

Workers will be relocated to the Apparel Center -- also on the Chicago River -- by this weekend, and newspaper executives decided to peek into the capsule after a hunt to find it.

"It really is recognizing the connection with the past, the connection with the great tradition of this newspaper," Publisher John Cruickshank said.

Building manager Bill Patterson, a Sun-Times employee since 1958, had a pretty good idea where to find the capsule, even though he could find no records of it.

Despite some speculation it was hidden behind a bronze plaque of former publisher Marshall Field III in the building's lobby, Patterson remembered it was behind a marble wall at the building's entrance -- right behind the 1958 dedication engraving.

Instead of smashing through the 2-1/2-inch thick marble, carpenter/maintenance man Jeremiah Scannel broke through a cinderblock wall inside the building and found the capsule, which was encased in brick.

With a row of TV cameras rolling, a throng of the newspaper's executives, reporters, press operators and sales reps crowded into a small room Thursday to see what their predecessors left behind.

After Scannel sawed through the copper with an electric saw, Cruickshank dug out the contents, including the first edition of the Chicago Sun, which Field launched in 1941. There was also an autographed copy of Field's book, Freedom is More Than a Word, microfilm copies of the first editions of the Sun, the Times and the Sun-Times and audio tapes of the speeches made at the building's groundbreaking luncheon.

There was also a 1958 Sun-Times marking the dedication of the Sun-Times Building.

"A vintage newspaper is always great reading," Editor in Chief Michael Cooke said. "But it would have been nice if Marshall Field had put in a bottle of nicely aged Scotch."

WHAT WAS INSIDE?

First edition of Chicago Sun, sold Dec. 4, 1941. The main headlines on the 2-cent paper were: "House Votes Strike Ban," and "Nazis Rush To Quell Serbians."

Reel-to-reel audio tape of speeches made at the building's groundbreaking luncheon, held Nov. 16, 1955, in the Red Lacquer Room of the Palmer House.

Sealed metal case holding microfilm of the first editions of the Chicago Sun, Chicago Times, Chicago Sun-Times and the stories written leading up to the opening of the Sun-Times Building.

Autographed copy of Marshall Field III's book: Freedom is More Than a Word.

Chicago Sun-Times edition marking the dedication of the Sun-Times Building. The Feb. 2, 1958, edition was autographed by Sun-Times employees.

BVictor1

October 8th, 2004, 10:02 PM

Jim Kirk

Sun-Times packs up for trip
As they move to new digs, paper's staffers hope for movement in talks

http://images.chicagotribune.com/media/photo/2004-01/11057573.jpg
Published October 8, 2004

Chicago Sun-Times columnist Mark Brown has seen a lot of characters walk in and out of the dumpy 47-year-old newsroom at 401 N. Wabash Ave.

There was the day in 1984, Brown recalls, when tabloid king Rupert Murdoch strode in and announced that he owned the paper.

Within months Brown watched a parade of key staffers, including Mike Royko, head for the exits. Friday all 185 Sun-Times staffers will be filing out for the last time.

They are moving to nicer space several blocks west near the Merchandise Mart to make way for a skyscraper to be built by Donald Trump. Still, Friday will be an emotional day at the Sun-Times.

And the first week in the new digs isn't expected to be any less dramatic.

Two key bargaining sessions are scheduled between the Chicago Newspaper Guild and management. If no contract is reached by Thursday, the union will most likely set a strike date for sometime in October.

With the sides far apart, there is much anger and anxiety in these talks, perhaps more than ever before.

Staffers feel they were pickpocketed by former Publisher David Radler and former Sun-Times parent company Chief Executive Conrad Black, the latest in a string of cost-cutting owners going back to Murdoch.

Before the last contract, Radler cried poor. In response, the union settled for one year without a raise, then 1 percent and 1.25 percent raises the next two years.

But a special committee of the Hollinger International Inc. board filed a report Aug. 31 claiming that Black and Radler skimmed 95 percent of the profits over seven years, or nearly $400 million.

To many staffers, the report only added to their anger and frustration.

"There are a lot of people who say, `Let's just go now,"' said Bob Mutter, co-chairman of the Guild at the Sun-Times. "We could, but it would hurt the paper. It would hurt us."

History at the Sun-Times suggests that the staff, which has dwindled by 70 people since 1994, will get to the edge. It's not unusual for staffers to put on their coats as if they are about to walk out, only to stay at their desks until a deal is reached.

This time the union is asking for a 7.5 percent wage increase in the first year and 5 percent in the next two years, down from the 9 percent it originally sought for the first year.

Management is now offering 2 percent increases the first two years and a 1.5 percent lift in the third year.

"The movement has been minimal and glacial," Mutter said of management's stance.

In addition, much of the goodwill that former co-editor John Cruickshank gained in taking over as publisher seems to have evaporated.

A big "Dear John" sign is posted in the newsroom, plastered with scathing letters to Cruickshank and management. The sign is expected to make the move to the new space, Guild members say.

Sun-Times executives say they're also carrying the impact of other contracts to the new newsroom. They have negotiated 2 percent increases with some of the paper's other unions, so they believe that offering anything sweeter to the Guild would set up the company for more labor problems.

"We are far apart, but we're going to make every effort to get there," said Ted Rilea, head of labor relations at the Sun-Times. "We want to reach a fair settlement with them, but we can't go and won't go [to 7.5 percent]."

When asked if Sun-Times management has contacted reporters at the Daily Southtown or its other papers to cross the picket line if need be, Rilea said: "We'd bring in who we need to get it done."

Meanwhile, Brown remains optimistic that talks will work out, he said as he headed back into the office Thursday to finish packing up 22 years worth of work and memories.

But at the same time, Brown, a member of the Guild, said he is prepared to walk if the union opts to strike.

The Guild isn't the only thing management at the paper has to contend with. It also is in talks with the Sun-Times' Teamsters truck drivers, whose contract is up Dec. 15.

Sun-Times' plan to advertisers: The Sun-Times has said it will make good on its promise to compensate advertisers for overstating its circulation dating back to 1996. But in a letter to advertisers, John Cruickshank, publisher of the Sun-Times and head of parent company Hollinger International Inc.'s Chicago Group, is being less than accommodating to those who were duped. He says advertisers will be compensated only back through 2001.

Tough luck trying to get money for the four years before then that the Sun-Times was also fudging the numbers. "We have chosen 2001 as the compensation starting point in order to expedite restitution, and because prior to then the average overstatement was approximately one percent," Cruickshank wrote.

Advertisers aren't given much of a choice in how to be compensated either. Cruickshank informed advertisers that 70 percent of the settlements would be in cash. The rest will be made up through "value-added options for future programs," much of which will be through make-good ads.

And if you expected to get an even return for the circulation going back to 2001, advertisers might be out of luck. "We have been advised that there is not a one-to-one relationship between circulation and advertising rates," Cruickshank wrote. "Other factors such as the level and growth of other advertising rates in the market play a strong role."

Sources say that the Sun-Times is using a sliding scale in order to compensate advertisers. And that scale is less than the percentage of the company's circulation that was overstated. For example, in the last year of the circulation scam, the Sun-Times overstated its circulation by 50,000 papers, or roughly 10 percent. Yet it's only offering a rebate of roughly 6 percent for that year, sources said.

A Hollinger spokeswoman wouldn't comment beyond the letter.

Quick hits: After 43 years in the public relations business, Herbert Rozoff is closing his firm of the same name Oct. 31. ... The Chicago Magazine Association renames its annual Vanguard Awards the Bill Harmon Awards, in honor of the Starcom USA/Leo Burnett media director who retired this year after 50 years. Receiving awards this year are Tom Bell, vice president/group director at OMD; Brenda Schieffert-Wise, consumer print strategist at Best Buy; and Brenda White, media director at Starcom. The luncheon will be held Oct. 18 at the Sheraton Chicago Hotel & Towers.

- - -

Contract details

Who's covered: 185 reporters, copy editors and other news staffers.

What the union wants: A 7.5 percent raise the first year, which began Oct. 1; raises of 5 percent for each of the next two years.

What the company has offered: A 2 percent raise the first year, 2 percent in the second year and 1.5 percent for the contract's final year.

Next steps: Union negotiators will meet with company representatives Tuesday and Wednesday.

Union members will meet Thursday and possibly set a strike date.

http://images.chicagotribune.com/media/photo/2004-10/14575880.jpg

geoff_diamond

October 9th, 2004, 07:29 PM

WOOOOOOHOOOOOO!!!!! Bring on the proverbial wrecking ball!!!!!!!

24gotham

October 10th, 2004, 04:34 AM

It's kinda sad, how the Sun Time's is going from one hideous buiding to another.....

geoff_diamond

October 10th, 2004, 08:17 AM

Well, nobody will argue that the Apparel Center is absolutely hideous. But, you've got to admit: the changes they've made to the base are a HUGE improvement.

24gotham

October 10th, 2004, 07:03 PM

I will agree that the changes are an impovement, but an improvement on what? The only thing that can save the building design wise, is to implode it and start over.
I don't know what kind of crack the architect, developer, and financers were smoking at the time of construction, but the Apparel Mart is a primary example of how bad a design can be.

TPX

October 13th, 2004, 12:34 AM

Well, nobody will argue that the Apparel Center is absolutely hideous. But, you've got to admit: the changes they've made to the base are a HUGE improvement.
i strongly disagree, the apparel center is just hideous. i think the sun times building has a little bit of architectural significants, but the apparel cente has none. the only thing that the app cen has is the skybridge desigded by Jahn.

geoff_diamond

October 13th, 2004, 06:39 AM

you don't even think what they've done helps somewhat? Sure, if you spraypaint a piece of shit, it's still a piece of shit, but, at least it's colorful, no? I'm just sayin'... they certainly couldn't have done anything to make it worse... and I think the stronger street-level presence they've given the building just served improve it ever so slightly.

simulcra

October 13th, 2004, 08:46 AM

but the apparel cente has none

au contraire, despite the fact that i agree that the apparel center is hideous, i would like to offer a contrary opinion and say it should actually be preserved.

why? it's a culmination of brutalist theory, sentiments about the technological implications of air-conditioning and lighting, a piece of architectural history, and a VALUABLE architectural lesson. It's a blight that all other buildings need to run from. You erase it, you erase more than just an ugly building, you lose the actual impact it symbolizes of widespread brutalism. Keep in mind that people didn't see much significance in buildins like Penn station. I feel that there is enough of an impact, even if the aesthetics are off, that it's better to outbuild it and whither its impact into the chicago urban fabric, than to completely erase it.

geoff_diamond

October 13th, 2004, 07:43 PM

I see no reason to knock it down when you've got a perfectly amazing piece of real-estate (Wolf Point) that, if occupied, would almost completely shield the most hideous of the AC's facades anyway.

BVictor1

October 15th, 2004, 04:24 PM

http://images.chicagotribune.com/media/thumbnails/blurb/2004-10/14656756.jpg

Closing by Trump expected on tower site

By Thomas A. Corfman
Tribune staff reporter
Published October 15, 2004

Donald Trump is expected to close Friday on the acquisition of the former home of the Chicago Sun-Times while he negotiates financing for his proposed riverfront skyscraper, including a construction loan of more than $600 million, one of the largest in the city's history.

The star of his own reality television show, Trump is also in the midst of negotiations on a massive financial restructuring of his namesake hotel and casino company.

He declined to comment on the status of the construction financing. But he expressed no doubt that he would arrange financing for the 90-story hotel and condominium tower, which would replace the prominent newspaper building at 401 N. Wabash Ave.

"I get everything financed. That's what I do for a living," said the chief executive of New York-based Trump Organization.

Trump said he has sales agreements worth more than $500 million for the condos and hotel-condo units, which are guestrooms owned by individuals.

To reserve a unit, Trump has been seeking deposits of 15 percent of the sales price. The project will have 461 condos and 200 hotel-condo units.

After 13 months of marketing, Trump International Hotel & Tower Chicago has shattered local records for sales velocity and prices for luxury projects.

Condo prices have exceeded $900 a square foot, while hotel-condo units cost nearly $1,100 a square foot, according to an analysis of 53 units by Appraisal Research Counselors, a residential consulting firm.

Trump's marketing firm recently put those units, including six hotel-condo units, on the Multiple Listing Service of Northern Illinois.

Local developers have not been able to ride on Trump's coattails, said Gail Lissner, vice president with Chicago-based Appraisal Research.

"He's kind of alone in his own little niche," she said.

In late June, Trump agreed to buy out his former joint venture partner in the project, Hollinger International Inc., the troubled parent of the Sun-Times, securing the deal with a $4 million down payment.

Trump, whose personal net worth has often been the subject of speculation, said he would not use a temporary loan to complete the $73 million deal.

"I'm just buying it with my own cash," he said.

The newspaper moved to its new offices at 350 N. Orleans St. Saturday. Chicago-based demolition firm Brandenburg Industrial Service Co. is expected to start work next week and is likely to start tearing down the seven-story structure in mid-November.

Construction had been planned to be completed by late 2007, but is likely to be pushed back until early 2008.

The potential sources of construction financing for the luxury hotel-condominium project have been the subject of widespread speculation within the real estate finance industry.

Trump has been seeking a construction loan of between $600 million and $650 million, which would be split up among a group of banks, sources said. Key to the deal would be a mezzanine loan, a form of financing similar to a second mortgage, which is riskier than a first-mortgage construction loan.

While construction loans typically charge around 5 percent, mezzanine loans can charge between 15 percent and 18 percent.

Even with such apparently strong sales, the scale of Trump's project would discourage many potential lenders, said Albert C. Hanna, chairman and president of Mid-North Financial Services Inc., a Chicago-based mortgage bank.

"To make that loan, you've got to have guts," Hanna said.

The Chicago tower is a separate venture from Trump's cash-strapped casino firm. Some analysts predicted Trump Hotels & Casino Resorts Inc. would be forced to file for bankruptcy after a restructuring deal collapsed three weeks ago. A private-equity fund managed by Credit Suisse First Boston had offered to invest $400 million in the company, which operates three Atlantic City casinos.

Trump has said he is continuing talks with bondholders while exploring taking the company private.

Copyright © 2004, Chicago Tribune

Here's The Progression of Designs

1999: Chicago architects OWP&P proposed this skyscraper, about 2,000 feet tall, to New York developer Donald Trump for the Chicago Sun-Times site, east of Marina City and the IBM Building. Trump instead chose another architect, Skidmore, Owings & Merrill of Chicago.
(OWP&P)
http://images.chicagotribune.com/media/photo/2004-05/12803583.jpg

DECEMBER 2001: The first version of Trump Tower Chicago is made public. It is sharply criticized as too bulky and a visual bore.
(Skidmore, Owings & Merrill)
http://images.chicagotribune.com/media/photo/2002-08/4061839.jpg

JULY 2002: Architect Adrian Smith of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill dramatically alters the original design, making it less a series of stacked boxes and more an essay in soaring verticality.
(Skidmore, Owings & Merrill)
http://images.chicagotribune.com/media/photo/2002-07/4048082.jpg

JULY 2002: Drawings show the tower's top with broadcast dishes.
(Skidmore, Owings & Merrill)
http://images.chicagotribune.com/media/photo/2004-05/12803906.jpg

JULY 2002: The 2002 design of Trump Tower Chicago, viewed looking south on North Wabash Avenue.
(Skidmore, Owings & Merrill)
http://images.chicagotribune.com/media/photo/2002-08/4061830.jpg

SEPTEMBER 2003: Adrian Smith of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill refined plans for the office-hotel-condominium tower to synthesize the vertical look of the 1920s with today's asymmetrical forms.
(Rendering courtesy of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill)
http://images.chicagotribune.com/media/photo/2004-05/12803682.jpg

SEPTEMBER 2003: A scale model of the 90-story structure is unveiled as Trump announced plans for condominiums, office space, a "condominium hotel," retail stores and restaurants.
(Tribune photo by Alex Garcia)
http://images.chicagotribune.com/media/photo/2004-05/12803719.jpg

MAY 2004: The revised design for Trump's Chicago Tower, again by Adrian Smith of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, represents an improvement over the stumplike top seen in drawings for the project last year.
(Skidmore, Owings & Merrill)
May 27, 2004
http://images.chicagotribune.com/media/photo/2004-05/12792044.jpg

MAY 2004: The new drawings eliminate tower broadcast equipment, making it possible that the project could be the nation's second tallest building.
(Skidmore, Owings & Merrill)
May 27, 2004
http://images.chicagotribune.com/media/photo/2004-05/12803887.jpg

SEPTEMBER 2004: A computer rendering from architect Skidmore, Owings & Merrill shows the Trump tower against the Chicago skyline.
http://images.chicagotribune.com/media/photo/2004-10/14657205.jpg

geoff_diamond

October 15th, 2004, 06:00 PM

Great pictures and a great article! I can't wait for demo to start on the Times!!!

BVictor1

October 16th, 2004, 02:12 AM

Trump closes Sun-Times deal

By Thomas A. Corfman
Tribune staff reporter
Published October 15, 2004, 5:30 PM CDT

Donald Trump and the parent company of the Chicago Sun-Times said today that the New York developer had completed his $73 million purchase of the newspaper's former home, as expected.

Trump plans to tear down the prominent building at 401 N. Wabash Ave. to make way for a luxury condominium and hotel skyscraper. The newspaper moved its offices to a new location at 350 N. Orleans St. last week.

The 90-story tower, designed by Skidmore Owings & Merrill LLP, would include 461 condominium units, 227 hotel rooms, a 60,000-square-foot health club, a 1,000-car garage and stores.

When the project was first announced, Trump and the Sun-Times' troubled parent company, Hollinger International Inc., had planned to be joint venture partners. But in late June, Trump agreed to buy out Hollinger.

Trump, whose personal net worth has often been the subject of speculation, said before the closing that he would not use a temporary loan to complete the $73 million deal.

"I'm just buying it with my own cash," he said.

Chicago-based demolition firm Brandenburg Industrial Service Co. is expected to start work on the site next week and is likely to start tearing down the seven-story Sun-Times building in mid-November.

Construction had been planned to be completed by late 2007, but is likely to be pushed back until early 2008.

The potential sources of construction financing for the luxury hotel-condominium project have been the subject of widespread speculation within the real estate finance industry.

Trump has been seeking a construction loan of between $600 million and $650 million, which would be split up among a group of banks, sources said. Key to the deal would be a mezzanine loan, a form of financing similar to a second mortgage, which is riskier than a first-mortgage construction loan.

While construction loans typically charge around 5 percent, mezzanine loans can charge between 15 percent and 18 percent.

Trump said he has sales agreements worth more than $500 million for the condos and hotel-condo units, which are guestrooms owned by individuals. To reserve a unit, Trump has been seeking deposits of 15 percent of the sales price.

Even with such apparently strong sales, the scale of Trump's project would discourage many potential lenders, said Albert C. Hanna, chairman and president of Mid-North Financial Services Inc., a Chicago-based mortgage bank.

"To make that loan, you've got to have guts," Hanna said.

Trump expressed no doubt that he would arrange the financing.

"I get everything financed. That's what I do for a living," said the chief executive of New York-based Trump Organization.

After 13 months of marketing, Trump International Hotel & Tower Chicago has shattered local records for sales velocity and prices for luxury projects.

Condo prices have exceeded $900 a square foot, while hotel-condo units cost nearly $1,100 a square foot, according to an analysis of 53 units by Appraisal Research Counselors, a residential consulting firm.

Trump's marketing firm recently put those units, including six hotel-condo units, on the Multiple Listing Service of Northern Illinois.

Local developers have not been able to ride on Trump's coattails, said Gail Lissner, vice president with Chicago-based Appraisal Research.

"He's kind of alone in his own little niche," she said.

The star of his own reality television show, Trump is also in the midst of negotiations on a massive financial restructuring of his namesake hotel and casino company.

Some analysts predicted Trump Hotels & Casino Resorts Inc. would be forced to file for bankruptcy after a restructuring deal collapsed three weeks ago. A private-equity fund managed by Credit Suisse First Boston had offered to invest $400 million in the company, which operates three Atlantic City casinos.

Trump has said he is continuing talks with bondholders while exploring taking the company private.

Copyright © 2004, Chicago Tribune

The Urban Politician

October 16th, 2004, 11:19 PM

I have just closed a deal. I now own one of the Trump Tower penthouses

24gotham

October 17th, 2004, 05:30 AM

So, when are ya movin back to Chi-town?

The Urban Politician

October 17th, 2004, 07:44 AM

Just kidding. I'm sure you guys aren't surprised.

I'm movin back to Chi-Town as soon as possible!

geoff_diamond

October 17th, 2004, 07:51 AM

How soon is soon? Chicago population 2.9something-or-other + 1.

The Urban Politician

October 17th, 2004, 06:04 PM

Minimum: 1 and a half or so years

More likely scenario: 5 years

But, possibly, NEVER :cry:

geoff_diamond

October 19th, 2004, 05:26 AM

Well that just sucks!!! What's the hold-up?

The Urban Politician

October 20th, 2004, 05:22 AM

Jobs. My job training is here in DC, then further training will be....well who knows?

Ultimately, I will have enough control over my career that I'll probably be able to come to Chicago--assuming nothing changes

BVictor1

October 20th, 2004, 06:23 AM

Tipsville . . .

October 19, 2004

BY MICHAEL SNEED SUN-TIMES COLUMNIST

The Trump Tower . . .

Listen up!

Here's a New Year's tip: Sneed hears the Chicago Sun-Times building on North Wabash is due to start coming down -- floor by floor -- on Jan. 3. (Demolition will take a few weeks.)

*The backshot: The building, now owned by New York real estate mogul Donald Trump, will NOT be imploded due to its location next to the Chicago River and the IBM building.

*The upshot: Stay tuned for news of the big Trump event, when "The Donald" heads to town to celebrate the birth of his Trump Tower on the footprint of the old Sun-Times.

geoff_diamond

October 20th, 2004, 08:04 AM

Good lord... January 3rd now!?!?!? WTF is taking so long!? Hollinger's got all their people out of there already, what are we waiting for!?

Tom in Chicago

October 20th, 2004, 03:03 PM

WTF is taking so long!? Hollinger's got all their people out of there already, what are we waiting for!?

-Garbage removal
-Asbesdos removal
-All associated city permits
-All associated legal red tape
-Contractor schedules

etc. . . etc. . . you've waited this long for it so what's a few more months???

geoff_diamond

October 21st, 2004, 06:05 PM

BAAAAAAAH!!!!!! That's like saying we've waited so many years for Block 37... what's another decade?

BVictor1

October 21st, 2004, 06:27 PM

BAAAAAAAH!!!!!! That's like saying we've waited so many years for Block 37... what's another decade?

Dude take a pill and chill. Technically speaking demolition has already started. Asbestos removal is a process of demolition. Would you rather they leave the asbestos, blow up the goddamn thing and everyone in a 5 block radius end up developing lung cancer? It's not like it's not going to happen.

And this ain't nothing like Block 37.

geoff_diamond

October 21st, 2004, 10:25 PM

No need to get testy because I'm excited and want to see the project moving forward. What makes you so sure they've even started asbestos removal?

BVictor1

October 22nd, 2004, 02:28 AM

Well when I went downtown last week I walked by the Sun-Times Building, and asked several of the people walking in and out of the building which included movers and security guards. They all told me the same thing that "demolition" of the building would begin sometime around Christmas, which is only about a week off from the January 4th date reported in the Sun-Times the other day. Those same workers told me that asbestos removal would begin "next week", and that was a week ago. That same information has been reported in the Sun-Times itself.

I didn't mean to jump on you, and I am just as excited as you are, but we also just need to be patient. Our impatience isn't going to make things go any faster.

BVictor1

October 22nd, 2004, 03:47 AM

Trumpsville . . .

October 21, 2004

BY MICHAEL SNEED SUN-TIMES COLUMNIST

Sneed hears "The Donald" is coming to town at high noon next Thursday to hammer the Chicago Sun-Times.

*Translation: Word is Donald Trump will "publicly commence a demolition" of the Sun-Times building at North Wabash Avenue and the river, which is in the footprint of his new Trump Tower.

*Further: Though the plan calls for the building to begin floor-by-floor demolition after the first of the year, Sneed hears Trump will use a "major vehicle" to take a big bite out of the side of the Sun-Times during his photo op. The building should be completely demolished by March 2005, and construction of the Trump Tower should be finished within the next three or four years.

*Stats: "No invitations are going to be issued," said a source. "But there will be a pre-announcement so press can cover the Trump event."

*Word is Carolyn Kepcher, "the Blonde" who is one of the two Trump aides who help the real estate mogul judge contestants on his hit NBC show "The Apprentice," will be there . . . as well as the "ultimate apprentice" Bill Rancic, who hails from Chicago and chose to head up the Trump enterprise here.

BVictor1

October 22nd, 2004, 03:48 PM

geoff_diamond

October 22nd, 2004, 06:59 PM

Yay! This is good news. I love Carolyn :)

Suburbanite

October 24th, 2004, 04:49 AM

Just out of curiosity, does anyone have any decent desktop pics of the Trump Tower renderings? Particularly the ones of it placed into the skyline. All the pics I have found are too small. :(

BVictor1

October 24th, 2004, 05:35 PM

This is about all that there is of skyline renderings.

http://images.chicagotribune.com/media/photo/2004-10/14657205.jpg

The Urban Politician

October 24th, 2004, 08:16 PM

^somebody should add Waterview Tower to that rendering

Suburbanite

October 24th, 2004, 08:27 PM

I already have have that one. I was just wondering if there were any bigger ones but I guess I will have to wait until it gets built. :soon: Thanks anyway! :)

BVictor1

October 27th, 2004, 10:27 PM

UPDATE

I called the sales center about 15 minutes ago. They said that sales have picked up a bit recently.

They are now at 77% TOTAL.
There are 461 condos and 227 hotel suites for a grand total of 688 units. That means that roughly 537 units are spoken for.

Now when I say sold, I don't mean reservations. For 77% of the units a NON-REFUNDABLE 20% deposit is placed on the unit and the contract has been signed. If the buyer pulls out of the deal bye-bye money.

I think this process helps to weed-out condo speculators.

They also confirmed that Donald Trump would be in town tomorrow to take that "symbolic" swing at the Chicago Sun-Times Building. They though couldn't pin-point a time.

geoff_diamond

October 28th, 2004, 06:17 AM

I AM SO TAKING THE DAY OFF SCHOOL!!! THIS SHIT SHOULD BE A CITY-WIDE HOLIDAY!!!!

All hail The Donald!!!

BVictor1

October 28th, 2004, 07:12 PM

Big names back Trump tower
Soros, Deutsche Bank said to be in on 90-story building

By Thomas A. Corfman
Tribune staff reporter
Published October 28, 2004

Donald Trump has lined up three New York hedge funds, including money from billionaire George Soros, to invest $160 million in his Chicago skyscraper, a key piece in perhaps the largest construction financing in the city's history, according to real estate sources and public documents.

Despite reports about the project's record-breaking sales, most of them from Trump himself, many Chicago real estate developers and lenders have expressed doubts about whether the 90-story tower would ever be built.

"It is such a huge project, and the prices he said he was getting were so outside the norm," said Robert Glickman, president and chief executive of Chicago-based Corus Bank.

"It was reasonable to say, `Is this real?'" he said.

Much of the skepticism springs from Trump's own hype. "Chicago developers are much less flamboyant," said Glickman.

The massive financing, which sources say also will include a $650 million construction loan from Deutsche Bank, should quell those doubts.

Trump flies to Chicago Thursday morning for a ceremonial demolition of the former home of the Chicago Sun-Times, 401 N. Wabash Ave., which will be replaced by his 2.5 million-square-foot tower. The demolition is expected to begin for real in January.

On Wednesday Trump declined to comment on the financing, emphasizing instead the luxury project's record-breaking sales.

The chief executive of New York-based Trump Organization said he has agreements to sell three-fourths of the 461 condominiums and 227 hotel-condo units for a combined $515 million.

"Nobody to my knowledge anywhere in the United States has ever sold more than $500 million worth of apartments prior to construction," he said. "It's a great tribute to Chicago, to the location and to a great design.

"And, I guess, to Trump, when you think of it," he added.

The investor trio is led by Fortress Investment Group LLC, according to a financing statement filed Oct. 19 with the Cook County recorder's office.

Fortress, which manages more than $10 billion in investments, is familiar with the downtown Chicago condominium market after providing a key $26 million loan on the River East mixed-use development last year.

The document does not identify the other participants, but a key member is Grove Capital LLP, according to sources familiar with the transaction.

The firm manages most of the multibillion-dollar real estate portfolio of the $13 billion Soros Fund Management, from which Grove Capital was spun off last month.

The third investor is Blackacre Institutional Capital Management LLC, the real estate arm of hedge fund Cerberus Capital Management LP, which manages assets totaling $14 billion.

Executives with the three hedge funds could not be reached for comment.

The $160 million investment is in the form of a mezzanine loan, a kind of second mortgage that typically charges a much higher interest rate than a first-mortgage construction loan.

Unlike the mezzanine loan, which has closed, terms of the $650 million construction loan have not yet been finalized, sources said.

Frankfurt, Germany-based Deutsche Bank, an active commercial real estate lender in the U.S., is expected to split up the loan with other banks.

Chicago developer Steven Fifield admits he was a "total skeptic" about the project, which initially included a large portion of office space.

But the elimination of the office space and the steadily climbing condo sales helped change Fifield's view about Trump's chances to get financing.

"I thought it was a given with the number of presales he had," said Fifield, president of Fifield Cos.

After 13 months of marketing, condo prices at Trump International Hotel & Tower Chicago have exceeded $900 a square foot, while hotel-condo units cost nearly $1,100 a square foot, according to an analysis of 53 units by Appraisal Research Counselors, a residential consulting firm.

Trump's marketing firm recently put those units, including six hotel-condo units, on the Multiple Listing Service of Northern Illinois.

Almost two weeks ago Trump completed a buyout of his former joint venture partner in the project, Hollinger International Inc., the troubled parent of the Sun-Times.

Although lining up the financing was a big step for Trump, he still has hurdles to overcome, including avoiding construction delays and cost overruns.

Still, he expressed no concern about the doubts harbored by some local real estate executives.

"It's a very expensive building to build because of the quality we are putting into it," he said. "So people of course would say, `Gee, that's a lot of money to raise.'

"But for me, it's not a lot of money. You understand," he said.
Copyright © 2004, Chicago Tribune

Noah

October 28th, 2004, 10:33 PM

So, did anyone get to actually see "The Donald" put on a hardhat and do his thing at the Sun-Times building today? I didn't get there until after he left and workers were busy cleaning up the remains of the entryway on Wabash.

Oh, I'm new to this forum, so "hi."

BVictor1

October 29th, 2004, 12:17 AM

By Thomas A. Corfman
Tribune staff reporter
Published October 28, 2004

http://images.chicagotribune.com/media/graphic/2004-10/14846719.jpg

Update: Donald Trump and Bill Rancic, winner of the NBC reality show, "The Apprentice," addressed a crowd gathered to view the ceremonial demolition of the former Sun-Times building Thursday afternoon. After they spoke, the front entrance of the building at 401 N. Wabash was torn down.

Here are some photos of today's events from the Chicago Tribune Website.

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Donald Trump gestures to the crowd before the ceremonial demolition of the former Chicago Sun-Times building.
(Tribune photo by Mary Ellen Moore)
October 28, 2004

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Chicagoan Bill Rancic, winner of the NBC reality show, "The Apprentice," smiles at his fans.
(Tribune photo by Mary Ellen Moore)
October 28, 2004

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Rancic tells the crowd about what it's like working for "The Donald."
(Tribune photo by Mary Ellen Moore)
October 28, 2004

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Trump talks up the new 2.5 million-square-foot tower that will replace the former Sun-Times building, and implores the crowd to tune in to "The Apprentice" on Thursday nights.
(Tribune photo by Mary Ellen Moore)
October 28, 2004

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WTMX-101.9 FM radio hosts Kathy Hart and Eric Ferguson prepare for an interview with "The Donald."
(Tribune photo by Mary Ellen Moore)
October 28, 2004

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Trump signs autographs on the Wabash Avenue bridge.
(Tribune photo by Mary Ellen Moore)
October 28, 2004

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A grapple begins demolishing the entrance of the building at 401 N. Wabash.
(Tribune photo by Mary Ellen Moore)
October 28, 2004

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The entrance of the building is dismantled while television cameras roll. A hard-hatted Trump stands in the background with his business associates.
(Tribune photo by Mary Ellen Moore)
October 28, 2004

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The demolition is supposed to begin for real in January.
(Tribune photo by Mary Ellen Moore)
October 28, 2004

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Traffic on Wabash returns to normal after the ceremonial demolition is complete.
(Tribune photo by Mary Ellen Moore)
October 28, 2004

mypetrobot

October 29th, 2004, 02:36 AM

yes. one step closer to construction.

RafflesCity

October 29th, 2004, 03:19 AM

so they ARE going to build it?

geoff_diamond

October 29th, 2004, 04:51 AM

Was there ever any doubt? This is so exciting :) This will be the biggest project I've witnessed in my lifetime... and it's unfolding before my eyes!

BVictor1

October 29th, 2004, 08:07 PM

Chicago Sun-Times

This Trump show is called 'Demolition'

October 29, 2004

BY DAVID ROEDER Business Reporter

Developer and promoter Donald Trump, who has written books about the art of the deal, tried out material for a new chapter Thursday.

Trump came to Chicago to ceremoniously begin the demolition of the old Chicago Sun-Times Building, 401 N. Wabash, which he will replace with a 90-story condo and hotel tower that is setting new highs in regional prices. The event proved that while Chicago has a contingent of big-name developers, only Trump can stop traffic.

With Bill Rancic, who with Trump has ridden the TV show "The Apprentice'' to national fame, in tow, Trump combined real estate with Hollywood. A crowd showed up for his outdoor news conference. Cell-phone cameras snapped, and TV crews scrambled.

All the developer superlatives were spoken. The new building will be the best, the greatest, the most.

And then Trump signaled for the business at hand to begin. A jaw-equipped excavator tore into the canopy in front of the building. The canopy succumbed stubbornly.

Rancic served as emcee. As the winner of the first season "Apprentice'' contest, Rancic was delegated to the project, although he admitted he's not in charge. "The show is called 'The Apprentice' and not 'The Expert,''' he said.

Introducing Trump to the crowd, Rancic said it's "remarkable how much he's taken me into his world.''

Thanking his real management team and an absent Mayor Daley, busy with "principal-for-a-day'' duties, Trump pledged to deliver the "best looking building'' and the "highest prices'' in the market.

The silver tower will be next to a new 1.2-acre riverfront park. He declined to discuss financing sources for the projected $650 million deal, but his staff said those negotiations are mostly complete.

Trump also wouldn't say if he's game for another venture in Chicago.

"This project is so big and so complex that I'm focused on this right now,'' he said.

TRUMP INTERNATIONAL HOTEL & TOWER

Location: 401 N. Wabash
Projected delivery: late 2007 or early 2008
Area: 2.6 million square feet
Height: about 1,125 feet with 90 stories
Residences: 461 super-luxury condominiums
Trump International Hotel: 227 condominium guest rooms and suites
Current prices: $636,000 to $16 million
Total sold: about 75 percent
Commercial development: health club, 1,150 parking spaces, retail space
Riverfront park: 1.2 acres with 500 lineal feet along Chicago River
Architects: Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP
Construction manager: Bovis Lend Lease Inc.
Residential marketing agent: Koenig & Strey GMAC Real Estate
Commercial marketing agent: U.S. Equities Realty LLC

BVictor1

October 29th, 2004, 08:09 PM

Come on down!

October 29, 2004

BY MICHAEL SNEED SUN-TIMES COLUMNIST

Real estate mogul Donald Trump got dusted and the old Sun-Times Building got "Trumped" Thursday.

*Translation: Trump, who plans to build a high-rise in the footprint of the old Sun-Times Building, gave the signal to a bulldozer to pull down its entrance canopy . . . and chirped: "How many guys would do something like this?"

*The aftermath: Minutes later, Trump brushed the demolition dust off the shoulders of his black cashmere coat . . . and gravitated to the press like a cricket to leaves.

*The question: Will Trump, who flew in and out of Chicago's Midway Airport Thursday morning on his private jet, become more of a presence in Chicago during the construction of the Trump Tower?

*The response: "I plan to," Trump told Sneed. (Now there's an answer.)

*The departure: As the terrifyingly tressed Trump entered his limo, I was struck by the fact "The Donald" never once fussed with his legendary strawberry blond cranial overhang and sidewings in the midst of a brief Chicago blow.

He didn't have to.

It was pasted like concrete to the side of his head in the form of a ski slick.

BVictor1

October 31st, 2004, 05:02 PM

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ARCHITECTURE

One Trump reality worthall the hype
Tower design -- not yet public -- an elegant giant

By Blair Kamin
Tribune architecture critic
Published October 31, 2004

Donald Trumps's 90-story hotel and condominium tower, which appears more real than ever after Thursday's ceremonial start of demolition on the Chicago Sun-Times Building, has more going for it than the hype associated with the reality TV show "The Apprentice."

It will be one of the tallest buildings erected in the United States since the 1970s, when Sears Tower and the now-destroyed World Trade Center in New York City rose to record-shattering heights.

And with key design details finally coming into focus, it looks to be a promising addition to the vaunted Chicago skyline, something few would have predicted in 2001 when Trump -- the prince of glitz -- announced he wanted to erect a supertall tower, perhaps the world's tallest, on the Sun-Times site.

To be sure, the tower, which will soar more than 700 feet higher than the nearby Wrigley Building, raises the specter of gigantism. Yet it shapes up as an elegant, even neighborly, giant, one whose shoulder- like setbacks, refined exterior walls and ground-level public spaces should distinguish it from the monolithic, anti-urban behemoths of the 1960s and 1970s.

Designed by Adrian Smith of the Chicago office of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, the same blue-chip firm that produced Sears Tower and the John Hancock Center, Trump's sleek 1,125-foot skyscraper will create a new center of gravity in a skyline that Sears, the Hancock and the Aon Center have dominated for decades.

Mayor Richard M. Daley still must give a final sign-off. Apparently fearful of alienating the powerful mayor, Trump's people refused to release the latest drawings for the skyscraper even though Smith showed them to the Tribune and Trump told the newspaper about the latest tweaks to the design, which include eliminating an antenna seen in earlier versions.

In some respects, the tower marks a throwback to the late 1960s and early 1970s, when the sky-high ambitions of American architects and developers seemed to match the country's desire to put a man on the moon.

While the riverfront skyscraper will be considerably shorter than Sears Tower (1,450 feet) and the planned 1,776-foot Freedom Tower at ground zero, it will reverse the trend that saw American developers shying away from supertall towers well before the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

Eight of the world's 10 tallest buildings are now in Asia, including the world's tallest, the 1,670-foot Taipei 101 in Taipei, Taiwan, according to the Chicago-based Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat, which monitors skyscraper construction worldwide.

The Asian ascent largely reflects the desire to erect grand symbols that put emerging economies on the map.

"When you get above 80-some-odd stories, the economics start to fall apart," said Seattle engineer Ron Klemencic, chairman of the Chicago-based Council on Tall Building and Urban Habitat, a group that monitors skyscrapers worldwide.

The chief reason: The elevators needed to move thousands of workers from the ground to their offices in the sky chew up so much potential floor area that the towers become unprofitable.

A tall residential building, on the other hand, requires considerably fewer elevators because it is not as densely packed with people as an office tower, Klemencic said. That means great height is not a major economic liability.

"A residential building is a different equation," said Carol Willis, director of the Skyscraper Museum in New York City.

Yet for Trump, whose name is practically synonymous with gaudy casinos and glitzy skyscrapers, the sticky question remains architectural, not just financial: Whether his Chicago project can live up to the towering standards of the city renowned as the birthplace of the skyscraper.

In that respect, the developer may have made his wisest move when he said, in effect, to Skidmore, Owings & Merrill: "You're hired."

The firm has long served as the architect of the corporate establishment, turning out such widely admired modernist structures as the Inland Steel Building in Chicago and Lever House in New York. Even its postmodern work, such as Smith's NBC Tower in Chicago, never lapsed into pastiche or excess.

After stumbling in late 2001 with a plan for a 78-story, 1,073-foot tower -- a skyline dud that resembled a bunch of boxes piled on top of one another -- Smith recovered in 2002 with a design that synthesized the graceful setback skyscrapers of the 1920s and the dynamic, asymmetrical forms of today.

It calls for a skyscraper that will step back at various heights to acknowledge the rooflines of such nearby structures as the Wrigley and IBM Buildings.

The setbacks should make the tower seem like a mountain that rises naturally from its foothills rather than a stark, stand-alone spike that arrogantly ignores its environs.

Since that shift, the main issue has been whether God would be in Smith's details -- and whether Trump would agree to pay for them.

Now the answers seem to be "yes" and "yes," though Trump's refusal to release the latest drawings gives him wiggle room to water down some impressive design details.

The drawings show that the tower's exterior curtain wall will have projecting, fin-shaped vertical elements, known as mullions, made of polished stainless steel. The mullions would catch the sunlight, making the tower seem light and silvery in contrast to the muscular black profiles of Sears and the Hancock. They also would accentuate the tower's verticality.

Though the tower will take away the prized swath of sky over the seven-story Sun-Times building, it also promises to give something back to the city, the drawings show: At ground level, its footprint actually will be smaller than the newspaper building.

It would offer walkways and landscaped open spaces along the river, including gardens, a fenced-in dog park and a performance stage. Nothing could be more different from Sears' plaza, which was fortresslike well before 9/11.

True, there are caveats.

The tower's elegant curtain wall and ground-level amenities could turn out to be the equivalent of a Trojan Horse, masking a skyscraper of overwhelming bulk.

But for now, at least, Trump's tower seems to be a big building and good architecture.

We'll know for sure once we see those drawings.

Copyright © 2004, Chicago Tribune