CHICAGO | Wolf Point | 950ft | 80 fl | 750ft | 60 fl | 525ft | 50 fl | Pro

[QuantumX]

Originally Posted by HomrQT

I hope not until some design revisions are made. We can do better than what's currently on the table.

If it doesn't work out that way, hopefully the completed project will turn out a lot better than you expected.

[honest86]

Originally Posted by McDude

Is this thing still alive? I am getting married at the Holiday Inn (above the Sun Times) next year. Is this going to ruin all the parking for my guest? As much as I would love this project to happen it has me a bit worried!

As a former resident of the neighborhood who lived a block away from the site I am going to say that even if that surface lot is gone when your guests arrive, there is still a ton of overnight and daytime parking in the area. The hotel and MM are practically surrounded with structured parking. I know for a fact that the residential parking for the building I lived in was less than 1/3 full every night.

[HomrQT]

Originally Posted by QuantumX

If it doesn't work out that way, hopefully the completed project will turn out a lot better than you expected.

The problem here is these are not bad designs, they just aren't up to par for what the site is. If these buildings were placed anywhere else in the city, they would be welcome with open arms. The real issue here is the location these buildings are set for. This is Wolf Point, a historically important site for the city of Chicago that also happens to be a very visually prominent site. This land parcel is essentially a stage that a huge amount of people are going to have a clear view to and as being such a visually prominent site, the project deserves a world class design which unfortunately this is not. These are glass buildings that would easily disappear into any other group of nondescript buildings.

[QuantumX]

Oh, I see! The site itself deserves better.

[stevevance]

Alderman Reilly just sent this email (11-27-12 14:17):

"Alderman Brendan Reilly today asked the Chicago Plan Commission to defer consideration of the Wolf Point development proposal and remove it from the agenda for today's Plan Commission Hearing. The Alderman announced his decision after receiving the final documents that would govern the planned development on Monday, less than 24 hours prior to today's hearing. Further, the final documents submitted to the city did not accurately reflect the significant changes to the proposal that the Alderman negotiated on behalf of his constituents in the River North and Fulton River District neighborhoods.

[snip]


At Alderman Reilly's request, the Chicago Plan Commission is deferring consideration of the Wolf Point proposal to allow additional time for public input regarding the "bulk table" that dictates programming and uses for the site. Although the item is being deferred, the Alderman said he believes all other major issues related to the project have been resolved relating to: architecture, the site plan, public open space and traffic management. He said he believes the last unresolved issue is the "bulk table" that provides specifics related to the breakdown and location of residential, hotel and office use on the site."

[HomrQT]

image hosted on flickr

Wolf Point Quick History by HomrQT, on Flickr

Thanks to http://friendsofwolfpoint.com/ for putting it together

[desertpunk]

Wolf Point Vote Could Come Next Week

A proposal to build three high-rises on Wolf Point could face a key test next Thursday, when the Chicago Plan Commission is set to review the project, which has drawn criticism from neighborhood residents and ambivalence from the area's alderman.

The development near the Merchandise Mart is on the commission's agenda for the third straight month. Ald. Brendan Reilly, 42nd, had pulled it off the agendas for the commission's November and December meetings. The tentative lineup for the Jan. 24 meeting includes the latest proposal from the project's developer, a venture led by Houston-based Hines Interests L.P. and the Kennedy family.

It's unclear whether Mr. Reilly supports the current proposal. According to long-running city tradition, aldermen must sign off on projects in their wards before developers seek city approval. Ellen Barry, leader of Friends of Wolf Point, a neighborhood group that opposes the development, said the alderman's chief of staff told her earlier this week that he “hasn't taken a position on it yet.” Mr. Reilly and his chief of staff could not be reached for comment Thursday. Late last year, Mr. Reilly said the project wasn't a done deal.

Hines and the Kennedys want to spend $1 billion on three towers on Wolf Point, starting with a 510-unit apartment building on the west end of the site.

After initially giving the project his blessing, Mr. Reilly twice postponed a Plan Commission vote on Wolf Point, objecting to what he said were last-minute changes by the development team, such as language allowing 1,800 hotel rooms on the property.

After the delays, Mr. Reilly organized a third community meeting in late December, where the developers promised additional community reviews of the project and said they would cap the number of hotel rooms at 450.

[...]
Read more: http://www.chicagorealestatedaily.co...#ixzz2IOlTLYGH
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[HomrQT]

Possible future view of Wolf Point.

[eagleguy]

Love it!!!!

[urbanlife78]

I am loving this project, it is good to see it is still moving forward. I am looking forward to seeing these towers rising on my future trips to Chicago.

[HomrQT]

They are not bad, but I wish more creative design went into them. Like this...



The site is so historic, so visually important, it deserves an award winning design. And the Kennedy's have the money/resources to make it happen.

[QuantumX]

I like what's planned better.

[HomrQT]

Originally Posted by QuantumX

I like what's planned better.

Fair enough, we each have our opinions. Are you fully satisfied with what's planned or do you think a better design could/should be implemented?

[QuantumX]

Originally Posted by HomrQT

Fair enough, we each have our opinions. Are you fully satisfied with what's planned or do you think a better design could/should be implemented?

I'm not fully satisfied with it, but at the same time, I don't have an example of what I think might work better either, so I really can't say, HomrQT. I'd have to see more examples.

[urbanlife78]

Originally Posted by HomrQT

Fair enough, we each have our opinions. Are you fully satisfied with what's planned or do you think a better design could/should be implemented?

I have to say that I like the towers because they seem to be very simple and elegant without being just boxy floor plates or cluttered with detail so that it clashes with the Merchandise Mart.

[CHI-SKY21]

I like them because they block out the Chicago Apparel Center. I have far bigger ideas for the property but all would need the Apperal Center to be torn down!

[HomrQT]

Originally Posted by CHI-SKY21

I like them because they block out the Chicago Apparel Center. I have far bigger ideas for the property but all would need the Apperal Center to be torn down!

The Apparel Mart is an abomination. Could you imagine if they tore it down and made the entire site the project?!

[3521usa]

Even better if a decade or so from now they'd knock it down and build a real supertall. Now that's a spot I wouldn't mind seeing a 2000 footer, dwarfing Wolf Point too.

[CHI-SKY21]

I just picture some supertall that tapers away from the river to a point, (white maybe) with a very large public plaza in front. Also i would redo/ add a riverwalk in front of the Merchandise Mart to bring it all together. To bad i dont have a few billion dollars !

[desertpunk]

West Tower will be first to go up at Wolf Point

In Chicago’s lexicon of TLA’s (three-letter acronyms), it’s not as commonly spoken as LSD, UIC, or ORD. But in architecture circles it may soon be as well-known as SOM, or SCB. It’s bKL, the shiny new architecture firm with shiny new offices, a shiny new staff, and a couple of shiny new buildings that are going to help put it on the map.

The big commission is none other than the west tower of Wolf Point (316 North Orleans Street), the billion-dollar development on the Chicago River’s most prominent spit of land. While local NIMBY’s continue to foam at the mouth about the destruction of a surface parking lot (and their views), the developers are pushing ahead. And the first of the three towers to be built was designed by bKL.

[...]