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CHICAGO | Salesforce Tower | 255m | 835ft | 60 fl | Com

107K views 311 replies 36 participants last post by  prageethSL 
#1 · (Edited)


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The tallest Wolf Point tower has seen a redesign that will take it into supertall status.

New Design For Wolf Point South, West Towers — Now With 53% More Awesome

July 12, 2015

Wolf Point West is making steady progress towards its final height along the edge of the Chicago River, rapidly obliterating the views of literally dozens of people on the other side of the river, sending property values plunging to near zero overnight, and forcing condo owners to eat Purina Cat Chow to make ends meet.

Meanwhile, up in Connecticut, starchitecture firm Pelli Clarke Pelli has been quietly revamping its plans for phases two and three of the Wolf Point project, coming up with a South Tower that is finally worthy of its prominent placement in downtown Chicago.

Some anonymous person dropped a rendering of the new building into our TIP LINE Saturday night, and the center (south) tower has gone from curved and reserved to rough and buff, puffing out its chest and telling the world, “Hey, look at me!”

By placing the new rendering in the Bat-Comparitor-o-Matic (results to the right, Boy Wonder), we can see that the new designs for the South and East towers are somewhat (south) and significantly (east) slimmer than before. Each appears to gain about two floors in height, though that could just be a rendering artifact or mechanical space. But the center tower, with its pointy pediment and needle is certainly taller than before.

[...]
Previous 950 ft. design:


http://arcchicago.blogspot.com/2013/01/hour-of-wolf-transformation-of-chicagos.html




Wolf Point Chicago thread: http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=1512123
 
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#32 ·
So the Salesforce sign will only be on one side facing East?
 
#35 ·
^^ Could not agree more with you. This site deserves and iconic, ground breaking, architecturally innovative masterpiece. This site is nothing less than the best remaining parcel along the river. A site deserving of a building that would be something to behold while taking those architectural river cruises down the river. But no. We get this glassy box. A box that would have been the "leading actor" in LA or Miami. But in Chicago it is just an "extra without a speaking role" standing in front of a star-filled crowd at the Oscar's lineup. just my two pennies worth.
 
#36 ·
You all are right that this tower really is a massive waste of an opportunity. Its great to see all these 200m+ towers going up along the river, but this spot really needed something that stands out. Anything short of 900 ft in that area will simply be swallowed up by the ~230m plateau thats gone up since the mid 2010s. This might not even be visible from the west facing the loop. The new 110 N Wacker Is almost as tall as this and it doesnt stand out at all.

The current construction boom in Chicago has been and continues to be amazing, but there arent many parts left in the Loop and immediate area that can provide a place for a tower to really stand out, and this was one of the absolute best ones.

Ten years ago, if you would have told me that there was an 835 ft tower being built in Chicago that was a waste of potential, Id have thought you were a goofball, but with how rapidly the skyline has changed since then, thats an actual possibility, and this development shows how.

At least the building isnt ugly, and I suppose it will increase the value of the few developable lots still left on the river. But man is this a disappointment. If it had just 5-6 more floors, it wouldnt be an icon, but it would actually stand out.

At least we still have One Chicago Square to look forward to, as far as "iconic" developments go. And there are many dozens of other exciting projects being built around the city, especially smaller scale highrises going up all over the West Loop. Chicago is in the midst of a truly historic building boom right now. The biggest in decades. Lets not let this one mediocre disappointment dull our excitement for that fact.
 
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